Written and directed by Jeremy Hsing, Iridescence is fueled with a multitude of emotions and art. After a colorful title sequence, the film shifts to a family dinner on New Year’s Eve in an Asian American home. Things seem normal as the family sits down to eat their last meal of the year – until tensions run high and an argument ensues between father and son. It is a fight that many parents might be familiar with: the father wants his son to be a doctor or lawyer, but the son wants to paint and be an artist.
Patrick Zhang who plays the son, and Howard Young who plays the father, really heat up the screen. Everything they’ve been holding in and wanting to say, comes bursting out in an explosive and detrimental fight. The fight happens at the dinner table over a home cooked meal, while the mother and daughter watch in silence as their family starts to crack.
It’s up to the mother, Nikki Soohoo, to find a way to bring them back together and keep the family unit strong. She calms her son and begins to build the bridge between the two men. Soohoo plays the supportive, calm, and understanding mother beautifully. The daughter, played by Rachel Kho, adds a much needed warmth and levity to the family dynamic as she watches it all unfold.
Zhang and Young swallow their respective pride and open up to one another. They express their individual needs and wants, and share that their previous outbursts come from a place of love. After they have their heart-to-heart and begin to understand one another, the film shifts gears into a deeper understanding of the ever-evolving world and the people that live in it. Through the son’s artistic eyes, the audience is treated to a colorful animation that dives even deeper into the film’s themes of acceptance, respect, and love. It is here that the film truly shines as the animation specialists, editors, and Director of Photography, Jacqueline Gerdne, are able to showcase their talents.
What Hsing has created with this film is a modern look into the Asian American family experience. From moving to America, to choosing a college, to the simple traditions of a family prayer at the dinner table, each scene and revelation from this family is presented in a hyperrealistic way.
Iridescence, in some ways, is a love letter to the Asian American family dynamics – culture, art, and the power of acceptance. The film gives a heartfelt message to all families around the world.
