Wu
is her mother’s daughter. She never forgets a slight and has a flair for the
dramatic. However, we cannot say whether she is her father’s daughter, because he
hasn’t been around for a long time. That partially explains their precarious financial
situation. General Chinese cultural attitudes on gender and class do not help
much either, but they share plenty of culpability for their own bad choices.
They are almost like an anti-Ozu movie, but mother and daughter still come
together when they need to in Yang Mingming’s Girls Always Happy (trailer here), which screens during the 2018 Seattle International Film Festival.
Wu
and her mother live together, rather uncomfortably, in one of the last
remaining hutongs, because they squandered an opportunity for relocation money.
However, they still tip-toe around and flirt with the landlord, because rent is
always an iffy proposition. They fall into a recurring pattern, fighting like
cats and dogs, after which Wu sulks, while her mother leaves her passive-aggressive,
guilt-tripping voice messages. Yet, they also come together as a team when
visiting Wu’s grandfather, in hopes of securing an inheritance.
Girls Always Happy
is
not exactly a comedy, but it has a fair amount of humor that translates much
more readily than the broad, silly farces the Chinese film industry is so
determined to export. Just about everyone will understand the relationship
between Wu and her mother. Half the time, the subtitles probably aren’t even
necessary, because we can get the gist from their sour facial expressions and
tense body language.
The
film also has the distinction of co-starring two well-regarded independent
Chinese film producers: Nai An (producer of Lou Ye’s Spring Fever, Mystery, and Blind Massage) and Zhang Xianmin (Old Dog and
Fujian Blue). The former has previously
also played several memorable emotionally-distressed mothers in When Night Falls and What Tears Us Apart. That probably
explains the posters for the Beijing Independent Film Festival (which has been
harassed into limbo by the Communist government) on the walls of Wu’s film professor
lover, Zhang.
Both
Nai An and Yang are completely believable and absolutely remarkable as the
culture-clashing mother and daughter. Sometimes, it is uncomfortable to watch
them go at each other, yet in the next scene they can share a beautiful quiet
moment together.
In
many ways, Girls Always Happy tells a
universal story, but it still has a strong sense of place and time. The
traditional hutong setting is just as critically important as Wu’s ultra-now
sensibilities. Yang sneaks in some sly commentary as well, such as the cynical
way Wu and her lover discuss screenwriting for the “anti-Japanese” genre. Yet,
despite all their disappointments and resentments, Wu and her mother remain
indomitable. It is a smart, biting film that pays off nicely. Recommended for
fans of domestic dramas (but maybe not for mothers and daughters to watch together),
Girls Always Happy screens tomorrow
(6/8) and Saturday (6/9), as part of this year’s SIFF.
