I WILL MAKE YOU MINE

WATCH THE TRILOGY

SURROGATE VALENTINE (world premiere SXSW 2011)

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PRESS

REVIEWS

• The LA Times | “…the predominantly Asian American cast inhabit their characters as soulful individuals, not merely archetypes or stand-ins for a community.”

• The NY Times | “I Will Make You Mine” is about transitions and crossroads, its characters learning that processing disappointment is as essential as pursuing love.”

• Variety | “A female-forward work with three generously drawn roles for Asian women actors.”

• FilmWeek (KPCC/NPR) - “There's a nice attention to character detail and humor”.

• The Boston Globe | “Youth has firmly fled and now what do you do with the cards left in your hand? These are questions movies rarely ask, and this one poses them with modest but genuine rewards.”

• The Hollywood Reporter | “A beautifully shot, settled-down finale…Chen spreads the film's attention around generously, exploring the uncertainties and disappointments of her female characters…”

• Indiewire | “I Will Make You Mine is a sweet little bop about trying to find the rhythm of your life when you don’t really know how the song is structured. Find the melody and you’ll be humming it to yourself for days.”

• Nerdist | “Light, thoughtful, and generous, this is a truly lovely film; the kind of small, inventive, character-driven movie that rarely gets the spotlight it deserves.”

• Discussing Film | “As the credits roll, it is difficult to hold back tears. The entire trilogy is a journey through the entangling lives of the three aspiring women and one star-gazed lover; the final score ties the series with a satisfying conclusion. With many films, it is easy to want a continuation of the story, but in a way, the end of I Will Make You Mine is perfect.”

• Cord Cutters | “…the type of film that's going to make you feel things that you didn't expect to feel going in. There are moments of unexpected laughter and uncomfortably relatable humiliation all wrapped up in this sweet and sometimes painful story. It's gorgeous, and very much worth your time.”

• Strange Harbors | “Lynn Chen’s directorial debut is a winsome crossroads of life and music: an easy watch that is as poignant as it is endearing.”

• Daily Grind House | “Vulnerability, humor, and empathy find each other in notes and shots in equal measure, and what remains is a story that hits as hard as unexpectedly finding a valentine in a drawer from years ago.”

• Candid Cinema | “Each woman was presented at different stages in their lives, at different moments, trying to make sense of who they are and I think it’s beautiful work. It’s a film that will stay with me because of how deeply I connected with each of these women.”

• AWFJ | “The focus here is on the female perspective. The women are the stars, and they all shine. Chen (who also wrote the screenplay) does a beautiful job with her characters — as do the actors.”

• Watch or Pass | “I Will Make You Mine is a beautiful blend of art and music with a bold style, great characters, and an authentic realism to its music that must be heard to believe!”

• The Spool | “Music can bring people together — and, given that the experience can lead to films as enriching as Chen’s debut, thank heavens it does.”

• Two Oh Six | "In a year that so far has been quite a bit different from any we have experienced during our time, this movie easily stands out as 2020's first truly great film."

• Film Inquiry | “I Will Make You Mine is a deeply nuanced directorial debut from Lynn Chen that will leave audiences satisfied. There is so much to take in from each of the characters and the experiences they individually go through.”

• Cinema Babel | “Director Lynn Chen is impressive in her debut, crafting a story examining some of love’s follies with just enough moments of levity to keep it well balanced.”

• The Film Stage | “The movie is somewhere between a daydream–where you can relive those kinds of long spring days spent around your college dorm playing guitar in bed–and the grim reality of an adulthood that is nothing like you imagined it back in your idealistic days.”

• VC Cinema Show | “Like the wistful songs by Goh and Yea-Ming that fill the soundtrack, I Will Make You Mine is a deceptively breezy take on the intricacies of relationships which lingers beautifully.”

• Rendy Reviews | “In any other feature, the archetypes of the conflicts would’ve been executed in such an over-the-top, exaggerated manner. This could’ve easily fallen into the trappings of something to be telegraphed, but through Chen’s direction, you really are endeared by these characters.”

• Project Nerd | “The film is as poignant as it is endearing, and works with a degree of levity that encapsulates reality.”

• Women and Hollywood | “It’s always refreshing to see a romantic comedy that is in touch with reality. Chen and “I Will Make You Mine” acknowledge that romance is as much about ourselves, our hang-ups, and our blindspots as it our partners.”

• Fangirl Nation | “…I Will Make You Mine is the kind of movie to watch when you feel at a standstill or lost in your own life. It is a movie that offers of hope that after you navigate your own tangled path, you will be able to move forward.”

• AIPT | “I Will Make You Mine takes an already strong story and adds a tremendous soundtrack. The cast has great chemistry and the direction is beautiful.”

• Culture Mix Online | “Many filmmakers would have made a love triangle the focus of the story, but writer/director Chen gives “I Will Make You Mine” added emotional resonance to the film by addressing adult issues of doubt and regret over life choices.”

• Universal Cinema Magazine | “Think of John Carney’s Once, then add the look of Anton Corbijn’s Control (both from 2007), and still there’s more to this one because there are non-musicians who are also equally involved in the thick of things.”

• Keith Loves Movies | “The chemistry between the actors is charged and dynamic…All these characters come to interact with each other during the film, creating heartfelt and tender moments that will stick with you long after.”

• Crooked Marquee | “Chen’s movie is more about facing regret than about finding romantic love, with a wistful tone that recalls Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy.”

• Beyond Chron | “Chen’s love for these characters allows her to dodge the familiar traps of unnecessarily making a character a villain or pinning the film’s resolution on Goh’s winding up with one of these three women.”

• Cinemasentries | “The dialogue doesn’t feel like movie dialogue nor do the characters feel like movie characters or archetypes. They feel like real people going through familiarly messy contradictions.”

• The Upcoming | “The attention is drawn to identity and representation because we never see this community have their stories told with such an aesthetic or universality.” 

• Cinema St. Louis | “Chen effectively explores the curious phenomenon of clinging to aspects of a relationship long after the breakup.”

• Brazilian Press | “Subtly addressing how artists are influenced and motivated by their own experiences with loneliness, fear and love, vibrant with its infusion of musical tendencies, and admirably melancholic, Chen scored a truthful, observational and enthusiastic urban rom-com.”

• Spectrum Culture | “Through the performances by the director and Fujitani, the movie finds its surprisingly big heart.”

• Source Weekly | “Told from the perspective of Asian-American women, it's an original and lovely film brimming with moments of such lovely grace that I'm now a lifelong fan of writer/director Lynn Chen.”

• Disappointment Media | “Culminating with the release of Lynn Chen’s directorial debut I Will Make You Mine, the Surrogate Valentine trilogy stands out as one of the highlights of the indie film scene of the past decade.”

• AWFJ | “Chen captures the awkwardness of old relationships that are not quite rekindled but not quite dead in a straight forward manner that is sometimes uncomfortable to watch, but it’s refreshing to see the women confront their feelings head-on and come out the other side happier and ready to tackle the world.”

FILM FESTIVALS

• SXSW Film Festival - World Premiere (Adam Yauch Hörnblowér Award Nominee)

• Cleveland International Film Festival - March 28-30, 2020

• CAAMFest - May 13 2020 (Opening Night Film)

• Los Angeles Asian American Pacific Film Festival - May 21, 2020

• DC APA Film Festival - May 30, 2020

• Philadelphia Film Society Summerfest - July 18, 2020

• Silicon Valley Asian Film Festival - October 2-10 2020 (Opening Night Film)

• Heartland Film Festival - October 8-25 2020

• Bend Film Festival - October 9-25 2020

• Fort Myers’ Film Festival - October 22, 2020 at 4pm EST Sidney and Berne Davis Art Center

• San Diego Asian Film Festival - October 23-30 2020

• Osaka Asian Film Festival (Japan Premiere) - March 5-13, 2021