My wife and I were able to catch this on the opening night of the Austin Asian American Film Festival on June 23, 2022. Wonderful movie! Lots of creative energy among the cast. The pace is quick, the writing is fantastic, lots of sharp zingers. Most of the credit will go to writer/director Tom Huang and leading lady Ali Maki (as Margaret). However, Page Leong as the prototypical "FOB" Asian mom (Sophie) was also fantastic. That having been said, pretty much everyone was very entertaining. Each actor brought his/her own special energy to the role. The result sparkled!

After the show, we were lucky enough to have director Tom Huang and actor Dana Lee (as the difficult Dad) for a live question and answer session. They discussed the background of the story in Tom Huang's own experiences, but also the kind of interesting network-of-friends process for assembling the cast and the personal perspectives that each actor brought to the movie - not to mention the arduous filming conditions at the height of the pandemic. My take away was that this movie is a great example of the adage that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

Particularly highly recommended for Asian immigrants, Asian Americans, and others who have married into the community. However, I think this movie will be a fun evening for almost anyone, even if you have no personal Asian connection.

This movie had some humorous elements, but honestly, overall, the message was really odd. It was really about one woman learning to live with ongoing emotional abuse from her unpleasant father who literally spends the entire movie doing nothing but being a burden, forcing his children to parent him, and finally, returning to his naturally abusive state. It seems the movie was about growing up in the face of awful parents and maybe, hopefully being okay, but being sure to remember that you cannot expect or ask your parents to treat you with any semblance of respect.

This movie misses almost every mark. It's barely funny. It's not heartwarming. There's no good ending. The father is a terrible person. That's it. They succeed despite him. That's all there is.

This film really hits you over the head with the fact that the children (who are now adults) had a rough childhood. They are still dealing with that trauma today - each in their own way. But, the interesting and relatable thing is that they know this. They recognize it and are dealing with it.

When it comes time to face the source (one of them) of that trauma, tough decisions are being made. There is internal and external struggles that are not unique to just this family but can be relatable to most.

Overall, yes, this is a "comedic drama" if you will. The humor is there and it delivers. It helps to soften the stronger, darker tones being discussed. It is a good film that is easy to watch and enjoy.