Shanghai Calling
Directed by Daniel Hsia
USA/China, 2012, 100 minutes
When: Wednesday, July 25, 2012 at 6:30pm
Where: Asia Society
Shanghai Calling will be the opening night selection of the Asian American International Film Festival tonight at 7:00pm. This New York City premiere will take place at Asia Society and will include a Q&A with the director and producer. The event is to begin at 6:30pm, with the film being shown at 7:00, followed by a gala reception at 9:30. (There will be an encore AAIFF NYC screening, also with a Q&A featuring the director and producer, on July 28, 2012 at 5:15pm at the Chelsea Clearview Cinemas.)
The film is a modern day romantic comedy set between two cities, New York & Shanghai. It's also a fish-out-of-water tale, or more specifically the story of a highly ambitious New York lawyer way out of his comfort zone.
Sam (Daniel Henney, the son of a Korean-American mother and a British American father) has just won a very important case and expects to be named a partner in the very upscale law firm where he works. Instead, he's "asked" to be a team player and go to China to head up the new office being opened in Shanghai, after which the question of his becoming a partner will be addressed. Clearly Sam's been picked because he's Chinese-American, even though he's has no real link other than genetics to his cultural heritage. He doesn't speak a word of Chinese in any of its dialects.
Since he has little choice if he wants to advance in the firm, Sam agrees to the assignment. He's greeted at the airport by Amanda (Eliza Coupe), a relocation specialist and one of many American expatriates in booming Shanghai. When a problem arises with the luxurious apartment she found for him, he rejects her advice to consider moving to another place, insisting that she set things right and solve the problem, something she knows is easy to say but nigh on impossible to do in Shanghai.
Sam also ignores the advice of his office assistant Fang Fang (actress Zhu Zhu), and as a result an incredibly important business deal is put into grave jeopardy. Sam has a hard time accepting the fact that the way he's used to getting things done in New York do not necessarily, in fact, most often do not, work in Shanghai. With his entire future on the line he realizes he must learn from others, including not only Amanda and Fang Fang, but also Donald (Bill Paxton), the mayor of the expat community, and "Awesome" Wang (Geng Le), a "problem solver."
Writer/director Daniel Hsia has done a remarkable job in this, his first feature-length film. Working with a large international cast -- all of whom are outstanding, from the leads through the various supporting actors and actresses -- he has crafted a funny, yet touching, look at an intriguing contemporary development in the world economy. And not to diminish his accomplishment in any way, due credit also must be given to producer Janet Yang, whose numerous credits include that of producer of The People vs. Larry Flint and executive producer of The Joy Luck Club. Her considerable experience, both in Hollywood and in China, enabled the USA/China co-production to go navigate the potentially devastating pitfalls of mainland China's rules and regulations.
Shanghai Calling is a stunning success that hopefully will reach huge audiences in both the United States and in China, as well as in other parts of the world. While its setting and circumstances are particular, its story has wide-spread appeal to audiences everywhere. The story, performances and production values are all top notch.
ACF rating: 4 out of 4 stars; outstanding!
And if you can't make it to the NYC screenings, the film will be released in movie theaters across China on August 10th! If that also is not doable, keep checking the official Shanghai Calling website for news about its U.S. theatrical release, which I'm confident will be forthcoming.
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| Sam (left) on the run with another expat |
Sam (Daniel Henney, the son of a Korean-American mother and a British American father) has just won a very important case and expects to be named a partner in the very upscale law firm where he works. Instead, he's "asked" to be a team player and go to China to head up the new office being opened in Shanghai, after which the question of his becoming a partner will be addressed. Clearly Sam's been picked because he's Chinese-American, even though he's has no real link other than genetics to his cultural heritage. He doesn't speak a word of Chinese in any of its dialects.
Since he has little choice if he wants to advance in the firm, Sam agrees to the assignment. He's greeted at the airport by Amanda (Eliza Coupe), a relocation specialist and one of many American expatriates in booming Shanghai. When a problem arises with the luxurious apartment she found for him, he rejects her advice to consider moving to another place, insisting that she set things right and solve the problem, something she knows is easy to say but nigh on impossible to do in Shanghai.
 |
| Fang Fang (actress Zhu Zhu) |
Sam also ignores the advice of his office assistant Fang Fang (actress Zhu Zhu), and as a result an incredibly important business deal is put into grave jeopardy. Sam has a hard time accepting the fact that the way he's used to getting things done in New York do not necessarily, in fact, most often do not, work in Shanghai. With his entire future on the line he realizes he must learn from others, including not only Amanda and Fang Fang, but also Donald (Bill Paxton), the mayor of the expat community, and "Awesome" Wang (Geng Le), a "problem solver."
Writer/director Daniel Hsia has done a remarkable job in this, his first feature-length film. Working with a large international cast -- all of whom are outstanding, from the leads through the various supporting actors and actresses -- he has crafted a funny, yet touching, look at an intriguing contemporary development in the world economy. And not to diminish his accomplishment in any way, due credit also must be given to producer Janet Yang, whose numerous credits include that of producer of The People vs. Larry Flint and executive producer of The Joy Luck Club. Her considerable experience, both in Hollywood and in China, enabled the USA/China co-production to go navigate the potentially devastating pitfalls of mainland China's rules and regulations.
 |
| Amanda and Sam, with Shanghai in the background |
Shanghai Calling is a stunning success that hopefully will reach huge audiences in both the United States and in China, as well as in other parts of the world. While its setting and circumstances are particular, its story has wide-spread appeal to audiences everywhere. The story, performances and production values are all top notch.
ACF rating: 4 out of 4 stars; outstanding!
And if you can't make it to the NYC screenings, the film will be released in movie theaters across China on August 10th! If that also is not doable, keep checking the official Shanghai Calling website for news about its U.S. theatrical release, which I'm confident will be forthcoming.
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