The Wedding Banquet

I had all but forgotten about the original 1993 movie until after I saw this one, and watching them back to back really makes you appreciate a brilliant filmmaker like Ang Lee that comes but once in a generation.

Without comparing it to the OG, my initial thought of this remake was that I wouldn't have lasted 20 minutes if it weren't created for audiences like me (millennial, Chinese, green card, marriage, IVF). It has the premise of a romcom but without the comedy, the design of an indie drama without the raw emotional punch except in a few places, and all the insufferable qualities of contemporary mainstream filmmaking.

After watching the original, my main complaint of this film is now...there's no banquet! The OG was brimming with culture, a true banquet made to dazzle, literally and figuratively. It appears filmmaking, like banquets, has become a lost art.

This movie disappoints in so many ways. The fact that this was called a remake, was a terrible idea. This should have not even been called that and should have just been a new movie altogether.

The trailer makes this movie seem like its a well paced comedy that is similar to the first movie, but it's pacing is slow and boring. Like the farewell, it's more heavy than light. Joan Chen, who isn't even a comic, was the funniest of all the other actors in the movie, but the was few and far between. Joan Chen, was excellent.

It's an OK movie, but definitely, not a true comedy and not a remake.

If they were the set the expectations of this movie the right way, it would have been easier to watch.

Having been watching movies now for roughly 70 years, I relish finding something completely different from the usual fare. And hopefully also highly entertaining. This one meets those requirements, my wife and I found it unique and highly entertaining.

Also, with so many years of watching over 200 movies a year, I have noticed many times, a movie will start very well, get a bit muddled in the middle, and then doesn't know how to wrap everything up and arrive at a meaningful ending.

This one avoids that pitfall, it ends very nicely, in a very appropriate manner for the various characters and their situations.

The basic situation is this - two couples, one a female-female and the other a male-male, are good friends. In each case there are family impediments that make it hard to be their selves and live their best lives. That is part of the struggle.

Then, one of the guys, a Korean in the states for study, may outlive his visa and may need to return home, unless ... he can get married. But his partner is not ready for marriage.

The title of this movie would not be "Wedding Banquet" if there were no wedding, but what happens is a big diversion from where it was headed.

Anyway, we watched it at home on DVD from our public library. It is thoroughly entertaining with many laughs but also many meaningful adult themes.

I know, I know, as a gay man I was supposed to love this movie (just like I did the original). But sad to say, this remake is not very enjoyable.

They get credit for putting new twists on the plot vs. The original, but pacing is waaaaay too slow and it takes forever to get going. Quite honestly, there's very little humor. The first hour drags and is pretty boring, and it's not until the grandmother shows up that things get interesting. The grandmother, in fact, is the most interesting character in the entire movie. Dialogue is mundane and the few funny lines stand out simply because there are so few of them.

With all the talent they had on hand, this could've been so much better.

Watched at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.

I wasn't sure how a remake would work with And Lee's classic queer romantic comedy but color me surprise, the remake does a pretty good job on being creative from it's source material with new energy, humor, and atmosphere. Andrew Ahn is a director I have been keeping up with as his work Spa Night, Driveways and Fire Island have been pretty great and emotional engaging to observe. Here, Ahn's direction on the atmosphere, dialogue, and the character dynamics are pretty good. Being able to capture the emotions, hilarious dynamics, and some of the oddity and funny moments in both heartwarming and somewhat chaotic ways.

With a good presentation, all of the performances are great as many of the cast members are able to provide fun energy, personality and purpose to their characters. Bowen Yang particular stands out at his best. Narrative-wise, I do appreciate some new themes they were able to explore but there are some moments that felt a little uninspired with the concepts and dynamics that Ahn explores. Including how the production feels almost too fake like something from Netflix and some of the structure feels a little strange, which does make some moments a bit distracting and dragging a bit.

But overall, I didn't expect much for this remake but it was surprisingly not too bad and it went beyond the expectations.