This movie seems to be experiences of various Vietnamese people during the stay in the refugee camp. It has been sentimentalized, casting it as some sort of good old memories. Plus it seems most of the people who made it out are the ones, by whatever circumstances, either having power, connection, money or being in the armed forces. So we get a view biased toward the well to do who favored what we did for them.The many little stories intertwined together gives an overall concern that most of the Vietnamese had when they first arrived, with a few like the Camp manager/Patrick Swayze character and Kid/Forest Whitaker character thrown in to reflect American's own remorse and problems.I found that some of the subjects covered to be a bit abrupt, since many of the characters were not introduced, instead were thrown into the action. Like the man with two wives, and the husband and wife with the pictures of their son, who were dragged out of their beds in the middle of the night. Seeing the deleted scenes on the DVD made the characters more rounded and their situations more understanding, allowing us to connect with them better.Many of the more important subjects seems to be lightly touched upon, and the whole American issue seem to play us out as the savior, as opposed to the aggressor. Even the radio reporting of seem to play to the fear of the well to do Vietnamese since they were the ones being preyed upon during the fall of Saigon, which is not unusual in situations where the oppressed overtakes a imperialist backed government.Most of the acting were very humanistic, but I found Patrick Swayze a bit too apathetic, never allowing us to believe that he is filled with guilt. A big part is probably his natural facial expression, which does not gear toward the sorrow look.All in all, still a good movie to see so that we would know what the people experienced when they first came to the US. A little less mush and a little more on the heavy or more controversial topics would have been welcomed.

A truly great film that can only be fully appreciated by people who lived through such times. Self-hating Americans will despise the film for its (mostly) pro-American sentiments. The movie offers a brief critique of American foreign policy during the Vietnam War, but that's not what it's ultimately about. It's about loss and family and faith, and that's all there is to it. The most haunting image to me is the woman who refuses to leave the camp even after she's found a sponsor, fearing what is waiting for her outside. The soldiers have to drag her out by force because she's so terrified. IT's sequences like that that comes from personal experience and can't be fabricated. The filmmakers probably lived through this themselves (I don't know, I don't know them or know their background) to be able to write/direct such a moving film. Sure, it's sentimental, but so what? People who dislike this movie because it's somehow TOO sentimental needs to call the cops because they lost their heart and soul somewhere along the way.

This film went beyond anything I had ever expected it to be. The acting was incredible, the scenes were moving and the characters memorable and beautiful. I was so happy to see Patrick Swayze back and looking good and of course Forest Whitaker was fabulous. His relationship with the young Mihn was touching. Please, go rent this movie; you won't regret it.10/10*

This is a great story told by patient and skilled filmmakers. Tim Bui and his brother Tony Bui ('Three Seasons') know how to make a touching film come alive with great characters and performances. I saw it at Sundance and felt that the performances by Forrest Whitaker and Hiep Thi Lee, and Vietnamese Actor Dong would warrant real attention at least with the Independent Spirit Awards.