The Wedding Banquet (1993) | agoodmovietowatch
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The Wedding Banquet 1993

A charming gay romcom filled with strong cultural detail

Our Take (by Emil Hofileña)

Even with a plot that wholeheartedly embraces the tropes of a fake marriage and of found families, The Wedding Banquet never falls into the trap of histrionic melodrama. There’s a calmness to this film that’s made all the more poignant by how none of these characters are truly right or wrong, good or bad. Everyone is just trying to stay in their lane while nurturing the little bits of happiness they can find. The Wedding Banquet is a relatively early example of a lighthearted gay romance and an American co-production that’s incredibly sensitive about representing Taiwanese culture properly on screen.

Notable Critics

"The Wedding Banquet is consistently funny in an unforced, almost glancing style."

— David Denby

"Lee directs with great brio, making smart use of locations and settings."

— Tony Rayns

Synopsis

A Taiwanese-American man is happily settled in New York with his American boyfriend. He plans a marriage of convenience to a Chinese woman in order to keep his parents off his back and to get the woman a green card. Chaos follows when his parents arrive in New York for the wedding.

Awards

Oscars

1 nomination

Nominated: Best Foreign Language Film

Berlin

1 win

Won: Golden Bear

Golden Globes

1 nomination

Nominated: Best Motion Picture: Foreign Language

Spirit Awards

6 nominations

Nominated: Best DirectorNominated: Best FeatureNominated: Best Female LeadNominated: Best Male LeadNominated: Best ScreenplayNominated: Best Supporting Female

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About the author

Emil Hofileña

Emil Hofileña

Emil Hofileña is a curator at A Good Movie to Watch. He also writes as a theater critic, with work published in Rogue and Out of Print, among others. He’s probably crying over a movie or an episode as we speak.