American Woman (2019 film)

American Woman is a 2019 drama film written and directed by Semi Chellas, in her feature directorial debut. It stars Hong Chau, Sarah Gadon, John Gallagher Jr., Lola Kirke, David Cubitt, Jordan Pettle, Richard Walters and Ellen Burstyn. It is based on the 2003 novel of the same title by Susan Choi.

Not to be confused with American Woman (2018 film), the film starring Sienna Miller, Aaron Paul and Christina Hendricks.
American Woman
Official poster
Directed bySemi Chellas
Produced by
  • Semi Chellas
  • Christina Piovesan
  • Noah Segal
Written bySemi Chellas
Based onAmerican Woman
by Susan Choi
Starring
Music byLesley Barber
CinematographyGregory Middleton
Edited byLindsay Allikas
Production
companies
Distributed byElevation Pictures
Release date
  • April 28, 2019 (2019-04-28) (Tribeca)
  • June 30, 2020 (2020-06-30) (Canada)
Running time
85 minutes[1]
Country
  • United States
  • Canada
LanguageEnglish

It had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 28, 2019. It is scheduled to be released in Canada on June 30, 2020, by Elevation Pictures.

Synopsis

Tribeca Film Festival reports the synopsis, "Adept at living off the grid ever since she masterminded an act of violence against the American government, 25-year-old former radical Jenny Shimada (Hong Chau) agrees to take care of three fugitives who are on the run. One of them, the kidnapped granddaughter of a wealthy newspaper magnate (Sarah Gadon), has become a national celebrity for embracing her captors’ ideology and joining their revolutionary cell. Semi Chellas (Mad Men, The Romanoffs) makes her directorial debut with this fictional account of the real-life woman who cared for heiress Patty Hearst after she was abducted."[1]

Cast

Production

In September 2017, it was announced Hong Chau had joined the cast of the film, with Semi Chellas directing from a screenplay she wrote. Killer Films will produce the film.[2]

Release

The film had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 28, 2019.[3] It had a gala premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2019.[4][5]

Reception

As of July 2020, 54% of the thirteen reviews compiled by Rotten Tomatoes are positive, with an average rating of 5.94/10.[6] The Globe and Mail calls it a "Canadian heist thriller American Woman knows when to simmer and when to boil over."[7]

It competed in the Calgary International Film Festival in 2019, where it was awarded a Special Jury Mention for Acting. [8] It also won Best Picture, Best Director (Semi Chellas), Best Actress (Hong Chau), and Best Cinematography (Gregory Middleton) at the Downtown Los Angeles Film Festival in 2019.[9]

References
  1. "American Woman". Tribeca Film Festival. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  2. Kroll, Justin (September 27, 2017). "'Downsizing' Breakout Hong Chau to Star in Patty Hearst Movie 'American Woman' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  3. Hayes, Dade (March 5, 2019). "Tribeca Film Festival Unveils Feature Lineup, With Screen Time For John DeLorean, Muhammad Ali, Chelsea Manning". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  4. Lang, Brent (July 23, 2019). "Toronto Film Festival: 'Joker,' 'Ford v Ferrari,' 'Hustlers' Among Big Premieres". Variety. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  5. "TIFF 2019: Meet Semi Chellas, the Canadian woman behind American Woman, and a few Mad Men, too". Retrieved 2020-07-16.
  6. "American Woman (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  7. "Review: Canadian heist thriller American Woman knows when to simmer and when to boil over". Retrieved 2020-07-16.
  8. "AMERICAN WOMAN Â» CIFF". www.ciffcalgary.ca. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
  9. "2019 DTLA Film Festival Winners - PUSHOUT, QT8 and AMERICAN WOMAN Win Prizes". VIMOOZ. 2019-10-28. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
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