![]() ![]() She may not be a natural-born comedienne (the script gives her precious little to work with in that department), but her dramatic chops are considerable: Tang shrewdly treats Jiajia’s redemption as an extension rather than a reversal of her fighting spirit, her loneliness giving way as she thaws and thrives in her makeshift American community.Īs Jiajia’s love interest and foil, Wu (best known for the Chinese TV series “Before the Dawn”) goes arguably too far in the opposite direction, coming across as stoic and recessive to a fault. Sentenced to a five-year ban from Chinese productions in 2007 after her participation in Ang Lee’s racy “Lust, Caution,” the actress looks fully rejuvenated here, seizing into this material with such vigor and ferocity that you can almost see her delighting in her newfound freedom. The film’s heart seems to be in the right place even at its most confused, as when it presents a warm, affirming portrait of a lesbian couple, then trots out a swishy gay stereotype a few beats later.Īgainst considerable odds, it’s Tang’s initially grating, ultimately winning performance that sustains this messy but endearing enterprise from start to finish. There is no shortage of topical touches, acknowledging the rise of “birth tourism” among wealthy foreigners and critiquing the rampant consumerism of modern China. But first, there are babies to be born, relationships to be reconciled, Western-pop-scored montages to be edited. ![]() ![]() (Naturally, she hits it off with Frank’s daughter, Julia, played at different ages by sisters Song Meihui and Song Meiman.)Īs predictable as the outcome may be, Xue’s patchwork script is in no hurry to get to its “Sleepless in Seattle”-inspired romantic climax, the inevitable culmination of its endless visual and verbal references to that Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan perennial. ![]() With his quiet, tolerant demeanor and sad-sack goatee, he couldn’t seem a less likely match for the proud, vivacious Jiajia, which of course makes their eventual union even more of a foregone conclusion. On hand to facilitate these lessons is Frank, a divorced dad who gave up a successful medical career in China to come to the U.S. When her lover stands her up at Christmas and later cuts off her cash flow, she must learn the hard way that money isn’t everything while facing the prospect of raising her child alone. There, Jiajia wastes no time in making a nuisance of herself, barking outrageously inconsiderate orders and throwing wads of cash around to ensure that they’re enforced.Īs you’d expect, Jiajia’s comeuppance arrives right on schedule, just in time for the holidays. Upon her arrival in the chilly Washington suburbs, she immediately begins heaping abuse on her patient driver, Frank (Wu Xiubo), who takes her to a home maternity center run by the kindly Mrs. The very picture of bratty self-entitlement, Jiajia is an intensely dislikable piece of work. That would be Wen Jiajia (Tang), the mistress of a wealthy Beijing tycoon he’s sent her on an all-expenses-paid trip to Seattle, where she plans to give birth to their love-child away from prying eyes back at home. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |