The lovechild of passion and talent, Justin Chon’s “Blue Bayou” — a lyrical and emotional portrait of identity and family — is a piece that drums up lots of support within the film community, general audiences, and the Academy Awards in various branches. Leaving you in a puddle of tears by the end credits, the Cannes Film Festival selection could be a slam dunk for distributor Focus Features across all eligible categories, including best picture.
“Blue Bayou” tells the moving and timely story of Antonio LeBlanc (Chon), a Korean adoptee who is raised in a small town in the Louisiana bayou. There, he’s married to his wife Kathy (played by Oscar-winner Alicia Vikander) and is a step-dad to her daughter Jessie (played by newcomer Sydney Kowalske). Struggling to make a better life for his family, Antonio must confront his complicated past when he faces possible deportation from the only country he’s ever known.
“Blue Bayou” tells the moving and timely story of Antonio LeBlanc (Chon), a Korean adoptee who is raised in a small town in the Louisiana bayou. There, he’s married to his wife Kathy (played by Oscar-winner Alicia Vikander) and is a step-dad to her daughter Jessie (played by newcomer Sydney Kowalske). Struggling to make a better life for his family, Antonio must confront his complicated past when he faces possible deportation from the only country he’s ever known.
- 7/15/2021
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Blue Bayou Trailer — Justin Chon‘s Blue Bayou (2021) movie trailer has been released by Focus Features. The Blue Bayou trailer stars Justin Chon, Alicia Vikander, Mark O’Brien, Linh Dan Pham, Sydney Kowalske, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Emory Cohen. Crew Justin Chon wrote the screenplay for the Blue Bayou. Roger Suen created the music for the [...]
Continue reading: Blue Bayou (2021) Movie Trailer: Alicia Vikander Contends with U.S. Immigration, Deportation, & Family in Justin Chon’s Film...
Continue reading: Blue Bayou (2021) Movie Trailer: Alicia Vikander Contends with U.S. Immigration, Deportation, & Family in Justin Chon’s Film...
- 7/14/2021
- by Rollo Tomasi
- Film-Book
In Los Angeles, a brother and sister are brought back together as their father slips away. Such is the crux of Ms. Purple, the sophomore feature from writer/director Justin Chon, who was at Sundance in 2017 with his debut Gook. Kasie (an incredible Tiffany Chu) moonlights as a hostess at a karaoke bar, in which she serves at the whim of male clients. It is demeaning work, something she tries to wash away in the mornings.
At home lies her father (James Kang), wasting away in the final days of his life. Desperate for help and reluctant to go to hospice, her wayward brother Carey (Teddy Lee) appears just in time. This is the central relationship of the piece and it’s deeply felt. Chu and Lee work marvelously together, Chon employing a shaky, indie style to their scenes of conflict. Not unlike his debut film, much of this feels messy.
At home lies her father (James Kang), wasting away in the final days of his life. Desperate for help and reluctant to go to hospice, her wayward brother Carey (Teddy Lee) appears just in time. This is the central relationship of the piece and it’s deeply felt. Chu and Lee work marvelously together, Chon employing a shaky, indie style to their scenes of conflict. Not unlike his debut film, much of this feels messy.
- 2/7/2019
- by Dan Mecca
- The Film Stage
A sharp detour from the deliberately raw feel of his well-received prior “Gook,” which won the Next audience award at Sundance two years ago, Justin Chon’s “Ms. Purple” is a character study-cum-mood piece of dolorous style and saturated color. Some may find it a little too mood-driven, with perhaps a few too many dialogue-free, plot-lite interludes of characters looking glamorously angst-ful. But there’s enough substance here to reward the patient in this tale of two disparately isolated siblings reuniting during their father’s last weeks in L.A.’s Koreatown.
Childhood flashbacks scattered throughout gradually clue us to the key event of Kasie (Tiffany Chu) and Carey’s (Teddy Lee) lives: When they were little, their mother walked out on the family, dismissing their father Young-il (James King) as a “loser.” She soon found a more financially advantageous second husband — whom she left in the dark about her prior one,...
Childhood flashbacks scattered throughout gradually clue us to the key event of Kasie (Tiffany Chu) and Carey’s (Teddy Lee) lives: When they were little, their mother walked out on the family, dismissing their father Young-il (James King) as a “loser.” She soon found a more financially advantageous second husband — whom she left in the dark about her prior one,...
- 1/28/2019
- by Dennis Harvey
- Variety Film + TV
141 original scores just made the Oscar shortlist, meaning that we have no real idea which soundtracks will go on to be nominated for the actual Academy Award — “Phantom Thread” composer Jonny Greenwood looks poised to finally be recognized for his work, but might “Baywatch” be a spoiler? We simply don’t know, dear reader. We simply don’t know.
As you await the nominations — which will be announced on Tuesday, January 23 — treat yourself to this selection of tracks from the shortlist.
Read More:2018 Oscar Predictions: Best Original Score
Read More:Oscars 2018: Best Original Score Shortlist Includes ‘The Shape of Water,’ ‘All the Money in the World,’ and More
Here are the 141 scores vying for an Oscar nod:
“Alien: Covenant,” Jed Kurzel, composer
“All I See Is You,” Marc Streitenfeld, composer
“All the Money in the World,” Daniel Pemberton, composer
“Annabelle: Creation,” Benjamin Wallfisch, composer
“Band Aid,” Lucius, composer
“Battle of the Sexes,...
As you await the nominations — which will be announced on Tuesday, January 23 — treat yourself to this selection of tracks from the shortlist.
Read More:2018 Oscar Predictions: Best Original Score
Read More:Oscars 2018: Best Original Score Shortlist Includes ‘The Shape of Water,’ ‘All the Money in the World,’ and More
Here are the 141 scores vying for an Oscar nod:
“Alien: Covenant,” Jed Kurzel, composer
“All I See Is You,” Marc Streitenfeld, composer
“All the Money in the World,” Daniel Pemberton, composer
“Annabelle: Creation,” Benjamin Wallfisch, composer
“Band Aid,” Lucius, composer
“Battle of the Sexes,...
- 12/23/2017
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
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