Saigon, U.S.A. (2004)

Old wounds collide with new realities when a Vietnamese shopkeeper challenges the heart of the Vietnamese-American community with symbols of the communist regime from which they fled. ... See full summary »

Directors:

Lindsey Jang, Robert C. Winn

Writers:

Lindsey Jang, Robert C. Winn

Stars:

Andrew Lam, Tony Lam, Le Khac Ly

Cast

Credited cast:
Andrew Lam
Tony Lam
Le Khac Ly	...	(as Colonel Le Khac Ly)
Vi Ly
Xuyen Dong Matsuda
Bao Nguyen
Chuyen Nguyen
Thuy Nguyen
Viet Nguyen
Vu Nguyen

Storyline

Old wounds collide with new realities when a Vietnamese shopkeeper challenges the heart of the Vietnamese-American community with symbols of the communist regime from which they fled. Massive protests in Orange County's Little Saigon raise questions about individual versus community rights, generational differences, what it means to be Vietnamese-American and, ultimately, what it means to be American.

---

Plot Keywords:

vietnamese american | vietnam war | asian american

---

Genres:

Documentary

---

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English Vietnamese

Release Date:

6 May 2004 (USA)

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

57 min

Color:

Color

User Reviews

A documentary portrait about struggles over identity in the heart of the Vietnamese American community, Southern California's Little Saigon.

Saigon, U.S.A. starts with an explosive political conflict - fifty two days of protests over a shopkeeper's display of the communist flag and Ho Chi Minh. The film then delves into the passions underlying the protests by following members of the older generation who still suffer from the loss of their homeland and members of the younger generation who are chasing the American dream.

From a deeply personal perspective, families describe the 1975 fall of Saigon, the challenges of losing their home and starting over in a strange country. The younger generation also comes to terms with the distance between themselves and the anger that erupted in the anti-communist demonstrations at the video store. By tracing the effects of the protests on the personal lives of Vietnamese Americans, Saigon, U.S.A. connects their stories to the larger historical and cultural landscape and provides a deeper understanding of the Vietnamese American community, American history and the changing face of America.

Saigon, U.S.A. was produced and directed by Lindsey Jang and Robert C. Winn in conjunction with KOCE-TV. Major funding was provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting through the Independent Television Service and the National Asian American Telecommunications Association, and the California Council for the Humanities. Visual Communications served as the fiscal sponsor.

REACTIONS

"Brilliant, comic, gut wrenching."

• Scott Moxley - OC Weekly

"One of the best films about the Vietnamese American experience."

• Professor James Freeman, PhD (Author, Hearts of Sorrow)

"A compelling, cross-generational portrait of one of the newest immigrant groups in America. The film movingly depicts the struggle of Vietnamese refugees to come to terms with their loss of homeland and exile and the forging of a new Vietnamese-American identity."

• Mark Jonathan Harris (Academy Award, Into the Arms of Strangers)

"Saigon, U.S.A. aptly documents the birth of a new American community, uprooted in the aftermath of war and forever torn apart by the wounds of the past, yet one capable of healing against all odds. An engrossing yet succinct film that captures not only a major incident in Vietnamese American life, but also an important chapter of American history. A profound film that manages to confront us with the deepest sorrow while allowing us to be hopeful about what it means to be human."

• Nguyen Qui Duc, (Host, KQED's Pacific Time)

"This excellent documentary about America's largest Vietnamese population outside of Vietnam – Westminster's Little Saigon in Orange County – is framed by the 1999 protests against a video-store owner who hung a Communist flag and picture of Ho Chi Minh in his front-window display. The dialogue that ensued – about loyalty, tradition and freedom of speech – serves as excellent conversation points for Saigon, U.S.A. Perspectives of the older generation that mourns the loss of its homeland are balanced with the voices of the younger generation, which is busy trying to carve out its own definition of the American dream. Highly recommended."

• Metro, March 13, 2003, Vol. 19. no. 3. San Jose, CA

"Protest, documentary prompt Vietnamese immigrants to reexamine their roots 29 years after fall of Saigon."

• Mary Vuong, Houston Chronicle

See http://home.earthlink.net/~saigonusa/