According to casino.org, world gambling statistics show that around 26% of the population gamble. That means around 1.6 billion people worldwide gamble and 4.2 billion gamble at least once every year. Jess Dang, director of “Surrender” states, “It has taken me ten years to admit that I'm a compulsive gambler. I have silently struggled with a gambling addiction for the past decade and it is finally something that I am learning to live without”. As such, she is actually one who can really talk about the issue, which is exactly what she tries to do with the particular short.
“Surrender” is screening at New Filmmakers Los Angeles
The movie starts in a barely lit setting, in an apartment, where Naomi, a young Asian-American, is evidently in angst about something. The story than jumps back in time, with her as a child witnessing her father assaulting her mother. The crisis passes, and in the next scene, we see her mother inside a bathtub, with her own mother caressing her, invoking God in an effort to soothe her, while her young self is peaking through the door. Obviously in trauma and suffering from the nightmare, Naomi takes her car in the middle of the night and goes to play blackjack in a casino. She wins the first hands, but soon she starts losing. The groupier, also an Asian American like her, shows some sympathy, but work is work, and soon Naomi has lost everything, in what seems to be just another time. Self hate kicks in, an darkness takes over again… She then visits her therapist.
Jess Dang, evidently drawing from personal experience, directs a very dark short that focus on a traumatized woman who suffers from gambling addiction, but finds it exceedingly hard to overcome it. Darkness seems to surround her life, with the director and DP Bryan Ruben Mendoza making a point of showing the fact, as the majority of the movie takes place in darkness. That the only light comes when she visits the casino is also a comment, which can be perceived as ironic though, since the light of the casino is actually part of the problem. On the other hand, the Therapist is portrayed as part of the solution, but not as panacea, with Naomi continuing to struggle with her addiction, after what seems to be a relapse. The issues all addicts seem to face are also eloquently portrayed, with the agonies, the relapsing and the lies being part of Naomi/s behavior.
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The flashback to the past adds another level of drama in the movie, essentially implying that the gambling addiction could be a consequence of what was happening in her family when she was little, but, unfortunately, this part suffocates in the 20 minutes of the short, and would definitely benefit from some further exploration. At the same time, the fact that all the characters in the movie are Asian-American women essentially does make the whole thing seem a bit less realistic, as much as the attitude of the groupier, who is a bit more empathetic than how casino employees usually are. However, these are just a minor issues and does not impact the quality of the movie significantly
“Surrender” is definitely an actor's movie and Dang gets a great performance from Andrea Bang, who manages to portray the many stages of agony her character experiences with realism and nuance, with the scenes she lashes out being the highlights of the film. Keiko Agena as the therapist is also convincing in the role, with her interactions with the protagonist offering a much-needed sense of calmness, while highlighting the chemistry between the two.
There is nothing particularly wrong with “Surrender”, and it becomes obvious that Dang knows her subjects and has an eye for composition. However, the film emerges as one that would definitely benefit from additional duration, something that hopefully will happen in the future.
