Clever people, these Chinese-Americans. Wayne Wang, 33, a director from San Francisco, has made a full-length movie for about the price of a family vacation in Hong Kong: $20,000. It is the first feature film made by and about Chinese-Americans. A mystery/comedy, it was filmed in black and white with an all-newcomer cast in San Francisco's Chinatown. Chan tells the story of two cab drivers, easygoing Wood Moy and his hip nephew, Marc Hayashi. They chase around the Bay Area in search of Chan, a friend who has vanished with a wad of cash. As conflicting reports arise, the cab drivers become less interested in where Chan is than in who he is. A thief? A victim? A Communist? A Nationalist? In fact, the search for Chan seems intended to represent the Chinese-American community's search for its cultural identity. Sounds pretentious, but director Wang doesn't harangue about Yellow Liberation. In spite of technical crudities and a sometimes confusing story line, this is a minor triumph. (Not rated)
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