I Was a Simple Man
2021·United States·100 min.
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The rushing wind on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawai'i, never stops. It constantly rustles the leaves outside Masao’s house, providing a balmy sonic backdrop. Nature is both a driving force and a spiritual indicator in I Was a Simple Man, the second feature from writer-director Christopher Makoto Yogi. When Masao is healthy, his plants thrive; when a terminal sickness encroaches, the plants wither and die. The island’s ambient noises—the waves, the wind, the birds—thread through the film’s time-shifting chapters, from the pre-World War II sugar plantations of Oahu to Hawai'i statehood to the present gentrification of Honolulu.
DirectorChristopher Makoto Yogi
ScreenwriterChristopher Makoto Yogi
CinematographyEunsoo Cho
CastSteve Iwamoto·Constance Wu·Tim Chiou·Kanoa Goo·Chanel Akiko Hirai·Hau'oli Carr·Nelson Lee·Kyle Kosaki·Boonyanudh Jiyarom·Alexa Bodden·Alex Zhang Hungtai·Akiko Masuda·Angelica QuinnShow all
Original titleI Was a Simple Man