Double Happiness (1994)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Mina Shum

Writer:

Mina Shum (writer)

Release Date:

28 July 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Jade Li is a feisty, 20-something Chinese Canadian, trying to achieve that happy medium between giving...

Plot Keywords:

Immigration | Gay Bar | Audition | Father Daughter Relationship | Culture Clash

Awards:

6 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Sandra Oh	...	Jade Li
Stephen Chang	...	Dad Li (Lead) (as Stephen M.D. Chang)
Alannah Ong	...	Mom Li
Donald Fong	...	Ah Hong
Frances You	...	Pearl Li
Callum Keith Rennie	...	Mark (as Callum Rennie)
Claudette Carracedo	...	Lisa Chan
Johnny Mah	...	Andrew Chau
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Greg Chen	...	Uncle Bing
Estelle Coppens	...	Lead Woman in Scene with Jade
Lesley Ewen	...	Carmen the Casting Director
Nathan Fong	...	Dr. Ming Chu / Bartender
Dennis Foon	...	Director
Kevin Kelly	...	Lead Man in Scene with Jade
Gene Kiniski	...	Man at Bus Stop
Rose Lam	...	Producer (as Rose Lam Waddell)
Tosca Chin Wah Leong	...	Linda Taylor Wong, Ch. 4 News
Mimi Mok	...	Mrs. Mar
Laara Ong	...	Selina
Tony Seaver	...	No -No! Club Bouncer
Wong Shuck	...	See-Fu Geomancer
Mina Shum	...	Janet Eng
So Yee Shum	...	Auntie Bing
May Tam	...	Grandmother

Also Known As:

Bonheur aigre-doux (Canada: French title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for one scene of sexuality and brief strong language.

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

Canada

Language:

English | Cantonese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | South Korea:15 | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

British Columbia Film Commission

Quotes:

Jade Li: Double Happiness is when you make yourself happy and everyone else happy too.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "SexTV: Dragon Ladies & Kung-Fu Masters: Re-Constructing Asian American Sexualty (#6.30)" (2004)

Soundtrack:

Burnt

Marigold of a movie

This was a cute, sweet small movie about a Chinese-Canadian woman caught between her dreams and her father's expectations. Complaints about the film center on what some see as the director's one-sided depiction of the anti-assimilation viewpoint. Jade's father is so concerned that his children live within the constricts of traditional Chinese culture that he cuts off contact with them entirely if they stray. But Mina Shum (the director) never claims that his rigidity is the rule; the story is about how Jade deals with the specific situation, and it makes no claim that her situation is pervasive. Other Asian characters have different levels of acceptance of Western openness: Jade's mother, while not openly defying her husband, maintains contact with her son whom his father has cut off completely. So "Double Happiness" isn't an anti-Asian traditionalism screed, as some have claimed, neither is it an Everywoman story of freedom as some seem to want it to be. It's simply Jade's story about choosing between her dreams and the man she's falling in love with against her father's uncompromising worldview.

Mechanically, the movie is good if not a masterpiece. The performances are excellent. Sandra Oh is charged with almost singlehandedly winning over the viewer, and she's completely up to the challenge. All performances are (as far as I can tell anyway) wonderfully authentic. This was Callum Keith Rennie's first major role, and he's as awkward, sweet, and appealing as ever. The interstitial scenes of characters speaking to the camera are an interesting experiment--a good tool for revealing character, they nevertheless are sometimes jarring. Overall, the film is like a compact colorful flower: it won't dominate the landscape but it richly awards the lucky soul whose attention it captures.