Lucky Grandma

Despite a slight tendency to meander late in the second half, this smartly written, consistently hilarious comedy about a surly widowed grandmother in New York's Chinatown whose unexpected lucky streak ends up landing her in the middle of a street war between rival Asian gangs. This send-up of cheesy Chinese crime dramas, mixed with touches of understated wit and campy humor, makes for a warm, funny and touching tale, with an excellent, award-worthy lead performance by Tsai Chin and a fine supporting cast. Easily one of the most humorously entertaining offerings to come along in quite some time.

They don’t come that much more un-Hollywood (quirky) than Lucky Grandma...when was the last time you watched a movie with a droll 80yr old chain-smoking woman as the main star? Is Grandma lucky? well, challenged would be a better fit. Poor Grandma, 40 odd years working hard beside her husband only to find she’s been left with virtually nothing. The best thing we can take away from this story is; Luck is an illusion you can’t bank **** matter what the fortune readers may tell you. While there are good helpings of ironic humor and comical situations ‘Grandma’ at times presents with some slightly unsettling violence, occasioning death, courtesy of rivalry between a couple of local Chinese crime gangs. To find out how Grandma is drawn into these situations you’ll just have to watch. Thankfully, the links with family offer an all-important and warming strength to Grandma's very edgy entrapments. There are plenty of odd, well-played Characters injecting fun throughout, along with some rather sinister types you’d be happy not to meet. An imaginative music score from Andrew Orkin adds nice touches - while the visuals provided by El Salvadorian Cinematographer, Eduardo Enrique Mayen supply professional contrasts between New York Chinatown’s side streets, back alleys, and grannies’ meager apartment...where it seems there’s always someone knocking on her door! The first theatrical feature from director/writer Sasie Sealy gives us good cause to want to see her next effort.