The Documentary: Far East Deep South
The Director: Larissa Lam
The Story: When a Chinese-American family travels from California to
Mississippi to visit the grave of their ancestors, they stumble upon
surprising revelations.
The Review:
I would imagine that anyone reading this review, myself included as the
author, knows little to nothing about Chinese and Asian American history
except for what you might have seen in a movie or two. The people who record
and preserve history for mainstream and educational purposes have sort of
swept it under the rug to the point where white and black history are the
dominant factors and every other ethnicity is ignored. What we are shown is
often more like propaganda than real history which is why there has always
been a problem of hate and violence against Asian people in this country. It
stems from ignorance and a narrative that creates opposition rather than just
allowing us all to be humans.
After centuries of this sort of neglect and and a culture based on inherently
racist values, it's high time we take a look at how this country was really
created, shaped, and evolved by human beings from all over the world. Movies
like Lee Isaac Chung's
Minari
are giving us a taste and documentaries like Alice Gu's
The Donut King
are going deep into immigrant history and now this film, Far East Deep South,
has gone down an unexpected rabbit hole of discovery that has unearthed
people, places, and artifacts from Chinese culture buried deep in the recesses
of Mississippi's seemingly unknown history. What started as a family film
project by producer Baldwin Chiu and director Larissa Lam to find a family
grave site eventually turned into a short film called
Finding Cleveland and has since been expanded to this full length
feature.
While there is a lot of history to unearth and explore, this is still a family
story at it's core and Lam's direction and storytelling keep that as the heart
and soul of the documentary. She brings us along through every wave of emotion
as discoveries are made leading to some seriously life changing moments for
the entire family. I mean, would you believe that Baldwin and his father
Charles Chiu are members of six generations of Chinese history in the
US? How many families do you know that have been here that long. My own family
only goes a couple generations deep on either side. Kind of makes you rethink
what it means to be American and who qualifies in what ways under the
historical structure we have all grown up learning.
I really hope that these types of stories and all of the history behind it
become more commonplace and we can teach future generations about all of the
valuable contributions from all the different people who have come here from
all over the world to live the American dream. A dream that should not exclude
anyone from its record or from any opportunities that might be available in
the future. This documentary, and the people who made it, give me hope that we
are on the right track.
The Verdict:
Far East Deep South is essential American storytelling. The documentary
is heart wrenching because of the generations of history the Chiu family has
lost and it is also filled with hope because of how much of that history has
been recovered for future generations to learn from and appreciate.
Bonus Content:
To keep track of all my reviews and festival coverage please go to:
TwoOhSix at SAAFF 2021.
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