The Joy Luck Club (1993)

The life histories of four Asian women and their daughters reflect and guide each other.

Director:

Wayne Wang

Writers:

Amy Tan (novel), Amy Tan (screenplay),

Stars:

Kieu Chinh, Tsai Chin, Tamlyn Tomita

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kieu Chinh	...	Suyuan - The Mother
Tsai Chin	...	Lindo - The Mother
France Nuyen	...	Ying-Ying - The Mother
Lisa Lu	...	An-Mei - The Mother
Ming-Na Wen	...	June - The Daughter
Tamlyn Tomita	...	Waverly - The Daughter
Lauren Tom	...	Lena - The Daughter
Rosalind Chao	...	Rose - The Daughter
Chao Li Chi	...	June's Father
Melanie Chang	...	June - Age 9
Victor Wong	...	Old Chong
Lisa Connolly	...	Singing Girl
Mai Vu	...	Waverly - Age 6-9 (as Vu Mai)
Ying Wu	...	Lindo - Age 4
Meijuan Xi	...	Lindo's Mother (as Mei Juan Xi)

Storyline

Through a series of flashbacks, four young chinese women born in America and their respective mothers born in feudal China, explore their past. This search will help them understand their difficult mother/daughter relationship.

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Plot Keywords:

chinese | china | asian | flashback | child abuse | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong depiction of thematic material

Details

Country:

USA China

Language:

English Mandarin Cantonese

Release Date:

29 October 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

El club de la buena estrella

Filming Locations:

China

Box Office

Budget:

$11,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$32,861,136 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hollywood Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

139 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the novel, it is revealed that the real name of the character played by Ming-Na Wen is Jing-Mei. On ER, Ming-Na plays another character named Jing-Mei.

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Goofs

When Ying Ying is talking to Lena in Harold's apartment, Ying Ying's multi-strand pearl necklace is twisted in some shots and untwisted in others.

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Quotes

An-Mei: I tell you the story because I was raised the Chinese way. I was taught to desire nothing, to swallow other people's misery, and to eat my own bitterness. And even though I taught my daughter the opposite, still she came out the same way. Maybe it is because she was born to me and she was born a girl, and I was born to my mother and I was born a girl, all of us like stairs, one step after another, going up, going down, but always going the same way. No, this cannot be, this not knowing what ...

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Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: Gamera vs. Barugon (1991)

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Soundtracks

"He Ri Jun Zai Lai (When Will You Come Again?)"
(1930s)
Written by Yao Ming
Performed by Teresa Teng (uncredited)
Used by permission of EMI Music Publishing Ltd. (S.E. Asia)

User Reviews

A masterpiece

Words fail to capture the essence of this film. I read the book before I saw the movie and as anyone can tell you, the book for a movie is usually a lot better, but in this case and I think they are both on the same level. I watched this movie again for the umpteenth time today and every time I watch it I see the magic again. It makes me think of my own relationship with my mother and my relationship with my daughter. This is the story that made me feel in love with Asian film.