American Woman

Chau is strong enough to bring a compelling new perspective to this bizarre chapter of history -- and to the entire idea of the identity of the "American woman".

It reflects a time of political and social upheaval like this time, and the story seems deeply modern. The film undersells itself and its lowkey/intensity shifts are jarring, but I guess that's life.

There are inklings of a biting story here about class, gender, and race, but the film's attempts to invoke these discourses through the lens of the 1970s feel thin and phony.

Writer/director Semi Chellas, making her feature debut... [is]'s not afraid to whisper big questions, to make space for small, beautiful moments (pelicans!), or to keep things quietly tense. Because even a slow simmer eventually boils over.