Catfish in Black Bean Sauce (1999)
Synopsis
In Catfish In Black Bean Sauce, Paul Winfield and Mary Alice play an African-American couple who in the 1970's adopted two Vietnamese children, a brother and sister. 20 years on, the two kids have grown to adulthood; Dwayne (Chi Muoi Lo) has absorbed a great deal of black culture from his adopted parents and is engaged to an attractive African-American woman (Sanaa Lathan). His sister (Lauren Tom), however, feels more comfortable with Asian cultural paths and has married an older Asian man (Tzi Ma). The siblings have recently come in contact with their birth mother (Kieu Chinh), and are awaiting her first visit to the United States, which causes no small amount of personal, cultural and familial clashes. Catfish In Black Bean Sauce is the feature debut from writer/director Chi Muoi Lo, who also plays Dwane; it was a prize winner at the 1999 WorldFest/Houston Film Festival.
What Critics Say
Take some "Soul Food," add a pinch of "The Joy Luck Club" and stir
vigorously for a nutritious and satisfying melting pot drama.
Story
Vietnamese siblings Dwayne (Chi Muoi Lo) and Mai (Lauren Tom) were
raised in L.A. by loving adopted parents who happen to be black (Paul
Winfield and Mary Alice), but the makeshift family’s happiness is
threatened when an adult Mai arranges to bring the kids’ birth mother
(Kieu Chinh) to the States. This complex new arrangement aggravates
every relationship within shouting range, especially Dwayne’s with his
black fiancee (Sanaa Lathan) and Mai’s with her adopted mother.
Acting
It’s a treat to see gifted players such as Winfield ("Presumed
Innocent"), Alice ("Down in the Delta") and Tom ("The Joy Luck Club") --
so often underused in thankless supporting parts -- go to town with
these meaty roles. Ironically, the weak link in the ensemble is
writer-director-producer Chi, whose performance as a fully assimilated
Asian American trying desperately to be a black man often seems forced.
In what may have been a throwaway girlfriend part, "Love and
Basketball’s" Lathan is simply magnetic --this natural charmer seems
destined to be a star.
Directing
First-time filmmaker Chi fares much better as a storyteller than as an
actor, successfully negotiating some tricky personal subject matter on
what was obviously a minimal budget. His unobtrusive style keeps the
focus exactly where it should be: on the terrific cast. Except for a
pointlessly distracting subplot about Dwayne’s straight male roommate
getting involved with a transvestite -- huh? -- virtually every scene
contains a memorable moment or two.
Bottom Line
Refreshingly involving, but it will be hard to sell to mass audiences.
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