Saving Face
Starring: Michelle Krusiec, Joan Chen, Lynn Chen
Directed and Written By: Alice Wu
Running Time: 91 Minutes
Rated: Rated R for some sexuality and language.
Funny Face
I guess this movie could have been called "My Little Skinny Chinese
Wedding" except there was no wedding. But that should give you an idea
of what this film is about. This entertaining movie was released late
last year to little fanfare. Given the fact that almost the entire cast
is Chinese and that half of the movie is in Chinese its no wonder it
slipped under the radar. If you enjoy quiet comedies though you should
watch this one.
Actually my comparison to "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" (MBFGW) isn't
quite accurate. While both movies do delve into the humour arising when
different generations of families clash, Saving Face is a much smaller
movie. The laughs come more naturally than they did from MBFGW and this
is part of the appeal of the film. Once the premise has been set up,
Wu's script is full of funny moments that don't rely on loud, over the
top antics. The film does tend to lean a bit on some of the cultural
stereotypes to inject some laughs. To its credit though, the scenes
work even if you aren't Chinese.
Krusiec stars as Wil, a young doctor forever trying to please her
widowed mother played by Joan Chen who is in turn trying to please her
own parents. Wil's life suddenly gets very complicated when she meets
and falls in love with Vivian (Lynn Chen), a ballerina who is openly
gay. To add to Wil's problems her mother suddenly shows up at her
doorstep one night after being thrown out by Wil's grandfather for
getting pregnant and refusing to tell anyone who the father is. The
"Saving Face" in the title refers to the shame that each daughter
brings to her parents because of the circumstances of their lives.
From there the script follows a fairly pedestrian path and the problems
are resolved in tidy packages. In that sense the movie won't provide
you with anything too challenging or provide for much discussion
afterwards, but for the 91 minutes it lasts it will hold your
attention.
Alice Wu does an amazing job as a first time director in coaxing some
really nice performances from the cast. Krusiec is charming as the
confused Wil and Joan Chen turns in another strong performance as her
slightly lost mother. Both actresses play off each other very well even
though Chen seemed a bit young to be playing Krusiec's mother. The rest
of the cast also give good performances although its unlikely you'll
see too much of any of them in the future given the lack of roles for
Asian actors generally.
The film's low budget actually works to its advantage as the lack of a
slick look helps accentuate the movie's intimate feel. Even so,
everything is handled quite well and the final look is polished if
somewhat under lighted at times.
Obviously this film is going to have limited appeal given the subject
matter and the fact that half the movie is subtitled. If you have some
time though and want to enjoy a relaxing evening with some laughs grab
this one from the video store.
3.5 stars out of 5
© 2005 Review by Son Tran
