Face

This is a film that can be seen several times because it is so multifaceted, a classic that could be any immigrant's story, but equally a story of clashing generations. Told brilliantly, with outstanding actors and direction and a score that tells it's own story--"Face" is a must-see.

Face tells us two stories set in New York; the first, a family drama, is about Kim, who sees her life changed after a drunken ONS.The second story,a love story, is about Kim's cute daughter Genie(the result of the ONS)and her teenage-relationship. Kim is forced into marriage, but can't endure her life with scumball husband and her unwanted child and escapes to Hong Kong and independence leaving her daughter in the care of her mother,embodiment of chinese tradition, culture and heritage. Now, some 16 years later and raised by her grandmother, Genie is a hip teenager, who falls for Michael,an attractive young DJ, who happens to be black.So Genie,by dating him,is breaking chinese traditions,but finds true love. Both mother and daughter fight the eternal struggle between tradition and freedom and are unequally successful. And even though the stories take place in a chinese family,they really could take place in any other culture, if Italian, Jewish, Greek,.....the themes have a global appeal and many viewers will identify automaticly. Director Bay-Sa Pan directs very self-assured,knowing when to dramatize and when to slow down and is rewarded by strong performances from her actors, especially Kristy Wu, who's keen on demonstrating her talent. You'll absolutely will enjoy this movie!!!

This story is not at all melodramatic even though it may seem so. Writer-director Bertha Pan presented with a very keen and sensitive eye on the possible woes and relationships between mother and daughter, grandmother and (teen) granddaughter, and a 'forgotten' mother and her 'forsaken' daughter. "Face" - corresponding to the traditional Chinese family value of 'saving face' - is a poignant film and very much a women's story.

The setting of the film is in New York's Queens. The film is basically presented in English with sparing subtitles where necessary. The mood of the story is suggested from the beginning shot trained on Bai Ling in a 'limo' to/from airport, as flashback memories unfold. Scenes may be reminiscent of "Wedding Banquet" 1993 (director Ang Lee), and a very Audrey Hepburn looking (hair-do especially hugging) Bai Ling's lean face; also "Eat a Bowl of Tea" 1989 (director Wayne Wang), and even "Dinner Rush" 2000 (director Bob Giraldi, also set in Queens), but Pan's story/film holds its own.

Thanks, very much so, to the three talented actresses: mother/grandmother portrayed by Kieu Chinh (remember her from "Catfish in Black Bean Sauce" 1999 - Vietnamese film in an American family setting by w-d Chi Moui Lo), an energetic young Kristy Wu as the granddaughter, and Bai Ling as the middle generation character that 'begot' the start and end of the story, tying the flashback vignettes together. The performances of all three women made the film "Face," along with the production effort that brought this 'indie' to fruition. Supporting characters are just as fine: there's the very much 'face saving' valued rich mother-in-law played by Tina Chen, and the bold stroke of introducing (representative of the diverse culture of teens) a black young man (DJ, hip & rap music) as granddaughter's boyfriend (a caring & endearing soul mate at it) - an equally affecting portrayal by Treach. At times the storyline may seem cliché, but Pan opened a window and let us glimpse/feel the various aspects of Asian culture and family traditions, intermingled with the modern day values (teens/elders) cultivated in/succumbed to (an American) city and of urban society (Hong Kong/business world lingo and behavior). Pan did not spare any sentiments. She gave them to us straight, and she covered quite a range with well-paced plots. The mix of traditional and modern (teen & hip) music used complemented the mood and situations on screen. "Face" is a very good effort all round and well worth seeing.

Another worthwhile women's film is "Chaos" 2001, a film by French w-d Coline Serreau ("3 Men and a Cradle" 1987), who wove an intricate layered tale involving four women - the incidents/vignettes happening to the two main characters are suspenseful and entertaining (yes, with action) besides conveying sensitive viewpoints from women's perspective. (I have posted my user comments on IMDb.)

Also reminds me of w-d Mina Shum's debut feature "Double Happiness" 1994 with Sandra Oh as an obedient daughter as much as she could - the story revolves around the family expectations of Asian traditional parents of a young woman living in Canada - comedy and romance with struggles in modern day adjustments.

If this film were a soup, it would be missing a spice or two. As a film, it felt like a well-funded student outing aiming for an afterschool special. While it might have tasted fresher back in 2002, I'm not so sure about that....and it has not aged well in my opinion.

That said it's heart is in the right place, basking in the warmth of our great American melting pot.

The grandmother here not only takes care of two wayward generations, she carries the film. Much respect to Kieu Chinh. Her actual personal story sounds pretty amazing coming from Vietnam before the War there. Meanwhile there is also Bai Ling, who is gorgeous but struggles to wash away some of the soap opera dramatics inherent in her character. Again Bai Ling's real life story is pretty astounding from her days in China as a teenage actress onward. Lastly Kelly Yu completes the female line, and of course you're rooting for her, but she felt the most detached from her role.

Treach from Naughty by Nature fares the best of the male roles by a city mile, the other two are pretty cartoony. The dialog in general but especially for those men just hits some rough klunkers at times. I think that's where the Afterschool vibe kicks in.

Maybe had the film makers found a way to have Treach and Kieu Chinh on screen, they could have saved "Face."

One credit to the film, it does not try to tie up loose ends or put to pretty a bow on the parallel mother-daughter stories. That said, you can likely save time skipping "Face" at this point. Honestly I'm not sure how it bubbled up in my film queue, trying to figure out was there something about the music (which worked hard to kick up the volume of the story) or one of the actors?!?!

I did not expect it to but "Face" affected me quite deeply. Generally, I find myself choosing genres with less dialog and less emotional content. I am more a hardcore action / adventure fan, loving Sci-Fi or the occasional documentary or foreign film. I gave face a chance when a friend recommended it to me as a true piece of New York and almost too gritty for Lifetime Net. The films' angle inside of real family dysfunction was a surprise peek in the mirror for me. Unlike the family in the film, I am a second generation American male of an average Russian Jewish family however, my story seems all too congruent with that of the lead character in "Face". My first viewing of this movie was really a lot much more than I knew I was signing on for but I felt a cathartic sense or acknowledgment by the third time. You wont find me in the drama section of the video store not because I'm too scared to get deep but because it is only a diamond that can bring it out in me.