Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart (1985)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Wayne Wang

Writer:

Terrel Seltzer (writer)

Release Date:

9 August 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

In San Francisco, an immigrant Chinese widow welcomes the new year with some unhappiness: she's 62 now...

Plot Keywords:

Asian American | Independent Film

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Laureen Chew	...	Geraldine Tam
Kim Chew	...	Mrs. Tam
Victor Wong	...	Uncle Tam
Ida F.O. Chung	...	Auntie May
Cora Miao	...	Julia
John Nishio	...	Richard
Amy Hill	...	Amy Tam
Keith Choy	...	Kevin Tam
Mary Chew	...	Old m.j. player
Nora Lee	...	Old m.j. player
Joan Chen	...	Young m.j. player
Rita Yee	...	Young m.j. player
George Woo	...	Bar patron
Elsa Cruz Pearson	...	Eliza
Helen Chew	...	Linda Tam

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 | USA:TV-PG (cable rating) | Australia:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Chinatown, San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

CIM

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Slanted Screen (2006)

Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart is Wayne Wang's slice of life of Chinese widow and her American-raised grown daughter

Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart is basically the touching story of a Chinese immigrant widow who becomes sad because she's told by a fortune teller that she would soon die, so she constantly reminds her last single daughter to marry and resolves to visit her homeland one last time. Kim Chew is the widow and her real-life daughter Laureen is the one who feels pressured to tie the knot. They both give good, wonderfully nuanced performances along with Victor Wong as the uncle who wants to marry Kim. Look for Amy Hill, who I remember as the Grandma in "All-American Girl", as one of the other married daughters and Joan Chen as one of the young mah-jong players. Director Wayne Wang provides exquisite Chinese-American atmosphere in the Chinatown setting of California. Plenty of subtle humorous touches throughout. Nothing more to say except if you want to experience the Chinese-American way of life on film, Dim Sum is as good a place to start as any.