Chinatown Cha-Cha
NR/Documentary/85 Mins
Directed by: Luka Yuanyuan Yang
Review: I’m going to write this review and try not to tear up by just thinking of this beautiful film. Chinatown Cha-Cha made my heart overflowed with happiness and that all comes from its endearing and lively subjects this film centers around. In the span of 85 minutes, I’ve grown attached to all of the people involved in this film and now I’m a huge Grant Avenue Follies fan. However, the absolute star of the picture is Coby Yee.
Starting during the 1940s, Coby Yee was dancing (later owned) at San Francisco’s notable Chinatown cabaret nightclub, Forbidden City. Though risqué at the time, Yee and the other dancers had a love for dancing that followed them all the way to old age. Now at the age of 93, Yee has joined another cabaret dance troupe called the Grant Avenue Follies. Cha-Cha follows these women as they tour the world from the US to Cuba to China reigniting and unifying cultural pride through dance.
What immediately captures your heart is the bond these women share and the chemistry that shines through the screen. Their unique personalities (and random bursts of singing) bring out most of the laughs plastering a smile to your face. Coby as well steals the show with her no nonsense attitude and sharp wit. However, the aspect that gives this film its heartfelt soul is the relationship between Coby and her husband, Stephen King (no relation to the horror author).
Their relationship is the emotional anchor of this film. It’s so beautiful seeing two different people bond over performing for audiences and falling in love later in life. One of the most impactful scenes happens in the middle of the film when Stephen gets profound about life and the legacy us as humans leave behind. He talks about how eventually, everyone will be forgotten. This is a scary thought as no one wants their memory to fade. It makes this documentary feel even more like a gem, their careers and legacy forever immortalized on film. Coby during this scene was half listening and playing a game of Solitaire on the computer. She won.
While I do wish it touched a bit more on the history of San Francisco’s nightclubs in Chinatown and more history behind the other dancers in the troupe. In a Q&A after the film, the filmmaker stated how their intention for this doc was to focus on the present and tell a story playing out in real time. In a documentary, they felt it was better to streamline the narrative and actually wrote a companion book delving deeper into the history. Another shortcoming was the lack of archival footage of Coby dancing in her younger years that was found to be lost media which caused them to document mostly the present. In a way it kind of mirrors the subjects in the film. Even in old age, where most tend to retire from their professions, and to live out the rest of their days pondering their end, these individuals kept doing what they love, lived in the present and channeled their energy into it and to make most of the time they have left.
Chinatown Cha-Cha is an absolute delight. It’s the feel good documentary of the year. It features an endearing ensemble and is consistently entertaining. However, just as much as you’ll laugh and smile, be prepared to shed just as many tears. This final tour and the film itself was Coby Yee’s swan song, and by the end of her performance, she gave us a hell of a show.
Score: 9/10
