The Road Vs. The Race
The Grace Lee project was quite literally a quest for finding individuality within a mass of: 5'3, black haired, combination skinned, 3.5 years worth of piano playing Asian girls who happen to be homogenized into the A-typical "Grace Lee". While in the documentary Searching for Angela Shelton the road functioned as a "road to self discovery". In searching for Angela Shelton the road acts as a surfacing agent to her dark and disturbed past. The road in this film is certainly more gendered, as Angela brings attention to the issue of women's abuse. For Angela, the journey is less about the other woman in the film and more about her finding herself through their stories. The Grace Lee project contains less of a road to self discovery, and more as a way of breaking racial stereotypes (or in some cases reinforcing). The breaking of these stereotypes at first is confirmed in the case of the Grace Lee who tried to burn down her school, but then is later reinforced when we learn of her motive: the over burdening stress of living up to the stereotypical expectations of Asians in America (amazing grades, kind, reserved). In this sense, the road for 2nd generation Asian Americans the road almost functions as a race, who will get to the top the fastest. The Grace Lee project began as a way for Grace Lee to differentiate herself from the other GL's of the world, which she did by focusing on their stories rather than her own. The journey taken in both of these films shares some sort of abuse from society and subsequently, the tragic effects it has on its victims.