Eat Drink Man Woman
| Eat Drink Man Woman | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Traditional | 飲食男女 |
| Simplified | 饮食男女 |
| Mandarin | yǐn shí nán nǚ |
| Directed by | Ang Lee |
| Produced by | Hsu Li Kong Hsu Kong |
| Written by | Ang Lee James Schamus Wang Hui-Ling |
| Starring | Sihung Lung (credited as Lang Hsiung) Ah Lei Gua Sylvia Chang Chien-lien Wu Kuei-mei Yang Yu-wen Wang |
| Music by | Mader |
| Cinematography | Lin Jong |
| Release date(s) | August 3, 1994 |
| Running time | 123 minutes |
| Country | Taiwan |
| Language | Mandarin |
| Gross revenue | $7,294,403 |
Eat Drink Man Woman is a Taiwanese film directed by Ang Lee and starring Sihung Lung, Yu-wen Wang, Chien-lien Wu, Kuei-mei Yang. Many of the cast had starred in Ang Lee's previous film, The Wedding Banquet with Sihung Lung and Ah Lei Gua once more playing central elderly figures, and Winston Chao. The film was released on August 3, 1994.
The film was a critical success, and the 2001 film Tortilla Soup was a re-make of the film.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
This film tells the story of a semi-retired and widowed Chinese master chef at the Taipei Grand Hotel. Chef Chu (Sihung Lung) and his family are living in modern day Taipei, Taiwan. At the start of the film, he lives with his three attractive daughters, all of whom are unattached. The three daughters are:
- Jia-Jen, the oldest one (Kuei-Mei Yang), a school teacher nursing a broken heart
- Jia-Chien, the middle one (Chien-lien Wu), a career woman
- Jia-Ning, the youngest one (Yu-Wen Wang), a twenty year old
As the film progresses, each daughter encounters new men. When these new relationships blossom, their roles are broken and the living situation within the family changes.
[edit] Awards
The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at 67th Academy Awards. It was also nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film.[citation needed]
[edit] Themes
 |
This section may contain original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting only of original research may be removed. More details may be available on the talk page. (October 2007) |
A major theme of the movie is that romantic relationships give life meaning and are necessities of life (such as eating and drinking).
The film features numerous scenes displaying the technique and artistry of gourmet Chinese cuisine. Since the family members have difficulty expressing their love for one another, the intricate preparation of banquet quality dishes for their Sunday dinners serves as a surrogate for the spoken expression of their familial feelings.
Another theme is the burden of aging. Chef Chu is depicted as having lost his "one true love" (his wife), losing another (his ability to taste) and about to lose two daughters to marriage, not to mention the usual spectre of old age.
[edit] Critical Reception
Janet Maslin, reviewing for The New York Times, praised Li as “a warmly engaging storyteller.” She wrote, "Wonderfully seductive, and nicely knowing about all of its characters' appetites, 'Eat Drink Man Woman' makes for an uncomplicatedly pleasant experience."[1] The film received a favorable rating of 94% on the film review website Rotten Tomatoes.
[edit] Trivia
- The title is an old expression elaborating two main desires in human nature - "to eat and drink and to have sex", contemplated upon by Chu with his long-time friend while both were inebriated.
- This was the first film Ang Lee made in Taiwan
[edit] References
- ^ Maslin, Janet (August 3, 1994). "FILM REVIEW; Avoiding Basic Human Desires, or Trying To". The New York Times. http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9A03E2DA1231F930A3575BC0A962958260. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
[edit] External links
|
||||||||||||||
