Year of the Fish

Remember the bad old days, before Asian American cinema, when we had to rely on Hollywood hacks to tell our stories, those bleak, desperate times? Well, they're back. (Not that Wayne Wang could've done any better with this thing) The rotoscope effect, fairly well done, is good at obscuring the parade of ridiculous stereotypes and clichés. This a rare chance for Asian American talent to flex their acting chops a bit though to what end? Tsai Chin, who used to play the Oriental sex kitten parts back in the 60's is effective as the impossibly heartless madam at the massage parlor where the lead character (An Nguyen) finds herself. This entire sequence of events seems like a direct steal from the 1950 Mexican melodrama Aventurera, also depicting a trapped innocent in the big city.

In a variation on the fairy tale, this Cinderella has a mean "me-love you-long-time" massage sister and one nice one (played by the lovely Corrine Hong Yu) who eventually helps save the day. Rounding out the cast is Ken Leung as Johnny, an assimilated Chinese American with an engaging East Coast vibe.(Sammy Fong redux?) Oh, yeah, he just happens to play the accordion like Astor Piazzolla. What's not to like?