Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1029 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-12-12
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Dubbed, PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Swedish, Turkish
• Dubbed in: Italian
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 93 minutes

Synopsis
Writer-director Alice Wu's debut film is a heartwarming and heartbreaking romantic comedy about family, tradition, and changing times. Michelle Krusiec gives an outstanding performance as Wilhelmina, a doctor in a Manhattan hospital who returns to Flushing's Chinatown every Friday night to participate in her extended family's weekly dance mixer. While her mother (TWIN PEAKS's Joan Chen) and the other women try to set her up with eligible bachelors, Wil falls for Vivian (Lynn Chen), a beautiful young dancer who feels the attraction as well. As the two women contemplate a possible relationship, Wil's mother, who is nearing fifty, reveals she is pregnant, but she will not tell anyone who the father is. Wil's grandfather (Jin Wang) disowns his daughter for the shame she is bringing the family he feels he has lost face in the community forcing Wil to take in her mother and care for her in a reversal of generational roles and responsibility. But just as her mother remains secretive of who the father of her baby is, Wil keeps her lesbianism a secret as well. SAVING FACE, which played the Toronto and Sundance Film Festivals, is an endearing film, with likable characters in unique, believable situations that are both funny and moving. Krusiec and Lynn Chen are a charming couple, and Joan Chen is stoically wonderful as an Asian-American woman representing the bridge between the old traditions and the new Chinese youth culture. The soundtrack features a pair of songs by Marc Anthony Thompson, aka Chocolate Genius, as well as Cat Power and Leona Naess.

Customer Reviews

One of the best films I've seen of late
Not so much of a review as it is a commentary. I absolutely love this film! I've watched it numerous times, mainly because the characters are believable and my appreciation for the subtle humour and depth continues to grow.

Definately more than worth a watch. Enjoy!!

Delightful romantic comedy
I loved this film. It is romantic, funny and poignant and also not a very well known film. It was directed by Alice Wu and is her first film. Joan Chen is superb in it as are the two actresses who play the lovers - Michelle Krusiec and Lynn Chen.
The dialogue is in Chinese and English as the characters are Chinese Americans and this help make the film work a lot better than if it was all in one language as the story is all about our cultural differences between Chinese and non Chinese but mainly between old Chinese bought up with Chinese values and American Chinese bought up with both Chinese and American values.
Highly recommended.

'Keeping up appearances' goes to the US
Very funny movie which is set among the Chinese community living in New York. Wil is an up and coming doctor who is a closeted lesbian. She begins to fall for the bosses daughter but picks a bad time to do it as her own (widowed) mother ends up pregnant without husband!
The two end up living together again while trying to find the courage to go against social and cultural 'norms' in order to discover and enjoy being in love.

The dialog changes from english to mandarin (with subtitles) in an easy to follow manner which actually works to enhance the humour. The acting did waver a bit from time to time, hence the 4 stars.
Otherwise, a top notch movie....and certainly one of the better movies that features a lesbian relationship!!