Director Edward Wong explores the nature of political and ideological allegiances as he follows the separate paths taken by two men, Alex Hing and Yook Wong, the filmmaker’s father who joined the Communist Revolution that swept through China in 1949 but “denounced his faith” after years of separation from his family. Hing founded the Red Guard – modeled after China’s Communist youth cadres – in San Francisco’s Chinatown in the ’60s. Both embraced communism in different contexts yet faced similar opposition for living by their beliefs. A fascinating testament to the commitments that fuel all political struggles, COMRADES compares and reviews Wong’s and Hing’s accomplishments to illuminate the legacy of their efforts upon activism today.
