... Sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion. She plays Billi, a woman living in New York who moved to the US with her parents as a child, leaving her extended family in China. The film is based on a true story, one that has previously been the subject of a This American Life episode, and there’s authenticity underpinning the outlandish setup as well as cultural specificity.
Cut-away shots of the shellshocked happy couple, Billi’s cousin and his Japanese girlfriend, steamrollered into marriage after three months of diffident dating, are among the many sly comic asides that punctuate this poignant story.As gifted a writer as she is at creating playful, visually layered frames, Wang is constantly juggling clashes – of cultures, of tragedy and joy. The Farewell review – Awkwafina cements star status in family drama 4 / 5 stars 4 out of 5 stars. The Farewell review – beautifully bittersweet Chinese-American family drama August 2019 The Farewell's Lulu Wang: ‘I would love it if white men were asked the same questions as me’ As her dying grandmother, Zhou is wonderful. The two identities co-exist in Billi, until the moment that she learns that Nai Nai has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and that her family have decided to keep the information from the elderly lady. “But it’s not the cancer that kills them, it’s the fear.” Billi disagrees, arguing that Nai Nai should have the chance to confront her fate.A hastily convened wedding provides the cover story to bring the extended family back to China to bid farewell to their unwitting matriarch. So often on screen there’s a narrow uniformity when grief, or in this case a sort of pre-grief, is handled that it’s refreshing to see a film that recognises the spectrum. She’s loving but also spiky and insulting, a perceptive portrayal of an older family member whose filter has been lost along the way, such rich characterisation acting as a clear, unsoftened love letter to Wang’s real-life grandmother.It’s a slight film at times but one that builds to a crescendo of emotion that left many in my particular screening rather bleary-eyed (I’d argue that the footnote, while eye-opening, sullies its power somewhat). he push and pull between the bonds of blood and the ties of culture are explored with a light touch and a perceptive eye for detail in this delightful, semi-autobiographical family drama from writer and director Lulu Wang. Movie Reviews ... Christy Lemire is a co-host of the YouTube film review show "What the Flick?!"
There’s a melancholy hovering in the background and Awkwafina does fine work expressing this through her eyes, so close to tears yet unable to release for fear of revealing the secret. The Crazy Rich Asians actor has won over Sundance with a heartfelt film based on an episode of This American LifeBut neatly sidestepping convention, Awkwafina has found surprise Sundance success with It’s a statement of intent, informing the industry right from the outset that she doesn’t want to be pigeonholed and an ambitious one at that, heading up a film mostly in Mandarin. Not long after its premiere, it was snapped up by A24 and it’s clear that the film will be heading toward a wide audience, along with its star, for whom The Farewell acts as one hell of an introduction.The Farewell is showing at the Sundance film festivalAnimals review – untamed female friendship drama is a Sundance triumphast summer brought with it two films sharing two similarities: both starred Reviews in chronological order (Total 0 reviews) Post a review. Ultimately, it’s all about balance, a yin and yang of roots and identities, humour and pathos that comes together into a satisfying, bittersweet wedding banquet of a movie.The Farewell's Lulu Wang: ‘I would love it if white men were asked the same questions as me’Awkwafina (Billi) and Zhao Shuzhen (Nai Nai) in Lulu Wang’s ‘bittersweet’ The Farewell. Awkwafina impresses in Lulu Wang’s moving and witty culture clash taleThe American tendency to freely share thoughts and feelings collides with the Chinese way of parcelling up emotions.
Again, there’s an avoidance of obvious culture clash comedy, and instead Wang deftly details both the guilt of living so far from family and how one’s concept of what home really means can get so tangled.There’s also resonance in Wang’s examination of how different family members deal with extreme sadness. Nederlands Dans Theater review – sensational return, and farewell, to the stage The sheer scale makes the heart sing … Standby, performed by Nederlands Dans Theater. This week's films. She’s even more horrified when she hears that her family aren’t planning to tell Nai Nai that she’s dying.