Face (2001)

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Three generations of Chinese-American women struggle to reconcile tradition and family with their own needs and desires in this independent drama from first-time director Bertha Bay-Sa Pan. In 1977, Kim (Bai Ling) is an intelligent and headstrong Asian-American, whose mother (Kieu Chinh) is eager to see married off to an eligible man as soon as possible. Kim isn't interested in settling down just yet, and is dating a bright but struggling law student, Willie (Ken Leung). Kim is making some extra money by tutoring Daniel (Will Yun Lee), a handsome but irresponsible boy from a wealthy family. Daniel seduces Kim one evening after she's had an argument with Willie, and while she has no interest in seeing Daniel again, she soon discovers that she's pregnant with his child, and both her mother and Daniel's parents insist that they marry. It doesn't take long for Kim to realize that she and Daniel don't care much for one another, and Kim decides to leave America for Singapore, leaving her baby daughter Genie in mother's care. Two decades later, grown-up Genie (Kristy Wu) is even more rebellious than her mother, and while Genie pays a modicum of lip service to her grandmother, she's no more interested in settling down with a nice Chinese boy than Kim was. Genie has been dating Michael (Treach), an African-American hip-hop musician; Michael is eager to make their relationship more permanent, but Genie isn't so sure, and her grandmother has no idea what to make of Genie's new beau. When Kim arrives on one of her infrequent visits, the three generations of this family find themselves struggling to find a common ground. Face was screened in competition at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Warning:  This product is intended for mature audiences only. It may contain violence, sexual content, drug abuse and/or strong language. You must be 17 or older to purchase it. By ordering this item you are certifying that you are at least 17 years of age.

Theatrical Feature Running Time:

87 mins

Complete Cast:

Director(s):

Bertha Bay-Sa Pan

Writer(s):

Oren Moverman, Bertha Bay-Sa Pan

Producer(s):

Joseph Infantolino, Alexa L. Fogel

Theatrical MPAA Rating:

R

Categories:

Romance

Closed Captioning:

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Subtitles:

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• 2002 - Face - CineVegas International Film Festival - Best Director
• 2002 - Face - Gen Art Film Festival - Audience Award
• 2002 - Face - UrbanWorld Film Festival - Best Director