Movie Review: "Eat Drink Man Woman"

Ok, who doesn't like Chinese food? The only thing better than take out Chinese food is real authentic, freshly prepared Chinese food. I've been lucky to have this when my family visited Malaysia and my grandmother and aunt cooked a feast for us.

A chef has three grown daughters. Once a week, everyone comes home to a huge meal the dad has cooked. They don't talk much while they eat, it's just something they do every week. The daughters are each trying to live their own lives, and the dad can see the family is growing apart. He focuses his time on a family friend and her daughter, who do appreciate his cooking. Meanwhile the daughters are all trying to figure out what they want in life and discover love along the way. Mix all of this with tasty Chinese dishes in almost every scene.

Ang Lee is one my favorite directors. I absolutely loved Crouching Tiger, adored Sense and Sensibility, I even liked The Hulk. Minus one certain movie, his movies are always enjoyable to watch. I liked this movie because even though the characters spoke Mandarin, the storyline is universal. There were three daughters in the movie, just like in my family. Everyone is trying to live their own life and still have a sense of responsibility for the family. Many funny scenes in the movie (the scene near the ending for one) as well as sad, touching ones. Another thing I liked about the movie was that the oldest daughter was a Christian. She never wavers from her faith throughout the entire movie. Even though her family doesn't share or necessarily understand her beliefs they never overly mock her or try to make her feel ashamed for converting. This movie is good for anyone who like father/daughter movies and love stories.

One last warning: DON'T watch this movie on an empty stomach.