ChikPapa Very disappointed :(

Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Sabah Hensley This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Winifred The movie is made so realistic it has a lot of that WoW feeling at the right moments and never tooo over the top. the suspense is done so well and the emotion is felt. Very well put together with the music and all.

patricianledezma A cute movie but would not watch again because it's so predictable. single Latina mother, trying to eke out a living, nasty ppl all pushing her down. still it has a good msg, pointing out the sexism in restaurants. I've worked in restaurants before and there's a lot of discrimination. boring ending though

David Pride I really enjoyed this movie and found it very thought provoking. It's not every day that a movie comes out that addresses race, gender inequality, and low-income families. The movie starts a little slow but is totally worth the watch and I would recommend watching this with your daughter and discussing equal pay, gender discrimination, and diversity once it's over. I was a little suspicious that the movie may be too cheesy but it turned out to be a very nice flick. The characters felt very authentic and since I live in Maine it exposed me to some ways of life that I am not familiar with. I also think this would be a great classroom movie that could inspire a lot of great conversations and a discussions.

Mark Turner Let me say up front that I loved this movie. Why? It was an engaging story about a woman determined to better herself and her family, who rises not with the help of a protest group or organized movement but by working hard and standing up for herself. This is a character that every young woman in the country should see to help them realize they can stand up for themselves and move forward on their own and no one can stop them if they do.Juana (Diana Elizabeth Torres) is a single mother living with her father and daughter who has dreams of working as a chef. She knows how to cook, she knows what is needed but what she hasn't had is the opportunity to prove herself. Working at a fruit cart she and her father own, she is attacked and robbed one day which sets her off to tell her father that things could be better.Walking by a sushi restaurant she notices a sign in the window saying they are hiring. Talking to the wife of the owner she gets a position at the restaurant working in the back. But she doesn't just accept her role there. She begins watching how things are done and learns more and more each day. She watches the sushi chefs in front to see how things are done. Noticing her watching, head chef Aki (Yutaka Takeuchi) helps her to understand the various intricacies of how things are done.He teaches her how to make the rice they use in a specific way and she practices at home. He does the same with how they cut the fish and how other things are handled. Already owning a chef's knife of her own Aki is stunned with how quick she learns. None of that will come in handy when it comes to talking to the owner of the store, Mr. Yoshida.As old school as they come Mr. Yoshida refuses to allow a woman to work the front line of his restaurant. As far as he is concerned they come her for an authentic sushi experience and there is no place for a woman in that. Knowing she is fully capable this bothers Juana but rather than fight with the owner she continues to work on her skills.As she researches more and more about the history and skills needed to be a top sushi chef Juana discovers a contest for the most skilled sushi chefs in the city. Not only do the contestants need to have top skills they need to create a dish that is their own. As she experiments with different dishes on her family Juana's skill vastly improve to the point that Aki wants to use her more at the restaurant. When Yoshida objects Juana takes matters into her own hands and enters the contest. With only 4 out of the many who will apply her odds aren't likely. When she is selected to compete you find yourself rooting for her to win. But will she? This movie was a joy to watch. What makes it so is a combination of the story, the performances and the emotions tied into the path that Juana takes. Each moment on screen isn't a wasted one, with all of the subtle things we see helping to fill out what could have been a short film but instead is a feature that holds your interest from start to finish. You can't help but root for the underdog here and don't let that term bring to you memories of Rocky Balboa. Juana is her own character and is fully fleshed out with a great performance by Torres, enough that I'm looking forward to seeing her in other roles.To use a culinary phrase to describe this film it refreshes the palate with something quite tasty and sparkling that will leave you hungry for more. This is one I can see myself watching more than once.

Allan Miller This was a completely enjoyable movie. The script was well written, the acting was superb, and the cinematography was great. Even the sound, which sometimes suffers outside of Hollywood, was perfect. My only complaint is that I am not a fan of hand-held camera, but I understand that it is a legitimate technique, and it actually pulled me in during one scene, which is unusual.One of my favorite parts about this movie is that the "moral" is a little ambiguous and isn't hammered home. Hollywood movies are always so black-and-white with good guys and bad guys, which is nothing like real life. East Side Sushi is much more subtle and realistic about themes like racism, gender bias, and social class. It is very refreshing.I ended up discussing this movie for hours afterwards, and recalling some of the great scenes, which is unusual and definitely the sign of great filmmaking. I very highly recommend East Side Sushi!