The Empathizer

Fred Le travels to Vietnam to explore why his mother refuses to return to the homeland she left. He interviews Vietnamese expatriates including artists, athletes, business owners and students discussing contradictions between their Western upbringings and present-day Vietnam. Returning to the source, he finds the emotional and moral center in the lasting effects of division, suspicion and animosity from war, forced migration and politics. Children of Vietnamese refugees seek to empathize with their parents' tribulations but often cannot fully grasp the effects of displacement-induced trauma, highlighting the generational rift and ways to build empathy and understanding.