Golden Gate

R

1994

1h 31m

Drama

List

0%

6 Reviews

Tomatometer

7%

100+ Ratings

Audience Score

New FBI recruit Kevin Walker (Matt Dillon) is tasked with finding communists within San Francisco's Chinatown. When Kevin comes up empty-handed, he is forced to produce results, leading to his indictment of Chen Jung Song (Tzi Ma), an innocent Chinese worker. This results in tragedy, and the guilt-ridden Kevin feels compelled to look out for Song's beautiful daughter, Marilyn (Joan Chen). Though Kevin and Marilyn fall for each other, his past deception still hangs over his head.

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Steve D

Nothing about it is the least bit convincing.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

John Madden, who last year brought to life a dark, moody adaptation of Edith Wharton's Ethan Frome, shows some of the same tendencies with Golden Gate. In spite of the film's uneven tone, the atmosphere is consistently strong. The sense of place, cemented by various shots of the Golden Gate Bridge, is never lost on the viewer. Unfortunately, the sudden shifts in mood, and the screenplay's unwillingness to develop in a more original direction, hamper Golden Gate. The movie has themes to explore, and it holds the audience's attention while doing so, but there are flaws that even all the fog of the Bay Area can't conceal. The acting by leads Matt Dillon and Joan Chen is more than adequate.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/21/23

Full Review

ashley h

Golden Gate is a disappointing film. It is about a brash 22-year-old FBI agent who trumps up charges of Communist spying against a Chinese laundryman. Matt Dillon and Joan Chen give terrible performances. The script is badly written. John Madden did a horrible job directing this movie. I was not impressed with this motion picture.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

Matt Dillon in trench, yes please.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/04/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Sincere but ponderous meditation on race relations from the day of communist witch hunts through the 60s to today, set primarily around San Francisco Chinatown. Matt Dillon plays an FBI agent who railroads an innocent Chinese American during the House Un-American Activities Committee. Years later, he encounters the man's daughter and attempts to make amends and the daughter, played by the woefully underused Joan Chen, comes to grips with her place in America as a Chinese American. While the film is filled with some thoughtful observations and is certainly a smart film, it unfortunately forgot to be interesting or entertaining. I had to criticize a film for being too smart, but even smart films need to be interesting. The film is elegantly directed by John Madden, who brings an engaging visual style to the film and the score by Elliot Goldenthal is of particular note, Goldenthal's score is my favorite of of his many fine scores and one of my favorite contemporary scores.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

(* 1/2): [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon13.gif[/img] I enjoyed Joan Chen but this film is way too melodramatic and to be honest, I found it to be rather silly.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

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John Madden

Director

Matt Dillon

Agent Kevin David Walker

Joan Chen

Marilyn Song

Bruno Kirby

Agent Ron Pirelli

Teri Polo

Cynthia

Tzi Ma

Chen Jung Song

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Marjorie Baumgarten

Austin Chronicle

Rated: 1/5

Nov 20, 2003

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James Berardinelli

ReelViews

Rated: 2.5/4

Jan 1, 2000

Full Review

Thomas Delapa

Boulder Weekly

Rated: 2/5

Oct 7, 2005

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 1/5

Jun 17, 2005

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Andy Klein

New Times

Rated: 2/5

Jul 1, 2004

Full Review

Frank Swietek

One Guy's Opinion

Rated: 2/5

Feb 10, 2003

Full Review

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Synopsis

New FBI recruit Kevin Walker (Matt Dillon) is tasked with finding communists within San Francisco's Chinatown. When Kevin comes up empty-handed, he is forced to produce results, leading to his indictment of Chen Jung Song (Tzi Ma), an innocent Chinese worker. This results in tragedy, and the guilt-ridden Kevin feels compelled to look out for Song's beautiful daughter, Marilyn (Joan Chen). Though Kevin and Marilyn fall for each other, his past deception still hangs over his head.

Director: John Madden
Producer: Lindsay Law
Screenwriter: David Henry Hwang
Production Co: American Playhouse Theatrical Films
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 3, 2020
Box Office (Gross USA): $395.1K
Runtime: 1h 31m
Sound Mix: Surround