Shadows on the Wall | The Wedding Banquet

The Wedding Banquet

dir Andrew Ahn
scr Andrew Ahn, James Schamus
prd Caroline Clark, Anita Gou, Joe Pirro, James Schamus
with Bowen Yang, Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Han Gi-Chan, Joan Chen, Youn Yuh-jung, Bobo Le, Emma Yi, Camille Atebe, Jeffrey Liang, Francoise Yip, Marlee Walchuk
release US 18.Apr.25,
UK 9.May.25
25/US 1h42

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In reimagining Ang Lee's breakthrough 1993 comedy, director Andrew Ahn works with original cowriter James Schamus to cleverly update the topicality while ramping up the plot's farcical entanglements. The resulting film often feels silly, but it is continually underscored by resonant themes and involving emotions. It's also thoroughly entertaining, with seven unusually complex central characters who are beautifully played by an ensemble cast that's heavily stacked with adept scene-stealers.

In Seattle, Chris (Yang) is flustered when his boyfriend Min (Han) proposes after five years together, because Chris knows that Min's wealthy Korean family will reject him if he comes out. Meanwhile, their friends Lee (Gladstone) and Angela (Tran) have just had another failed round of IVF. In a moment of madness, Min offers to fund their next treatment if Angela will marry him to placate his matriarch grandmother Ja-Young (Youn). But when she arrives for the wedding, everything takes a turn, complicated by Angela's flashy mother May (Chen) and a very drunken hen night.

Because ths is a scrambled romcom, each twist and turn in the plot feels rather predictable. But that only adds to the film's comfortable vibe: no matter how messy everything gets, it will all be fine in the end. It's the journey that makes the film worth a look, as it grapples with generational attitudes toward sexuality, including young people who struggle even within an open-minded subculture.

Snappy dialog is packed with hilarious zingers that are delivered immaculately. Each actor deepens their character with underlying thoughts and feelings, including a running gag about avoiding them. Yang, Han, Gladstone and Tran hold the film's centre as people still defining themselves as individuals and in pairs. All four are likeable and charming, with standout moments of their own. Chen clearly relishes the wildly over-involved May, and Youn positively shines as the observant, thoughtful Ja-Young. And as Chris' cousin, Le is both funny and surprisingly moving.

It's refreshing how the script addresses enormous themes with such a light touch, keeping us laughing while also making us think. "Queer theory takes all the fun out of being gay," Chris says about why he ditched his dissertation and became a birder. So while the grand spectacle of Min and Angela's ritualistic Korean wedding is hilariously over the top, it's the smart emotional scenes that continually pull us in. And what it has to say about family, both biological and found, is quietly profound.

themes, language 19.Mar.25 flare

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