Dim Sum – A Little Bit of Heart

A wonderful film about a more-or-less westernised Chinese family in San Francisco. Geraldine is perfectly happy going steady with her long-standing boyfriend, and she doesn't want to leave her widowed mother alone. But Mrs Tam is convinced that she will die soon, and she's determined to see Geraldine married. It's hard to say what makes this modest, undramatic story so extremely appealing. Maybe it's because Wang uses one family's experience as a key to a larger picture of the Chinese immigrant experience. Maybe because he's learned from Ozu and Allen Fong how to structure scenes that faithfully record the chaotic sprawl of everyday life. Or maybe it's just because of the great sense of humour. A real treat.