The Way Home

Frustrated by having to work at his mothers corner store on a Saturday, 18-year-old Jimmy seizes an opportunity to prove himself to a Chinatown hooligan. 30-year-old Haiyang follows a Coyote through the US-Mexican border when his younger brother, Bin, starts to fall ill. As Jimmy and Haiyang venture toward their own goals, it becomes clear that there is a very high price to pay. The film intimately follows them on their emotional, physical, and moral journeys, providing a timely exploration of family, identity, and sacrifice.

During the summer break of my freshmen year, I worked and lived in a Philadelphia Chinese food warehouse. Most of my coworkers were Chinese who came to the US illegally. They work 90 hours a week, in order to send money back to their loved ones, or bring them over to the US. But the long hours and solitude of this back-breaking labor often drove them away from their families, for whom they have sacrificed so much. When I asked one person if he believed the money is worth not knowing his daughter, who he hadnt met since she was born, he gave a reluctant laugh and said, American dream, right?  THE WAY HOME follows two Chinese immigrants as they face their own sacrifices in pursuit of their American dreams. It is my attempt to comprehend the answer he gave.