Ashley Jones Is Perfectly Normal

This film is relatable as it conveys a deep message about identity and individuality through a quirky story. From the whimsical music to the candid narration, Ashley Jones is Perfectly Normal contains a light hearted energy and a type of comedy that can be enjoyed by most. Having laugh-out-loud moments involving a predictable waiter to Ashley Jones tasking herself with obtaining numbers from party strangers, this movie can classify itself as positively playful. The characters are uniquely comedic as they cleverly represent what conformity looks like in today's society. To include, Ashley Jones is a breath of fresh air as it provides more representation by having a Japanese lead actress.

Ashley Jones is Perfectly Normal is a movie about accepting what makes you different and what others may see as flaws, and flourishing despite all of the obstacles that may arise because of those differences. The tasteful race humor and moments of elegant writing bring a relatability desperately needed for a film such as this to work. Despite stumbling through pacing and formatting at some points, Ashley Jones is Perfectly Normal manages to craft an enjoyable family experience that both entertains and presents an important theme.

We found this movie on Amazon streaming. The trailer looked very interesting. My wife lasted about 15 minutes, it was too quirky for her. I stuck with it and enjoyed it. Some scenes, like the table in the restaurant were perfectly symmetrical, the filming and some of the dialog reminded me of some scenes in Wes Anderson movies.

The star is Hana Yuka Sano as Ashley Jones, a perfectly normal California TV reporter, married to a perfectly normal man, every week for six years they ate at the same restaurant, seated at the same table, and he always had a tenderloin cooked medium with three potatoes. She always had pasta with marinara, no meatballs.

All this 'normalcy' (or is it 'normality'?) is to set up the rest of the movie. One morning Ashley wakes up without her usual California accent, instead she has a Japanese accent, for no reason. Things happen as a result, her husband leaves, her job is in jeopardy, she is self-conscious about her condition. (There is a real condition, 'foreign accent syndrome', commonly caused by a sudden damage to the brain.)

So the quirky story has one aim, that is to accept yourself and if life gives you surprises just go with them. I didn't have much success finding anything about Hana Yuka Sano but it appears that she is a Japanese-American actress, so her 'foreign' accent is probably pretty real. If you look closely at her mouth movements when speaking in California accent you see a slight lack of synchronization, and in the end credits, another voice actress is credited with Ashley's California accent. Clever film making.

I laughed a lot watching this film. I strongly recommend this film if you are looking for something new, original, and unique film.

The leas actress Hana Yuka Sano was believable and director Thomas Bangert and writer Kev Stock did a great job!

I disliked this film. I read a description of it prior to watching it but still did not get it even with these hints. Most of the acting was not good. The lead actress was okay. I wonder whether I am unsophisticated or something when others lauded this film and I hated it. It is like someone gushing over a piece of abstract art because others gushed. I will gush if I am moved, however, there was no movement here. Finally, I don't get the significance of the 500,000 year old woman or the Japanese accent malady to the plot. Too weird.