Tiger King.
91 Mins. Starring: Tzi Ma, Christine Ko, Lee Hong-chi, Yo-Hsing Fang, Yang Kuei-mei, James Saito & Joan Chen. Director: Alan Yang.
Joe Exotic will be walking with his tail between his legs after this tiger style from Netflix with more stripes than Carole Baskin is about to have strikes against her "f######" middle name, basking behind bars. Streaming for memes, quarantine may be leaving you crawling the walls with more windows on your netbook open than the Summer you wish you could just go outside for (not yet...please), but this is one project you should really get your claws into before you shut the lid on your laptop like an angry piano player. Besides ain't half of you obsessed with 'Tiger King' meant to be vegans anyway? You should go and watch Bong Joon-ho's 'Okja' on Netflix if you're following 'Parasite' trends so much. Aziz Ansari's 'Master Or None' modern love in times of Tinder co-creator Alan Yang gives us his masterpiece in the classic cinematography of the amazing neon, red room aesthetics that hark back to hallmark Asian cinema with his story of one man's American dream across the water. As vintage as the vinyl, dog-eared like library books and recorded at crates packed and moved into the trunk of cabs, as our two lovers in the wind dance to the old tunes they sing along to so lovely and lovingly like Otis Redding's '(Sitting On) The Dock Of The Bay'. This is 'Tigertail' not 'Tiger King' on Netflix. Running through the flame grills and off-white aprons of a kitchen like a runaway American dream. With the promise to take you there someday as Emmy Award, 'Little America' producer Yang continues the 'Crazy, Rich Asian' Netflix revolution which comedian Ali Wong's 'Always Be My Maybe' highlighted with a classic, meta self-aware Keanu Reeves cameo as himself this time last year. And this search for home like 'Lion' with 'Moonlight' moving, compelling cinematography is as gold as Oscar. Beautiful. Generational. Touching. Think of it as the dust jacket scratchy love song on wax to Yang's father as he wrote it to the letter as such. One in reply to all the Asian's, Asian American's and the immigrants who need a voice right now in these troubling times with racism sadly on the rise again like a vile virus we wish we could vaccine for good. This tiger's tale is one that pulls at family history and legacy from traditional Taiwan to modern day New York City.
Girl/Dad. Fathers daughter relationships can just be as struggled as the ones between father and son like Cat Stevens sang. And of course...they are nonetheless just as important and influential, like a mothers love. None as taught and fraught in Hollywood dramas today as the one between parental protagonist and his only daughter here on stream. You may recognize Chinese/American actor Tzi Ma today from Amazon's Philip K. Dick's dystopian novel adaptation, 'The Man In The High Castle'. Or more "you may know me from such shows" than The Simpsons' Troy McClure. How about even bringing the emotional heft and heart to Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker's first 'Rush Hour' as his ambassador characters daughter was held hostage? But look at the restrained tears he has for his child here. Hiding behind mild manners and a measured way of being that society or history dictates you should be. Even if it's the furthest from what you want to be in expression and emotion. Now however the groundbreaking 'The Farewell' and 'Arrival' actor who always leaves an indelible mark in anything and everything he does and is about to do so even more in Disney's quarantined and push backed, live action 'Mulan' remake is going to be known for this like the award he should receive. His raw and restrained performance is as perfect as it is perplexing and as lonely and lamenting as the tea he prepares for himself like the table he sits at each night for one. He's a paunched, far cry from the skinny, white tee and slack, bill-dodging, freeweheelin' slacker of youth who wanted to be as American as Dylan for his ballad of a thin man, blowin' in the wind. Played with punctuation by 52nd Golden Horse Award winning actor for 'Thanatos, Drunk' (no relation to you know who. You know the guy who likes to click his fingers?), Lee Hong-chi (you can see why he's won breakout awards). Madly entwined in dance steps and heart skips with the endearing, Yo Hsing-Fang as they kiss. Just like they were as rice field introducing, 'Slumdog Millionaire' like kids.
Children are the real heart of this matter however, as Ma and his daughter sit together at the table with teacups. Just as lonely as when he was home alone like Macaulay. But a lot more awkward. We can all relate to this as we can the love between relatives that never breaks like the strongest bond of glue, or family tree sap. It really is all relative...and relatable. And welcome to the big screen career of CBS actress Christine Ko...even if you are watching this on a laptop or smartphone cast to your television in 'The Great Indoors'. Ko is an incredible and inspired talent and Christine here is soul searing in this soul searching story that needs her heart...no matter how bruised it is. One scene were Ko and Ma walk home seperately but in some ways together at night is bittersweet and blisteringly beautiful. The moving mothering of 'Eat Drink Man Woman' icon Yang Kuei-mei factory working is a real as the one you hold dear too. As is Netflix's 'Altered Carbon' and 'Always Be My Maybe' Dad dancing scene stealer James Saito. But it's 'The Last Emperor' and Netflix's 'Marco Polo' star Joan Chen who just may break your heart in the last few scenes and what it all means. This movie like Culkin will find you perfectly sitting at home alone one night. Even if we are left searching for 'Star Trek' Sulu star John Cho's cutting room floor scenes. Some xenophobic, ignorant Westerners may dismiss this movie right now based on the same ludicrous notions of blame as we all need to take stock, stay home and account for our actions. But don't they know that every individual, like every family, is exactly that? Individual and family. Different...but just like us. All of us. The greatest Netflix movie since 'Roma' (with all due respect to the Oscar streams of 'The Irishman', 'The Two Popes' and 'Marriage Story') with the same directorial inspirations of family. 'Tigertail' over 'Tiger King'. It's more than the wildest meme to share with your friends during the is social distancing. It's the big picture you've always dreamed of during this quarantine. Utterly moving and compelling. This caring and not the sharing is what will get you through right now and last long after we can put our phones away (we can you know) and finally go back outside and actually see the beauty of this world and each other hand-in-hand. A remarkable, meditative, heartbreaking and healing, lovely little movie. Just as such is life. And during a corona quarantined time were socially we are kept at a distance of more than six feet away from each other, the tail end of this tiger tail gives us the hope that love and life will come back to us once again. No matter how long it takes. TIM DAVID HARVEY.
Further Filming: 'The Farewell', 'Lion', 'Roma'.
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