So funny. I've only just noticed something - When they all meet the aliens for the first time, they say in awed unison "Tech Sgt Chen!", and with that the man who plays him squints his eyes, because obviously he's a non-oriental playing an oriental character.
Very very clever underrated movie.
You don't have to look Asian to be an Asian..
With all the race mixing these days it's hard to know for sure if someone's last name is false or for real..
"Gar nicht so übel, du kleine Schlampe. Man sieht sich immer zweimal, Kleine."
It's a running joke in the movie that the Tony Shalhoub character is a non-Asian man cast as a Chinese man. I think that toward the beginning, he's trying to squint all the time.
I wonder if this joke was in the film even before Tony Shalhoub was cast. It's a running joke with HIM that he's been cast as many different ethnicities, and then done whatever accent was called for. Italian, Pakistani, maybe Latino, European American, Indian, Middle Eastern. As I recall.
It's a good double joke.
shareI hadn't noticed this... but it sounds funny. I'll have to watch for that.
shareThey might have written the part for a "Sulu-like" Oriental, but then cast Tony Shaloub and just decided to keep the name.
share The actor's name is supposed to be Fred Kwan. At one point the actor says ,"Kwan isn't even my real name." So it seems to be an actor pretending to be Asian to land the role of an Asian.
This is definitely not the first time a Caucasian was cast to play an Asian. Ever see any of the old Charlie Chan movies? Werner Oland and Sydney Toler both played the detective. And if John Wayne could play Genghis Khan, anything is possible!