Customer Reviews

Children of Invention

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

We saw this film at the 2009 Dallas International Film Festival and, along with the rest of the audience, enjoyed it a great deal. It deserves a wider audience. We met talented writer/director Tze Chun after the screening. I'd wanted to speak with him after noting this delightful surprise in the film: much of it was filmed in my hometown of Quincy, Massachusetts. Among other recognizable scenes, the 'a-ha!' moment for me was when we watched his two child actors waiting at the North Quincy 'T' stop for the Red Line train into South Boston. That's not just a random scene: in the past 25 years, Quincy has undergone a significant demographic transformation. In particular, North Quincy's Asian population is substantial. Access to the Red Line has a lot to do with that. Chun grew up in neighboring Randolph. He shows a deep understanding of Greater Boston life. His film is steeped in the authenticity of a true Bostonian.

Chun's script is an interesting one and all-too-real. Hard-working single mother Elaine Cheng (a strong portrayal by Cindy Cheung) looks to build a better life for her kids. She accepts an illegal apartment and then gets enmeshed on the wrong side of a Ponzi scheme. Chun's story makes you understand the circumstances that lead to immigrants often falling victim to these scams. The combination of a strong sacrifice gene and a bit of cultural misunderstanding are a bad combination. The victims? Her two children, suddenly left to fend for themselves.

Working with child actors can be a crap-shoot, but Chun hit the jackpot with young Crystal Chiu who plays daughter Tina. She's an astoundingly good little actress who steals every scene she's in.

I saw Children of Invention at an Independent Film Festival in Boston in April of 2009. I have been anxiously awaiting it's release on dvd since then.

The movie gave me a window into a world I know little about: the struggle for survival of immigrants in the greater Boston area. I laughed and cried, and left the theater curious about what would happen next in the lives of the characters.

As a native Bostonian, I loved seeing my city on the big screen, and portrayed accurately. Nice work, Tze!

I have been following this film from it's inception to it's release at Sundance and subsequent international film festivals to much acclaim. I just want to say that everyone who put their heart and soul into this fantastic movie did an amazing job. The film is incredible, it's shot beautifully, and the plot is so moving. The child actors in it are also adorable and so talented.

Watch it!

I saw this film during the Sundance Film Fest when it was offered on YouTube. I rented it twice because this is such a great film. The characters are what truly drive the film and resonates the life of immigrants throughout our country. But actually, it reflects the life of the poor and struggling. Even if you're an American, the issues they faced in film reminded me of some of the hardship my family went through, just trying to make. Also, very important point, not a lot of films out there starring Asian Americans, depicting their lives here. I love films of diversity and I enjoyed the world this piece captured. Tze Chun, the director, is truly talented.

i've never seen a more touching and beautiful first feature film from a director. the children are a joy and cindy cheung is stellar. an urban huck finn with a darling sister and a resilient mother set in a new time and a new america. i'm excited to see the kind of work chun will create in the future.

I love this movie for several reasons others have pointed out but it's worth repeating! Director Tze Chun has an amazing knack for eliciting moving, funny, and subtle performances out of his child actors, something few directors can do well. It's reminiscent of Truffaut's "400 Blows" in capturing the anxiety of childhood under the constant threat of displacement...and effectively breaking your heart in the process. Like Chun's past work, this film wonderfully balances the personal and political, which clash together all too often. A deeply private story primarily told through a young boy's eyes, with plot advancing through characters with limited agency due to their socioeconomic status: a first-generation Chinese single mother tries to provide for her two children, and we gather she's been swindled on a number of occasions through fraudulent investments. Like the Ponzi schemes in the movie, there are plenty of bad guys at the top, but what we're seeing are the innocent at the very bottom, and how their lives are impacted through politics of power. A sincere and unforgettable movie!

Brilliant and so touching! How did the director make this magic happen? Wonderful performances, lovely story, real people and locations... still greater than the sum of the parts, as fine film making should be. Thanks to the whole team!

if you are going to see one independent film this year, children of invention is it. director tze chun captures the struggle of an immigrant family as they juggle both the hope and desperation that is america. in a film that seems so timely, both cindy cheung and michael chen do a courageous job of reminding us all of the innocence that refuses to perish. put this one on your list!

I had never heard of director Tze Chun or the film before I saw it at the Independent Film Festival of Boston, even though it had premiered at Sundance, so I didn't know what to expect. I was surprised at how much I loved it. The film is an intimate and sensitive portrayal of a single Chinese mother's struggle to survive in America and take care of her two small children, told mostly from the childrens point of view. Cinematography by DP Chis Teague is beautiful. Tze Chun wrote the screenplay as well as directed this character-based film, which is loosely based on his own family. I highly recommend you buy the DVD. I look forward to seeing more films by this talented director/auteur.

i met the director in college, ages ago, and he left an impression on me...we didnt' know each other that well but i never forgot his name or the inspiration that i was left with for the short time knowing him.

i didn't see him for almost ten years, then i started to see his name appear in various films. i saw one of his short films and loved it, and when i finally saw this one, i was blown away...the story was so beautiful, and haunting...not in a scary way but rather, the world he had created lingered around in my conciousness for quite some time! i can still see the little girl following her brother through the city clearly in my mind.