ROSEMEAD (2025) review
written by: Marilyn Fu
produced by: Mynette Louie, Andrew D. Corkin, and Lucy Liu
directed by: Eric Lin
rated: R (for some language)
runtime: 97 min.
U.S. release date: December 5, 2025
It’s impossible to know the details and nuances of someone’s desperate situation unless there’s an opportunity that provides understanding and context. “Rosemead”, a drama “inspired by true events”, offers just that. It’s about an ailing widow who grows concerned over her teenage son’s deteriorating mental health, and winds up committing an unthinkable act. Screenwriter Marilyn Fu tells their story after she came across a 2017 Los Angeles Times article by Frank Shyong. While the film’s poster depicts the two main characters smiling and laughing on a beach, director Eric Lin must bring the harsh realities and struggles of this mother and son to life without resorting to melodrama or maudlin sentimentality. The headline of that newspaper story is striking, prompting questions for the reader, and the film paints a bleak picture of a family in grief, caught in desperate times.
Set in the titular Southern California town in the San Gabriel Valley, which is home to a vibrant Chinese-American community, the story revolves around Irene Chow (Lucy Liu), a hardworking Chinese woman who runs a printing store and looks after her 17-year-old son, Joe (Lawrence Shou), after the recent death of her husband/his father. She is hiding her cancer diagnosis from her son, who’s dealing with a schizophrenia diagnosis, which finds him struggling with hearing voices and giving in to impulses. They are both trying to maintain a close relationship, but their respective medical conditions and the Chinese culture’s proclivity for privacy make it challenging. Joe doesn’t like the way his medication makes him feel, and is fascinated by the reports of school shootings (Sandy Hook, Virginia Tech, Aurora, etc) on the news. While his therapist, Dr. Hsu (James Chen), is genuinely concerned for Joe, it takes some time for Irene to understand the severity of her son’s condition. It takes him going missing, as well as the destruction of school property, for her to realize just how dangerous Joe is to himself and others.
As the film opens, we see the camera close in on the outside of a hotel room one evening, capturing a happy family of three, inside playing music and dancing. It’s a scene from the past that Joe will revisit in his mind, a way to conjure happier times and respite from the mental troubles he’s currently experiencing. From there, we witness Irene going through her daily routine of overseeing her shop, which is right next to an herbal remedy shop run by her childhood friend, Kai-Li (Jennifer Lim), while also doing her best to hide her increased coughing. At school, Joe is often distraught and distracted, drawing dark imagery on test papers and showing crippling social anxiety around peers. He’s not a bad student and is involved in school swimming, but his mental state keeps him from embracing life the way his classmates do. While one classmate and family friend, Jeannie (Madison Hsu), tries to include Joe, his condition, combined with shyness, prevents him from experiencing the friendships he desperately needs.
“Rosemead” marks the directorial debut of Eric Lin, who has spent most of his time in the film industry as a cinematographer for television and independent films, including “I Smile Back”, “My Blind Brother”, and “Heart Beats Loud”. His focus is on familial management here, presenting an unusual dynamic involving serious health issues for both mother and son. As much as an exhausted Irene tries to keep a low profile, she knows that her cancer condition will get worse, as will her son’s mental condition. This inevitable realization will lead her to make a desperate decision, especially knowing that Joe’s medical condition will soon change once he turns 18.
Irene is initially in denial about Joe’s condition, thinking it’ll work itself out with therapy. It doesn’t help that other mothers in her community have either resorted to gossip about Joe or offered unsolicited advice that’s often superstitious.
Fu and Lin take viewers through two perspectives with confidence and skill, treating the two main characters as fully-realized people and creating a vivid understanding of their behavior. This is especially true for Irene, who’s gradually learning how deep Joe’s state of mind runs as she discovers his internet search history (information on guns is troubling), which could turn her worst fears into reality.
“Rosemead” is an engaging drama that is sensitive to the portrayal of this specific mother-son dynamic. Lin captures anxiety levels convincingly, as well as rising tension that lands on a heartbreaking, mournful note of finality. Liu, who bafflingly has never had a lead dramatic role, is outstanding as Irene, a grieving widow and concerned mother. It’s a transforming role for the actress, in both costume, physicality, and voice (speaking in Mandarin and English, although the real-life character spoke Mandarin), which only accentuates her terrific work. The tragic ending, stemming from isolation, will have the audience immediately realize how close the story is to the actual events that transpired.
RATING: ***
