The moment that baby is born, I’m coming over every day.
Saving Face (2004) dir Alice Wu
Listen to me, my queer younglings, I don’t usually write in gifsets because it is highly damaging to the aesthetic, but this is a very important PSA. This movie is the sadly ignored, unsung hero of all light lesbian romantic comedies, and if you have not watched it, you should do that right now, at this very moment.
not to further damage anyone’s gifset aesthetic, but i also loved this movie & wanna point out why it’s one of the very few Lesbian Movies That Don’t Suck
- nobody dies. it’s a low bar, but we all know how often movies and TV shows fail to make it over!
- while it does include a coming out story & some related obstacles, that isn’t the entire focus of the film - it’s at least as much about the relationship between the main character and her mother as it is about queer romance, and it’s also very much about the NYC Chinese-American community. it’s not a one-note Gay Story, is what i’m saying. queer people DOING THINGS other than being queer.
- it’s WOC-written, directed & starring
- it’s really cute and funny
- go watch it
Watch it. It is well-written, well-acted, and well-directed. Even the score is wonderful. I will always pick Saving Face over Imagine Me and You, for example.
Two words: Joan Chen
You guys know how much I love Saving Face. But it actually took me listening to Stuff Mom Never Told You’s “Queering Romantic Comedies” episode to realize how deliberately Alice Wu crafted Saving Face to hit upon all the traditional romantic comedy narrative points that the Hays Code prohibited homosexual romances from depicting. Everything right up to and including the grand show of public affection to gain the community’s approval (with the appropriate twist on it).
As the years go by, I grow more amazed by this film and what it did, not less. :)
