The Search for General Tso facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Search for General Tso |
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Film poster
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| Directed by | Ian Cheney |
| Produced by |
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| Music by |
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| Editing by | Frederick Shanahan |
| Studio | Wicked Delicate Films |
| Distributed by | Sundance Selects |
| Release date(s) | April 20, 2014 (Tribeca Film Festival) |
| Running time | 73 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Search for General Tso is a fun and interesting movie that explores a big mystery. It's a documentary film, which means it tells a true story. This movie tries to find out where the famous Chinese-American dish, General Tso's chicken, really came from.
The film first showed at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2014. It was directed by Ian Cheney and produced by Amanda Murray and Jennifer 8. Lee. A company called Sundance Selects released the movie in theaters and online in January 2015.
What the Movie is About
This movie starts by looking into ideas about a real person named General Tso. He was a military leader in China a long time ago. The film then travels to China. It shows that most people there don't even know about the dish named after him!
The movie then explores General Tso's actual life during the Qing Dynasty. It also shares the history of how Chinese people moved to the United States. You'll meet important chefs and experts in Chinese-American food. These include Cecilia Chiang, who owned a famous restaurant, and Chef Peng Chang-kuei. Chef Peng says he created the dish in Taiwan.
How the Movie Was Made
The Idea for the Film
Around 2004, director Ian Cheney and his friend were driving across America. They stopped at a Chinese restaurant and ordered General Tso's chicken. This meal made them curious. They started wondering about the history of Chinese food in America.
From Book to Film
In 2008, one of the film's producers, Jennifer 8. Lee, wrote a book. It was called The Fortune Cookie Chronicles. Her book was all about the history of Chinese food in the United States and around the world.
In her book, she shared many surprising facts. For example, she found out that fortune cookies are common in many countries, but not in China! She also suggested that fortune cookies might have first come from Japan. Her book was very popular and even made it onto The New York Times Best Seller list.
Jennifer 8. Lee's research for her book became the main idea for this documentary film. Besides showing at the Tribeca Film Festival, the movie also played at other film festivals. These included the Seattle International Film Festival and AFI Docs.
