Year of the Fish

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Year of the Fish

2008

1h 36m

Fantasy

Romance

Animation

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

61%

Tomatometer

23 Reviews

57%

Popcornmeter

250+ Ratings

A servant girl (An Nguyen) in a Chinatown massage parlor receives a magic goldfish from a mysterious street vendor.

Critics Consensus

This modernized and rotoscope-animated update on the Cinderella story is charming at times and visually impressive, but audiences may find it to be too coarse for children and too superficial for adults.

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V.A. Musetto

New York Post

The director-writer, David Kaplan, is able to hold our attention, and the film's unusual look lends a magical feeling.

Rated: 3/4

Oct 18, 2008

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Marjorie Baumgarten

Austin Chronicle

Without the animation layered on top of the action, the film would be thoroughly lacking in dramatic interest.

Rated: 2/4

Oct 17, 2008

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Jeff Shannon

Seattle Times

Apart from the debut of appealing An Nguyen and a pet fish instead of a magic slipper, there's nothing particularly innovative here, and the film's seedy milieu ensures that it's anything but a kid-friendly fairy tale.

Rated: 2/4

Sep 26, 2008

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Burl Burlingame

Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Making the film 'animated' creates a remove from the harshness of reality, like erecting a scrim between performer and audience, but it also makes for a certain glow.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jul 5, 2011

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Tenley Woodman

Boston Herald

Rated: B+

Oct 18, 2008

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Stan Hall

Oregonian

A re-imagining of Cinderella set in a massage parlor in New York's Chinatown, David Kaplan's film juxtaposes grime and exploitation with winsomeness and superstition.

Oct 10, 2008

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Juan R

An interesting take on the tale of Cinderella. The premise is good and I quite enjoyed Nguyen in the lead role. The acting from most of the supporting actors ranges. What really took me out of it was the rotoscoping which I've never been a fan of. Still, the premise is nice enough for a viewing.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/15/21

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Audience Member

It's a little weird, but it's also a beautiful love story!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

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Audience Member

It's exactly Cinderella in modern Chinatown. While the visuals are interesting at first, it gradually becomes more annoying than charming. In the end, the movie is a bit to dark for children but too shallowly simplistic for adults.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/09/23

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Audience Member

o man patinka pasakos...

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/29/23

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Audience Member

A simple story of a women.....

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

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Audience Member

There's a lot to like about this movie. Unlike others, I don't object to the use of rotoscope here. I definitely preferred Waking Life, but not because I felt the animation was out of place here. This movie is visually appealing. The animation advances the story's fairytale quality. The soundtrack was often overbearing and there was rampant stereotyping. Still, the movie had its charm.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

Full Review

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David Kaplan

Director

An Nguyen

Ye Xian

Ken Leung

Johnny Pan

Tsai Chin

Mrs. Su

Randall Duk Kim

Auntie Yaga

Sally Leung Bayer

Grandmother

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Synopsis

A servant girl (An Nguyen) in a Chinatown massage parlor receives a magic goldfish from a mysterious street vendor.

Director: David Kaplan
Producer: Rocco Caruso, David Kaplan
Screenwriter: David Kaplan
Production Co: Funny Cry Happy
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Animation
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 29, 2008, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 23, 2016
Runtime: 1h 36m