''The Wash'' is a 1988 film directed by

Michael Toshiyuki Uno Michael Toshiyuki Uno is an American film and television director, credited with directing television programs such as '' Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' (the remake series that began in 1985), ''China Beach'', '' The Outsiders'', ''Early Edition'', a ...

and written by

Philip Kan Gotanda Philip Kan Gotanda (born December 17, 1951) is an American playwright and filmmaker and a third generation Japanese American. Much of his work deals with Asian American issues and experiences. Biography Over the last three decades Gotanda ha ...

, adapted from Gotanda's 1985

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

of the same name. It tells the story of a newly separated

nisei is a Japanese-language term used in countries in North America and South America to specify the ethnically Japanese children born in the new country to Japanese-born immigrants (who are called ). The are considered the second generation, ...

couple, husband Nobu and wife Masi, and their individual and collective struggles with their past, which along with their marriage centered on Japanese tradition, despite their residing in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Plot

After what is implied to be many stressful years of mistreatment, Masi has recently left Nobu early in the story, due to his intolerably sexist nature, is able to move on, and begins dating the

widower A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has died. Terminology The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word can s ...

doctor Sadao. Nobu does not similarly move on and begins to panic at the loss of Masi, although he still dates widowed restaurant owner Kiyoko as a way to get free meals. As a result of Masi's "abandonment", as Nobu tends to classify it, Nobu is forced to confront both his traumatic memories of the Japanese American internment camps, which the story establishes as the root of his inflexible nature, and the reality of the consequences this inflexibility has finally produced for him. Nobu's long-running feud with his youngest daughter Judy stems from his refusal to acknowledge his daughter's marriage to a Black man and their multi-ethnic child. Nobu eventually accepts Judy's son Timothy as a grandchild, but the story does not end with any reunion between Masi and Nobu; Masi not only stays with Sadao but she also, symbolically in the final scene, refuses to any longer launder Nobu's clothes for him, as she had during all their years of marriage. It is this aspect of the plot from which the story's name is obtained. Nobu ends up alone, with Masi divorcing him so that she can marry Sadao; Nobu does not speak to her during her last visit, while at the same time, refuses to return Kiyoko's phone calls and the potential for a future relationship.

Cast

Mako , better known by the mononym name Mako (sometimes stylised MAKO), is a Japanese voice actress, singer and a member of the band Bon-Bon Blanco, in which her prominent role is as the maraca player. She has also performed in a Japanese television ...

as Nobu Matsumoto *

Nobu McCarthy Nobu McCarthy ( ja, ノブ・マッカーシー, born Nobu Atsumi (渥美延); November 13, 1934 – April 6, 2002) was a Canadian actress. She received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead for her performance in ...

as Masi Matsumoto * Sab Shimono as Sadao *

Patti Yasutake Patti Yasutake (born September 6, 1953) is an American film and television actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Nurse Alyssa Ogawa in the '' Star Trek'' franchise. She is the sister of Irene Hirano. Her television acting career beg ...

as Marsha

Production

''The Wash'' was first performed as a play in 1985; Gotanda then wrote the screenplay for the 1988 independent film version.

reprised her role from the stage production for the movie, while Sab Shimono switched roles: Shimono played Sadao, the part originated by

George Takei George Takei (; ja, ジョージ・タケイ; born Hosato Takei (武井穂郷), April 20, 1937) is an American actor, author and activist known for his role as Hikaru Sulu, helmsman of the fictional starship USS ''Enterprise'' in the televi ...

, while

Mako Iwamatsu was a Japanese-American actor, credited mononymously in almost all of his acting roles as simply Mako. His film roles include Po-Han in '' The Sand Pebbles'' (1966) (for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor) ...

played Nobu for the movie.

Reception

Sheila Benson of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' wrote "''The Wash'' is imperfectly directed but not unmoving and full of complex, very real issues. Here, they apply to a Japanese-American couple who are internment camp veterans, and to their Sansei 'sic''children. However, they are the issues of every culture: whether a bad marriage is better than no marriage at all; how much we owe a partner and how much we owe ourselves, and whether one can find one’s real identity after decades of neglect and shabby treatment." Writing for ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', Hal Hinson wrote the film "sticks closely by the sociological details of the Japanese and their community, but we can't help wanting something to stir us, something that's not merely accurate and well observed, but that galvanizes us". The film was nominated for three Independent Spirit Awards, including Best First Feature, Best Female Lead, and Best Supporting Female.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wash 1988 films 1988 directorial debut films 1988 independent films 1988 romantic drama films American films based on plays American romantic drama films Films about the internment of Japanese Americans Films scored by John Morris Films set in the San Francisco Bay Area Films shot in San Francisco Films shot in San Jose, California Films about father–daughter relationships Films about marriage Films about interracial romance Films about Japanese Americans Asian-American drama films 1980s English-language films Films directed by Michael Toshiyuki Uno 1980s American films