The Farewell

The Farewell (2019)

Timing: 1:40 (100 min)

7.434/10
1358

7.251/10
23753

7.5/10
75000

All about film

Video 13

Photo 33

Actors and characters

Release date

2019-07-12

Country

China, United States

Production

Big Beach, Depth of Field, Kindred Spirit, Seesaw Productions

Genre

Comedy, Drama

Budget

$3 000 000

Revenue

$23 076 657

Website

https://a24films.com/films/the-farewell

Director

Lulu Wang

Actors

Awkwafina, Zhao Shuzhen, Tzi Ma, Diana Lin, Hong Lu, Jiang Yongbo, Han Chen, Aoi Mizuhara, Zhang Jing, Yang Xuejian
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Lulu Wang

Producer

Chris Weitz, Peter Saraf, Marc Turtletaub, Andrew Miano, Lulu Wang, Daniele Tate Melia, Jane Zheng, Anita Gou, Eddie Rubin

Operator

Anna Franquesa Solano

Composer

Alex Weston

Artist

Audition

Leslie Woo, Anne Kang

Editing

Matthew Friedman, Michael Taylor
All team (31)

• Screenwriter and director Lulu Wang stated in an interview that she seriously miscalculated the amounts of fees she had to pay to actors from China. For example, Zhou Shuzhen, who played the role of Nai Nai, is very popular in China itself, and Wang had to personally persuade her to take on the role.
• At the table, they tell a joke about a dead cat and a mother on the roof. The same joke was told by Sam Waterston's character while climbing rocks in the desert in Peter Hyams' thriller "Capricorn One" (1977).
• The idea for the film is based on a real-life story from Lulu Wang’s life – as shown in the film, Lulu’s family once lied to her grandmother about a diagnosis that offered her no hope. This was done in a futile attempt to prolong her life, even if only a little. The plot element involving the wedding, where all relatives gather, giving them another opportunity to see their grandmother, is also taken from real life.
• In searching for funding sources, Lulu Wang encountered serious problems. American producers objected to the all-Asian cast and demanded that she add characters of Caucasian descent to the plot. Chinese financiers believed that the whole story was too American in spirit and also insisted on adding white characters to the plot.
• In the scene where Billy, Haiyan, and Haibin rush to the hospital, they speak in Chinese, but no subtitles appear on the screen. This was done to emphasize the universal feeling of confusion.
• The film's idea is based on a real-life story from Lulu Wang’s life – as shown in the film, Lulu’s family once lied to her grandmother about a diagnosis that offered no hope. This was done in a futile attempt to prolong her life, even just a little. The plot element involving a wedding where all relatives gather, giving them another opportunity to see their grandmother, is also taken from real life.
• In searching for funding, Lulu Wang faced serious problems. American producers objected to the all-Asian cast and demanded she add characters of Caucasian descent to the plot. Chinese financiers believed the entire story was too American in spirit and also insisted on adding white characters to the plot.