Chinese-American
writer-director Lulu Wang has been around the block with her series of short
films beginning in the early 2000s followed by her first feature with the 2014
romantic comedy Posthumous. That film told the story of an artist whose
popularity explodes after inaccurate reports of his death hit the tabloids and
his subsequent efforts to perpetuate the falsehood by pretending to be his surviving
brother. It’s important to consider the
notion of fabrication or noble lying as it becomes a kindred theme in the
writer-director’s newest and most autobiographical work yet, The Farewell.
Bearing
the tagline ‘Based on an Actual Lie’, the largely Mandarin film with occasional
English dialogue stars rapper/comedian Awkwafina in her first dramatic role as
Billi, a writer who learns her grandmother Nai Nai (Zhao Shuzhen) is dying of
lung cancer with a few months left to live.
In what is apparently a time-honored, distinctly Chinese tradition, the
immediate family has decided to keep the bad news from Nai Nai through sneaky
alterations of the medical records, language barriers and recurring reminders
all of the doctor appointments are just for ‘benign shadows’.
To
spend time with grandmother on her final days while maintaining the lie of good
health, the family meets up in China to stage a wedding for Billi’s cousin Hao
Hao (Chen Han). Amid family dinners, all
wear smiles and speak of good cheer while hiding their true emotions for what’s
happening to their grandmother. Everyone
is on board with the ruse, but will Billi’s internal conflict between cultural
differences on dealing with death inadvertently cause her to spill the beans?
A
quiet, frequently funny and bittersweet yet life affirming tearjerker of sorts,
the bilingual A24 dramedy The Farewell is
most notable for providing Awkwafina (real name Nora Lum) with ample room to
show off her dramatic acting chops. The
story of coming to grips with losing a loved one is as old as time and yet
writer-director Wang grounds it firmly in Chinese roots and soil. In addition to sporting scenic locations in
Changchun, China as well as brief moments in New York City, The Farewell is distinctive for examining
the struggle of a young woman caught between the two worlds of the East and
West with key cultural differences regarding dealing with impending death.
Visually
it’s a handsomely lensed production, shot in panoramic widescreen by Anna
Franquesa Solano, though let it be said The
Farewell is largely an intimate interpersonal drama concerning Billi trying
to make sense of her family’s decision to withhold the bad news from her. Music is also kept to a minimum with
occasional orchestral strumming from Alex Watson. Still, this is primarily a clandestine
ensemble piece consisting of characters bound together by their love for Nai
Nai with Billi bridging the gap between Chinese tradition and American cultural
customs. You’ll be hard pressed to find
a more sweet natured yet wholly plausible tug of the heartstrings than any
other picture in theaters this year!
Score:
- Andrew Kotwicki