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source: The Joy Luck Club

I haven't seen Wayne Wang's other work, but I was not impressed by this particular movie. I absolutely loved the novel. I was amazed at how much Wang was willing to depart from the novel, whether for brevity or plot. In the first scene, when they are playing mah jong, June says something like "no speaking Chinese, thats not fair!" In the novel all the daughters speak Chinese. I'm not one to quibble about book-film inconsistencies but in a movie so concerned with identity and relationships across generations and cultures, this makes no sense to me. And the score was an easy-listening abortion. I'd just like to see their reasons behind some of the decisions they made in adapting this movie. I finished the book attached to all the main characters, while the only character in the movie that I found compelling in the slightest was Lindo Jong.

This most wonderful movie "yes,yes" is at the top of my list for all time favorites. Every time I watch, I am amazed by the excellent ability of these actress's to pull you into the story and believe they are the characters. You love, you laugh, you cry, it's wonderful! Ming wa is wonderful as June and Auntie Lindo is absolutely adorable! The scenery is wonderful as you travel with some of the characters to China, and the United States too. It makes you want to do research into the times and places they show, where you can more fully understand the storyline. You will definitely enjoy this movie.

Saw it again! And again! It's a great movie with a reminder, a mother works hard to protect, care for and guide her child each day of her life and she does it with diligence and perseverance. Mom does not take a day off! No matter the cost, mom knows that there is an end to the means. These women share stories of their struggles in hopes that the next generation, daughters as it is in this movie, we learn that each girl becomes a women and she does, indeed have a voice! Because her mama is stronger than she looks!

I originally saw this in Ethics class at school two years ago. It is basically about four Chinese women and the lives of their daughters who are living in the United States and how similar they are. The film played out like a book, not like a movie, and has a Disney-like feel to it. It was incredibly boring for me but would most likely appeal to children under 10 and women over 40. It was basically trying to show that Asian women in the US can do very well when they try, and it did a good job of that. It was also funny at times. But otherwise, this was not very entertaining. Feel free to email me with any questions or comments.

On an Objective level, The Joy Luck Club is a 10. But on a subjective level, I give it a 7 because it's a hard edged film to watch, emotionally charged from beginning to end. It's not a film for everyone, and at times it was hard to get through. But the end of the film really brings it all together and the ending is where the tears start flowing. A great film showing why certain cultures are the way they are, explaining our differences and showing what's underneath when most of us only get to see the tip of the iceberg with different people who go in and out of our lives. At times the acting is a bit stale and one dimensional, but overall, all of the performances are pretty well acted. A good film to see.

One does not have to be Chinese or of Chinese origin to understand, appreciate the film. It simply touches you, no matter what your family background is, where you came from and what language you speak. It is a film of profound sentiments, sentiments between friends, between men and women, mother and daughter and yes, father and daughter, too. I am only sorry that I was not aware of the release of the film and bumped into it by chance only now, 24 years later. Perhaps, I should think that these years have actually enabled me to appreciate it more than 24 years ago when it first came out. Whoever reads the reviews and decides to look for the film should, I'd dare say, can consider himself/herself lucky, as it will make one feels deeper, live more intensely as all lives deserve.

"The Joy Luck Club" is well filmed with nice cinematography and settings but it is a bit long and slow. The stories and flashbacks get a bit redundant as they are all sort of similar being slightly anti-man and featuring dramatic struggle. The film sort of implies that the generations born here in America have no great struggle, but it is the struggle of another kind, of emotions, class, and race conflict. (I don't necessarily agree with that.) So this film can be a bit dreary to be honest although it ends on a little bit brighter note. An interesting study into immigrants, their children, woman, class, and race if nothing else. Though I can't say how much is accurate or not, but there is some good character development and dialogue which I always appreciate. A 7/10 in my book.

This film entwines the lives of women and their daughters with masterful expertise. The storyline is profound. The casting and acting is superb. Cinematography and direction are also astounding and capture the lives of these women with realism and compassion. This is my all-time favorite film. It is an emotionally wrenching story in many ways but as story that is relevant to the multi-cultural world we live in. There are complex layers of meaning and social commentary here. We see inside of marriage, family, and traditions that have crossed oceans as well as invisible boundary lines. It handles these sensitive issues deftly yet with implicit insistence that we take notice. It is a film to be treasured.