I'm somewhat surprised to see such high praise for this film in other reviews here. In a nutshell, while I feel that the movie is decent, it didn't blow me away and it's not something I'll really recommend to friends.
I took a certain delight in many of the scenes in the movie: the opening scene where the title character fights through Asian stereotypes while trying to audition for a commercial, the awe and wonder he feels seeing Shanghai for the first time, and his helplessness with the Chinese language as he tries to get back to his hotel. There are a few good laughs in the movie, and sure enough an emotional edge to it which some people will relate to -- in a way, you can call the title character an Asian American "Holden Caufield," if you will, as we watch him feeling empty and going through the motions, struggling with a difficult emotional past and present.
However, I felt no love at all for Hayden's character or frankly any interest in their relationship. She sure is nice to look at, but the whole premise of a hot blonde sixteen year old Beverly Hills chick flirting with a much older Asian man on the bus seemed a wee bit implausible, if not outright painful once you throw in her baby talking and bizarre instantaneous attachment and clinginess.
Overall, the laughs were a bit too few and far between and the story was a bit lackluster, feeling to me like an awkward and somewhat mediocre mixture of "Garden State" and "Lost in Translation." As an Asian American, I really wanted to love the film -- but I just didn't find it entertaining or profound.
I took a certain delight in many of the scenes in the movie: the opening scene where the title character fights through Asian stereotypes while trying to audition for a commercial, the awe and wonder he feels seeing Shanghai for the first time, and his helplessness with the Chinese language as he tries to get back to his hotel. There are a few good laughs in the movie, and sure enough an emotional edge to it which some people will relate to -- in a way, you can call the title character an Asian American "Holden Caufield," if you will, as we watch him feeling empty and going through the motions, struggling with a difficult emotional past and present.
However, I felt no love at all for Hayden's character or frankly any interest in their relationship. She sure is nice to look at, but the whole premise of a hot blonde sixteen year old Beverly Hills chick flirting with a much older Asian man on the bus seemed a wee bit implausible, if not outright painful once you throw in her baby talking and bizarre instantaneous attachment and clinginess.
Overall, the laughs were a bit too few and far between and the story was a bit lackluster, feeling to me like an awkward and somewhat mediocre mixture of "Garden State" and "Lost in Translation." As an Asian American, I really wanted to love the film -- but I just didn't find it entertaining or profound.