Biola’s School of Cinema and Media Arts presents an exclusive screening of critically acclaimed The Farewell followed by a Q&A with the film’s producers Daniele Melia and Andrew Milano. The Farewell recently won the Audience Award at the 2019 Sundance London film festival and holds an approval rating of 99% on Rotten Tomatoes. This special event on Friday, October 4th at 7 pm in Lansing Recital Hall on the Biola University campus is free to attend. The Farewell is rated PG for thematic material, brief language and some smoking.
In this funny, uplifting tale based on an actual lie, Chinese-born, U.S.-raised Billi (Awkwafina) reluctantly returns to Changchun to find that, although the whole family knows their beloved matriarch, Nai-Nai, has been given mere weeks to live, everyone has decided not to tell Nai Nai herself. To assure her happiness, they gather under the joyful guise of an expedited wedding, uniting family members scattered among new homes abroad. As Billi navigates a minefield of family expectations and proprieties, she finds there’s a lot to celebrate: a chance to rediscover the country she left as a child, her grandmother’s wondrous spirit, and the ties that keep on binding even when so much goes unspoken. With The Farewell, writer/director Lulu Wang has created a heartfelt celebration of both the way we perform family and the way we live it, masterfully interweaving a gently humorous depiction of the good lie in action with a richly moving story of how family can unite and strengthen us, often in spite of ourselves.
Joe Morgenstern of the Wall Street Journal says “A funny, emotionally intricate and deeply moving tale of severed connections and renewed family ties.”
Johnny Oleksinski of the New York Post states “Awkwafina has gone from rapper to comedic powerhouse, and now, most powerfully, to indie darling in “The Farewell.” It’s one of the year’s sweetest films.”
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Sources: Biola University | A24 Films