The Wedding Banquet (1993) Xi yan (original title)

Director:

Ang Lee

Writers:

Ang Lee (writer)
Neil Peng (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

4 August 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

A little deception in the reception.

Plot:

To satisfy his nagging parents, a gay landlord and a female tenant agree to a marriage of convenience, but his parents arrive to visit and things get out of hand.

Plot Keywords:

Gay | Wedding | Green Card | Marriage | Banquet

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 12 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Ya-lei Kuei	...	Mrs. Gao (as Ah-Leh Gua)
Sihung Lung	...	Mr. Gao
May Chin	...	Wei-Wei
Winston Chao	...	Wai-Tung Gao
Mitchell Lichtenstein	...	Simon
Dion Birney	...	Andrew
Jeanne Kuo Chang	...	Wai-Tung's Secretary
Paul Chen	...	Guest
Chung-Wei Chou	...	Chef
Yun Chung	...	Guest
Ho-Mean Fu	...	Guest
Michael Gaston	...	Justice of the Peace
Jeffrey Howard	...	Street Musician
Theresa Hou	...	Female Cashier
Yung-Teh Hsu	...	Bob Law, Wai-Tung's Old Friend
Jean Hu	...	Guest
Albert Huang	...	Guest
Neal Huff	...	Steve
Anthony Ingoglia	...	Wei-Wei's Employer (as Anthony 'Iggy' Ingoglia)
Eddie Johns	...	Haskell
Thomas Koo	...	Guest
Chih Kuan	...	Granny Tien
Robert Larenquent	...	Hispanic Man
Neal Lee	...	Waiter
Mason Lee	...	Baby (as Mason C. Lee)
Dean Li	...	Director Wang
Jennifer Lin	...	Guest
John Nathan	...	Joe
Francis Pan	...	Guest
Neal Peng	...	Guest
Tien Pien	...	Old Chen
Marny Pocato	...	Miriam
Tonia Rowe	...	Simon's Nurse
Chung-Hsien Su	...	Studio Photographer
Hannah Sullivan	...	Mariane (as Patricia Sullivan)
Elizabeth Yang	...	Guest
Vanessa Yang	...	Mao Mei
Wei-Huang Ying	...	Guest
Peide Yao	...	Egg Head
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ang Lee	...	Guest at the wedding banquet (uncredited)

Directed by
Ang Lee

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Ang Lee		writer
Neil Peng		writer
James Schamus		writer

Produced by
Sui Je Cheng	....	supervising producer
Dolly Hall	....	line producer
Ted Hope	....	producer
Li-Kong Hsu	....	associate producer
Feng-Chyt Jiang	....	executive producer
Ang Lee	....	producer
James Schamus	....	producer

Original Music by
Mader

Cinematography by
Lin Jong

Film Editing by
Tim Squyres

Casting by
Judy Dennis

Production Design by
Steve Rosenzweig

Art Direction by
Rachael Weinzimer

Set Decoration by
Amy Beth Silver

Costume Design by
Michael Clancy

Production Management
Shih-chieh Chen	....	executive in charge of production
Bill Rouady	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Annie Tan	....	second second assistant director

Art Department
Linda L. Tseng	....	property master

Sound Department
Jeanne Gilliland	....	boom operator
Pamela Martin	....	sound editor
Tom Paul	....	sound mixer
Dan Sable	....	sound effects editor
Lynn Sable	....	assistant sound editor
Reilly Steele	....	post-production sound mixer

Camera and Electrical Department
Todd S. Klein	....	key grip
Dave Samuel	....	gaffer (as David Samuel)
Susanna Virtanen	....	first assistant camera

Casting Department
Judy Dennis	....	casting: USA
Wendy Ettinger	....	casting: USA
Ben Prayz	....	extras casting: USA

Editorial Department
Melissa Fleming	....	post-production assistant
Elliott Gamson	....	negative cutter
Pamela Martin	....	assistant film editor
David Pultz	....	color timer
Michael Yetter	....	negative cutter

Music Department
Chosei Funahara	....	soundtrack supervisor
Eric Liljestrand	....	music mixer
Samantha Rosenfelds	....	music coordinator

Transportation Department
Philip Harrison	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Steve Chang	....	title designer
Joyce Hsieh	....	production accountant
Bai Ling	....	production staff
Mary Jane Skalski	....	post-production delivery coordinator
Jane Stavinoha	....	assistant production coordinator
Michael Taylor	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Ang Lee Productions
• Central Motion Pictures Corporation
• Good Machine

Distributors

• Film Arte (1994) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Samuel Goldwyn Company, The (1993) (USA) (theatrical)
• Alliance (2008) (Canada) (DVD)
• Arthaus Filmverleih
• Flashstar Home Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Golem Distribución (Spain)
• Good Machine
• Homescreen (1994) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• New Star (1996) (Greece) (VHS)
• Roadshow Entertainment Video (Australia) (VHS)
• Roadshow Entertainment (Australia)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2006) (Finland) (DVD)
• Transeuropa Video Entertainment (TVE) (1994) (Argentina) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Perseverance Records  soundtrack

Also Known As:

"Xi yan" - Taiwan (original title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

Taiwan | USA

Language:

Mandarin | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | South Korea:15 | Iceland:L | Singapore:R(A) (cut) | Philippines:R-18 | Portugal:M/16 | Argentina:16 | Chile:18 | Finland:S | Germany:6 | Peru:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:Btl | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn Bridge, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Ang Lee Productions

Trivia:

Ang based the first half of the movie on the true story of a friend, Neil Peng

Goofs:

Continuity: During the small family dinner to which Simon treats the newlyweds and Wei-Tung's parents, Simon can be seen to alternately hold chopsticks, a small bowl or nothing in his left hand, depending on the camera angle.

Quotes:

Justice of the Peace:Okay, now you: "I, Wee-Wee..."
Wei-Wei:Wee-Wee.
Justice of the Peace:"... take you, Wai Tung..."
Wei-Wei:Wee-Wee.
Justice of the Peace:Okay. "To be my wedded husband... to have and to hold..."
Wei-Wei:Holding to have, husband, mine...
Justice of the Peace:"... for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer..."
Wei-Wei:Better and richer, no poorer.
Justice of the Peace:"... in sickness and in health, till death do us part."
Wei-Wei:Till sickness and death.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Kicking and Screaming (1995)

Soundtrack:

Madame Butterfly

Father knows best

Ang Lee with infinite wisdom seems to be saving the best part of this film for last. Acceptance is the underlying theme of this movie, which I recently watched for the second time. I saw the film when it was originally released in 1993. At that time, it seemed to have been breaking ground for tolerance from the straight world toward gays, in general.

Ang Lee is one of the best film directors working these days. This is a small film in comparison to what came afterward. The story of how parents in a conservative society view their children that are "different" is always an interesting idea. Those same parents produced that child; the mere idea they will turn their backs to a son who is living openly as a gay man is a complex problem, at best.

Different cultures react differently, as is the case in this film. While the parents are not completely taken over by the way they discover their son has turned out to be, they go along with the flow, never condemning the son, his partner, or the young woman who is pretending to be, what she is not.

The acting is good in general, but it has to be the actor who plays the father, who ultimately wins one's heart. His culture goes back for centuries and he is won by his son's lover because he sees how kind, decent and honest he really is.

It's better never to judge, or so it seems that Ang Lee is telling us.