DrP Watching Movies: A Documentary by Tan Enmei, author of "Happy Luck Club"

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"Writing is a great privilege, but it's also a gift. It's a gift not only for yourself, but also for being able to bring stories to others. (Tan Enmei)

Joy Luck Club is a must-see movie classic for Asian Americans, which became a hit for its exposition of the journey of Chinese Americans and the large-scale emotional tug between the mother of the new immigrant FOB and the daughter of ABC. Many classic clips in the movie are still impressive, such as the foreign boyfriend tasting the craftsmanship of the new immigrant mother when pouring soy sauce in vain, such as the mother placing the magazine on the cover of the daughter to show off, and even the discrimination of the white boyfriend's parents against the ABC daughter, etc., delicately inking out the emotions and history between the two generations. And these plots actually come from the story of Tan Enmei Amy Tan, the author of the original novel of "Happy Blessing Society".

In honor of May as the traditional month of Asian Pacific Americans, Netflix launched the documentary "Unexpected Memoirs", which tells the story of Tan Enmei's background, rise, and brilliant life after becoming a writer. I like the way the documentary is filmed, interspersed with creative illustrations and a streamlined soundtrack, which will make people see it if they are not careful. After watching this documentary, you will find that a large part of the prototypes of the four groups of mother-daughter files in "Happy Luck Club" come from Tan Enmei herself, but in fact, those real life bridges that are not written in the novel are more dramatic and more jaw-dropping.

Tan Enmei once said bluntly that her mother is not a tiger mother, but has suicidal tendencies. Growing up, her relationship with her mother was fraught with tension and conflict, and at its worst, her mother even committed suicide by holding a knife to her neck to kill her and her brother. In the interview, Tan Enmei also admitted that she was sexually assaulted by acquaintances during the loss of her father and brother at a young age, which made her an angry teenager, and her personality became more and more rebellious, pushing her mother away from time to time. It wasn't until Tan Enmei grew up and her mother had a heart attack that she became curious about her mother's past, began to listen attentively, and slowly pieced together her mother's story bit by bit, and realized that her mother had to witness her grandmother's suicide by swallowing gold, putting down an ex-husband and three daughters who would abuse her, and fled to the United States with Enmei's father, which made her character today. This allows Tan Enmei to understand her mother better, but also to slowly let go of her past prejudices and incomprehensions about her mother. People's kindness is mutual. Tan Enmei's mother suffered from Alzheimer's disease in her later years, and her consciousness and memory were up and down, but on a sober day, she put down her face and self-esteem, and solemnly apologized for the harm she had done to her daughter in the past, so that Tan Enmei could let go of her heart knot and the mother-daughter relationship was completely repaired.

Tan Enmei's writing is smooth and beautiful, but it is also because of her mother's brilliant story that she has become a creative fallacy, and she has written a series of best-selling novels. Writing is not only a tool for her to make money, but also a channel for her emotional expression. It's just that Ping Ping is to express the mood, Tan Enmei is capable of stringing these stories and emotions together word by word, even if it is not an Asian background, she can be moved and resonate with the sincere emotions in the story.

I admire Tan Enmei's honest part of telling her mother, not deliberately touting how filial she is, nor deliberately slandering herself to show how high she is, but expounding her mother's past with an exaggerated and empathetic tone, portraying her mother's hard work and efforts, and also sharing the trauma in her mother's heart honestly, showing that her relationship with her mother from anger, alienation, understanding, to final reconciliation, the truth can be moving.

Although I didn't write a review until June, I personally recommend this documentary very much, whether I have seen "Happy Luck Club" or not, I believe it can bring you a certain degree of resonance and emotion.