Happy Chinese New Year
Let's talk about food
Yes, food is how Chinese people celebrate
To Chinese people, food is never just food
Food is an integral part of our culture
It can be funny
Or romantic
Or sexy
Or scientific
Or even dangerous
Today we will take a look at examples of food in Chinese cinema
See beyond the appearance
and talk about the philosophy and meanings behind
So, let's dig in
Our first dish of the day will be wonton
From Wong Kar-wai's seminal film
In the Mood for Love
Set in 1960 song Kong
The film tells the story of two neighbors
Mrs. Chan and Mr. Chow
Whom their spouses are cheating on them with each
Chow and Chan find solace by befriending each other
Amid gossips and moral judgments
In the film, we repeatedly see Mrs. Chan going out for wonton noodles
It hints at the constant absence of her husband
He's not home, so she's not cooking
On her journey, she often passes by mr. Chow
Who is out dining alone for the same reason
In here, wonton serves as a replacement for love and comfort
It's a comfort food that fulfills the desire to be with their spouses
And enjoy the dinner like a family
A food to stop hunger and loneliness
It is at their emotionally most vulnerable
These two cross paths
At the beginning of their friendship
They hang out in Western diners
Where they can each have their own dishes
Proper space is maintained
Very deliberately
But as their intimacy crosses the line
The food of choice reverts back to wonton noodles
Only this time, they are sharing
Through food we see how these to go from strictly platonic
To extramarital romance
In this one-shot we see that they are sharing comfort with each other
Effectively replacing the absentee spouses with each other
food is much more than just food
Our second dish is barbecue pork rice
from Stephen Chow's comedy classic
God of Cookery
In the film, Chow plays a famous cook and food critic
nicknamed the God of Cookery
High and mighty, he finds flaws in any and all food
And he finds flaws in any and all human
It's only when his business partners all betrayed him
When he lost everything
When he has to sleep on the street
That he finds the most delicious food ever
a humble bowl of barbecue pork rice
Offered to him for free
In real life, Stephen Chow is of grassroot origins
He spent over a decade working as extras and minor characters
To him barbecue pork rice probably have a very special meaning
As is typically the lunch for working-class people
But then in the 90s he got a starring role on TV
And he practically became an overnight sensation
In just a few short years
He became the undisputed king of comedy in Hong Kong
Perhaps at that moment, there was this human connection he felt was lost to him
In the world of the rich, everyone is all business
In the world of the rich, food looks glamorous
But tastes terrible
It just so happened that Chow's life mirrors that of Hong Kong
Starting from the 70s, Hong Kong saw a massive economic upturn
By the 90s, Hong Kong has cemented his status
As the financial center of East Asia
Everyone's topic of discussion was money
Everyone in Hong Kong wanted to ride the wave and be rich
Human relations was replaced with cold hard cash
But barbecue pork rice is fulfilling, is comforting
It reminds people of the days
Where money can be earned by hard work
It's filled with longing and nostalgia for the simpler time
It connects Chow with his grassroot friends
A pure connection not tainted by money or power
Where people are free to be
Where gestures of goodwill had no ulterior motives
When his character returns to a cooking competition to right his wrong
His opponent prepared a dish called "Buddha jumping wall"
It's said to contain so many rare and expensive ingredients
Even nearby monks have to jump over the wall to take a look
An expensive treat for the upper class
And Chow's character, having learned his lesson
Prepare his own food
The best dish he has ever had
A working-class meal
Our final dish of the day is egg fried rice
From the film The Story of David
The Story of David is, in short, the Chinese Forrest Gump
In the film, David is a slow-witted cook
Whose great-grandfather was rumored to be an imperial chef
Going through life, David only once two things
To get together with the love of his life
And to have his own place
Where he can cook his egg fried rice
The simplest dish in Chinese cuisine
despite times are changing drastically
He lives by his father's advice
Things has to be done slowly
In a deliberate social commentary on current Chinese trend
Everybody around David is desperate for success
Some lose their lives in the chase
Others choose to betray David
Hoping to reach a shortcut to fame and wealth
But David's single-minded devotion
Eventually earns him everything he wishes for
When those who betray him lives a life of success
They are also living in fear and struggle
Their lifetime of dirty deeds haunts them
And just when they are falling from the top
David finally reaches the top
It took David 30 years
But he was able to recreate the imperial egg fried rice
From his family's legend
Every grain of rice is separated
Evenly coated by a layer of egg
Like David, egg fried rice is simple
To many, it lacks the glamour people desired
But Chinese people believe, it is the simplest thing in life
That is the most difficult
It's a family legacy
It's David's faith
It represents happiness
Something that has to be earned
And has to be earned slowly
One step at a time
To Chinese people, food is never just food
It means much much more
It can be the way people fall in love
It is seen as important as sex
To a point, where you can manipulate people's behavior
But my favorite portrayal of food is in Ang-Lee's Eat Drink Man Woman
In the film, the elderly father has been cooking for his three daughters
As a way of family bonding
As his daughter's grow up
And begin to leave the family behind
The old father finds it harder adjust
But one daughter decides to stay behind
And maintains the family tradition
So she prepares the dinner for him
The joy of this old grumpy father experiences
When he gets to taste the food she made...
is nothing short of breathtaking
Food in Chinese culture is much more than just food