East Side Sushi (2014)

To be honest, I'll click on anything with Sushi in the title. Admittedly, I went in hoping for a lightly toned film a la Julie & Julia/Chef, but I was determined not to let my pre-conceived notions ruin the experience. I quite enjoyed the neat clean representation of the food- my favourite scene was when she first peeps into the Japanese restaurant. I actually liked the restraint to showcase a loud, over-the-top family bubbling with activity despite their situation- it was refreshingly realistic... If the acting could've held up to it. An endearing story of struggling to make life better for oneself while supporting your family- but the film really leaves a lot to the imagination, which imo is the screenplay's fault. There was no real concrete establishment of any character, location or emotion at all- at times it is frustratingly slow. It ran for 1 and a half hours like a train struggling to leave the station and left me feeling like I watched a low-budget play or depressed Disney TV movie.The mise-en-scene is highly lacking, the camera-work did a good job of bringing out intimately tense moments, but really wasn't very creative and added little to elevate the characters and physical location. It felt like a bad joke in a lot of places, especially the competition towards the end... I found myself laughing.. Which is not a good thing considering what they were trying to establish...The dialogues are ok at best, without any real punch, again because enough time was not taken to flesh out persons and situations. I was confused until the very end- was their relationship romantic? Or just really good friends? I would gift my friend a knife... And then go get tacos... Where was the romance? It felt like she was battling some inner depression the entire time, unable to let her emotions flow through freely... I kind of wanted to shake this film up entirely and give it just 10% more energy- even the youngest of the cast couldn't infuse more energy into the scenes- that is poor screenwriting, not so much acting even. Although the film could've used some more of that too. For such a simple plot, there was no balance in the visual treatment, to make it more engaging as a film.Interesting concept, I wish the editing was a liiiitle faster- not that I wanted an action film, but the pace really worked against the film in the end and it was a bit of a struggle to get through the last legs. It was slow yet choppy, sentimental yet parodical... I have a sense of what the creators were trying to accomplish, but I suppose it didn't really work for me.

EAST SIDE SUCHI. Viewed on Streaming. Not the East Side of NYC, but Oakland, CA! Director Anthony Lucero (also credited as writer) using the ever popular Japanese movie plot of "zero-to-hero" conjures up a cross-cultural tale focused on the art of creating gourmet masterpieces using just about anything shored up by vinegared (sticky) rice. With sticky rice as a metaphor, Lucero goes after tribalism, bigotry, racism, sexism, and phony cultural authenticity in the restaurant business using a light touch with a minimum of lecturing. This proves to be a very effective approach (with a few less-than-subtitle messages tucked in here and there!). A Mexican-American single mother with a young daughter living with her widowed semi-retired and ailing father decides to refocus her life on moving up the socioeconomic ladder from fruit pushcart street vendor to becoming a renown suchi-bar chef. Lead actress Diana Elizabeth Torres seems perfectly cast as a strong woman determined to prevail against a myriad of antiquated male attitudes (including her father's) although her character's credibility suffers somewhat when the Director allows her to ham it up in confrontational scenes. Actress Kaya Jade Aguirre playing the daughter steals every scene she is in (which is customary for child players!). Cinematography (semi-wide screen, color) is excellent especially for hand shots of food preparation. Lighting and color correction are fine as is sound. Score is uneven (sometimes in the background, sometimes nearly drowning out the dialog) and over doses on taiko (drums). Subtitles are okay. Closing-credits song lyrics are not translated. An enjoyable feel-good fantasy. WILLIAM FLANIGAN, PhD. Details: Film = 7 stars. Cinematography = 8 stars. Lighting and color correction = 8 stars. Sound = 8 stars. Score = 6 stars. Subtitles = 6 stars. Translations = 5 stars.

I picked this movie to watch for my birthday and it was a great choice. It's a small underdog story, but with a twist, and stays true to its roots. Well-written, beautifully cast and directed, and it really evokes its locale.I'm looking forward to seeing more from this director. Great cast. The lead actress is stunning and the child who plays her daughter is delightful.A feel-good movie that's not phony and slick. Highly recommended.

A wonderful surprise from the West Coast!The Port Washington N.Y. library showed this film, which I had never heard of, last night, and I was delighted by the story, the actors and the director's work.This is a film I would recommend to all of my friends. It is very truthful about how real people manage their differences in culture and background. Juana's life as a single mother, and working with her father to support her daughter reflect the experience of many young women I know. This simple story points the way for those who choose to learn about people different from themselves and working together with mutual respect.I was happy to see that the movie avoided so many of the "working with others" clichés. The actors and the director made the story feel authentic and real.