Chan Is Missing

Two cabbies search San Francisco's Chinatown for a mysterious character who has disappeared with their $4000. Their quest leads them on a humorous, if mundane, journey which illuminates the many problems experienced by Chinese-Americans trying to assimilate into contemporary American society.

It is widely recognized as the first Asian-American feature narrative film to gain both theatrical distribution and critical acclaim outside of the Asian American community. And come to think of it, this seems right -- where are all the "Asian" films? We have plenty of kung fu imports, but where are the home-grown efforts? Where is the Asian equivalent of a "blaxploitation" subgenre? Anyway, this is a fun film that blends mystery, comedy and social commentary. I haven't had the pleasure to go to San Francisco or its Chinatown, but films like this make it all the more appealing.

Just watched the DVD, and Chan is Missing remains the one-off film it's always been - just a terrific little film. If people think the pap they call independent film today is anything but lower-budgeted mainstream film-making by people looking to get deals with majors, well, they should check out some real indy films. Thanks to companies like Miramax and Focus and others, there is no true independent film market anymore.

And a not to "laursene" - you give Chan Is Missing a pretty nice "review" or whatever one calls these amateur writings, and yet you give it one star. Brilliant. And the "novelty" song "probably from the 30s" is I Enjoy Being A Girl by Rodgers and Hammerstein, from their musical Flower Drum Song, which was hardly written in the 30s. 1957 or '58 if I recall correctly.

A thought that pinged in my head like when you get an important text alert: Money isn't real. People and communities are. Wang uses a mystery/searching clothesline to hang a character study that plays largely like a documentary about Identity, how citizens of Chinatown see themselves, how they fit in, what that question even means about why they should, and ultimately being American in a land where that term should be all inclusive but in practice it is not the case (and of course how other local politicians and how Chinese Americans can be split among themselves as well.

You should know that before you start watching that it is intentionally low key and yet that doesn't mean Wang doesn't care about where he puts the camera or how to create some striking lighting (and if sometimes it's basic rough hand-held, he and his team do well with the 16mm black and white). Importantly, Wang casts it well so these two men, Wood Moy and Mark Yaheshi, are a believable, not without friction couple of young-and-old misfits who have energies that compliment and contrast well; this is so hard to get right sometimes casting for a film that has to rest on them, many times (take it from another ragtag Independent filmmaker), especially since Wang intentionally makes it about the detours.

It's about all of the people and lives who would normally be peripheral figures in a more traditional mystery or Neo-Noir story, and while that makes some scenes a little longer or shaggier than we may be used to that is also what makes it special and more thoughtful. Chan is Missing is kind of an act of micro budget genre Smuggling, a story of a man who went missing with a stack of cash that is really about how two people talk to one another, about what's on their minds and simply what's going on in the world, and often that's something we don't get to see in American Cinema, Asian American or anyone.

In other words, maybe you won't get the Won Ton soup you ordered, but you will get a surpsising meal and just be thankful it isnt those words backwards (Not Now!) It also features a thrilling Michel Legrand score for a couple of minutes that shows what a filmmaker can do with the right music with the right suspicious-following car set piece.

This is the best depiction of cultural contact I have seen on film. The title points to several layers of meaning, some of which are missed by many viewers. Most obviously, this is a film about real Asian Americans, not the ersatz and offensive characters of the Charlie Chan films. That Chan is missing but not missed. At the same time, the film is a spoof of Charlie Chan films, with Jo the bumbling detective and Steve the number one son, in an outrageously profane update. Finally, the character in the film, Chan Hung, is missing, and his disappearance is symbolic of a passing that is to be mourned much more than the deservedly-forgotten Charlie Chan movies. Chan Hung is the original immigrant, who struggled to survive in his new country but could never shake his love of his original one. His missing image floats through the film like a lost soul, and adds poignance that helps to counterpoint the ribald comedy. Jo is the bridge, feeling Chan's loss, but fully rooted in America: an "ABC"--American Born Chinese. Steve is the impatient third generation, angry that the plight of the immigrants may overshadow the struggles that U.S.-born Asian Americans continue to face. The conclusion of the mystery is as inevitable as it is sad, but the spirit of the characters who inhabit this film is truly inspirational. One of a handful of films that define an essential part of the American experience.

This early Wayne Wang feature is made on a small budget and reflects it in many ways, both good and bad. It is totally original. The beginning is completely captivating as we follow the two cabbies' search for the missing Chan. But, the pacing and cinema verite style both become clumsy and tedious before we're halfway through. The cabbies are fun to watch, and there is an interesting twist in the end to reward those who can stay awake that long. I'd recommend his next movie, Dim Sum, much higher than Chan is Missing. Both provide marvelous views of Chinese San Francisco.