My Wedding and Other Secrets
My Wedding and Other Secrets is a 2011 romantic comedy film directed by Roseanne Liang, written by Liang and Angeline Loo, and produced by South Pacific Pictures. The film is based on Liang's real-life cross-cultural romance.
My Wedding and Other Secrets
- 17 March 2011
88 minutes
New Zealand
English
Cantonese
Mandarin
Themes[edit]
Significant themes in My Wedding and Other Secrets are those of cultural differences between migrant parents and their native-born children, of filial piety, and of love.[4][5]
Production[edit]
Development[edit]
Roseanne Liang sought to produce My Wedding and Other Secrets, originally titled Girl Meets Boy, a film based on her award-winning 2005 documentary Banana in a Nutshell,[9] and entered into negotiations with South Pacific Pictures.[10][11]
Filming for My Wedding and Other Secrets commenced on 14 February 2010 in Auckland.[10]
Writing[edit]
Auckland-based Chinese New Zealander director and playwright Roseanne Liang and Angeline Loo, a friend of Liang's from university days,[12] wrote the script, largely based on her life, for My Wedding and Other Secrets over four years.[13] The character of Emily is based on Roseanne herself; James is based on Stephen Harris, Liang's boyfriend and later husband; and Dr. and Mrs. Chu and their daughters, Susan and Melanie, after Dr. and Mrs. Liang and their daughters, Renee and Rhea.[13][14]
Liang was born in New Zealand and, like her character, was set to attend medical school and become a doctor;[15] but, after realising her passion in film and others realising this too, attended University of Auckland, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Film/TV/Media Studies and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Computer Science[12][16] and, later, a Master of Creative and Performing Arts (M.C.P.A.),[17] concentrating in screen writing and directing.[15][18]
Many of the events depicted in the film are also based on events that occurred during Liang and Harris' courtship, including Harris' learning basic Mandarin to win over Liang's parents' approval, as part of Chinese pre-wedding customs.[19]
Reception[edit]
Critical reception[edit]
My Wedding and Other Secrets received positive reviews from major publications in New Zealand.
Peter Calder of the New Zealand Herald gave the film a five-star review, calling it "utterly charming" and the writing "The logical extension of the idea into a feature film has turned out a cracker - a heartfelt and mildly goofy comedy with a strong thread of pathos that tells a story we should all listen to".[21]
Christine Powley of the Otago Daily Times also gave a five-star review and recommended viewers to "See it with your girlfriends for a nice time, then sneak back by yourself to enjoy just how well-crafted it is".[22]
Richard Kuipers of Variety gave a favourable review, adding "Liang's brisk and breezy direction is complemented by Richard Harling's appropriately simple and effective lensing around Auckland. Snippets of Liang's Super 8 homemovies are delightful. Other technical work is solid on a modest budget".[23]