Women have been oppressed for centuries, remaining the voiceless purveyors of family, supporting their husbands with their enduring submission. As with many other countries, China took this submission to mean great honor and any defiance from this was considered a crime. Few women, however, were given the opportunity to be bound to a “laotong,” a lifelong sister, to endure the pain of womanhood together. Such is the inspiring story of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.
Director Wayne Wang has added a second parallel storyline to the one in the best-selling novel by Lisa See, and this is where the film begins. In present day Shanghai, two best friends Nina and Sophia begin drawing comparisons between their friendship and one from centuries ago that they have read about. The film cuts back and forth between the two friendships throughout. This proves frustrating for fans of the book, like myself, who really just want to get into the friendship between Snow Flower and Lily.
Snow Flower and Lily first meet when their parents arrange a laotong, similar to the way parents would arrange a marriage. The village Matchmaker found girls of similar age, looks, and stages in their foot binding, then had the two young girls attend a ceremony at a temple to sign a contract that would seal the two of them together for life.
As the girls grow up together, they eventually get married. Snow Flower to a butcher, more aligned with her family’s social status, and Lily, with her perfect golden lotus feet, marries a more wealthy man. Snow Flower and Lily are allowed to continue their friendship by writing small notes to each other on a fan; they were even allowed, on rare occasions, to visit each other.
The two women struggle at times to make their friendship work, because of the great divide in social status, but it is clear that their laotong is the most important relationship to both of them.
The modern day laotong between Nina and Sophia mirrors that of Snow Flower and Lily so much, the same actress even playing both roles, that it comes across as completely contrived. In the special features, director Wayne Wang says that he wanted to depict modern day Shanghai, which is not at all the point of the book. Sometimes a director’s interpretations can improve upon source material, but this addition to the story was unnecessary and a huge disappointment.
Since the two actresses are essentially playing the same roles in two time periods, it’s unfair to say that their performances as Snow Flower (Gianna Jun) and Lily (Li Bing Bing) were better than the performances as Nina and Sophia but it’s true. As Snow Flower and Lily, they both had so much chemistry, so much emotion. As Nina and Sophia, their bond as laotong was considerably less believable.
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is a celebrated novel that deals with the struggle of women in the silent roles they were forced in, and how that struggle wasn’t always alone. This is a story of an undying friendship, female companionship, in an age where such a thing was rarely spoken of. Bringing that story to modern day Shanghai doesn’t enhance the importance of friendship, it diminishes it.
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is a gorgeous looking film on blu-ray. Director Wayne Wang has proven his eye with The Joy Luck Club and it seems he has perfected it here. The sound is clear as well, and the moving score by Rachel Portman stands out brilliantly.
The only extra on the disc is entitled The Sworn Sisterhood of the Secret Fan and is a comprehensive making of featurette. It begins with an interview with Lisa See as she talks about her experiences while writing the book. The actors are interviewed about their characters and Wayne Wang also talks about his decision to add the contemporary storyline to the film. Personally, I love featurettes like this one; you learn everything you wanted to know about making the film. Total run time 29 minutes.
Being such a huge fan of the book, I was really hoping for a better film adaptation. Generally I tend to give directors the benefit of the doubt for having different visions from the original author, but in the case of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Wang’s extensions bog down the already simple story and make the film almost boring.
20th Century Fox presents Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. Directed by: Wayne Wang. Starring: Li Bing Bing, Gianna Jun, Vivian Wu, Russell Wong, Hugh Jackman. Written by: Angela Workman, Ronald Bass, Michael Ray, based on the novel by Lisa See. Running time: 120 minutes. Rating: PG-13. Released on DVD: November 1, 2011. Available at Amazon.com.
