All Points of the Compass
A Vietnamese Diaspora
Directed by Judy Rymer, Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Tran
Van Lam had the ill-fated destiny to be foreign minister of South Vietnam
during the devastating war with the North. He was a patriot, committed
to seeing his country emerge from its colonial history. He was also the
father of nine children, who with his wife formed a seemingly privileged
family, which dined together, had vacations at the beach, learned musical
instruments, and were instilled with their Vietnamese identity. As the
war intensified, he and his wife made provisions for the children to leave
the country. The nine children were dispersed to Australia, France, the
U.S. and Scotland. The hope was that they would be educated abroad and
bring their talents back to their native country.
That was not to be. Tran VanLam was betrayed by the United States, his ally against the North. While he was a delegate to the Paris peace talks, Henry Kissinger secretly arranged the pull out with the North. Fortunate to be airlifted out at the fall of Saigon, he and his wife finally emigrated to Australia with one small bag, where they ultimately opened a coffee shop.
The adult children, now in mid -career with families of their own, speak poignantly about their experience of dislocation.They each longed to be re-united as a family and had to struggle to forge a new identity in a foreign land. They were all deeply affected by their father's expectations to become accomplished and"give back." Each one feels "multicultural." All Points of the Compass is at once a gripping portrait of the "immigrant experience" and a new perspective on the American role in the Vietnam War .
55 min. Video or DVD. Sale $295. Video rental $85.
"Recommended... the film ably captures the difficult choices that must be made by those assimilating into different cultures, and how they are perceived by the adopted culture. All Points of the Compass is recommended for its insights into the psychological aspects of cultural choice, culture change, and assimilation."Cliff Glaviano, Coordinator of Cataloging, Bowling Green State University Libraries for EMRO
Best Documentary, ACT Film Awards, 2004
Bilan du Film Ethnographic, Paris, 2005
