shattering 2017 Times article<\/a> by then-staff writer Frank Shyong (and now the first narrative feature film from LA Times Studios), \u201cRosemead\u201d has long been a passion project for its star, Lucy Liu, also a producer. It\u2019s not hard to see why.<\/p>\nThis powerful account of humble, terminally ill Taiwanese American widow Irene Chao (based on real-life Rosemead resident Lai Hang), who takes the fate of her schizophrenic teen son into her own hands, offers the transformational role of a lifetime for Liu. Best known for stylish, commanding turns in the \u201cCharlie\u2019s Angels\u201d and \u201cKill Bill\u201d movies and in TV series such as \u201cAlly McBeal\u201d and \u201cElementary,\u201d she\u2019s a revelation here.<\/p>\n
But the narrative also shines a crucial spotlight on L.A.\u2019s Asian American community and its sometimes insular approach to handling emotional trauma, particularly mental illness. Shame over the condition\u2019s perceived stigma, language barriers and a general fear of expressing oneself add to this cultural dilemma, one that hasn\u2019t been widely explored on the big screen.<\/p>\n
Liu is tender and heartbreaking as Irene, who runs the local print shop that her husband (Orion Lee, seen in flashbacks) left behind several years ago. She also helps out in the herbal pharmacy run by childhood best friend Kai-Li (Jennifer Lim). Given that Irene displays a troubling cough from the start, it\u2019s no surprise where her health is heading.<\/p>\n
Of more immediate worry to Irene, though, is her only child, Joe (an excellent Lawrence Shou), a high school senior diagnosed with schizophrenia after his beloved dad\u2019s untimely death \u2014 and it\u2019s gotten worse. This downturn has impacted his grades, competitive swimming status and overall focus; he obsessively doodles eerie clusters of spiders and draws a disturbing map of his school\u2019s floor plan.<\/p>\n
Joe maintains a supportive circle of friends, but they, like Irene and other observers, are ever more alarmed by his bouts of extreme behavior. The boy\u2019s abrupt, inexplicable disappearances are increasingly commonplace, as is a destructive streak.<\/p>\n
If that wasn\u2019t enough, Joe has secretly stopped taking his meds. He\u2019s also seemingly become fixated on guns and the endless string of school shootings that make the news.<\/p>\n
His deeply concerned therapist, Dr. Hsu (James Chen), assures Irene, who has kept herself at arm\u2019s length, \u201cMost people with schizophrenia don\u2019t engage in violence.\u201d But it\u2019s cold comfort to a mother whose days are numbered by a dire diagnosis. She\u2019s convinced that when she is no longer there to monitor and protect her son, he will hurt himself and others.<\/p>\n
Something must be done. The result is an act so unthinkable that, if it hadn\u2019t happened in real life, Marilyn Fu\u2019s otherwise sensitively constructed screenplay might seem beyond repair. But, as they say, truth is stranger than fiction and viewers won\u2019t soon forget the film\u2019s devastating conclusion.<\/p>\n
Eric Lin, who has served as cinematographer on such disparate indie films as \u201cThe Exploding Girl,\u201d \u201cMy Blind Brother\u201d and \u201cHearts Beat Loud,\u201d makes a worthy feature directing debut here, even if the picture tends to unfold a bit more prosaically than its singular story might demand. Yet when Lin attempts to break out using strobe effects to reflect Joe\u2019s schizophrenic episodes, it comes off more jarring than immersive.<\/p>\n
Still, with an able assist from cinematographer Lyle Vincent (\u201cA Girl Walks Home Alone at Night\u201d), Lin vividly captures the look and feel of life in and around Rosemead. This is a special achievement since only about a quarter of the movie was shot in L.A. The rest was filmed in Queens, Brooklyn and Long Island to take advantage of New York\u2019s tax incentives. No matter: The final product, featuring an effective array of SoCal exteriors to tie things together, looks seamless.<\/p>\n
Enough can\u2019t be said about Liu\u2019s astonishing, naturalistic turn. She\u2019s a physical marvel here, making herself as small and inconspicuous \u2014 yet also as quietly resolute \u2014 as her complex character requires. Liu, who was raised in a Chinese-speaking New York household, proves a verbal wonder as well, impeccably toggling between Irene\u2019s halting English and her fluent native Mandarin. Prizes may elude Liu this awards season, but she should be in the conversation.<\/p>\n
Despite the film\u2019s downbeat subject matter and its grim finale, watching \u201cRosemead\u201d isn\u2019t as wholly depressing as it may sound. Like many films and TV shows that have dealt with life\u2019s most unimaginable trials, there are profound human and societal lessons to be gleaned. Moreover, at this moment in time, any truthful, heartfelt story about America\u2019s immigrant experience deserves our attention. That the film contains one of the year\u2019s finest performances may seal the deal for more serious viewers.<\/p>\n
\n
\n
‘Rosemead’<\/p>\n
In English and Mandarin, with subtitles<\/p>\n
Rated: <\/b>R, for some language<\/p>\n
Running time:<\/b> 1 hour, 37 minutes<\/p>\n
Playing:<\/b> In limited release Friday, Dec. 12<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
\u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.latimes.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The true story behind the family drama \u201cRosemead\u201d may not be the saddest tale ever brought to the screen. But boy, it\u2019s up there. Inspired by a shattering 2017 Times article by then-staff writer Frank Shyong (and now the first narrative feature film from LA Times Studios), \u201cRosemead\u201d has long been a passion project for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2197212,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2197211","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Rosemead-review-Lucy-Lius-dramatic-ruinous-turn-demands-your-attention.com2F5e2F672Fc0bebcae46638a24f62b96e1.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2197211","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2197211"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2197211\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2197213,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2197211\/revisions\/2197213"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2197212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2197211"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2197211"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2197211"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}