I Was a Simple Man

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I Was a Simple Man
A poster featuring several people by a tree.
Theatrical release poster
Directed byChristopher Makoto Yogi
Written byChristopher Makoto Yogi
Produced bySarah Kim
Starring
CinematographyEunsoo Cho
Edited byChristopher Makoto Yogi
Music by
  • Pierre Guerineau
Production
companies
  • Talk Tree
  • Flies Collective
Distributed byStrand Releasing
Release date
Running time
100 minutes
CountryUnited States
Languages
  • English
  • Hawaiian
  • Chinese
  • Japanese
Box office$12,669[2]

I Was a Simple Man is an American family drama film written and directed by Christopher Makoto Yogi.[3] The film stars Steve Iwamoto, Constance Wu, Tim Chiou and Kanoa Goo.[1]

The film has its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 29, 2021.[1]

Plot[]

As a family in Hawai'i faces the imminent death of their eldest, the ghosts of the past haunt the countryside.

— Variety[4]

Cast[]

The cast includes:[5]

  • Steve Iwamoto as Masao Matsuyoshi
  • Constance Wu as Grace
  • Tim Chiou as Adult Masao
  • Kanoa Goo as Gavin
  • Chanel Akiko Hirai as Kati
  • Nelson Lee as Mark
  • Hau'oli Carr as Ashley
  • Kyle Kosaki as Young Masao
  • Boonyanudh Jiyarom as Young Grace

Reception[]

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes surveyed 20 critics and, categorizing the reviews as positive or negative, assessed 17 as positive and 3 as negative for a 85% rating. Among the reviews, it determined an average rating of 7.2/10.[6] The film won the Grand Jury Award at the San Diego Asian Film Festival.[7] It also won the Grand Jury Prize at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival[8] and the Made in Hawai‘i Award at the Hawai‘i International Film Festival.[9]

The film was named the fourth Best Film of 2021 in the New Yorker Magazine, where film critic Richard Brody called it "one of the great films about death."[10] Roxana Hadadi wrote in rogerebert.com that the film is a "100-minute spell of beauty and melancholy, intimate and grand in equal measure" [11] while David Ehrlich in IndieWire called it "masterful" and named it a Critics Pick.[12]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c "Sundance - FPG". Sundance. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  2. ^ "I Was a Simple Man (2021)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  3. ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (January 29, 2021). "Filmmaker Christopher Makoto Yogi Visits Ghosts Of Memories Past In Familial Drama 'I Was A Simple Man' – Sundance Studio". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  4. ^ Debruge, Peter (December 15, 2020). "Sundance Film Festival Lineup Features 38 First-Time Directors, Including Rebecca Hall and Robin Wright". Variety. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  5. ^ "Film and TV Projects Going Into Production - I Was a Simple Man". Variety Insight. Archived from the original on March 21, 2021. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
  6. ^ "I Was a Simple Man Reviews". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved December 8, 2021.
  7. ^ "ANNOUNCING THE 2021 SDAFF AWARD WINNERS". 2021 San Diego Asian Film Festival. November 6, 2021. Archived from the original on November 7, 2021. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
  8. ^ "37th Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival Announces Award Winners". 2021 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  9. ^ Le, Anderson (November 15, 2021). "HIFF41 Announces Festival Award Winners | Hawai'i International Film Festival". Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  10. ^ "The Best Movies of 2021". The New Yorker. December 2, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  11. ^ Hadadi, Roxana. "I Was a Simple Man movie review (2021) | Roger Ebert". www.rogerebert.com/. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  12. ^ Ehrlich, David (January 29, 2021). "'I Was a Simple Man' Review: Constance Wu Stars in a Hushed and Haunting Hawaii Ghost Story". IndieWire. Retrieved December 19, 2021.

External links[]


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