The Farewell

[A] compelling, spiky exploration of familial duty and cultural heritage.

One of the most authentic, beautiful movies of the year complete with outstanding performances and a perfectly-honed script.

A lovely, warm family picture featuring a star-making turn from Awkwafina.

thoughtful, funny and well observed

Made with the necessary narrative and directorial guile to get the Oscars in its sights, and with dialogue in English and Mandarin Chinese, The Farewell presses all the right buttons and is a heart-warming tale about cultural dislocation.

Awkwafina is a joy, as always. The script is smart, and the wedding hijinks give it an obvious structure.

It's a rare film that has the power to make you laugh, cry, and laugh again as deftly as this does.

Wang's family story is modestly affecting and deserves an audience, but if it does prompt thoughts about weighing up the importance of emotional truth, they mainly come afterwards.

There are no grand declarations or tear-stained confrontations, as it's not Downton, mercifully. And if you think grandma knows the truth and is fooling everybody else, you will need to think again, as it's just not clichéd in this way.

Panic and self-doubt are at the heart of [the] movie...