Top 5 Movies Starring Chinese Food

By on February 19, 2009 in Blog

(Photo by Scott Waldron www.dslrninja.com , CC)

Watch any of the following films with a carton of Chinese take-out instead of popcorn.

Eat Drink Man Woman (1994) – This film, set in Taiwan, is an obvious favorite. It opens with the father, Chef Chu, plucking a live chicken from his backyard coop and minutes later turning it into a steaming, mouth-watering casserole dish. The behind-the-scenes look as his restaurant prepares for a massive banquet is also impressive, as the camera scans down aisle after aisle of uniformed cooks and flaming woks. Beware: Ang Lee shoots the Chu family meals with a food pornographer’s eyes. Don’t watch on an empty stomach.

A Christmas Story (1983) – Imagine watching this movie in elementary school as an immigrant kid from China. On Christmas day, the family finds that their oven has caught on fire and the neighbor’s dog has run off with the turkey. They head to the local Chinese restaurant, where the waiters sing Christmas carols in heavily-accented English. A beautiful roast duck arrives, but it has the head intact, and Ralphie’s brother bursts into tears. Huh? you wonder. Ducks are always served with heads. After many years of living in the US, it’s easier to find the humor in the situation.

My Life as McDull (2001) – This Hong Kong-made animation is too intelligent to be just for kids. McDull, the little Cantonese pig with a Scottish surname, trains for Hong Kong’s annual Bun Climbing competition, in which contestants climb up a mountain of steamed Chinese buns. (Yes, this is a real event, seemingly too bizarre to be made-up.) There is another McDull film (whose name I can’t remember) that opens with terrorists taking an office building hostage. But at the same time they phone in their lunch orders for Cantonese roast pork and beef brisket noodles. No matter how busy you are, there’s always time for ngau lam fun.

Rice Rhapsody (2004) - Martin Yan stars as Singaporean restaurant owner who creates a “Hainan Duck Rice” dish to upstage the acclaimed Hainan Chicken of his neighbor and object of affection Jen Fan. The two decide to compete in a national televised competition to see who can claim the best Hainan poultry in town. Was this film an ode to Singapore’s national dish or to Martin Yan’s knife skills? Both are quite impressive.

The Joy Luck Club (1993) – Food is a backdrop for many arguments, make-up scenes, and mahjong games, just like real life. Anyone about to meet your Chinese girlfriend’s family for the first time should take cues from this movie of what not to do. Don’t gulp down your alcohol when making a toast. Don’t boast about your chopstick skills when you don’t have any. And do not, under any circumstances, try to improve her mother’s food by dousing it with soy sauce.

 

What are your favorite food films?

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Related posts:

100 Chinese Foods to Try Before You Die

Eating Weird Stuff for CBS

Fun Fruits for Chinese New Year

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29 Responses to Top 5 Movies Starring Chinese Food

  1. Jerf February 19, 2009 at 12:03 pm #

    Thanks for the list. I’ll especially have to check out #3.

    But some of my personal favorites for Chinese food in the movies are Tsui Hark’s The Chinese Feast, Ang Lee’s Eat Drink Man Woman, and Stephen Chow’s delightfully weird God of Cookery.

  2. Sri February 19, 2009 at 1:04 pm #

    I love Eat Drink Man Woman. Love Joy Luck Club but was too busy sobbing throughout the movie to notice the foods. I know I’m sappy. :D

    Might have to watch Rice Rhapsody. I love chicken rice. :D

  3. dianakuan February 19, 2009 at 1:46 pm #

    Jerf – I have heard of the Stephen Chow movie but haven’t seen it yet. Maybe my neighborhood DVD seller carries a copy… 

  4. Adrienne February 19, 2009 at 2:28 pm #

    have you watched The Wedding Banquet? It’s also directed by Ang Lee, and I think it was from 1993. Food does not take a prominent role, but it comes through quite well in a few scenes. it’s set in NY, about a Taiwanese man who is gay, but has not told his parents (who live in Taiwan). There’s a female tenant involved (Chinese) and some organized chaos insues when the in-the-closet Taiwanese man and the Chinese girl feign marriage when the parents visit.

  5. ruth February 19, 2009 at 5:53 pm #

    ditto on the Wedding Banquet movie. Quite funny. But I agree, the food porn award goes to Eat Drink Man Woman, hands down. i made the mistake of watching that movie recently with an empty stomach!!!!

  6. Salmon Cabin February 19, 2009 at 8:27 pm #

    Check out Wong Kar Wai’s “In the Mood for Love” – visually stunning & an almost constant flow of delicious food.

  7. dianakuan February 19, 2009 at 9:33 pm #

    Adrienne – Yup, I have seen it, though for some reason food it didn’t strike me as a central character even though “banquet” is in the title. The plot was funny, but what I remember most are the early 90s hairstyles.

  8. Eva February 19, 2009 at 9:44 pm #

    I second that recommendation. Wong Kar Wai’s other films often feature food, especially Chung King Express.

    Also, the film “Tortilla Soup” is a Mexican version of “Eat Drink Man Woman” and is quite good, too.

  9. Kitty February 19, 2009 at 10:58 pm #

    I was just going to say Chung King Express too! Love that movie, chef salad! I love the “Siu Ya” culture in HK, meaning midnight snack.

  10. Magnus1977 February 20, 2009 at 1:14 am #

    Great post. Found it through WSJ. There should be tons of movies from China about food since it’s such an important part of the culture… but this list makes me want to go back and watch them again!

  11. Scotty February 20, 2009 at 1:39 pm #

    Hello? What about ‘Take Out’? The Independent Spirit Award nominee.

    http://www.TakeOutTheMovie.com

  12. Lucy February 20, 2009 at 8:21 pm #

    I remember watching this with my family in a dingy little downtown theatre, and lusting over the food. The story was told really well, too. But the food. Oh, the food.

  13. dianakuan February 20, 2009 at 9:51 pm #

    I have seen In the Mood for Love. I guess next time I should do a Top 10 list!

  14. dianakuan February 20, 2009 at 9:53 pm #

    Eva – I’ll add Tortilla Soup to my list of movies to watch. Thanks.

  15. dianakuan February 20, 2009 at 9:57 pm #

    Scotty – That looks really interesting…thanks for the rec. Unfortunately the DVD hasn’t reached the Shanghai streets yet, but I’ll be on the lookout.

  16. The Chinese Iron Chef February 21, 2009 at 11:36 pm #

    How about Tsui Hark’s The Chinese Feast (金玉滿堂), a hilarious comedy beginning with a cooking competition between the top Chinese chefs in Beijing and ending in a climatic cooking competition of dishes for the Manchu-Han banquet in Hong Kong, and featuring over-the-top performances by Leslie Cheung and Anita Yuen? The dishes displayed are particularly visually impressive.

  17. Jim_Boyce February 22, 2009 at 9:50 am #

    What, no Big Trouble in Little China!?

  18. Bjørn February 23, 2009 at 8:15 am #

    Have you seen Dumplings by Fruit Chan? It’s a horror movie about… dumplings.

  19. Anonymous February 23, 2009 at 11:17 am #

    I saw it at the Toronto Film Festival last year. It’s wonderful. Lots of food prep scenes at a large scale.

    http://www.sundancechannel.com/films/500323414

  20. Plays With Food February 23, 2009 at 3:13 pm #

    The ultimate Japanese Noodle Western and grandaddy of this genre!

    Actually, all of director Juzo Itami’s films featured food in some way – but Tampopo is my #1, followed closely by Eat Drink Man Woman.

  21. PuTao February 23, 2009 at 5:12 pm #

    I can’t recall how much food was in this movie, but my wife loves it because Jerry Yan (of the Taiwanese drama, “Meteor Garden” & F4 fame)is in it.

  22. Nate February 23, 2009 at 6:26 pm #

    I love that opening sequence.

    “Tortilla Soup” is a pale imitation of EDMW.

    Besides “Tampopo”, we also like “The Big Night”

    I’ve watched “God of Cookery” on YouTube. It’s all right but it’s not about serious cooking.

  23. Sherby February 25, 2009 at 3:12 am #

    One of the most beautiful films I have seen. I thought he was making Mu Choi Cao Yuk at the start, not chicken.

  24. Jessica February 27, 2009 at 3:04 pm #

    Stars Sandra Oh (there was controversy about a Korean actress playing a Chinese mom) and Valerie Tian. Filmed in Vancouver and the Lower Mainland.

    It was a great movie!

  25. dianakuan March 2, 2009 at 1:25 am #

    Jessica – Ooh…that’s a new one I haven’t heard of. Is it in English or Chinese? Can Sandra Oh speak Chinese?

  26. Dim Sum Diva March 3, 2009 at 12:57 pm #

    ‘God of Cookery’: the char siu fan featured in that is true food porn.

  27. Anonymous March 6, 2009 at 1:36 am #

    Another vote for Tampopo; it’s one of my favorites. Also, a couple of non-Asian films with some serious food porn scenes: Babette’s Feast and Like Water for Chocolate.

  28. Scott February 23, 2010 at 6:48 pm #

    I would appreciate it if you provided a link to my website for the use of my photo on your website.
    http://www.dslrninja.com

    Thanks,
    Scott

  29. dianakuan February 25, 2010 at 10:46 pm #

    Hi Scott, No problem. I had linked to your Flickr page as i always do with CC-licensed photos, but I’ll switch the link to your site instead. Many thanks.

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