Americanese
AMG AllMovie Guide:
Top
Americanese
Plot
Writer-director Eric Byler adapted his ensemble comedy drama Americanese from Shawn Wong's best-selling 1995 novel, American Knees. The film, like the novel, dramatizes the seriocomic day-to-day experiences of a number of Asian American immigrants in the City of Angels. At the story's center is milquetoast-dull, middle-aged college professor and divorcé Raymond Ding (Chris Tashima) -- so ineffectual that he barely seems to have control over the events that befall him, and so emotionally distant in his relationship with his live-in lover, the Japanese-American photojournalist Aurora (Allison Sie), that his inaccessibility destroys their union. Forced to move out of their house, Raymond instead rooms with his aging father, Wood (Sab Shimono), making periodic, unannounced visits back to Aurora's home when she is absent. While Aurora kindles her own romance with American Steve (Ben Shenkman), Raymond moves into his own apartment and takes up with Vietnamese-American Betty (Joan Chen) -- a university associate plagued by deep-seated emotional and mental problems. ~ Nathan Southern, RoviCast
- Chris Tashima - Raymond Ding
- Allison Sie - Aurora Crane
- Kelly Hu - Brenda Nishitani
- Ben Shenkman - Steve
- Joan Chen - Betty Nguyen
Credit
Julia Kim - Casting, Jeanette Fuller - Costume Designer, Ken Wada - First Assistant Director, Eric Byler - Director, Kenn Kashima - Editor, Allison Sie - Executive Producer, Michael Brook - Composer (Music Score), Brooke Dammkoehler - Musical Direction/Supervision, Ben Woolverton - Production Designer, Robert Humphreys - Cinematographer, Stacy Toyama - Cinematographer, Lisa Onodera - Producer, John Davis - Sound/Sound Designer, Eric Byler - Screenwriter, Laura Evans - Set Decorator, Shawn Wong - Book Author| Americana: When We Farmed with Horses (1994 Film), Americana: The Last Pony Mine (1994 Film) | |
| Americanizing Shelley (2007 Film), Americano (2005 Film) |
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
Top
Americanese
 |
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2008) |
| Americanese | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Eric Byler |
| Produced by | Lisa Onodera |
| Written by | Eric Byler Based on the novel "American Knees" by Shawn Wong |
| Starring | Chris Tashima Allison Sie Kelly Hu Ben Shenkman Autumn Reeser Joan Chen |
| Music by | Michael Brook |
| Cinematography | Rob Humphreys Stacy Toyama |
| Editing by | Kenn Kashima |
| Distributed by | IFC First Take |
| Running time | 110 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Americanese is a 2006 American independent film acquired by IFC Films but not yet released. It is a romantic drama about the break-up of a couple, about love and memory, and how race plays into the lives of contemporary Asian Americans and Hapa/mixed-race Americans.
|
Contents
|
Background
The film was written and directed by Eric Byler, adapted from the novel, "American Knees," by Shawn Wong. It was produced by Lisa Onodera, who optioned the book when it was first published in 1995. The film had its world premiere at the South by Southwest Film Festival (SXSW) in 2006, where it won the Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature and a Special Jury Prize for Outstanding Ensemble Cast.[1] Film critic Roger Ebert gave the film 3½ stars,[2] calling it "...uncommonly absorbing." In October 2006, IFC Films acquired the film for distribution, under their IFC First Take distribution arm,[3] which will release the film on a "day-and-date" platform, which will include a limited theatrical release accompanied simultaneously with a video on demand (VOD) broadcast premiere on Comcast cable.
Plot
Raymond Ding, a middle-aged Chinese American college professor, and Aurora Crane, his younger Hapa (half-Asian) girlfriend, have just split, but continue to drift in and out of each other's lives. Unable to fully let go, Raymond visits the apartment they once shared, during the day while Aurora is away. Aurora is haunted by flashbacks of moments from their relationship. Encouraged by their best friends to move on, Raymond and Aurora each begin new relationships. Aurora dates Steve, a Caucasian man closer to her age (and also her best friend's ex). Raymond dates Betty, a Vietnamese American colleague, whom he soon discovers is haunted by her own past. Race and identity issues begin to surface as Raymond and Aurora try to start new lives, but remain drawn to their past.
Cast
- Chris Tashima as Raymond Ding
- Allison Sie as Aurora Crane
- Joan Chen as Betty Nguyen
- Kelly Hu as Brenda Nishitani
- Ben Shenkman as Steve
- Sab Shimono as Wood Ding
- Michael Paul Chan as Jimmy Chan
- Autumn Reeser as Sylvia
- Ryan Cutrona as Hank Crane
- Takayo Fischer as Keiko Crane
- Annie Katsura Rollins as Julia Crane
- Greg Watanabe as Young Wood
- Stephen Bishop as Miles
- Munda Razooki as Test Driver #1
- Nathaniel H. Taylor as Test Driver #2
- Tyler Hori as Little Raymond
- Michael Potter as University Administrator
- Carol Saraceno as Woman with Dog
- Yuri Treschuck as Amerasian Youth at Bus Stop
- Jen Brown as Rumana
- Kayvon Esmaili as Brenda's Boyfriend at Party
- Teddy Chen Culver as Rumana's Boyfriend
- Pearl Wong as Helen Ding
- Amanda Fuller as Holly (deleted scene)
Film festivals
2006
- South by Southwest Film Festial, in competition – Austin, TX[1]
- 24th San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, Opening Night film – San Francisco, CA
- 11th Chicago Asian American Showcase, Opening Night film – Chicago, IL
- 22nd VC FilmFest, Closing Night film – Los Angeles, CA
- 9th Aurora Asian Film Festival, Opening Night film – Aurora, CO
- 32nd Seattle International Film Festival – Seattle, WA
- 7th DC Asian Pacific American Film Festival, Opening Night film – Washington, DC
- 14th Hamptons International Film Festival, in competition – East Hampton, NY
- 26th Hawaii International Film Festival – Honolulu, HI
- 29th Denver Film Festival – Denver, CO
2007
- 9th Wisconsin Film Festival, Diaspora Melancholy: Asian American Films, co-presented by the Asian American Studies Program, University of Wisconsin–Madison – Madison, WI
Awards
- Audience Award – Best Narrative Feature – SXSW[1]
- Special Jury Prize – Outstanding Ensemble Cast – SXSW[1]
- Golden Space Needle Audience Award – Best Actor, 2nd Runner-Up (Chris Tashima) – Seattle International Film Festival[4]
References
- ^ a b c d Americanese wins at SXSW on IndieWire
- ^ Ebert reviews Americanese in Chicago Sun-Times
- ^ Americanese acquired by IFC on IndieWire
- ^ 2006 SIFF Award winners on Alternative Film Guide
External links
- Official website
- Americanese at the Internet Movie Database
- Roger Ebert review at Chicago Sun-Times
- in-depth critique by Stewart David Ikeda on IMDiversity.com
- Shawn Wong and Eric Byler discuss "Americanese" on IMDiversity.com
- Shawn Wong discusses "American Knees" becoming a movie, at Rainbow Bookfest (minority authors) in Northwest Asian Weekly
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:
Copyrights:
TV listings
Copyright © 2012 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Movie Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.
Read more
