Eat Drink Man Woman

 3.5/4

Starring: Sihung Lung, Kuei-Mei Yang, Yu-Wen Wang, Chien-Lien Wu, Sylvia Chang, Winston Chao, Chao-jung Chen, Chit-Man Chan, Ah-Lei Gua

Not Rated (Probable PG-13 for Sexuality)

"Eat Drink Man Woman" is an irresistibly charming dramedy from Ang Lee, who is probably one of the finest independent filmmakers working today.  Although he has achieved mainstream success (and two Oscars for Best Director) and has directed a few blockbusters ("Hulk" and "Gemini Man"), he remains, at heart, a filmmaker who takes chances yet always marches to his own beat.  You can see his signature style in all his films.  Or rather, you can feel it.  His films are understated but filled with intense emotions bubbling beneath the surface.  He concentrates on people's repressed feelings as opposed to their actions.  The characters in his movies often try to balance their intense desires with the reality of their situation.  It's most obvious in his two most famous films: the sublime "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and the tragic "Brokeback Mountain."  It's this quality that makes "Eat Drink Man Woman" more than just a simple melodrama.

Or a food movie.  If nothing else, "Eat Drink Man Woman" is notable for the delicious looking dishes that populate the screen.  They're enough to make one wish that they could reach into the screen and start chowing down.  But the food has a point other than to make the viewer drool.  It's the connecting thread between a family of four: master chef Chu (Lung) and his three grown daughters Jia-Chen (Wu), Jia-Ning (Wang) and Ja-Jen (Yang).  Although they gather together everyone Sunday for one of their father's specialty dinners, they may as well be living on different planets for all they have in common.  Jia-Chen is an ambitious airline executive obsessed with rising the corporate ladder.  Jia-Ning is aimless and working at Wendy's.  And Jia-Jen is a teacher so bruised by a failed relationship ten years ago that she has resigned herself to spinsterhood.  For his part, Chu has lost his ability to taste (not a good sign for a culinary master).  Things begin to change when Mrs. Liang (Gua), the mother of a family friend, moves back into town...

One could conceivably label "Eat Drink Man Woman" as a coming-of-age story, although it insufficient to do so.  The film touches on many themes, romance being the obvious one.  But it also addresses the gulf that exists between families, how time changes everything (there are strong echoes of Ozu's "Tokyo Story" to be found here), and the necessity of passion.  Chu mourns not only his long-deceased wife, but also the fact that his daughters have grown up and have their own lives.  Jia-Chen is fighting tooth and nail to succeed in a job she has no real passion for.  And so on.  Ang Lee addresses this material with both empathy and humor (note: this is not a laugh-out-loud comedy...just smiles and chuckles).

Lee is a marvelous director of actors, and that hasn't changed here.  There isn't a false note in any of the performers.  The cast has a remarkable ability to say one thing with their words and say quite another with their faces.  Sihung Lung, once again working for Lee after their previous film, "The Wedding Banquet," is wonderful as the sad sack chef who no longer feels passion for anything.  "Eat, drink, man, woman," he complains.  "Basic human desires.  Can't avoid them.  All my life, that's all I've ever done.  It pisses me off.  Is that all there is?"  Yet the actor allows us to get in close to see that he is mourning what he feels is lost to him.  It's the little quirks of human behavior that tell us that, as seasoned a cook as he is, he is just going through the motions.  I could make similar comments about the rest of the cast.

This is not a perfect film, but how many films are?  On the whole, my criticisms are best small quibbles and best unnoticeable.  The narrative is at times choppy and the plot can at times feel artificial and has a tendency to move towards soap opera.  But these criticisms fade into memory as soon as they pass by on screen.  They don't linger enough to dwell on them.  What one does take away is an opportunity to spend time with four unique and likable people.

And to make yourself hungry.

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