ThiefHott Too much of everything

LouHomey From my favorite movies..

Senteur As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

Erica Derrick By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

zif ofoz i had no idea what to expect from this movie. the title threw me off and i was thinking 'another chick flick' - that is not the case!what i found was a charming story involving two young adults stumbling into the real world of attraction, love, commitment, and dealing with cultural differences. the director roseanne liang did a marvelous job of pulling these issues together without having one issue overwhelm the others. beautifully acted by the two lead characters and especially michelle ang! her lessons are expressed from the heart - and she learns that the world outside of oneself can appear to be very cold when it is not. it's all in how you perceive it. her boyfriend learns this a bit slower.my only problem with this movie is the father character. one daughter's love is destroyed by his prejudice but the youngest daughter's love is accepted with little justification. watch the movie and you will understand. the father has no guilt in what he did to the eldest daughter and that point is not addressed in the story. yet, he seems more relaxed with the path the youngest has taken. if he chose to be more 'giving' with his youngest daughter because of the unhappiness suffered by the eldest daughter, then the director failed to clarify that fact.outside of that conflict i have with this movie, i find it a truly delightful and entertaining film. the ending is a bit 'soft' but i'm willing to overlook that due to the fine and expressive acting by the lead characters.

gregking4 A cross-cultural Romeo And Juliet, the charming, quirky and very enjoyable New Zealand romantic comedy My Wedding And Other Secrets is based on the filmmaker's own story. While still a student at university, Roseanne Liang, a New Zealand girl of Chinese descent, married her Caucasian boyfriend. But she was forced to keep the marriage a secret from her strict parents because of their traditional beliefs and attitude towards interracial relationships. This subterfuge put additional pressure on both her and her partner. In 2005, Liang made Bananas In A Nutshell, a 50-minute documentary that explored this secret marriage and its ramifications. She has now turned that autobiographical film into a full-length feature film that dramatises her story and it is full of self-referential asides. The film deals with some universal themes like family, trust, love, relationships, the lot of immigrants adjusting to their new country, culture and tradition, and it has broad appeal. Liang's fictional counterpart here is Emily Chu (played by Michelle Ang), a perky but neurotic over achiever who is the youngest of three sisters. Ang (from TV series Neighbours and Outrageous Fortune, etc) brings an endearingly awkward quality to her performance, but she also manages to suggest the guilt and complex emotional journey of her character. Matt Whelan (from the offbeat comedy Eagle Vs Shark, etc) is also solid as James her boyfriend/husband, who disagrees with her hypocrisy. And veteran Chinese actors Pei-pei Cheng and Kenneth Tsang bring gravitas to their roles as her parents, who prove to be far more understanding. The film's first screening at MIFF was well received, and it's to be hoped that a local distributor will pick up My Wedding And Other Secrets, as it deserves to be seen by a wider audience.

Scott Eriksson While the movie is billed as a "romance," the fact that it is based on a true story actually gives the film more of a dramatic edge than perhaps the title and the billing of the film fail to alert audiences too, and sadly, may deter those who love a great drama from going to see. So for those who wanna see a romantic film, you'll love this…and for those who love dramas, here is why you should see this film! My Wedding and Other Secrets is based on a documentary by Rosanne Liang called Banana In a Nutshell about her real life experiences; that in and of itself is part of the reasons why the film is so successful. Gone are all the nice ribbons and bows and cute little one-liners you would expect in a "romance" and instead you experience real characters with depth and with real conversation and interactions that are tangible. While in the end the film ends on a happy note as you'd expect from a romance, the journey to that point is littered with the complexities of human emotion, cultural differences, and the loving bond of family. Michelle Ang, who plays Emily Chu, does a wonderful job of creating a character torn between her love of a non-Chinese boyfriend and her family's "Chinese" expectations for their daughter. Emily is then pulled in so many directions in the film while she tries to decide what her life should be, and the best choices to make, and it is her performance that brings this drama to life. Matt Whelan, Pei-Pei Cheng, Kenneth Tsang and Mike Ginn all provide an exceptional supporting cast. Real life "Emily," Rosanne Liang, directed the film and her guidance has created a film with the perfect balance between romance and drama, making a very original "romance" film that is a great drama not to be missed.

mablecheng1981 Simply awful. I do not think such Chinese family exists. The parents are simply dictators and the daughters almost have no self-respects (in terms of chasing their own happiness). The portrait of the Chinese family is so distorted. The Chinese aren't like this at all. This is just some weird, suppressed, odd and pathetic family that only exists in a screen play. The costumes are quite awful. How many people dress like Emily nowadays? Unbelievable. And the actress looks like she's 40 years old. Why can't she wear just a bit of make-up to look real everyday people?!Watch at your own risk.