Sabonis' Year Of The Yao Movie Review Movie: The Year Of The Yao Release Date: April 15, 2005 (Limited) Length: 88 minutes Studio: Fine Line Features Genre: Documentary Official Site: http://www.yearoftheyao.com Rating: PG (for some mild language) I was lucky enough to obtain tickets for the screening of the Year Of The Yao during the San Francisco International Asian-American Film Festival. My buddy John and I stood in a line that wrapped all the way around the Castro theatre as volunteers passed out Year of the Yao buttons and postcards. After about 10 minutes, my friend and I made our way into the theatre. As we searched for seats, my thoughts of it being just a simple screening went out the window. Banners were everywhere hailing the movie, there were reserved seating for local critics, and as it turns out there were guest-speakers present. These speakers included author of Yao: A Life in Two Worlds and ESPN scribe Ric Bucher, Bill Sanders of Team Yao (BDA Sports Management), directors of the film Adam Del Deo and Christopher Chen (who was also producer) and the author of another Yao book, "Tao Of Yao" Oliver Chin, some would speak and others were there to field questions after the movie. The movie was fun but left someone like me, a Rocket and Yao follower, wanting a little bit more (which the Q&A provided). It also really focused a lot on the relationship between Yao and Colin Pine, which worked at times, but at other times, I was kind of sick of seeing Colin. I wanted more Yao, Damnit. Don't get me wrong, it was great to relive some of those rookie-year events and eye-opening to remember just how much Yao went through that year - from being the number one draft pick, coming from another country, learning a new system, learning a new language, learning a new culture, Colin Pine, being called a bust, playing like a bust, being called out by Charles Barkley, playing like a star, the Shaq comments off the court, playing Shaq on the court, Team Yao, the commercials and obligations, his first all-star game, the playoff run, Rudy's leaving... all this in one year. And I am sure I am forgetting some things. As mentioned in the film and above, Yao not only had to deal with the pressures of his representing China, but all the crazy things that happened during his first year. I think this speaks volumes about how mentally strong he is, at least off the court. I think its just a matter of time when that personality bleeds onto the court. Some of the more memorable moments in the film... *Warning: there are some spoilers below so you can skip down to my next post regarding the Q&A session below. ** Warning 2: Not all the quotes are verbatim as I am going off my memory (and messy notes) so I apologize if I get anything wrong... - The film started with a banquent of sorts when Yao was still in China. It started off with a woman emcee saying "Tomorrow, Yao wil be leaving his home of 20 years..." and she goes on with a speech that really gives one insight into what has been ingrained into Yao's mind regarding "team/country before the individual." - A neat segue using ping pong reference (a very popular sport in China), a ping pong ball (as in the NBA draft lottery) and how they both eased the relationship between East and West. - Then they flashed back to the draft with Houston receiving the number one pick. They flashed to Barkley on draft night saying that Houston should "pick Caron Butler or Jay Williams" and someone agreeing in the backgroud. - Yao's preparation and arrival in Houston had a real humane touch as it showed when Yao first met Colin Pine (and how obviously nervous and overwhealmed he was) and how anxious Yao's mom was to see his son arrive. It was touching when you saw Yao's head towering over all the regular passengers walking out of the tunnel and when he saw his mom, he raised his hand to wave in that stoic Yao way. It was unemotional, yet very emotional at the same time. I hope that makes sense. - The film showed Yao in his new house. And in one of the funniest moments of the movie was when Yao walked into one of the rooms where all the shades were all pulled down, making it really dark in the room. So Yao bent over and instead of using the pullstring to bring up the shades, he grabbed the bottom corner of the shades and lifted it all the way up to expose the outside world. Don't know if he did that to be funny, but it really seemed like he didn't know how to properly utilize the pullstring. It was a very endearing moment, something out of a stereotypical "cultures-clash" film but much funnier. - It showed when Steve Francis first met Yao, a couple exchanges of slaps and hugs before an uncomfortable silence (as to be expected for two people that have never met and are from different cultures) - Cuttino really came off well in the film. During one of the first locker room encounters between he and Yao came right after Stevie told the camera that he was watching his step around Yao, not trying to "kid around" with him too soon. To which Mobley replied (sitting by his locker) "That's something you gonna have to get used to quick, we gonna light your ass up." - Steve and Yao speaking as they did their pre-practice stretches laying on the court next to each other. This scene was a harbinger for that first season (and somewhat the second). Francis was telling Yao what he expected from the Rocket's offense (and Yao) that season... "We wanna get up and down, they score and then we come back just as quick. (makes three quick wind sounds like "ffff ffff ffff") You set up in the post, boom (referring to passing Yao the ball quickly) Thats our best chance to score, not setting up in the half-court." - Relived the first few practices and it really showed Yao's learning curve and the importance of Colin Pine, even when Yao spoke decent english. First thing you notice is how much younger and smaller Yao looked/was, even just two years ago. - Showed his first game against the Pacers, the Stephon Marbury crossover that caused Yao to fall like a tall Oak tree (with Amare laughing on the bench) and the home opener, all of which were NOT good performances by any means. I am sure we all remember that. I don't want to talk about it. - Bill Walton and Cuttino chatting on the sidelines during a practice. Bill was saying how Cuttino and Steve have to teach Yao that killer instinct and how to be aggressive. Cuttino, picked up the ball that he was dribbling, and got philosphical. Cat really showed his understanding for what Yao was going through, telling Walton about how that was going against the grain, how that it wasn't in Yao because of the way he was raised, that it was "disrespectful to dominant and kill (as in basketball-speak) someone." It was a pretty cool moment, you would assume it would be the other way around with the way Walton talks up Yao all the time. My buddy who doesn't follow the Rockets but follows the NBA, said he thought Mobley was really a cool guy. - Heh. The whole Charles-Barkley-19-points-Kissing-Kenny-Smith's-Ass-On-Live-Television thing. It was great to see Chuck kissing that ass. Again, my buddy wasn't even aware that this happened, so it was cool to see someone's initial reaction to this. The only problem I had with this was the timeline of the whole thing... didn't Charles initially say that on the night before the Laker game, when Yao got 20 points? The film depicts the timeline as if Charles had said it a week beforehand. If I am mistaken, disregard the last couple sentences, but I think the directors could have played up the timeline better. - As mentioned above, they showed Yao's breakout game of 20 points on national TV... it was buzzing in the theater especially after his first game and first home-opener. - At Yao's first all-star weekend. They show Yao being greeted by Kevin Garnett in the lobby of the hotel and KG looking at Yao's entourage (Colin, Team Yao, Camera Crew) saying something like "You're not going to have any fun with all these people" and preceded to cover the camera with his jacket. It showed a couple scenes with the two and Garnett seemed like he really took to Yao during that weekend. - It also showed Yao's BRUTAL all-star schedule. From the time he arrived, Yao was being whisked from room after room after room for autograph sessions after interview after photoshoot after meet-and-greet. One after the other. - It went over "Shaq-Yao One". Honestly, I didn't think I could re-feel what I was feeling during that time, but it really made me nervous to relive that game. I remember when I first watched it and being really nervous for Yao right before and during the game. They showed when Shaq whispered in Yao's ear, the jumpball and then on that first play, Shaq trying to take Yao off the dribble and getting blocked. Amazing. Then on the following possession Yao's hook over Shaq, then another block, then another score... I was again, hugely nervous as it was happening all over again. It went through the entire ups and downs of the game. I was glad the film didn't go with the "Shaq,-the-intimidating-overwhealming-bully-big-man-of-the-NBA-route as I expected they would. There were times when he came off really bad, but overall, you got the gamut of Shaq quips and one-liners... from the "I'm a big goofy kid" quotes to the intimidating serious smack-talking. - Showed some behind the scenes of the Yao-Mini-Me Apple commercial. - To end the film, there was a really touching/cheesy moment between Colin Pine and Yao when Yao was at the airport, leaving for China after his first season. (continued: see Q&A session in my next post) Stuart
Q& A session Q& A session with ESPN's Ric Bucher, director and producer Christopher Chen, director Adam Del Dio, Team Yao's Bill Sanders, and author of "Tao of Yao" Oliver Chin - Everyone's favorite Ric Bucher was on hand to answer questions, but didn't really leave any real insight other than Yao is the NBA player most likely to return a phonecall. Shocker! - They all spoke up about Yao's sincere humility and modestness. To quote Chen: "After seeing him the first time, the first thing you notice is obviously his size. He is HUGE, but after just sitting with him for just one-minute, the next thing you notice is how humble he is." - Bill Sanders, leader of Team Yao was also there to field questions. He also agreed with Ric on the fact that Yao was very good at returning phonecalls. He used his most recent example and that he was his trying to get some good friends some tickets to the Sacramento game, so he called Yao up (must be nice). And Sanders said something like this "He just came off a fantastic game last night, not much after getting 24pts (27), 22 rebounds, beating one of the best teams in the NBA, the Phoenix Suns and he returned my phonecall within the hour just to make sure I was taken care of." - Sanders sports marketing group represents 25 NBA players. Of all the NBA players that he represents, Sanders said, Yao is the largest and biggest star of the group, yet he is the one that always finds time to return his phonecalls. - Sanders mentioned how that first all-star weekend was exhausting and really difficult for Yao, the second one was still difficult but easier and finally, this past year, Yao actually had time to enjoy the weekend. He mentioned that those all-star weekends were a microcosm of how Yao has adjusted overall in the three seasons. - Bill also said that one thing should be known about the whole Shaq-Yao thing. Shaq, during their first meeting on the court, had learned to say "I'm sorry" in Chinese and that was what he supposedly whispered in Yao's ear at the beginning of the game. - He commented that after the first all-star game shootaround, all the players left the court for the lockerroom and Shaq left last. He purposely went and sought out Yao's parents to give them both a hug. One could tell Yao's dad was really happy to get a hug from Shaq (there was a scene that showed this in the film, but without the background info). - One of the questions were "Was it tough to get what you wanted for the film with someone so private like Yao?" Something like that... but there was a common theme/answer among all the speakers. Yao did the book/film because he wanted to show the person, the "humanity", of himself. That he is a person just like anyone else. Well it all started out on Friday night when the Rox beat the Suns with Yao getting 27pts, 22rebs, and 5 blks. Then on Saturday, I got to see Year of the Yao (and the SF Chron had an article on Yao that day also). And now, hopefully I can get some tickets to the Golden State game tomorrow... My "Extended Weekend Of The Yao" Stuart
Thanks a lot for that post. I hope that movie makes it here to Minneapolis otherwise I'm sure someone from Clutch fans will post a link a for getting it on DVD.
Man, you got me. I thought Sabonis came out of Europe his retirement home started film critics career.
Sabonis, That was an awsome review. I cannot wait until the movie finds it's way to Houston theaters or at least on DVD so others can enjoy the film. Altough it does seem like the Q & A after the film was just as informative as the film itself. Thanx again! Tdogg
Thanks man, I really belive I was kinda all over with my thoughts, but I really wanted to get the info on here for all the Rox fans to see. I am POSITIVE that this movie will come to Houston, if it doesn't someone at Team Yao needs to be fired. It's gonna be a Yao Ming lovefest in Houston this spring, hopefully for more reason than just this movie... Stuart
accoding to IMDB.com http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0360216/releaseinfo Looks like April 15 is the day with limited release over the US 2 weeks later. Then again, IMDB has been inaccurate about alot of things.
Sabonis, you are way too cool and funny dude! By the way, have you ever seen the movie' Pumping Iron" Arnorld was the star in that movie, it's a documentary about bodybuilding and came out in the late 70s, would you say" The year of the Yao" is similar to Pumping Iron.
Yeah, I found out the release date that I had on there was wrong and I edited it. No, I never saw Pumping Iron. I get enough of the Govenator already. Stuart
Great movie review man. Watching the trailer, the one thing that strikes me is how perfect the Asian culture can be in regards to sayings. When asking himself how he can thanks his parents, his culture, his homeland, etc., Yao says "How does a blade of grass thank the sun"....perfect.
