The Home Song Stories

In Person: Actor Steven Vidler

This ticket is good for admission to the Closing Night screening only. For tickets to both the screening and the party, follow this link.

Deeply personal and exquisitely crafted, Chinese Australian Tony Ayres’ second feature film is a revelation, a work of hope and tragedy and an exploration of unrequited love, betrayal and family. Starring the magnificent Joan Chen, and submitted as Australia’s Oscar entry for Best Foreign Language Film, The Home Song Stories charts the lives of a young family valiantly trying to hold itself together despite the complicated world around it.

The story begins in 1964, when the stunning nightclub singer Rose (Chen) arrives in the Australian suburbs with her two children Tom and May. Wed quickly to a shipman (“Uncle Bill” to the children), whom she met while performing in Hong Kong, she abruptly leaves him ten days later, and sets the family off on a journey that will change their lives forever. As the three move from “uncle” to “uncle,” none are as affected as deeply as the eleven-year-old Tom, from whose perspective their story is told.

When Rose settles in with the much-younger Joe, a chef at the local Chinese restaurant, the four create a family, or their most honest attempt at one. Amidst moments of genuine connection—going to the beach, watching The Partridge Family—is a dangerous tension, one driven by Rose’s volatile, erratic behavior, a remnant from her tragic past. When Joe notices May’s growing beauty, their carefully balanced lives are upended.

Ayres has created a sumptuous and moving film, and at its center is the radiant Joan Chen, who confirms herself as the actress of her generation. She gives a career performance as Rose, a woman who cannot control herself or protect her family despite her best attempts, a woman for whom sexuality is her only resource for survival. On screen for almost every minute of the film, Chen is a marvel to watch, in moments of explosive anger, quiet heartbreak, sultry decadence and caring tenderness. An epic tale of beauty, sadness and childhood lost, The Home Song Stories is an unforgettable experience.