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Bitter Melon

Play trailer 1:00 Poster for Bitter Melon 2018 1h 50m Comedy Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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86% Tomatometer 7 Reviews Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
When a Filipino-American family reunites for a Christmas party, the holiday takes a dark turn when they conspire to murder an abusive bully.
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Bitter Melon

Critics Reviews

View All (7) Critics Reviews
Ben Kenigsberg New York Times The movie grinds to a halt in its final third as the characters talk things out, which might be helpful in life but in drama tends to belabor the obvious, as well as offer an easy exit. Dec 6, 2018 Full Review G. Allen Johnson San Francisco Chronicle An intriguing and absorbing independent film... Rated: 3/4 Dec 4, 2018 Full Review Dennis Harvey Variety Domestic violence and black comedy don't seem a natural match, but to an impressive degree "Bitter Melon" pulls off their shotgun marriage. May 18, 2018 Full Review Avi Offer NYC Movie Guru Bold, heartfelt and refreshingly unpredictable. Rated: 8.45/10 Dec 20, 2018 Full Review Alexander Ryll Gay Essential Only a brilliant and gifted director can manage to make grueling topics like domestic abuse mesh well with dry humor and dramedy. Rated: 8 Nov 3, 2018 Full Review Gary M. Kramer Gay City News Mendoza adroitly sneaks in other messages, such as thoughtful discussions of both racism and effeminacy in the gay community. The cast is uniformly strong with Schneider particularly appealing as Declan, the perhaps-not-so-moral center of the family. Oct 19, 2018 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (4) audience reviews
Patrick H Bitter Melon was an interesting watch. It branches off slightly with different through-lines for different characters, and then it all comes back together through a singular family. In the runtime it has, I feel like it's not overly ambitious but hits that sweet spot of speaking to the dysfunctional dynamics that can exist within a Filipino-American family and then tilts your perception of it and the expectations you might have for the film ever so slightly so to surprise you with how stories are resolved. Some things left me wanting more, but I feel like overall it was a pretty solid film. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/15/25 Full Review Happiest P Fruit Fly was a great take on the domestic violence situation within a Filipino household and me being a white man, I was looking into a situation knowing nothing except what domestic violence is and what happened in my situation and I found many similarities. What made me astounded was that the family reacted to this abuse with just hide the violence and move on. I also saw that even the abuser, Troy, seem to think there was nothing wrong with his actions even up until the end of the movie. I would love more movies or even a follow-up from H.P. to explore this concept further and what we could do to help and one day eliminate the issue. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/15/25 Full Review Kari R This was my first H.P. Mendoza film. I saw it at the Tallgrass Film Festival. It turned me into an H.P. fan for life! Truly, once you see one of his films you will find yourself going down the creative rabbit hole of his catalogue and you will have so...much...fun. I promise....but I also digress. Bitter Melon is a film that serves as an important creative commentary about gender based violence while also providing you with a glimpse of exposure into Filipino family dynamics. A riveting and thought provoking film. One of my all time favorite movies. Highly recommend. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/14/25 Full Review john f Hits home for me on several different levels, namely for its unflinching look at the devastation caused by abuse in families, and navigating social worlds in which you are an outsider. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Bitter Melon

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Movie Info

Synopsis When a Filipino-American family reunites for a Christmas party, the holiday takes a dark turn when they conspire to murder an abusive bully.
Director
H.P. Mendoza
Producer
Mark Del Lima, Brian Benson, Michael Oberst
Screenwriter
H.P. Mendoza
Production Co
Ersatz Film
Genre
Comedy, Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 11, 2018
Runtime
1h 50m
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