Saving Face (2005)

It is a performances centric movie

best movie i've ever seen.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

The film is half in Mandarin and half in English and I feel that that adds to the authenticity of the movie. Like with Slumdog Millionaire, movies that have a cultural aspect to it are much better off having dual language. And I being a Chinese, was better able to understand where the film was coming from. Also, though I do not speak the language fluently and need subtitles to understand fully, certain lines if it was in English, would have killed the comedic essence.So with the combination of the comedic screenplay, and the use of Mandarin, it kept the film feeling really real. It was very believable. Which also means that the acting was fantastic. I did feel at times that Michelle Krusiec's acting was a bit awkward and static, but maybe that's just her character. She was fantastic regardless, and was totally invested in the role, as was Joan and Lynn Chen.The only other thing that I kind of had a problem with was the ending. This shouldn't spoil anything but…what happened to the contract?Lastly, I just want to credit the director, Alice Wu, who also wrote the screenplay. This film was inspired by her own experiences and I give props to her for being able to write and direct it. Also, props to it for being so successful.Read the full review at championangels.wordpress.com

This movie by far exceeds every possible bar: it's a wonderful lesbian story, it's a great cross-cultural movie, romantically it's moving, and it features an almost entirely Chinese/Chinese-American cast. Alice Wu has to receive much more praise for being the mastermind behind this magnificent project, and Lynn Chen, Michelle Krusiec and Joan Chen are nothing short of brilliant in their roles.To say this is a cute and humorous look at Wil's journey of self-discovery is trite and does not do this movie justice. Rather, I will refrain from providing a mere synopsis; on the other hand, I will comment that "Saving Face" has created a new bar for any romantic comedy AND for minority-interest films ("MIF"). I have found that for many MIF, there's always an unspoken pressure to convey the mandatory "we're minorities with our own cultures but we're still people (dammit)" message. Otherwise, you infuriate the people you're supposed to represent, while risking alienation of the people who aren't in said ethnic group. However, "Saving Face" not only bucks to this unspoken pressure, but overcomes it in 3 important ways: 1. It's a romantic story that parallels Wil's budding relationship with Vivian, another community member who had a crush on Wil since they were little (or had that initial crush that was rekindled when they met again 19 yrs later). It's formulaic in that girl meets girl, but it's not in that girl now needs to choose between her individual self versus tradition and family... which doesn't leave much room for "I".2. Following the logic of the above point, it also achieves the task of showing a Chinese-American's "tango" through her adult life and how it clashes with her traditional upbringing. We see that for the majority of her life, Wil's relented her needs and wants in favor of "saving face," but slowly she realizes (through her mom, no less!) that she needs to sever some of these ties if she wants to live her life and be happy... and believe me, for us "traditionalist upbringing folk," this is not so simple! There is no "ME" in any traditional family, whether American, Asian, Middle Eastern, African, etc. (Yes, there is irony to be had in that one.) This message is especially important, and I don't think it's restricted to the Chinese-American community. Yes, it may vary in degrees in varying cultures, but the movie does make the point that any strong family-centered family highly discourages individualism. This is contrasted with Vivian's more permissive and highly tolerant family, which is anything but traditional.3. Perhaps it's the incredible build-up discussed in points 1 & 2 that make this romantic comedy work. I usually detest romantic comedies because there's really nothing new about them - protagonist A and love object B will end up together in the end. (Otherwise, it can't be called a romantic comedy *BARF*) However, "Saving Face" works great as a romantic comedy because the audience receives something that is so lacking in this genre: investment into the characters. We see Wil and Ma each have so much to lose, and yet they decide to follow their hearts and are the better for it. Wil is especially brave for deciding to let go of all of the conformity and filial duty she's been ingrained with so that she can have the freedom that has been denied to her for 28 years, WHILE maintaining that connection to Ma. That, to me, made their romances that much more special. At the end, you're rooting for BOTH Ma & Wil. You don't care any more about what the community will think, or of Grandpa's honor. You know that in the end, people will get over it but you're not sure whether love will conquer all... and that's such a disquieting sensation because you WANT love to work out. For everyone. That's why it's also a great romantic comedy.I loved this movie. I truly believe that as an Asian-American minority, I am both relieved this movie was made and outraged there aren't more positive representations of minorities in mainstream Hollywood. Go Mr. Will Smith for helping the advancement of minorities everywhere!

This is the first comment which I have scripted so please be forgiving in your critique.I watched this movie for the first time last night and have to say that I am definitely going to add it to my DVD collection. Although it is 3 years old and does require you to read subtitles in part, it is one of the most moving, humorous, emotional and heartwarming movies I watched in a long time. The script and concept are particularly original within the ethnic climate in which the movie is set, and provides a particularly clear and incisive insight into American/Chinese society.In fact it illustrates that although there are cultural differences within all ethnic groups the overall way in which various social and ethical issues are dealt with is not really so different. The same movie could have been made about an Italian/American/Spanish or any other nationality family, within reason, and the overall responses and outcome would have been the same. The overall feel of the movie somehow had an element of truth, and leads me to wonder if this wasn't a portrayal of the script writers own experiences, if this is the case it only makes the movie more watchable and poignant. A great movie all round.

I liked just about everything about this. The characters, and the clash of expectations between older and younger generations of Chinese Americans, seemed completely true to life, and the sense of a community was well brought out. It is amazing that this is the director's first film (but she is older than she looks in the Behind the Scenes featurette). Particular pleasures were the grandmother's evident boredom with her husband's pomposities, Vivian's fumbling with Chinese, which she evidently didn't speak normally despite her background, the scene in the church, and the payoff. It's not entirely clear how old Wil is meant to be (given her mother's age, hardly out of her twenties, which seems young for the responsible position she seems to have in the hospital), and it was not made at all clear how Wil's mother had got into some kind of affair with Little Yu that went far enough for her to become pregnant. But overall, tremendous.