There is a movie language called Chekov's Gun. That is to say, every individual and every detail in the movie does not exist out of thin air, and must have a certain meaning. Lao Zhang seems insignificant, and he can delete this character without affecting the plot. But he did not show up, but was mentioned several times in the film, so Lao Zhang must be a key figure.
The first detail is about 28 minutes: when my dad first came to the United States to visit the house, he saw two rocking chairs on the balcony (the two rocking chairs here have close-up shots. It is very likely that dad already knows his son’s Simon at this time. The sensitive father told Weitong that he joined the army because of escaped marriage. Grandpa gave Dad a foothold overseas and passed on from generation to generation. So he got married and had children in Taiwan. This is similar to Wei Tong's fate. He is well aware of this helplessness.
This is why Dad pretended not to know. He needs to continue the incense, but he also understands Wei Tong's feelings. Later, what my father said to Simon also confirmed this. He said: If I don't let them lie to me, how can I hold a grandson. Simon said: I don't understand, Dad said: Even I don't understand. This sentence is my dad's embarrassment and helplessness towards traditional concepts. He doesn't know why it is, but he knows it should be.
There is also an extremely important detail in about 30 minutes. The first dinner for the whole family was made by Simon for Weiwei. During the meal, my father praised Weiwei for his good craftsmanship, and an intriguing scene appeared here - Weiwei said: “Where, it’s not as good as Lao Zhang’s craftsmanship. When she said this, her hand pointed at Simon intentionally. This must be a special arrangement made by Ang Lee, which shows that Lao Zhang and Simon's identities correspond.
After the meal, his mother gave Weiwei clothes time, and Lao Zhang was mentioned again. Dad told Weiwei: Lao Zhang was at home for more than 40 years, and Wei Tong was brought up by him. And Lao Zhang also specially brought a pair of bracelets to Weiwei. All this shows that Lao Zhang has always regarded Weitong as his son. This cleverly echoes the ending, which Simon is willing to be another father of the child.
The finishing touch appears at the end of the film. There are two shots in about 1 hour and 42 minutes. One is Weiwei Simon Weitong watching his parents go to the airport. The other is that parents are walking in a dark aisle, but parents are not the only two people in the aisle. There is also a person behind them, and that person represents "Lao Zhang". This shot is extremely powerful, and it clearly illustrates the relationship between parents and Lao Zhang: Lao Zhang has always followed him in their lives. There are three people in both shots. Outside the corridor is the young generation, and in the corridor is the old generation. The relationship between the characters of the two generations is corresponding. Chef Lao Zhang corresponds to the landlord Simon. Mother corresponds to Weiwei, and father corresponds to Weitong.
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