Sunday, February 8th--5 pm

Greetings,

Below you will find the questions regarding the documentary, Daughter from Danang, that I mentioned and explained their purpose for in class last Friday.

To repeat, you are not required to submit answers to these questions. They are to be used to guide you in further analysis of the film. If you answer each on your own, very fully and specifically, it will definitely help you when your write your In Class Essay 1 on the film.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS---THINGS TO THINK ABOUT--DURING AND/OR AFTER VIEWING DAUGHTER FROM DANANG

1. One reviewer describes the film as a “gut-wrenching examination of the way cultural differences and emotional expectations collide.” Would you agree this is an accurate description? Why or why not? Explain specifically.

2. Were there parts of the film that made you feel uncomfortable? If so, what were those parts and can you articulate why they made you feel uncomfortable?

3. Heidi acutely feels that she has been rejected by two mothers: her birth mother who gave her up and her Tennessee mother, whose cold, untouching demeanor drove a wedge between them. How does this fact impact Heidi and what she ultimately experiences when she returns to Vietnam?

4. The film is considered a very powerful one by many other small filmmakers as well as many reviewers. In your opinion, what makes this an effective or ineffective film?

5. What preconceived ideas about home are proven inaccurate after viewing the film?

6. In an interview with the filmmakers, they admit that when they decided to film Heidi’s return to Vietnam, they assumed that the reunion would be a healing story, a kind of full circle coming home. The war in Vietnam was long over and they felt they could create a film that would ease the collective pain that is still connected to the war. Instead, what they did discover?

7. Some viewers have condemned Heidi for representing an aspect of American culture that they believe is selfish and individualized. What do you think and feel about Heidi’s reaction for the family’s request for money?