Review: SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN Is A Chick Flick That I Like

It takes a real man to admit to watching and enjoying a chick flick, and therefore I am here to declare that I watched and enjoyed the latest film by director Wayne Wang, SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN. It is a beautiful film, and its beauty lies in both the stories it tells and the way it looks. 

SNOW FLOWER is a film about friendship and sisterly love between two pairs of girls, one living in 19th century China and another in modern day Shanghai. The stories are told in parallel and the frequent jumps in the narrative between the two stories, almost certainly with the aim of highlighting the similarities in the struggles faced by women and the strength in the relationships between them despite changes in the society they are living in, are sadly more often distracting than effective. 

Chinese actress Li Bingbing and Korean actress Gianna Yun each play two characters. Li really shines in both roles, while Yun is less impressive, probably limited by her role and also the need to deliver her dialogues in Mandarin and English. Hugh Jackman also makes an appearance but his role is really too small for him to impress, except perhaps for his efforts in singing a Mandarin song.  

One thing that really impresses me about the film is how gorgeous it looks. It is simply a pleasure to look at, thanks to the brilliant use of contrasting colours and lightings, together with some wonderful camera work by cinematographer Richard Wong. Also, Rachel Portman's melancholy music score complements the visuals well. 

SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN is an enjoyable film. The period story offers a nice contrast to the contemporary one, but the unnecessarily convoluted storytelling does weaken the overall emotional impact of the film. It is nevertheless a beautiful and elegant film, and female audiences in particular will love it. 

SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN is distributed in Australia and New Zealand by Pinnacle Films, and will be available on DVD and Blu-ray from April.