A perceptive and thoughtful film about family, food, romance, and paving one's own way in the world.
Jia-Chien is a happy fornicator (no, really), but begins to be pressed about her future when several possibilities--romantic and otherwise--arise at once.
Like most movies, "Eat Drink" catches its characters on the verge of making important shifts and decisions in life. It is one of the distinct joys of this movie to not only wade through the situations its characters are put through, but also to reflect and ponder to how they relate to our own lives. "Is that all there is to life?" Chu asks of an old friend at one point in the movie, referring to the facts of life alluded to its title. Yes, is the film's ultimate answer, including the thorny but rewarding experience of self-discovery. But the ways in which those two pleasures (food and sex) are employed can contribute significantly when it comes to riding out and managing life's vicissitudes and surprises.
Lee, who would go on to make his next several pictures ("Sense and Sensibility," "The Ice Storm") in North America, revisits the crowded traffic scene near the end of the film with an important addition: a policewoman directing traffic. Life, of course, isn't so well regulated, though there are occasional markers by which each person measures him or herself in relation to their goals and values. "Eat Drink" is a celebration of this uncertainly and also the pleasurable moments. By definition the world is mundane, but there are a few moments--birth, death, marriage and other milestones--that serve to bring all our amassed days into meaningful focus. Even something as seemingly mundane as Sunday dinner at dad's house can, once it ceases to be a habitual duty, an appealing experience, as happens for this family. And like Chu, the aging cook, we learn to taste again.
"Eat Drink Man Woman" was re-made in 2001 by Spanish director Maria Ripoll as "Tortilla Soup."
Video:
The film was released on DVD in 2002 by MGM and the transfer maintains in anamorphic widescreen the 1.85:1 ratio of the film's original theatrical release. Colors are warm, but the overall picture is soft, especially when we've seen what sharp images later SD discs are capable of producing. But the transfer is free of dirt and manages decent contrast between darks and lights, especially the scenes in Jia-Chien's office.
Audio:
The Dolby Stereo Surround gets the job done, but is nothing to write home about. Dialogue is clear (though most folks will be reading instead of listening), and the film's music is well mixed.
Extras:
Bonus content is relatively meager - two trailers and an interview with director Ang Lee and co-writer James Schamus. Lee gives a lot of anecdotes about the film, including its thematic ideas and creation process. Lee also discusses his start in the film business. Easy to read, white subtitles with a black outline are available in English, French and Spanish.
Parting thoughts:
"Eat Drink Man Woman" is a perceptive and thoughtful film about family, food, romance and paving one's own way in the world. Though there are many soap operatic elements about it, it transcends these tendencies thanks to the sure direction of Ang Lee, the believability of the characters and the layers of metaphorical meaning the film serves up for digestion like a batch of Joy Luck Dragon Phoenix.
Like most movies, "Eat Drink" catches its characters on the verge of making important shifts and decisions in life. It is one of the distinct joys of this movie to not only wade through the situations its characters are put through, but also to reflect and ponder to how they relate to our own lives. "Is that all there is to life?" Chu asks of an old friend at one point in the movie, referring to the facts of life alluded to its title. Yes, is the film's ultimate answer, including the thorny but rewarding experience of self-discovery. But the ways in which those two pleasures (food and sex) are employed can contribute significantly when it comes to riding out and managing life's vicissitudes and surprises.
Lee, who would go on to make his next several pictures ("Sense and Sensibility," "The Ice Storm") in North America, revisits the crowded traffic scene near the end of the film with an important addition: a policewoman directing traffic. Life, of course, isn't so well regulated, though there are occasional markers by which each person measures him or herself in relation to their goals and values. "Eat Drink" is a celebration of this uncertainly and also the pleasurable moments. By definition the world is mundane, but there are a few moments--birth, death, marriage and other milestones--that serve to bring all our amassed days into meaningful focus. Even something as seemingly mundane as Sunday dinner at dad's house can, once it ceases to be a habitual duty, an appealing experience, as happens for this family. And like Chu, the aging cook, we learn to taste again.
"Eat Drink Man Woman" was re-made in 2001 by Spanish director Maria Ripoll as "Tortilla Soup."
Video:
The film was released on DVD in 2002 by MGM and the transfer maintains in anamorphic widescreen the 1.85:1 ratio of the film's original theatrical release. Colors are warm, but the overall picture is soft, especially when we've seen what sharp images later SD discs are capable of producing. But the transfer is free of dirt and manages decent contrast between darks and lights, especially the scenes in Jia-Chien's office.
Audio:
The Dolby Stereo Surround gets the job done, but is nothing to write home about. Dialogue is clear (though most folks will be reading instead of listening), and the film's music is well mixed.
Extras:
Bonus content is relatively meager - two trailers and an interview with director Ang Lee and co-writer James Schamus. Lee gives a lot of anecdotes about the film, including its thematic ideas and creation process. Lee also discusses his start in the film business. Easy to read, white subtitles with a black outline are available in English, French and Spanish.
Parting thoughts:
"Eat Drink Man Woman" is a perceptive and thoughtful film about family, food, romance and paving one's own way in the world. Though there are many soap operatic elements about it, it transcends these tendencies thanks to the sure direction of Ang Lee, the believability of the characters and the layers of metaphorical meaning the film serves up for digestion like a batch of Joy Luck Dragon Phoenix.
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