Audience falls for unique vision of American dream ["Falling for Grace"]
I recommend "Falling for Grace" for two reasons: the American dream and audience reaction to the film. At special Nevada Theatre screenings before the movie started its run at Sierra Cinemas, Fay Ann Lee, the director, writer, and female lead of "Falling for Grace," answered questions from the audience about the independent film she has been bringing to fruition for 10 years.
Well, fruition ain't exactly fruited yet. Fay Ann Lee's vision is to make a successful, mainstream film. Without studio backing and prospect of television ads, Fay Ann Lee asks the audience she's trying to reach, face to face, to spread the word enough to make it a success. She also was in the lobby selling "Falling for Grace" T-shirts.
This is a mainstream movie, smack dab in the girl-meets-boy center of mainstream romantic comedic storytelling. Oh, there is one small glitch aside from the teensy lies that set up the girl-loses-boy part of the story. The girl is Chinese American. The guy is white.
For filmmaker Fay Ann Lee, her vision is to make the first successful mainstream romantic comedy with an Asian woman leading the mix. Toward doing so, the film pushes virtually no "race issue" buttons. If anything, it's a class story about an educated, hard-working woman from lower middle-class parents seeking greener princes in upper class circles.
So if you like the American dream - both on the screen and off - laying down your movie dollar to see "Falling for Grace" is a fun way to try to help Fay Ann Lee succeed and to root for the success of the character she plays.
The bigger reason for recommending the film is audience reaction. You could tell from audience members' questions and reactions to Ms. Lee's personable and responsive answers that they liked the film.
Audience members found it refreshing to have a film they would want to see with their 14-year-old daughter. They found it an entertaining alternative to the $100 million movie muck that draws so much attention. (Ms. Lee did suggest, with a career-hopeful twinkle in her eye, that Hollywood makes some good movies for 100 million dollars.) The audience enjoyed the easily satisfying qualities of this film. It seems appropriate for me to get out of the way and report that the audience liked the film.
You may want me to declare more of what I thought of "Falling for Grace." I tell you what. You go see the film, and if you e-mail jaffee@startlets.com and tell me what you thought about it, I'll e-mail you back and add to what I've said here.