Film Review: 'The Farewell'

Cizonite
Feb 7, 2020
4 min read

Updated: Mar 3, 2021

Death is always a challenging subject. It's especially gratuitous when you're Asian.

Cultural-familial bonds, mortality and ethnic appropriation are three timeless, universal themes in Lulu Wang’s beautifully perceptive, profoundly moving dramedy ‘The Farewell', where the audience are taken into the heart of a cultural conflict through Awkwafina's star-making performance and deft direction of the source material.

The Story

Asian-American Billi (Awkafina) is an unemployed New York writer living with her parents, in the midst of an identity and career crisis. Following her rejection for a prestigious writing scholarship, Billy discovers that her grandmother in China, Nai Nai (Zhao Shuzen), has been diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. To Billi's dismay, however, the family has decided to hide the diagnosis from Nai Nai, preferring the “mind over matter" approach to a possibly life and death situation.

Masquerading a wedding as the final chance to unite the family, Billi's visit soon turns into a generational clash between Westernized Asian tendencies and traditionalist Asian ideals among the family, as Billi struggles on whether to expose the lie and medically help Nai Nai, or to maintain it for her happiness while she is still thriving.

The film is, quite strangely, based on Lulu Wang's personal experience with her Nai Nai, who is still alive and well, and, amazingly, is still in the dark regarding her medical situation.

Lulu Wang and A24’s Efforts from Podcast-to-Screen

“Based on an actual lie", the opening credits read.

Never mind that Wang could very well have killed her grandmother with the film's release, ‘The Farewell' is a masterpiece thanks to her extraordinary efforts. As director, writer and producer, this has been Wang's passion project ever since she narrated it for This American Life, a highly-rewarding first-person narrative podcast, one which I also highly recommend.

The journey to screen wasn't all beds and roses: several producers had wanted Wang to make the film in the form of a broad cultural comedy, in the veins of ‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding' and ‘Mamma Mia', which would have erased the film's most differentiative aspect. Barrelling forward with her vision and diligence, Wang had non-negotiables on having a Chinese-language film and an Asian/Asian-American ensemble, which eventually landed her a large group of passionate producers.

The ensemble's casting was also a difficult task: Awkwafina was an up-and-coming, in-demand star, one that perfectly fitted the bill of a “well-spoken American who could speak Chinese" that Wang had wanted (and who also bears a striking resemblance to Wang), whilst the rest of the cast had to be sold on the film’s pitch and cultural pull, what with its small budget ($5 million) and limited international appeal.

That Wang was even allowed to make the film was a miracle in and of itself, especially in a time where Hollywood is calling for diversity and equal chances for women or ethnic directors. This is to A24’s credit, which makes another appearance in this week's fleet of reviews, who are truly reaping the rewards from its auteur-driven commitment (Uncut Gems became their 4th highest-grossing film, while Midsommar, The Lighthouse and The Farewell were all highly liked dark horses for Best Picture).

The Screenplay and Wang's Touch

Lulu Wang's screenplay is a writing masterclass

“It's not the cancer that kills them. It's the fear" - Billi's mother says while justifying their family's decision

“It's different" - Billi says when the hotel manager asks her which she’d prefer: China, or America

“My only grandson is getting married, we can't look cheap!” - Nai Nai rants as she discovers the wedding receptionist has mistaken their feast orders.

These are only three of many memorable dialogues in Wang’s script ranges from the emotionally-heavy, bare-bones sayings, to the darkly comedic, serene Asian grandma rants. Tackling an undoubtedly heavy personal subject, Wang instills the script with so much sass and personal intricacies that might sound simple in hindsight, but are colossally deft in retrospect.

The funny-sorrowful nature of the wedding/farewell is an ingenious situation: celebrating union in the face of death is more Asian than Breakfast at Tiffany's Mr. Yionishi will ever be, and Wang milks the laugh-cry interludes for maximum comedic milk, all while the palpable sense of dread and moral dilemma are searing into Billi's every minute on screen, with an appearance from "professional criers" at one point in the film.

Her insistence on a truly Asian experience connected with me personally, as I could practically hear my own Asian family members saying them at gatherings. I can give her no higher applause than a handshake, a forced smile and bow mandated by my parents, and a “Did any other Asian get a nomination?” telling-off of an old-schooled, egotistic Asian dad.

Well done, Wang.

The Ensemble

This could have easily been the film's downfall: even in skilled, ethnically-appropriate hands, Asians-on-screen can still be portrayed with a built-in sense of typecasting, as evident through the similarly-purposed, yet undeniably-stereotypical Crazy Rich Asians.

Yet under Lulu Wang's direction, the ensemble turned into the film's masterstroke.

Awkwafina should need no praise: she became the first Asian-American to win the Golden Globe for Best Actress, and was widely slotted as the fifth nomination for an Academy Award before being snubbed.

The rest of the cast, however, had similarly meaty roles that could have easily been stereotyped or over-acted: Zhao Shuzen as Nai Nai is all our Asian grandmothers, bringing both a stern, stubborn outside presence and a loving, kind attitude to her grandchildren.

I couldn't help but weep when Billi reveals to Nai Nai about her rejection, only for her to kindly tell Billi to continue following her dreams: it was the same sense of warmth and security that my grandmother had given me, and I hope to god that I have done enough to justify her unwavering love and confidence in her family.

That was what The Farewell meant to me.