Review: 'The Wedding Banquet' is a sparkling remake that builds on the 1993 original with a strong acting ensemble
Director Andrew Ahn does something slightly miraculous in “The Wedding Banquet,” by updating And Lee’s now-classic 1993 gay rom-com for our current moment while maintaining and even deepening its romantic spirit.
The original centered on a Chinese landlord in New York who agrees to marry a woman living in his apartment building so he can get a green card — because he’s not legally able to marry his American boyfriend. The situation spirals out of control when the man’s parents fly in to arrange a ridiculously elaborate wedding reception.
In this sprightly remake, a few details have changed. Min (Han Gi-Chan) is a Korean artist living in Seattle with his commitment-averse boyfriend, Chris (“Saturday Night Live’s” Bowen Yang). Min comes from money, but he is strenuously avoiding taking a job in his family’s conglomerate.
Min and Chris rent out the guest house of their friends, Lee (Lily Gladstone) and Angela (Kelly Marie Tran), whose friendship goes back to when Chris and Angela, still confused about their sexual identity, hooked up during freshman orientation in college. Lee and Angela want a baby, but Lee has just gone through a second unsuccessful round of IVF and they can’t afford a third one.
When Min’s grandmother (Youn Yuh-jung, the Oscar winner from “Minari”) warns Min that his student visa is going to run out, and that she wants him to return to Korea and work for their company, Min hits the panic button. Marrying Chris is not an option, because Min’s grandfather is homophobic and because Chris has already said not to Min’s past proposals. So Min he drops to one knee and asks Angela, offering to pay for Lee’s next round of IVF of treatments if Angela will go through with a green-card wedding.
Among those who are shocked by this is Angela’s mom (Joan Chen), who has turned being an LGBTQ+ ally into a competitive sport.
The script — for which Ahn shares credit with James Schamus, who co-wrote Ang Lee’s 1993 version — finds room for screwball comedy, like when Min’s grandmother arrives unannounced in Seattle, and Lee, Angela and Chris have to scramble to “de-queer” the house. (There's also a “Star Wars” joke that Tran, an alumna of that franchise, must have had fun being a part of.) But Ahn, who has made such lovely slice-of-life dramas as “Spa Night” and “Driveways,” provides his actors with characters who are richly realized and more complete than those in a standard rom-com.
All of the main leads get their moments to shine — with special mention to Youn’s touching speech to Min near the end, Gladstone and Tran’s lovely interplay, and Yang’s ability to stretch beyond his well-established comic gifts to find some pathos in Chris’ indecision. Ahn has gathered a strong ensemble, each actor building on one another to create a delightful movie.
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‘The Wedding Banquet’
★★★1/2
Opens Friday, April 18, in area theaters. Rated R for language and some sexual material/nudity. Running time: 103 minutes.