Bad Axe (2022) User Reviews

An engrossing documentary that rings true.

[rbsteury · 9/10 · 27 July 2022]

My wife and I saw this yesterday at the Traverse City Film Festival (TCFF). We live in rural Michigan on the other side of the state from Bad Axe but our little town could be theirs (except we don't have a Walmart, thank God.) But the sentiment of many in Bad Axe is pretty much the same as our town.

As a member of the Cambodian-Mexican family that director & cinematographer David Siev is documenting, he lovingly shot this intimate story of the travails of his family during the COVID years in an area that suspected Asian families, especially those that were public about their sympathies. Family members were shown including their flaws and moments of anger and despair. I think this was a very honest film.

And how wonderful it was to see the entire family at the TCFF showing. It is impressive that their restaurant /bar (which so struggled during the quarantine) is doing better than ever and is embraced by most in their community. David has returned the love. (And you gotta love how feisty David's sister, Jaclyn, is throughout the difficult times for all of them.)

Best Documentary of 2022 so far!

[dadoffourcs · 9/10 · 30 July 2022]

The film is a very honest and raw portrayal of a multi-ethnic family trying to keep their rural Michigan restaurant alive during the 2020 pandemic. It is at times humorous, sad, tense, and tear-jerking as we follow the Siev family through the Covid crisis, BLM protests, and the 2020 election. Chun Siev, the father of the clan, butts heads with his oldest child, Jacklyn, who is just as stubborn and hard-headed as her father.

Though at times the film feels that it may turn preachy and political, the filmmakers do a great job keeping the tone of the film fairly level, and the events seen on screen speak for themselves. My only slight complaint is the film began to spin its wheels in the third act, but the eventual conclusion leaves you heart-warmed and feeling patriotic.

I hope this film gets wide enough release to get noticed - if it's not one of the Oscar-nominated documentaries at the end of the year, I'll be disappointed.

Full disclosure: I grew up about 20 minutes from the town of Bad Axe, so I was very familiar with the area depicted in the film. I can say it was a very fair-handed treatment of the county.

Worth a watch if you get a chance

[jdome · 7/10 · 24 April 2022]

A lovely movie about a mixed race family in the heart of covid Michigan. From East Asia, Mexico and the Mid-West this family goes through every real life trial and victory. Just saw it at The Milwaukee Film Festival.

Bad Axe in Bad Axe

[jpscott-93991 · 10/10 · 4 May 2022]

I saw Bad Axe in Bad Axe. The movie is honest and accurate. The events portrayed happened exactly as shown.

The film is about an Asian-American family that owns and operates a restaurant in Bad Axe. Through the film they fight to keep their business alive in the face of the pandemic and the upheaval of the 2020 elections. It is a beautiful movie about a difficult period in history.

Go see it!

This is love....

[snieland · 10/10 · 2 May 2022]

A movie about what it means to "truly" love.... Wow. As intimate as you can get - so well done.... What a gift.... Thank you dear family for being who you are for our benefit - you define hope.

Great film for opening night SDAFF!

[dnacyc · 10/10 · 4 November 2022]

I laughed, I cried, and I was inspired! What more can you ask from a movie? Despite the fact that it was a documentary, I really enjoyed the drama and story arc, all very deftly carved out in the intense setting of COVID lockdown and the rise of anti-Asian racism. This film was featured on opening night of the San Diego Asian Film Festival and we were so fortunate to have Jaclyn, Chun, Rachel and Kat answer some of our questions. Hearing them speak live made me appreciate even more how skillfully David Siev edited their natural voices to provide such depth of meaning and continuity with such a delicate and loving eye.

resonates with all Americans

[asleea · 10/10 · 14 October 2022]

For anyone who appreciates the struggle and achievement of the American dream, this excellent documentary resonates. In the backdrop of the pandemic, Black Lives Matter movement, anti-Asian racism, neo-Nazis, and anti-masking, there is a heartfelt and revealing story of a Cambodian-Mexican-American family who emerged from extremely humble beginnings in America to become a vital part of the small town of Bad Axe. The film reminds me of the consistent question it presents which is, "How do we become better people?" When the next crisis happens, we will again witness as the director has in this film that there are people who will rise to do better and be better as well as people who are unwilling to value anybody who is not white. Called a "love letter", the film is really to me a love lesson in teaching the values of communication and self-reflection when we look at what we're doing to each other. Highly recommend.

A Gripping Portrayal of an Asian Family in America

[tlasalvia · 10/10 · 4 November 2022]

First off, you must see this movie as I won't give any spoilers!

As a father who brought his 17-year old daughter to this movie, I was able to place myself in the shoes of the Patriarch who had escaped Cambodia as a child. This movie takes you in, builds the tension, and explodes with emotion both bad and good. The ending ties the movie together, and then you realize that this is not an ending, but rather, just the beginning!

I don't see how any parent could go to this movie and not be moved by the individual struggles of the family members and their extremely supportive friends and employees (they own a restaurant) regardless of your ethnicity.

I had a chance to meet the family and give the father a big hug as it left me thinking one very important word: Genuine.

American Dream tarnished

[Silicone54 · 2/10 · 20 January 2023]

As an immigrant coming from very similar circumstances as the Sievs I was interested if their story was a parallel to my own. In fact, they appeared to have become much more successful than my parents' business. Their parents came from war torn Cambodia and Mexico respectively. They married and in short time created a fantastic restaurant business to grow their American dream in Bad Axe.

All seems well until the global pandemic hit Bad Axe. The family now struggle with the shut down mandate. Typical family issues pop between the parents and the children. Jacklyn the eldest daughter is the most outspoken and bears out a lot of the stress.

At the same time, the idea for George Floyd protests in Bad Axe are planted by none other than this family against the wishes of the father. You can imagine how well this goes in town. Jacklyn stewing for a fight flies off the handle calling anti-protesters Nazis. Then they video themselves doxing a woman who called their restaurant. Ultimately, at the end of the movie divine intervention steps in and Biden is declared the winner of the 2020 election. Jacklyn's mission in life is fulfilled it appears.

Throughout the film there were hints and inferences of racism though no proof made it on film. It would not be a stretch to believe the father suffered racism when he arrived in the US as a non-English speaking Asian refugee. By comparison, the children were born in the US and grew up speaking the English language. The father built a business literally from the ground up by keeping his nose to the grindstone. He becomes the owner of a nice big house with acres of land.

Instead of bashing their Trump loving neighbors maybe realize they are the restaurant's clients that helped fund his success. The hyper victimhood was offensive to me since I am an immigrant myself. I wanted to love the story of an American Dream despite the struggle. But these kids decided to place a bigger crisis onto the family restaurant and potentially extinguishing that dream.

I liked the first 10 minutes of the film and cringed all the way to the end.

The must see documentary of the year!

[michellerod-45177 · 10/10 · 29 November 2022]

I loved seeing the family's story unfold in front of the camera. It was an important story to tell in an important time in history. I wish everyone could watch this movie!! Bad Axe was a poignant reflection on how the pandemic affected this family in a unique way, but at the same time there were families across the country experiencing the trials and tribulations in their own way. It shows the humanity of the whole situation and hopefully will open the eyes of people that might not have the same views, but will be willing to be open to a conversation. Once again, I feel as if this movie is a must see for all!

I can't believe this movie is not nominated for Oscar!

[lighthousekeeeper · 10/10 · 8 May 2023]

A brilliant piece of family portrait! So close to heart and intimate. Yet it makes you reflect on the larger society we live in.

The director points the camera to his own family which is one of the most loving family you will ever see and at the same time they go through small crises themselves as well. In a small town in the Midwest, running a restaurant, they are both the traditional family and unique in their own way.

I can not recommend this beautiful movie enough to everyone. I just can not believe this movie did not get an Oscar nomination because it absolutely deserves it! I can't wait to see what the brilliant team behind this film is going to do next.

Amazing documentary

[mjmcgee-26556 · 10/10 · 10 December 2022]

I was lucky enough to see Bad Axe at a screening in New York at the IFC Center, with a Q&A session afterward with director David Siev and his family. It was a very special event. This great documentary describes how this Michigan family began with a Cambodian dad who escaped during the Viet Nam war, and a Mexican-American mom, and how they went on to run a successful restaurant in a town of 3,000 white people. The challenge of keeping the business going during the pandemic and lockdown is just the start of the drama. The family members are passionate, funny, and brave, and provide an intimate look into how they support one another through some tough times. They participated in a local event to support the Black Lives Matter movement, and got hate mail and phone calls as a result. And some masked white nationalists showed up too. The film is compelling, moving, and funny, and provides a window into how American culture has been altered, as lived in a small town. I left the theater feeling like I knew these people, and was rooting for their continued success. I loved it.

NEAR Perfect.....Near

[dv727 · 9/10 · 13 November 2022]

I saw this at a local festival. Previous employment often took me to Bad Axe. I lived for quite a while in a neighboring county--I often spent time in Huron County, so I know the area a bit.

The film was very well put together. Many documentaries I've seen at festivals are semi-glorified home videos. This was a true film and very easy to watch and understand.

The family story, from the father's fleeing Cambodia through the present was very well told, and the impact of the pandemic was communicated. The interviews with family members were informative and insightful. Other reviewers were more detailed, and I generally agree with them.

The only negative I have about the movie is the political perspective. No, that does NOT mean I supported the moronic "Nazis" who showed up. (As an aside, having been to Europe and having toured a concentration camp, that word is something I use sparingly, as that experience was a very emotional one for me.) The family members who actively participated in the protest and spoke of it, Trump, or opponents of masking painted with an extraordinarily broad brush--not everyone who disagreed with them on the handling of the pandemic is a far right, Qanon devotee. Not everyone who supported Trump is a "Nazi," or even a person who likes Trump. Not everyone who wasn't for them was "against" them. Frankly, the dive into the politics took away from the story (though I still gave it a 9) Additionally, the daughter ripping into people who indicated the politics would lead them away from patronizing the restaurant in a negative light presumably presented a double standard--would she patronized an establishment owned by a Trump fan, or who disagreed with HER politics?? I tend to think not.

Other than the value shaming in the politics, it was a fine work, and you should view it if you have the chance.

The film for every small business owner

[amlapertosa · 10/10 · 24 November 2022]

Bad Axe pulls back the curtain on the every day struggle for small business owners during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most striking, is the very personal journey the Siev family shares as they navigate issues central to so many families during 2020. With bold directing that exposes the hardest & scariest moments in their journey; you will see your own family reflected back at you as they tackle generational divides, racial divides, & the big life events that keep a family together. Bad Axe is a brutally honest depiction of the high stakes fight for the American dream: owning a business, becoming part of a community, and doing everything you can so your kids and grandkids can have it better than you did.

Story starts off good...

[TaylorJohnson1226 · 3/10 · 30 November 2022]

The story starts off good and the life of the father is really sad,interesting,and very much makes the film. But the older sister made the whole thing practically all about herself and was kind of annoying.

I thought it was about the restaurant they had during the pandemic and suddenly it goes way off course of what I thought I was watching. Again, the story being kept about the dad and the American dream and the restaurant would have been way better. What could have been a really rounded story became all political as if we do t see enough of that.

Really interested in watching the short film about the father.

Needs to be Seen

[evelynconkright · 10/10 · 5 May 2022]

I watched the film Bad Axe in the intimate Bad Axe theater. I felt joy. I felt sadness. I felt anger. I had happy tears. I had sad tears. I had angry tears. Thank you so much, David for having the foresight to share your family with the world. Siev family, thank you so much for allowing it to happen. I really don't have adequate words to explain the impact this film had on me. It is a film that is meant to be seen by the world.

american dreams...

[ops-52535 · 9/10 · 19 January 2023]

Are hard to make, and if youre the lucky one that fullfills the dream of american pride and joy and confidence, there are always someone that wants to take it away from you, either by hate or by force, or by stealing the dream...

it was really a joyride to follow this multi-racial family up in bad axe michigan, grown up from the rice fields of cambodia, fleeing for their life from the genocidal powers of the mean and inhumane powers of the red khmer government, thats main idea was to eradicate every sholared ,brightbrained and human sucesses in the name of superradicalized communism.

Striving building a business that in 2020 came under attack by covid shutdowns, an ongoing race war and threatened by neonazi weaponized hooligans that mourns over the defeat of president trump, you will follow this familys ups and downs, and general anger towards the unfairness of their society.

Its filmed by a cinematographic geek of the family, therefore its more or less a family portrait of a real life documentary, made on a dime, and casted by a brave and at no cost crowd of grandfamily, its well edited, and musical scored, and will bend the beads of emotions anyhow and anywhere among everyone who still believe in the american dream.

The grumpy old man that reviews this documentary from norway recommends, still shellshocked by the knitwit white supremacists way of thinking how a perfect society should be, and their ways of method to fullfill this vision. Some of the most powerful stuff viewed this year.

Love this movie

[michellesiev · 10/10 · 27 November 2022]

This is by far the best documentary I have ever seen. I highly recommend this movie. Everyone that I have encouraged to see this film, has fallen in love with the story and this family. I am inspired by their strength and their willingness to show not just their positive side but also their flaws and vulnerability.

I truly believe if we are willing to hear each others' stories, then we can start to heal the wounds that divide us. The power of cinema to elicit empathy and understanding are inherent in this film. I experienced so many emotions while watching this film and I came away feeling hopeful.

A moving family portrait of a watershed year

[amygoodfellowwagner · 10/10 · 28 November 2022]

Bad Axe encapsulates the year 2020 by capturing his small town Cambodian-Mexican-American Michigan family's struggles to keep their restaurant open during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a "love letter" both to the town of Bad Axe, MI, as well as to the entire Siev family.

Siev returned to his home town during lockdown and filmed his family as they went about their changed day-to-day life, combatting the pandemic as well as the Neo-Nazi elements in the community during the summer that Black Lives Matter protests gained traction.

I can't recommend this documentary more heartily to anyone.

A lovely family story!

[ljmcmanaman · 10/10 · 28 November 2022]

Bad Axe is a raw, honest real-life portrayal of an immigrant family trying to run their restaurant in 2020 amidst every type of challenge that a family can possibly face! The father of the family has successfully escaped the genocide of Cambodia with his mother and siblings in the late 70s. He now runs a restaurant in rural Bad Axe, MI. His family is strong and united and wholly determined to keep their American dream alive while staying true to their beliefs and the strength of family.. It is emotionally charged real life story of this COVID year and how they fought together as a family. You will laugh and cry. I LOVED this movie!

Portrait of a democrat voting family during corona

[imseeg · 5/10 · 27 January 2023]

Personal portrait of a family during Corona lockdown. Filmed by one of the family members himself, who thought it would be a good idea to record this Corona lockdown period for the future.

It does give a nice insight into the family bonds. It's a loving family for sure, who basically are the embodiment of the American dream. The father came with nothing to America and in the end has a succesful restaurant in a little town called Bad Axe.

The problem with this movie is that it veers into American politics halfway through and only shows the democrat political viewpoint that all Trump voters are racists (or worse).

This immigrant family didnt experience any vicious racism in this little town themselves by the way. The worst that happened to them was that there were some customers stopping from visiting their restaurant because they were anti Trump and because they had put their anti Trump views online for all to see.

I expected a lot more fireworks, based on the short trailer, but all I got to see was a succesful immigrant family complaining that Trump was president and in the end was cheering that fortunately Biden was now their president.

Still a nice personal portrait of an immigrant family in a small American town, but without any real spark or punch and a bit long in the tooth...

A Must-See Documentary

[ecarlson-11776 · 10/10 · 26 November 2022]

This film was so well done and is a must-see!

It not only captures rural America during the pandemic, but also shares an incredible family's journey. David captured the reality of the hardships his family faced and connected with the audience in a way that made the audience feel like they have known his family for their whole lives. I laughed, cried, and left feeling grateful for the opportunity to listen to their story. This is a film that will be used to show our future generations just how much of an impact this time period has had on our lives. Go see Bad Axe today or stream it at home. You will not be disappointed!

Well done, about life during tough times

[padik44-958-557691 · 9/10 · 6 January 2023]

A wonderful film describing the difficult times of COVID in rural Michigan. The counties around this setting were the largest Trump vote by percentage in Michigan. The county south (Sanilac) was home to the Oklahoma City bomber McVie and Terry Nichols. This first generation Mexican/Cambodian) family started businesses and raised their family in Bad Axe and confront the troubles of COVID, local racism, white supremacy & more. The juxtaposition of the paternal side that lived through the Cambodian Killing Fields is amazing. I live in Michigan's Thumb and have visited for 60+ years. This deserves wide distribution.

An Amazing Film

[simonjm-73849 · 10/10 · 24 December 2022]

If you haven't taken the time to watch Bad Axe film, you must! This documentary film is a gripping account of rural life during the events of 2020 that all of us can relate to, regardless of where you live. It's obvious how much heart and soul was poured into the making of this film, and the outcome is spectacular. David's short film, Year Zero, helps set the backdrop for this intimate and emotional documentary film. Highly recommend watching that as well.

David's passion for storytelling is inspiring and at it's core, makes you feel like an honorary member of the Siev family, with the film as an invitation to get a glimpse into the life of their loving and close-knit family. The Siev family captures your attention, pulls at your heart-strings and makes you feel as though you're truly part of their family. They are strong, bold, resilient, and deserve all of the praise this film commands. Everyone should watch this film.

Excellent Film!

[firstnamelastname-87158 · 10/10 · 7 December 2022]

This is a film about an American family living in rural Michigan fighting to keep their dreams and a restaurant business alive during a time of national political and social upheaval. It tells the story of the filmmaker's Father, a child refugee from Cambodia during the violent reign of the Khmer Rouge juxtaposed with beautiful home video like scenes of his family struggling to find its place and voice in a country that is changing. The intimate portrayal of this family is like no other film you have ever seen. It's an honor to be able to watch their delicate, raw and hilarious moments during some very uncertain times. Do yourself a favor and watch it. You won't be disappointed.