Sandra Oh is at the center of "Double Happiness", a dramady about a Chinese twenty-something immigrant living with her family in Canada, struggling to find work as an actress, while being torn between the ways of the West and the traditional values of her dogmatic parents. An award winning film with nominally satisfactory reviews, this little budget-conscious effort is fraught with low end production value, scenes which simply don't work (like the incredibly unprofessional casting call with a Hong Kong company rep), bad jokes (like the peanut thing, the phone number thing, etc.), mediocre music, zero atmospherics (meeting your boyfriend at a construction site??), a poor ending, and a general absence of auterusmanship. Nonetheless, "Double Happiness" limps along with some poignant moments, a giggle here, some angst there, and maybe even a sentimental pang now and then. An okay cable watch for anyone with time to spare who's in the mood for a Chinese-Canadian generation gap flick.
Note - I have always thought Oh was much more skilled than she was marketable. It's nice to see her in a leading role and though she doesn't nail all of her nuances in this flick, the responsibility for that probably belongs with the director. (C+)
Note - I have always thought Oh was much more skilled than she was marketable. It's nice to see her in a leading role and though she doesn't nail all of her nuances in this flick, the responsibility for that probably belongs with the director. (C+)