I haven't seen The Joy Luck Club in years nor did I have any plans to view it again soon. Such plans were thwarted by Miss Ash as she submitted this in my attempt to review my readers favorite films. Still I placed it in my queue and awaited it's arrival.The movie chronicles two generations of Chinese-American women. The older generation tells their stories of days in their homeland struggling to keep a sensible lifestyle in an often oppressive culture that at times viewed females as second class citizens. The film jumps between the elderly to the younger ladies born in America who are torn between the traditions of their families and their struggles to adapt to a seemingly modern society.
Most guys loathe this film claiming it's nothing more than a chick flick, but I disagree. This movie details history in ways often overlooked in big budget pictures. Most directors choose large scale biopics of military and political leaders, but this film focuses on the average person struggling through life in a world they often can't control.
The story can seem disjointed as the tales of the youngins are overshadowed by the often times horrifying lives their mothers lead in China, but still it's a great film that I found inspiring. Sure the acting can be hit and miss, but the attention to detail visually is breathtaking. There's moments of sheer beauty and terror in this movie and all of it is done with grace. While I couldn't relate to any of the stories, partially because I have a penis and about as lilly white as they come, I highly recommend this even though Mattbear may want to punch me for doing so.
I'm still taking submissions so if you want me to review a particular film drop me an email or a comment with the title. Details are listed here.
"It's fascinating and satisfying the way the diverse threads are knitted together into a single tapestry." - James Berardinelli
5 comments:
You are a traitor to your gender, sir.
Still, I'd like to see your review of Rounders if you can get around to it. I've been a bit obsessed with poker of late, particularly the popular No Limit Texas Hold 'Em type.
My mother is asian and the movie portrays the difficult life of an asian woman quite well. Also, it gives pretty good insight on the difficulties in integrating with a Western society.
This is actually one of my favorite movies. It makes me cry every time. I've read a lot of Amy Tan's books and they are almost all about a mother/daughter relationship, where the mother grew up in China and the Daughter in the U.S.
Yay!!! I love this movie!! Glad you would reccommend it.
I'm glad my parents are not religious or have some totally ridiculous expectations of me.
There was a guy at my high school that would take his turbin off every day. Eventually he just got a buzz cut and a shave.
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