A Thousand Years of Good Prayers (2008)

AMEN Faye Yu and Henry O star in director Wayne Wang's A Thousand Years of Good Prayers

Hong Kong-born director Wayne Wang made his name with quirky, observant films rooted in Chinese culture like Chan Is Missing and Eat a Bowl of Tea before Hollywood lured him into Styrofoam projects like Maid in Manhattan (2002). So his return to personal form is welcome. Based on a story by Yiyun Li about an elderly man from Beijing (Henry O) who comes to the U.S. to visit his grown businesswoman daughter (Faye Yu), A Thousand Years of Good Prayers is a spare, controlled study in communication gaps and a piercing sketch of suburban American loneliness. B+