June is Pride Month, the month that was established to promote LGBT
rights and celebrate that same community. This year marks the 50th
anniversary of the Stonewall riots in 1969, which most agree was the
start of the gay rights movement in the United States. There are various
events happening in New York City, the home of Stonewall, to
commemorate the anniversary. Some of those events include film
screenings. The golden anniversary has made me want to spotlight queer films or television programs that have recently been released within the past year. Prior to Pride Month 2019, there have been several titles for which I've already written reviews that are notable. They include
Pose on FX,
Alex Strangelove,
TransMilitary,
Evening Shadows,
We Are Thr3e,
Sorry Angel,
Special,
Booksmart and
Rocketman.
In preparation for Pride Month though, I recently watched four films that were all about gay Asians. When it comes to films about queer people from the east, Ang Lee's
The Wedding Banquet (1993) and Wong Kar-wai's
Happy Together (1997) still stand as two of the best in that regard. I've also enjoyed the works of Ray Yeung, including
Cut Sleeve Boys (2007) and
Front Cover (2016). These four, which were all made available online this year, all represent an interesting range of stories about gay people and their families. Each is about a gay person reckoning his identity to either his parent or his child. It felt like I should connect them and analyze the differences or variations.
To check out the other three gay Asian films that I'm linking together, check out the reviews for
Dear Dad by Tanuj Bhramar from India,
The Third Party by Jason Paul Laxamana from the Phillippines and
Dear Ex by Kidding Hsu & Mag Hsu from Taiwan.
Hao Wu is a Chinese-American filmmaker who mainly makes documentaries. Most of his films have been about people in China or people who go to live in China. His films have dealt with immigrant issues and culture clashes. Some of which have been western culture or western influences being brought or utilized in China. His latest documentary short is too about his homeland, but the focus here is specifically on his own family. The opening of which depicts his grandfather's birthday. His grandfather is a nonagenarian. He's old but he's still very alert and very spry, as well as quite talkative and equally opinionated. He does have very old-world or conservative ideas. This documentary is very much about introducing Wu's grandfather and other elder members of his family to the fact that Wu is a gay man with a partner who wants to have a baby.
Fellow Chinese filmmaker, Quentin Lee made a very similar documentary. It was called
Gay Hollywood Dad (2018). He was a single father who got a baby through surrogacy. There are scenes where Lee takes his baby to visit his family, particularly his parents. It's a different situation because Lee's parents had immigrated to Canada and were already comfortable or accepting of their son being gay.
Wu's parents remained in China, so when it comes to Wu's family, the elder members aren't as comfortable or accepting. In the case of his eldest family member, his grandfather doesn't even know that Wu is gay. The question becomes how does Wu inform his grandfather because he doesn't want to hide his partner nor his baby from his grandfather, but yet he has no clue what the reaction will be. He has somewhat of an idea because Wu did tell his mother and his mother expressed and expresses on camera in this movie her negative feelings about it.
Basically, she says she's okay with him being gay as long as he doesn't act on it. She doesn't want him to marry another man nor does she want him raising a baby, which is exactly the point of this documentary. Even though it's not stated in the movie, his mother's feelings do align with what the legal status is for gay people in China. The act of homosexuality has been decriminalized, but gay people can't marry. They can't adopt. They have no protections against discrimination in businesses and in employment.
Wu's movie illustrates how gay Chinese have to navigate the tricky situations that would arise during family gatherings like birthday parties or holidays. Sometimes, it involves white lies. Sometimes, it involves avoiding certain topics. Sometimes, it's just taking baby steps. Often times, it's simply about showing up and being oneself. There aren't any big, dramatic arguments or blow-ups. It's just about hanging out and sharing a meal. In that, this movie reminded me of David Au's
Eat With Me (2015). There are many scenes of people feasting here. As some have figured out, food is a great bonding agent.
Rated TV-14.
Running Time: 40 mins.
Available on Netflix.
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