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OCT. 20-26
Whether they hail from Korea or the Philippines, India or Indonesia, Asian and Pacific immigrants often suffer culture shocks rarely depicted in Hollywood films. The opening entry of the DC Asian-Pacific Film Festival takes the concept of shock literally: Post Concussion is writer-director Daniel Yoon’s semi-autobiographical tale of a man (pictured) who re-evaluates his money-oriented life after suffering head trauma in a car crash (Oct. 20 & 26). The other features include two about Indians who seem to have assimilated well: In ABCD, the more substantial of the pair of films, two grown children of a marriage-obsessed mother choose between Indian and Anglo mates (Oct. 21 & 24); in Bugaboo, a Silicon Valley worker who’s vaguely dissatisfied with his comfortable life seeks a strategy to disrupt it (Oct. 22 & 23). The documentaries include First Person Plural, Deann Borshay Liem’s remarkable tale of discovering, 30 years after she was adopted as an orphan by an American family, that she actually has a mother and siblings back in Korea (Oct 26); Who Killed Vincent Chin, the 1988 film about a Chinese-American killed by clueless Detroit auto workers angry at Japanese car companies (Oct. 25); and When You’re Smiling: The Deadly Legacy of the Internment, which explores how the legacy of World War II destroyed Japanese-American families (Oct. 21). There are also three programs of short films, one with an irresistible title: A Waiter Tomorrow is described as a John Woo-like account of a sushi-bar staff’s revenge on boorish customers (Oct. 21 & 22). The opening-night film is at the Meyer Auditorium, Freer Gallery, 12th & Jefferson Dr.; all others are at the Cineplex Odeon Foundry, 1055 Thomas Jefferson St. NW. Opening night is free; other shows are $5. (202) 363-3775. (Mark Jenkins)