The Wedding Banquet Review: Andrew Ahn Crafts an Endearing, Funny Remake

Remaking a film on the Library of Congress’s National Film Registry is hardly a task that one should take lightly. Ang Lee’s The Wedding Banquet dials up the pressure by adding a Golden Bear victory and Oscar nomination to its mantle. That much acclaim puts a ton of expectation upon the shoulders of whoever would choose to take the leap and bring its romantic comedy 30 years forward into the present. By all accounts, however, Andrew Ahn embraced that weight, enlisting the help of original co-writer James Schamus to perfectly execute the challenge by doubling the number of gay couples within its marital shenanigans and adding a baby for good measure.

Gone are the dating service paid for by the parents of a son who has yet to come out to them as gay and the penniless tenant in need of a green card coaxed to marry him so they go away. This time it’s that son who is in need of the green card himself. Min (Han Gi-Chan) has finally extended his student visa to its limit and his grandmother (Youn Yuh-jung’s Ja-Young) has given him an ultimatum: take his place as the heir to his grandfather’s global business or return home to South Korea. In a grand romantic gesture, he decides to take door number three: propose to his American boyfriend of five years (Bowen Yang’s Chris), earn his citizenship, and denounce his hefty inheritance.

Despite Min’s situation being the catalyst for everything that occurs, he’s not the main character. He knows what he wants and he rolls the dice to get it, no matter the consequences. The same can be said for Lily Gladstone’s Lee, an out and proud member of the community who wants nothing more than to be a mother with her girlfriend Angela (Kelly Marie Tran). They’ve leveraged their mortgage and futures to attempt IVF, the monetary toll of which has done little to lessen her resolve at seeing the process through. She wants a baby, she wants to raise one with Angela, and it doesn’t matter what it takes to make that happen. If Lee and Min had their way, this movie would be over before it starts.

So it pivots to Chris and Angela instead. They are the messy ones, those with zero self-esteem who don’t think themselves worthy of their put-together partners and let their lack of emotional maturity perpetually risk ruining the wonderful lives they’ve made. To make matters worse, they’re best friends. Their support for each other is thus mired in their similar hang-ups and inevitably helps push them further into the funks they’ve already created for themselves. It only makes sense that Min and Lee must pull them back from the ledge, even if it means introducing an insane proposition. Because Min has the money for Lee and Angela to try IVF again––if Angela agrees to marry him so he can stay and wait for Chris to figure out what he wants.

Suddenly, Min and Lee are the ones inviting the mess. And, boy, do things get messy. There’s a lot more moving parts than just a marriage certificate. Ja-Young wants to fly to America and meet her grandson’s fiancé. Angela’s mom May Chen (Joan Chen) isn’t sure how to handle the news that her daughter is marrying a man––she’s made being the mother of a lesbian into her entire personality. Add Min’s money burning a hole in Angela’s pocket (despite being specifically earmarked for Lee’s IVF treatment) and an implosion is simply a matter of time. Chris already had his when he declined Min’s proposal by second-guessing his ability to be enough for him. Now Angela has hers by second-guessing whether she can live up to Lee’s maternal instincts.

Another wrinkle is eventually thrown into the mix to put everything up in the air, but even that is just another potential excuse. That’s what drives both Chris and Angela––an affinity for believing the worst in themselves to self-sabotage, despite there being no logical reason to do so. And Min and Lee can only be so patient; eventually they must decide whether remaining in this stasis is worth the happily-after-ever in their heads that might never come true. There’s a lot of baggage to be unpacked and just as many sources of inspiration and love to help them through it from both obvious (Ja-Young and Chris’ cousin Kendall, played by Bobo Le) and surprising (May Chen) places. It’s make-or-break time.

The entire endeavor is extremely cute and endearing, but also very funny. Tran and Yang have the most heavy-lifting as far as pulling themselves back from cliffs they’ve created, but it’s Gladstone and Gi-Chan who stand out by adding so much strength and heartbreak as the ones desperately hoping their partners wake-up. I loved the sight gags (Ahn ensures the camera captures all the books and movies the cast deems “too gay” for Ja-Young to believe the lie they’re spinning) and laughed out-loud at the Star Wars joke at Star Wars actor Tran’s expense. But the true highlights are a fantastic Youn and Chen. Comedic timing, poignant pathos, and an authentic understanding in how they learn and grow to be what Min and Angela need… even if it took them longer than it should.

The Wedding Banquet is now in theaters.

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