Rosemead (2025)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
A terminally ill mother must navigate the complexities of her son's schizophrenia while facing her own mortality.
The story
Set in the San Gabriel Valley of southern California, the film follows Irene, a terminally ill widow, who is caring for her 17-year-old son, Joe. Joe has been struggling with schizophrenia since his diagnosis and is currently undergoing therapy and medication. Irene hides her own cancer diagnosis from him as they navigate the challenges of his condition. The narrative explores their bond and the escalating difficulties Joe faces as his symptoms worsen, particularly following a distressing incident at his school. Irene must navigate the complexities of his care and the looming reality of her own health while trying to protect him from the truth of her situation.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Irene, a terminally ill widow in the San Gabriel Valley, cares for her 17-year-old son, Joe, who suffers from schizophrenia. While Irene hides her cancer diagnosis, Joe's condition worsens, leading to a psychotic break at his school. After Joe stops taking his medication and begins showing signs of instability, Irene discovers his disturbing interest in school shootings and firearms. As her own health declines, she learns she will lose legal control over Joe's medical care on his 18th birthday. After a period of searching for him following a disappearance, she finds him at a motel where they once shared a happy memory. On his 18th birthday, at that same motel, Irene gives Joe a gift and, in a desperate act of finality, shoots him. She turns herself in to the police but dies from her cancer before trial. Her friend, who holds the deed to Irene's shop, ultimately decides not to burn the family photos.
- First release year
- 2025
- Runtime (minutes)
- 97
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English; Mandarin
- Directors
- Eric Lin
- Writers
- Marilyn Fu · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Lucy Liu · Irene; Lawrence Shou · Joe; Orion Lee · Charles; Jennifer Lim · Kai-Li; Madison Hu · Jeannie; James Chen · Dr. Hsu; Dave Shalansky · Principal Stephens
- Genres
- drama
- Themes
- mother-son relationship; mental illness; terminal illness; sacrifice
- Tone and mood
- somber; dramatic
- Premise and plot tags
- based on true events; medical drama
- Source material / true-story basis
- Frank Shyong's 2017 Los Angeles Times article, 'A dying mother’s plan: Buy a gun. Rent a hotel room. Kill her son.'
- Content notes
- filicide
- Reception
- The film received generally favorable reviews, with critics praising the lead performance as a compassionate portrait of a mother's struggle and the film's candid, delicate delivery.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 72 · scale: 100 · review count: 8
- Awards and nominations
- Prix du Public UBS · audience award · win
- Production trivia
- Lucy Liu practiced Mandarin to portray the character's accent.; The film was inspired by a 2017 Los Angeles Times article.; Principal photography took place in New York.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…