There's More Than Just the Joy Luck Club
December 20, 2019 7:51 PM   Subscribe

 
For anyone interested in hearing more about the list, Brian Hu (the writer of the article) was the guest on a recent episode of the podcast "They Call Us Bruce" hosted by Jeff Yang and Phil Yu (aka Angry Asian Man):
On this episode, we welcome Brian Hu, artistic director of the San Diego Asian Film Festival, to talk about the list of the 20 best Asian American films of the last 20 years he helped curate for the Los Angeles Times. We discuss the challenges and considerations of creating an Asian American film canon. Film geekery ensues.
posted by rangefinder 1.4 at 8:41 PM on December 20, 2019 [4 favorites]


(also meant to mention that Jeff Yang and Phil Yu were participants of the voting panel)
posted by rangefinder 1.4 at 8:46 PM on December 20, 2019


OMG Searching!!!!! That is probably the most underrated film of 2018 if not the entire decade. I could not believe how effectively they wound up the tension in that one. They also found entirely new ways to use devices as part of the storytelling that I would never have thought of. If you watch only one film on this list, make it Searching. (But don't watch just one film on this list!)
posted by rednikki at 9:50 PM on December 20, 2019 [3 favorites]


Saving Face and Searching are on here so I'm essentially satisfied, but I gotta stump for Pushing Hands as a movie told from a first-generation perspective to complement the mostly second-gen ones on this list.
posted by storytam at 11:42 PM on December 20, 2019


Oh wait I spoke too soon! Always Be My Maybe is not on there so throw the whole list out. This is the movie that gave us three (three!!) original Randall Park/Hello Peril songs and three Asian-American love interests for Ali Wong. It's the movie that reminded everyone Keanu's Asian and gave us an Asian dad dancing while his son smokes weed. Nowhere else has chill Cali Asian-ness been so well-represented.

I also have to make the case for Harold and Kumar, Asian-American underachiever icons and a true example of South Asian/East Asian solidarity.
posted by storytam at 11:46 PM on December 20, 2019 [5 favorites]


John Cho, who I love, is in a couple of those movies. Some great films to watch over my holiday.

Last evening, I watched Colma - I had bought it last week. It was wonderful.
posted by james33 at 6:10 AM on December 21, 2019


an Asian dad dancing while his son smokes weed.

AHH I THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO THOUGHT THAT WAS A TRUE WATERSHED MOMENT FOR ASIAN AMERICAN REPRESENTATION. Love it.

When we were talking about CRA there would always be that moment where we would go "But what about...?" and name one of the movies on this list. It's great to see them all together and realize that Asian Americans have been here all along.

Two that weren't mentioned: Finishing the Game (hilarious) and Picture Bride (makes me sob). Oh, and I spy one of my college professors in the directors of the extended list at the end. :)
posted by sunset in snow country at 10:18 AM on December 21, 2019 [1 favorite]


The list is for films "directed by and prominently featuring Asian Americans", so I think Harold and Kumar (dir. Danny Leiner) doesn't qualify. That may also disqualify Always Be My Maybe since Nahnatchka Khan is Iranian-American.
posted by parallellines at 10:32 AM on December 21, 2019


That may also disqualify Always Be My Maybe since Nahnatchka Khan is Iranian-American.

Iran is in Asia.
posted by praiseb at 11:57 AM on December 21, 2019 [2 favorites]


a really dismal state of affairs for asian-american rep if Tokyo Drift is one of the movies on a Top 20 list 🙄
posted by picklenickle at 7:58 PM on December 21, 2019


Anyone else somewhat disappointed by The Farewell? Maybe I had too high expectations going in, but I found it to be.....lacking somehow. I felt I didn't really know those characters.
posted by storybored at 8:33 PM on December 22, 2019


Tokyo Drift at spot 20 is just right, though. Is it a good film? Not really. Is it influential to a whole group of next-gen Asian Americans and giving us some much needed representation? Definitely.
posted by numaner at 11:49 AM on December 23, 2019 [1 favorite]


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