Chan Is Missing (1982)

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Directed by Wayne Wang.

Starring Laureen Chew, Marc Hayashi, Wood Moy, Judi Nihei, Peter Wang.

This thriller about a $4000 robbery was successfully lensed by writer/director Wayne Wang on a budget of $22,000. Cabdrivers Wood Moy and Marc Hayashi are robbed by the elusive Chan Hung (whom we never see in the film). As Moy and Hayashi track down the thief, Wang offers indelible images of the seamier portions of San Francisco's Chinatown. Whether the two cabbies ever retrieve their lost loot is immaterial; the film is a mood and character piece, seasoned with unexpected moments of laughter. Chan is Missing became a sleeper on the arthouse circuit, a fact that would open many professional doors for the multi-talented Wayne Wang. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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Reviews and discussions

movie year countdown #25 - 1982 ...
by Risselada in Risselada Blog

liked it.

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"This blog entry is part of my “movie year countdown”. To read more about that check out my first Spout filmblog entry.Chan Is MissingI'd heard about Smoke and Blue in the Face, and Wayne Wang has often been mentioned amongst the names of other independent filmmakers that I enjoy so I wanted to check him out. But I thought maybe it would be a good idea to check out his first film.Chan Is Missing on it's own does not inspire me to see any more of Wang's work, but I am still interested. I definitely saw some potential here.Although the story itself wasn't all the gripping, and the acting didn't always feel quite right, I did appreciate the fact that this was a story about a large American culture that had been virtually ignored in American films. And I think it still has.Chinese American culture hardly ever seems to be portrayed in films in a very honest and complete way that I can think of. Either some aspect of their stereotypes are exploited as ... " [More]

Movie year countdown viewing pr ...
by Risselada in Risselada Blog

liked it.

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"Here’s the dilemma. I have a list of well over three thousand movies I want to see saved on IMDB. I have a subscription to Netflix and recently every time I return a DVD it has been an extremely arduous task to make the decision as to which movie I should see next. In an effort to narrow down my choices and make the process of choosing slightly less overwhelming I have devised a system, almost a bit of a game for me. Here’s how it goes.For my first film selection, I have narrowed the options down to only films that were released in the year 2006. Then after I have watched that movie, my next selection would have to be a film released in 2005. Then I would see a film from 2004, then 2003, etc. The process of deciding is still laborious, but actually quite a bit more exciting. (I'm going by IMDB as my source for release years)I have already been making a list and have also already begun watching the films. I decided this might be a good time to start fooling ... " [More]

Review by All Movie Guide

All Movie Guide

liked it.

In addition to being one of the screen's more unconventional mysteries, Wayne Wang's Chan is Missing is also a relatively rare, authentic portrait of life in a Chinese-American community. Working in 16mm on an ultra-low budget, Wang cannily uses his San Francisco locations to create a vivid, urgent look and feel. The story ostensibly revolves around two cab drivers -- engagingly played by Wood Moy and Marc Hayashi -- searching for stolen money, but the plot is little more than a device to introduce the audience to a rich tableau of interesting characters. The tone of the film is warm and generous, and writer-director Wang keeps the action at a brisk pace, mustering up a remarkable amount of detail in the film's brief, 80-minute running time. ~ Richard Gilliam, All Movie Guide

Tags: Chinese-American , San-Francisco , revenge , friendship , generationgap
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