FLOWER Power

hen came out in 1961, not much hoopla was made about it being the first studio-produced film centring on Asian-Americans with a predominantly Asian cast. Unlike the 2018 hit , whose publicity relied on the uniqueness of its Asian stars, was marketed primarily as a film version of the successful 1958 Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway musical of the same name. Moviegoers were thus promised a jovial time with a familiar formula and the added anthropological spice of Orientalism. As a result, despite the seemingly progressive casting choices, is a stereotype-riddled spectacle that offers little insight into the life and turmoil of Asian-Americans. Nevertheless, with its gorgeous production design, made possible by a $6 million budget, the