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:

Tamlyn Tomita, Rosalind Chao, Kieu Chinh

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:

asian | chinese | flashback | china | japanese actress playing chinese character | 

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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:

610 Rhode Island Street, San Francisco, California, USA

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

Towards the end of the movie, June can be seen showing an elderly couple out after the party. She bids farewell to them using their names, Daisy and T.C. Daisy is the American name of Amy Tan's (the author) mother and T.C. was the name of her mother's partner.

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Goofs

June's hair moves from in front of her shoulder to behind it several times just before Suyuan gives her the necklace.

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Quotes

Suyuan: [Takes off necklace she is wearing and gives it to June] June, since your baby time, I wear this next to my heart. Now, you wear next to yours. It will help you know. I see you. I see you.

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Connections

Referenced in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)

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Soundtracks

The Monkees' Theme
Written by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart
Used by permission of Screen Gems-EMI Music Inc.
Performed by The Monkees
Courtesy of Arista Records, Inc.

User Reviews

affecting

It's surprising they managed to make a movie out of The Joy Luck Club, which was, after all, a series of anecdotes by 8 different people. But somehow they did it, seamless weaving in and out of the characters' reminiscences.

Joy Luck Club could reasonably be described as a chick flick - it is, after all, a film about a bunch of women and their feelings - but that would be a disservice. "Chick flick" has become a somewhat derogatory term, partially because it was a term created by guys who find women and their feelings annoying, but to a great extent because most movies in this class are shoddy pieces of tripe like "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood." If movies of women and their feelings were all this intelligent, insightful and affecting I doubt anyone would have even coined the term "chick flick." This is a movie of honest emotion that leaves you with a sense of fulfillment, a rebuke to all those manufactured, syrupy women's movies that Hollywood churns out. Highly, highly, HIGHLY recommended.