The Farewell (2019)

I remember seeing the trailer for Lulu Wang's The Farewell (2019) some months ago. And I was deeply saddened that the movie was probably not going to make it to my local theater.

But guess what just showed up at the mall?

I. What Is It?

This is the story of Billi (Awkwafina), a Chinese American who learns that her grandmother, Nai Nai (Shuzhen Zhao), has been diagnosed with cancer. The thing is? It is Chinese custom NOT to tell people that have cancer that they are dying of cancer. The family concocts a wedding in order to draw the family back to China in order to say what could be their final farewells. And they all wrestle with the weight of keeping Nai Nai's secret. Even from her.

II. Beautiful Performances

Awkwafina is funny. She's racked up scene-stealing parts in comedies for the last few years. It turns out that she's ALSO an incredible actor. Her performance is nuanced and filled with a quiet pathos. Billi is initially encouraged NOT to go to China, as she tends to wear her emotions on her sleeve, and the family fears she would give the game away. Billi is also, initially, the only member of the family that wants to tell Nai Nai that she's dying. By movie's end, she becomes the rock around which her family orbits, rooting them all in her strength and resolve. She could legitimately get a Best Actress nod from the Academy for this one. And she might even win.

Shuzhen Zhao is a wonder, too. Her Nai Nai is all heart and love. Nai Nai is the center of the family, and it is easy to see why everyone has such love and respect for her: Zhao is funny, powerful and wise in equal measure. I wouldn't be surprised to see a Best Supporting Actress nom for her, either.

The thing is, though? This entire cast is amazing. Everyone plays their part with assurance and commitment. This family comes alive and feels like a very real unit.

III. The Great Lie, and All the Little Others

Yes, this movie is about a big lie. It's about the awkward morality of keeping a loved one's imminent death from them. It's about Chinese culture.

But it's also about all of the lies we tell each other, which is entirely human, no matter what country you're from. Billi lies about her life in New York; The aunts and uncles in China lie about their hypocritical disdain for America; Billi's parents lie about Billi's father's former and possible current drinking problem. All of these lies are told to protect loved ones. The movie explores why we tell each other lies and asks its viewers to wrestle with those reasons.

Yes, you may scoff at lying to a person dying of cancer. Billi notes that it's practically illegal in America. But that umbrage doesn't keep her, or the rest of the family, from keeping truths from each other. Which makes communication harder. Which makes living harder.

This movie is a moving, and beautiful rumination on the lengths we go to protect our loved ones. And the great cost of that protection.

IV. It's Really Funny

There are lots of reasons to laugh. You can laugh at fart jokes, or cuss words, or at the pain of others. Lulu Wang finds humor as a means to assuage grief and awkwardness. This movie is hilarious in an earnest and wonderful way. Even as the film plunders you with the grief of its characters, it releases the pressure with funny and heartfelt scenes.

And the laughter feels all the sweeter because it feels good to belly laugh after very nearly ugly crying.

V. Picturesque

Anna Franquesa Solano's photography is beautiful. She balances images and arranges figures in space in pleasing ways. She makes China feel like a real, human place. It breathes and hums with vibrancy. At one point, Billi is asked whether she prefers China or America. She says, "It's different." Both countries have character and identity. Really, truly judging them, on a personal level, is impossible for her. And Wang and Solano show us the China that Billi pines for.

And the color palette is wonderful, too. All of the colors are highlighted to pastel-like brightness which, paired with Solano's framing, makes every scene look like a painting from a master.

VI. Good Stories Are Human Stories

Wang has said that she faced pressure to insert white characters to ease white audiences into the narrative. She refused. This is, for all intents and purposes, a Chinese movie. It is steeped in China. But that never got in the way of my enjoyment of it. This is a human story. I think there is something everyone can find to enjoy in this film. That Wang stuck to her guns and kept this film from steeping to pandering is a wonder. She shows us that you don't have to shamelessly appease white American audiences to tell a beautiful story.

Beautiful is beautiful. Human is human. This movie defies culture, even as it is enhanced by it. This story defies boundaries, even as it endeavors to tear them down. Watch it. Be touched by it.

Why You Should See It

- It is one of the most touching and heartfelt films of the year.
- The film tempers its sadness with genuine humor.
- This is a family I would gladly spend more time with, and I was sad when the final credits began to roll.

Why You Shouldn't See It

- There is no reason you shouldn't see this movie. It's only 100 minutes, and it's rated PG. Give this movie your love.

In Conclusion

I always try to be even-keeled in my reviews. I try and admit faults and find balance when I speak about movies. But I think that Lulu Wang's The Farewell is as perfect a movie as I have seen in some time. Wang's is an artistic vision that I eagerly await to see again.

Miscellany

- Wang based this movie on the real-life story of how her family told a similar lie to her own grandmother. She even had to lie to her grandmother about the story of the film so as not to spoil the initial lie about her grandmother's health. Wang's grandmother visited the set and even sat down with Shuzhen Zhao and had breakfast with her. She believed the movie was about immigration, which Wang has stated is "a lie by omission."
- Wang struggled to find financiers: American financiers thought the story was "too Chinese," and Chinese financiers thought the movie was "too American." Wang adapted the story into a feature on "This American Life," which lead to producer Chris Weitz coming onboard and finding adequate funding.
- This is production house A24's first PG-rated feature.
- Wang wrote and directed the film. She ALSO played piano on the film's soundtrack. Feel bad about yourself, yet?
- The film was shot over 24 days.