Centering the Masses: My Favorite Things 4 – The Joy Luck Club

On select Thursdays (and occasional Tuesdays), various friends of Visual Communications — individuals, filmmakers, activists, and stakeholders from Little Tokyo and various endangered communities — will screen feature-length films that have moved and influenced them, sparked their creativity, or prompted them into action. By looking at this selection, it’s clear that films speak to the human condition, or leave an indelible impression on the public. From romantic comedies, social melodramas, to action and adventure tales, cinema has never failed to offer pointed and wry commentary on matters such as race, class, social and economic strata. So let’s see what moves this small grouping of individuals…

All events below will be at 341 FSN (341 E 1st Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012).

FREE ADMISSION. Capacity is limited. Informal seating is available on a first come, first served basis.

PROGRAM FOUR | Thursday, May 16, 2019  |  7:30 PM

Presented by KRISTIN FUKUSHIMA
THE JOY LUCK CLUB
(1993, Dir.: Wayne Wang)
The Joy Luck Club is the name of an informal gathering formed by four women in San Francisco: Lindo (Tsai Chin), Ying-Ying (France Nuyen), An-Mei (Lisa Lu), and Suyuan (Kieu Chinh). The members have mainly played mahjong and told each other’s stories over the years. They emigrated from their native China, remarried, and gave birth to children in America. Suyuan’s daughter June (Ming-Na Wen) replaced her when Suyuan died four months before the time the film is set. The mothers have high hopes for their daughters’ success, but the daughters struggle through “anxieties, feelings of inadequacy, and failures.”
139 minutes