THE WEDDING BANQUET
A film review by Scott Renshaw
Copyright 1993 Scott Renshaw
Starring: Winston Chao, Mitchell Lichtenstein, May Lin, Sihung Lung and Ah-Leh Gua. Screenwriters: Ang Lee, Neil Peng and James Schamus. Director: Ang Lee.
While watching THE WEDDING BANQUET (currently in limited release), I found myself thinking that it would have a very good short. This Taiwanese-American comedy about generational and cultural conflict has fifty minutes of genuine energy stretched into an hour and fifty minute film. There are moments of real charm and insight, but ultimately the sluggish pace doesn't hold them together.
Wei-Tung (Winston Chao) and Simon (Mitchell Lichtenstein) are a gay couple living together in Manhattan. Taiwanese immigrant Wei-Tung is constantly being badgered by his parents, still in Taiwan, to get married and produce a grandchild. Wei-Tung responds by listing "impossibly high specifications" for his ideal woman, but when Ma Gao finds a woman who fits the bill, Simon proposes a plan. Wei-Tung will marry Wei-Wei (May Lin), a tenant in a building owned by Wei-Tung and an immigrant without a green card. Ma and Pa Gao get a wedding, Wei-Wei gets a green card, and Wei-Tung gets a welcome tax write-off. However, Ma and Pa (Ah-Leh Gua and Sihung Lung) insist on coming to America for the wedding. Shamed by the simple civil ceremony preferred by their son, Wei-Tung's parents accept an offer by a family friend to throw a lavish wedding banquet for friends and well-wishers. The banquet then leads to ... complications.
There are several thematic threads in THE WEDDING BANQUET, all with interesting possibilities. There is the intriguing romantic triangle of Simon, Wei-Tung and Wei-Wei (who confesses a weakness for attractive gay men); there is the issue of values conflict between non-Americans and their Americanized offspring. Foremost, there is the issue of living up to parental expectations which have nothing to do with who you are as a person. This latter area receives the most attention, but like the others it is given somewhat short shrift. Director and co-scripter Ang Lee seems to want his film to be about too many different things, without giving sufficient attention to any of them. Consequently, the pacing is fitful, and THE WEDDING BANQUET wanders.
There are, as I've noted, some very clever set pieces. In one scene, Simon and Wei-Tung prepare for the parents' arrival by racing around their apartment removing all evidence of their gay lifestyle. The civil ceremony, with Wei-Wei malapropping her vows in broken English, is also a hoot. The centerpiece, however, is the lavish banquet. It's a whimsical sequence, as Wei-Tung tries to carry off his charade in front of hundreds of friends, including some raucous college buddies. These individual moments almost add up, but they don't quite.
Much of the responsibility for this lack of engagement falls on the shoulders of the two male leads. Chao, a first time actor, never invests Wei-Tung with any real depth. He seems capable of only one expression: eyes downcast, jaw clenched in dismay. While his situation is certainly a difficult one, at times he seems such a drudge we wonder why Simon loves him, let alone why Wei-Wei might want to "convert" him. Lichtenstein too is far too wooden, making Simon's genuine frustration over having to hide himself come off as simple petulance. He also has a scene with Lung as Wei-Tung's father which could have been truly touching were he capable of showing any emotion with his face. Fortunately, there are good performances to somewhat balance theirs, most notably Lung, who does some wonderful physical acting, and May Lin, who sparkles as Wei-Wei. Unfortunately, her character is sadly underwritten, as are most of the roles. The lulls in the pace would have been acceptable had strong characters been present to pull me along, but I was simply never caught up enough in their lives.
It's difficult not to recommend THE WEDDING BANQUET, since it's heart seems so firmly in the right place. It has its moments, and the themes of familial conflict may strike a chord with many viewers. However, I just never found myself caring quite enough, and I found myself looking at my watch too frequently.
On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 wedding gifts: 5.
-- Scott Renshaw Stanford University Office of the General Counsel
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