I really enjoyed this movie. Very deliberately paced which gave us time to chew on the particulars and get emotionally invested in the outcome. I love how the tech in this movie, which is amazing, wasn’t at all the subject. It was boring background stuff that cloning was commonplace, cars just drove themselves, phone calls felt as if you were standing in front of the person, and humanoid robots for all sorts of purposes were available to purchase at shady strip malls for discount prices. I loved how the tea scene bridged that near universal truth (that knowledge of a thing can’t replace a real experience of a thing) with something so specific (Yang’s longing for a deeper connection to Asian culture). I appreciated hearing your perspective on how this reflects the Asian-American experience.
I really love the quote said by Yang, "What does it mean to be Asian". That quote really struck me and stuck with me for a week. I was born in China, but was raised in Japan from 1 to 12 years old. Then I immigrated to Canada when I was 12 until now (I'm 31 this year). Growing up in Japan, the locals never really considered me to be Japanese because I didn't look Japanese. My parents refrained from teaching/passing down Chinese language/culture/history to me to prevent me from having cultural shock. So I only really grew up knowing Japanese language, culture, history and Japanese mannerism. I can only speak Japanese and English even though my racial background is Chinese. Even though that was the only thing I knew, the locals never considered me to be part of them. When I immigrated to Toronto when I was 12 (that was 2004), there were no Japanese immigrants in the neighborhood that I lived in. So naturally I tried to connect with the Chinese kids in my school. However, I don't speak Chinese and I don't particularly act Chinese, so the Chinese group often called me "traitor" and never considered me to be Chinese. Yang's quote really struck me because in both Chinese and Japanese cultures, I was never considered to be part of them. I was either too Chinese for Japanese people and too Japanese for Chinese people. It was really hard for me in school because I constantly thought about what it means to be both Chinese and Japanese. Coming into adulthood, I realized that I am both Chinese and Japanese and also a little bit Canadian. It's ok to be multi-cultural and it's ok to not belong to one specific culture because I am all of those cultures and I can choose who I consider to be part of my family and group. The quote that Collin Farrell said during the tea scene where heritage is passed down from who you connect with. That really resonated with me because that's what I consider to be who I am. I am a culmination of all my Chinese, Japanese and Canadian culture. That's what I consider to be Asian. Heritage that is passed down to me from people that I connect with.
It sucks I'm a Ukrainian immigrant to USA and remember kids picking up on my accent quickly and now adults too. I always just wanted to blend and be part of the group not just "that russian girl" (people didn't seem to think Ukraine is a country? Lol) and that's all while looking the part too. I imagine it's much harder when you look different.
At it's core, the film is about Identity. So, in the context of the narrative, it is about what it means to be Asian-American. We see throughout the film how identity shapes who we are. Yang was a facsimile to humanity and, as such, had his own identity. We meet a clone who has to navigate life with that identity. It's something we create, but is also created for us. It isn't until Colin Ferrell's character "walks in Yang's shoes (empathy)" that he's able to peer into some semblance of who Yang was as a being. It also makes one think about the relationship between adoptive children and their parents. How they won't truly know what it's like to be of that identity and how in the future there's technology to facilitate a medium. The whole film is not only beautiful but also though provoking in the most gentle & subtle way.
It is interesting how even a term like Asian American can have multiple meanings. At first I thought this would be a relevant story for my wife (I'm white, she's Chinese). But she grew up in Hong Kong and came over the US for college then stayed and became a US citizen. So she is very much Asian American, but grew up quite literally in Chinese culture. So for her it is more that she missed out on American culture growing up and so doesn't get a lot of the references and cultural touchstones that any of us from the US take for granted. I do think we will watch the movie and I'm sure she'll get some things out of it. But I'm almost certain she won't have the same reaction as an American born Asian or one who immigrated when very young.
Hey Dave, great review. I found the film a little slow and I was bothered a bit by the editing. I do like this director though and I’m glad you enjoyed it
Thank you for talking about this movie. I think it is a beautiful movie. To your point though, even if you don’t know what it’s like growing up in Asia, you know about growing up in America. People in Asia don’t have that. And you definitely know way more about Asian cultures than other North Americans.
I love the analysis and I feel we have similar yet different views on the overall theme. Which, how great of a movie that it touches so many topics and can provide so many different angles of interpretation, right? In a sense, in America what does it even mean to be American? My grandfather moved from Ireland as a child due to famine. My Grandmother immigrated from Hungary as a child. Yet I am not Irish nor Hungarian. I am American, but what does that mean. What is American as an identity and culture? It left me with a sense of wonder that this is almost like a country for those without a country. That I am as influenced by other cultures as I am by my perceived “white culture.” And that while it can be hard to define what America truly is, we too have a unique experience others don’t. I really loved your insights and thoughts. What an absolute wonderful, sad, pleasant movie. Thanks my friend.
Fair enough. But I guess I have never really understood the profound obsession with identity in the US. I am Latin American. Grew up in Guatemala, but moved to the US for uni. It was really interesting. I was always asked about my experience as a Latino/minority in the US. I didn't understand the question back in the day. I am a lower middle-class Latin American. My politics are class-based. I always asked Chicano mates about their Marxist influence. Most had never read Marx. I now appreciate the specific struggles of second+ migrant generations in the US. But I truly think that the profound power of capitalist ideology is at the heart of the identitarian crisis. Identity is very important, but it is also important to understand that the obsession with the subject in many ways is brought about by design. Let us strip away your traditions, let us throw you into a cultureless society based on greed, and if you have an existential void, just go find answers in the so-called homeland. This is not about being Asian-american. I take and appreciate your introductory caveat. I get there are as many interpretations as there are individuals. But I also think there is such a thing as a myopic reading of artistic works. Art is not always nihilistic. It cannot be one size fits all. There are interpretative parameters. Anyways. How is it that Americans say? "as a Guatemalan" who lived as a student and the US and now lives in the UK, this is my two cents.
Very Good Subject: The question is Who am I as an American? Not who am I as it relates to the origin of a race of people. Prefixes A, B, W, L and so on, when many of us have never been to none of the countries that history says we must be identified by.
I gotta say, this video broke my brain a little. It's many things that I must have known but also didn't feel. I'm going to have to revisit it again but that's my initial take.
I thought the film ised chinese identity as a stand in for any cultural or human experience. Yang expresses frustration with not being able to really understand his connection to China and chinese culture despite being designed to do exactly that for other people. I interpreted this as being human. In other words, you can't just "make" somebody human, it's the combination of lived experiences, memories, emotions, etc that make us who we are.
Looking for a translation of the second to last all Mandarin scene. I loosely gathered Mika said I miss you, you we’re a great older brother, and wish I had told you as much. But would welcome further leads.
I just loved it's take on what it is to be human and why we think a non-human would want to human. Maybe techno-sapians are better than homosapians? I thought that was an incredibly thought provoking idea.
I really enjoyed this movie. Very deliberately paced which gave us time to chew on the particulars and get emotionally invested in the outcome. I love how the tech in this movie, which is amazing, wasn’t at all the subject. It was boring background stuff that cloning was commonplace, cars just drove themselves, phone calls felt as if you were standing in front of the person, and humanoid robots for all sorts of purposes were available to purchase at shady strip malls for discount prices. I loved how the tea scene bridged that near universal truth (that knowledge of a thing can’t replace a real experience of a thing) with something so specific (Yang’s longing for a deeper connection to Asian culture). I appreciated hearing your perspective on how this reflects the Asian-American experience.
I really love the quote said by Yang, "What does it mean to be Asian". That quote really struck me and stuck with me for a week.
I was born in China, but was raised in Japan from 1 to 12 years old. Then I immigrated to Canada when I was 12 until now (I'm 31 this year). Growing up in Japan, the locals never really considered me to be Japanese because I didn't look Japanese. My parents refrained from teaching/passing down Chinese language/culture/history to me to prevent me from having cultural shock. So I only really grew up knowing Japanese language, culture, history and Japanese mannerism. I can only speak Japanese and English even though my racial background is Chinese. Even though that was the only thing I knew, the locals never considered me to be part of them.
When I immigrated to Toronto when I was 12 (that was 2004), there were no Japanese immigrants in the neighborhood that I lived in. So naturally I tried to connect with the Chinese kids in my school. However, I don't speak Chinese and I don't particularly act Chinese, so the Chinese group often called me "traitor" and never considered me to be Chinese.
Yang's quote really struck me because in both Chinese and Japanese cultures, I was never considered to be part of them. I was either too Chinese for Japanese people and too Japanese for Chinese people. It was really hard for me in school because I constantly thought about what it means to be both Chinese and Japanese.
Coming into adulthood, I realized that I am both Chinese and Japanese and also a little bit Canadian. It's ok to be multi-cultural and it's ok to not belong to one specific culture because I am all of those cultures and I can choose who I consider to be part of my family and group.
The quote that Collin Farrell said during the tea scene where heritage is passed down from who you connect with. That really resonated with me because that's what I consider to be who I am. I am a culmination of all my Chinese, Japanese and Canadian culture. That's what I consider to be Asian. Heritage that is passed down to me from people that I connect with.
It sucks I'm a Ukrainian immigrant to USA and remember kids picking up on my accent quickly and now adults too. I always just wanted to blend and be part of the group not just "that russian girl" (people didn't seem to think Ukraine is a country? Lol) and that's all while looking the part too. I imagine it's much harder when you look different.
At it's core, the film is about Identity. So, in the context of the narrative, it is about what it means to be Asian-American. We see throughout the film how identity shapes who we are. Yang was a facsimile to humanity and, as such, had his own identity. We meet a clone who has to navigate life with that identity. It's something we create, but is also created for us.
It isn't until Colin Ferrell's character "walks in Yang's shoes (empathy)" that he's able to peer into some semblance of who Yang was as a being. It also makes one think about the relationship between adoptive children and their parents. How they won't truly know what it's like to be of that identity and how in the future there's technology to facilitate a medium.
The whole film is not only beautiful but also though provoking in the most gentle & subtle way.
Absolutely loved your breakdown and take. Kept everything in perspective and respectful too.
It is interesting how even a term like Asian American can have multiple meanings. At first I thought this would be a relevant story for my wife (I'm white, she's Chinese). But she grew up in Hong Kong and came over the US for college then stayed and became a US citizen. So she is very much Asian American, but grew up quite literally in Chinese culture. So for her it is more that she missed out on American culture growing up and so doesn't get a lot of the references and cultural touchstones that any of us from the US take for granted. I do think we will watch the movie and I'm sure she'll get some things out of it. But I'm almost certain she won't have the same reaction as an American born Asian or one who immigrated when very young.
Great video!
Hey Dave, great review. I found the film a little slow and I was bothered a bit by the editing. I do like this director though and I’m glad you enjoyed it
Made me check the playback speed you were talking so fast Dave, lol. Great insights as always.
Thank you for talking about this movie. I think it is a beautiful movie. To your point though, even if you don’t know what it’s like growing up in Asia, you know about growing up in America. People in Asia don’t have that. And you definitely know way more about Asian cultures than other North Americans.
I love the analysis and I feel we have similar yet different views on the overall theme. Which, how great of a movie that it touches so many topics and can provide so many different angles of interpretation, right?
In a sense, in America what does it even mean to be American? My grandfather moved from Ireland as a child due to famine. My Grandmother immigrated from Hungary as a child. Yet I am not Irish nor Hungarian. I am American, but what does that mean. What is American as an identity and culture?
It left me with a sense of wonder that this is almost like a country for those without a country. That I am as influenced by other cultures as I am by my perceived “white culture.” And that while it can be hard to define what America truly is, we too have a unique experience others don’t.
I really loved your insights and thoughts. What an absolute wonderful, sad, pleasant movie. Thanks my friend.
Watched this movie today and loved it, thank you for sharing your interpretation
Fair enough. But I guess I have never really understood the profound obsession with identity in the US. I am Latin American. Grew up in Guatemala, but moved to the US for uni. It was really interesting. I was always asked about my experience as a Latino/minority in the US. I didn't understand the question back in the day. I am a lower middle-class Latin American. My politics are class-based. I always asked Chicano mates about their Marxist influence. Most had never read Marx. I now appreciate the specific struggles of second+ migrant generations in the US. But I truly think that the profound power of capitalist ideology is at the heart of the identitarian crisis. Identity is very important, but it is also important to understand that the obsession with the subject in many ways is brought about by design. Let us strip away your traditions, let us throw you into a cultureless society based on greed, and if you have an existential void, just go find answers in the so-called homeland. This is not about being Asian-american. I take and appreciate your introductory caveat. I get there are as many interpretations as there are individuals. But I also think there is such a thing as a myopic reading of artistic works. Art is not always nihilistic. It cannot be one size fits all. There are interpretative parameters. Anyways. How is it that Americans say? "as a Guatemalan" who lived as a student and the US and now lives in the UK, this is my two cents.
Very Good Subject:
The question is Who am I as an American? Not who am I as it relates to the origin of a race of people. Prefixes A, B, W, L and so on, when many of us have never been to none of the countries that history says we must be identified by.
I gotta say, this video broke my brain a little. It's many things that I must have known but also didn't feel. I'm going to have to revisit it again but that's my initial take.
Well said, Dave!
still, everybody wants to go there.
Brilliant.
I thought the film ised chinese identity as a stand in for any cultural or human experience. Yang expresses frustration with not being able to really understand his connection to China and chinese culture despite being designed to do exactly that for other people. I interpreted this as being human. In other words, you can't just "make" somebody human, it's the combination of lived experiences, memories, emotions, etc that make us who we are.
Looking for a translation of the second to last all Mandarin scene. I loosely gathered Mika said I miss you, you we’re a great older brother, and wish I had told you as much.
But would welcome further leads.
I just loved it's take on what it is to be human and why we think a non-human would want to human. Maybe techno-sapians are better than homosapians? I thought that was an incredibly thought provoking idea.
Loved this, but I wish I'd seen the film first
After Yang Gang 2020
But then you'd be saying Asian Americans are robots with no real human feelings...
Have you seen the movie?