Director Hong Khaou has an enveloping style when it comes to pacing the narrative of his 2020 drama, and I have to admit it was a bit offputting initially as he takes his time establishing the story of a gay Vietnamese-born man who returns to his homeland after thirty years living in England. He's back to find the appropriate place to lay his mother's ashes. As played by the half-Malaysian heartthrob, Henry Golding ("Crazy Rich Asians"), he's a sensitive soul who seems lost in what was once his native country, which Khaou captures in vibrant and thoughtful detail. Some moments struck me as superfluous, and the timeline didn't quite make sense relative to real events. Nonetheless, it was a touching film over its blessedly brief running time.
