Found is a social and cultural documentary movie directed by Amanda Lipitz and is currently streaming on Netflix with a run time of 1 hour and 38 minutes and is available in English and Mandarin with English subtitles.
Netflix describes the Documentary as:
“After DNA tests reveal them to be cousins, three girls adopted by different American families travel to China in hopes of meeting their birth parents”.
– Found review does not contain spoilers –
Found is a beautiful story of three Chinese origin girls named Sadie, Lily, and Chloe adopted and looked after by white American families. The girls happen to know the reality that they are cousins on the occasion of 23andMe. Sadie, Lily, and Chloe are not aware of their biological parents or their culture. The girls were abandoned on the streets by their families and they were sent to orphanages to be only adopted by foster parents later. The excitement to find each other gives out the significance to the title of the documentary. They join hands to imbibe themselves with their roots and go on a trip to China.
Sadie, Lily, and Chloe decide to rediscover their birthplace and also meet their biological parents along their journey of self-discovery. The screenplay is simple and casual with a heavy focus on the choice of the individuals rather than biased and prejudiced views or sensational disclosures. The trip to China is full of scenic beauties of the place where they explore different areas of it. Along with the self-discovery journey, it also becomes a trip of bond and connections for the cousins. Sadie, Lily, and Chloe are continuously subjected to questions about their reactions and their whole journey is covered from the scratch. One can connect to their emotions based on the unfiltered reactions to their genesis.
Found is not about a cultural journey of self-discovery it also touches upon the sensitive topic of Social stigmas which compel the parents to give up on their children. The three major factors that might have triggered the girl’s parents to abandon them are the Chinese government’s single child program, poverty, and the societal desire for a boy child. There is no other intention to target any other sensitive subject except social and cultural norms.
Though the cousins belong to the place they are currently exploring themselves in but are not able to blend with the situation there as all of them were raised in white American families and are well acquainted with their culture. Another issue faced by the girls is the language barrier as they share experiences of being a victim of name-calling for having non-cultural values in them. They were trolled for not knowing their mother tongue which is Chinese.
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The girls make the most of their journey and enjoy each and every moment of their trip to China. The journey is emotionally and mentally challenging as it is a slender dig into the private chain reaction to their realism. The reactions of the foster parents to their kid’s journey are also priceless as they are swamped by emotions but do not back off from providing tireless support to their daughters.
A researcher and resident of Beijing named Liu Hao comes into the picture to help girls find out about their biological parents. The next part of the documentary portrays Liu’s exhaustive investigation and research to solve the mystery. Liu also speaks with the girl’s biological families about their condition after abandoning the girls and the emotional outbreak is heart-wrenching.
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Final Verdict: Found
Found is a beautiful attempt that shows mixed emotions with a vague approach to the scenario as the girls accept their present condition and make peace with their biological families without any perplexing emotions. The story goes in a sink with the title as it gives utter joy to Sadie, Lily and Chloe to have found each other for better.
The docu-film also attempts to show the unconditional love of caretakers for the children at the orphanage. 23andMe virtual call and a DNA test introduce the girls to each other as their cousins followed by a trip to China from different places of USA, contrast culture and non-identical beliefs about their identity and inception. Found also highlights the common desire of the girls to be with each other and together explore their roots. An inclination of an adopted child about the concept of family is tangled and complex as compared to others but Found contradicts this assumption and admirably establishes that there is an ocean full of affection and bond inside it and one just has to find it.
Found is a must-watch Docu-film, you can watch it streaming on Netflix.
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