the film is lively and detailed enough so it is never boring, but it never takes off dramatically or realizes its intriguing possibilities either; By the end, "American Woman" does not seem like a failure, but a disappointing, missed opportunity
Semi Chellas isn't afraid to whisper big questions (what is identity, anyway?), to make space for small, beautiful moments (pelicans!), or to keep things quietly tense. Because even a slow simmer eventually boils over
it has an outstanding cast, a great look; What "American Woman" lacks, however, is a script that allows any of this to grow and breathe into something stimulating or satisfying
a fictionalized riff on the Patty Hearst affair spotlights an overlooked figure, played by Hong Chau, but fails to take us closer to this saga; "American Woman" tries to give us a fresh angle on a familiar subject, but the film is listless and desultory
"American Woman" is as nondescript and invisible as its subjects try and appear to the public. There's little that's memorable here and less to latch onto, beyond the foregrounding of an Asian woman in American history and Chau's performance
by Johanna Schneller [The Globe and Mail ]
by Andrew Parker [The Gate ]
