Eat Drink Man Woman
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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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.
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.
Themes
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.
