Time: 7:30 PM, Run time: 83 min.
Language: Mandarin and Farsi w/ English subtitles
"...a finely observed portrait of a father/daughter relationship that will resonate deeply"
- The Hollywood Reporter
Best known for directing “The Joy Luck Club,” filmmaker Wayne Wang is arguably one of the most prolific Asian American independent filmmakers today. A THOUSAND YEARS OF GOOD PRAYERS is among his latest Asian-themed films that explore the bonds of family and Chinese identity in the modern world.
Dignified and quiet Mr. Shi (Henry O) arrives in Spokane, Washington to visit his divorced daughter, Yilan, whom he has not seen for 12 years. Yilan resents what she feels will be his meddling in the affair of her failed marriage, and finds excuses to leave her father alone in her apartment. In desperation, he begins to visit a local park, where he befriends an older Iranian woman living with her son. These two lonely souls communicate perfectly, despite their language barrier. Yilan eventually is forced to relate to her father, and is surprised by what she discovers.
Adapted from a short story written by Chinese émigré, Yiyun Li, A THOUSAND YEARS OF GOOD PRAYERS is a personal narrative about a man who survived the Cultural Revolution and struggles to understand a daughter who has become as different as the country she now lives in.
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