Eat, Drink, Man, Woman.

Eat, Drink, Man, Woman.

This family is tied together by a weekly ritual of a lavish dinner cooked by the father, who is the head-chef at a very large and upscale restaurant. He’s on the brink of retirement after the passing of his thirty-year partner and friend, and finds himself suffering from a failing palate. His friend’s death was work related and caused a lot of doubt and question about how he should spent the rest of his life.

At home, his three daughters give life to the house as well as to their father. Each has her own life and individual ideals. The father is strong and has his daughters respect, but nonetheless, they view him as an old badger. He always remains passionate about his cooking and seems to be the most revered chef around. Governing his daughters and staying active are his only other passions. He is fun-loving with strong morals and pride, jogs against doctor’s orders, and has a girlfriend half his age, who also has a daughter of her own. As their relationship progresses, he spoils his girlfriend’s daughter with meals in school he delivers himself everyday during lunch. He then eats the lunch his girlfriend made in order to keep her from becoming suspicious.

The plot in not far from one you might see on a midday soap-opera. Food is used as a communication device in a ritualistic manner. The Taiwanese family seems to honor only this weekly dinner tradition that can relate to a large audience. Food and community is core in our society, and though it is not necessary to converse with others while you dine, it is customary. The weekly meal is the epicenter of the movie and everything seems to take place around it. The relationships are the main focus, and each characterizes a topic relative to life in general as well as in Taiwan.

The daughters are all old enough to live on their own, but due to different circumstances they don’t. The father seems to enjoy their presence though he is stern, and the girls seem to enjoy living there even though they don’t admit it. The father has spent many years raising and looking after the girls and now they are all at the turning point where the girls look after each other and for their father. His palette is failing as are traditions around him.

The fact that the youngest daughter ironically works at a fast food restaurant shows the changing culture and way of life. Her father seems to approve of her job, but only because it isn’t a means to an end. As a college student it’s a common job to have as well as living with a parent or parents is as well. The job symbolizes the modern day Taiwan and the fathers cooking, symbolizes the older and slower paced version. The two generations live close together but each is very distant to each others way of life.

The oldest daughter is a successful business woman in the airline industry who seems to prefer to be a chef. The father taught her everything he knows but wouldn’t let her become a chef due to cultural reasons. The success of her current career has allowed her to hold on to the past by purchasing her father’s home even after a bad venture with an apartment complex where she lost a large amount of money. She seems to be extremely happy afterwards and as luck would have it, she was the one complaining about wanting to move out.

The oldest daughter has converted to Christianity and has recently fallen in love with a man, marries him (due to a pregnancy), and says he will convert as well. The official religion is Taoism with 33% of the population and then there is Buddhism with 35% while Christianity only holds 4.5%. This puts it in third place in the overall ranking and gives an alternate choice to the two traditional religions of the country. This represents a cultural diffusion taking place as well as infusion. The melting pot that is the U.S., seems to be taking form again and again in other countries. Though infusions may not be of people, they’re of ideas and a western way of life that seems immune to the culture and traditions of any place.