The Farewell
THE FAREWELL - A24
From its slow comedic beginning to its heavy-hitting emotional gut punch end, Lulu Wang's The Farewell is a phenomenal, emotionally engulfing drama. A humble ensemble family drama that fits together like the last perfect jigsaw piece, The Farewell clocks in at a tight and intimate running time of just under one hundred minutes. Wang's feature is at the perfect length to provide precisely what it needs with exact execution and the expert delivery to never linger.
The Farewell could easily justify itself in a two-hour full on emotional battle, but Wang's feature is not a doomed exploration of a family slowly imploding with their moral ambiguity aloof. While it is in no doubt an integral aspect to proceedings, The Farewell is clearly a fond celebration of family and the trepidation of dire circumstances surrounding a separated family. The tonal balance brought to the feature by writer-director Lulu Wang is at an expert level of conviction. Wang writes a multi-layered and captivating dynamic for an array of individual roles that all play a part and are in no way background noise. Utilising a full Asian cast list and an array of East Asian performers fills the film with delightfully energetic voices that standout with each delivering a grand turn with bravado, notably that of on-screen brothers Tzi Ma and Jiang Yongbo.
When the film wants to change gear and evolve from bravado to gravitas, it is helped with the newfound dramatic talent of Awkwafina, who in turn delivers a career-defining performance as grandaughter Billi. Awkwafina delivers a performance that evokes an exquisite sense of creativity and brilliance at every turn. Not to mention a fantastic emotional range and density brought to proceedings that will tear at the viewers' heartstrings.
That being said, the performance of Zhao Shuzhen as Nai Nai is utterly transfixing on screen. Sweet, endearing and gloriously abundant in emotional conviction, Zhao Shuzhen puts the audience in every conceivable stage of emotional turmoil imaginable; specifically speaking, a final scene that will emotionally destroy the audience with its astute restraint that evokes such a compelling moment of brilliance — coupled with a soft mumbling albeit striking score by composer Alex Weston and beautiful colour grade as well as cinematography from Anna Franquesa Solano. The Farewell looks and sounds utterly transfixing with how it has been constructed. Not one element of the filmmaking process feels diluted nor forgotten, a testament that reinforces the passion and love that director Lulu Wang has brought to this utterly spectacular semi-autobiographical piece of work.
The Farewell is released September 10, 2019.
