The Farewell (I) (2019)
Awkwafina: Billi
Photos
Quotes
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Billi : You know, one of the few good memories of my childhood were those summers at Nai Nais's. They had that garden, Ye Ye and I would catch dragonflies. And then we just moved to the States. Everything was different. Everyone was gone. And it was just the three of us.
Jian : I know it was hard. It was hard for us too.
Billi : I wanted to believe that it was a good thing, but all I saw was fear in your eyes. And I was confused and scared constantly because you never told me what was going on. And then Ye Ye died. You didn't even tell me he was sick. So it felt like he just vanished suddenly. And you wouldn't even let me go to his funeral.
Jian : You were at school. We didn't want you to miss school. We did what we thought was best for you.
Billi : But I never saw him again. And every time I came back to China, he just... he just wasn't there anymore. And I come back and he's just gone. The house is gone, A Die's gone, our Beijing home is gone and soon she'll be gone too.
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Billi : [frustrated] Are you going to tell Nai Nai?
Haiyan : I can't, Billi. I won't go against my family.
Uncle Haibin : Billi, there are things you misunderstand. You guys moved to the West long ago. You think one's life belongs to oneself. But that's the difference between the East and the West. In the East, a person's life is part of a whole. Family. Society.
Uncle Haibin : You want to tell Nai Nai the truth, because you're afraid to take the responsibility for her. Because it's too big of a burden. If you tell her, then you don't have to feel guilty. We're not telling Nai Nai because it's our duty to carry this emotional burden for her.
