Un cuento chino: una reseña en inglés

Hoy comparto con ustedes una "review" que escribí en el 2012 para la materia Lengua Inglesa III.

Write a review either on The Secret in Their Eyes or Chinese Take-Away. Make reference to the translation of the title and how it relates to the plot. The review will be published on a quality newspaper.

Chinese Take-Away: A Review

Chinese Take-Away is an Argentinian film written and directed by Sebastián Borensztein. Starred by Ricardo Darín, Muriel Santa Ana and Ignacio Huang, this dramatic comedy won the 2012 Goya Award for Best Latin American Film.

The plot focuses on Roberto (Ricardo Darín), a grumpy and lonely man who owns a hardware shop in Buenos Aires. One day, he runs into Jun (Ignacio Huang), a boy in his twenties who has just arrived from China and is looking for an uncle that lives in Argentina. In spite of his initial reluctance, Roberto decides to help Jun. However, this is not easy since Jun does not speak Spanish and the Embassy of China does little to improve his situation. In the end, not only does Roberto accommodate Jun in his own house but he also starts searching for the missing uncle. During this search, Roberto receives the help of Mari (Muriel Santa Ana), a woman who is in love with him.

It is usual for films to have their titles altered when they are released in other countries. In this case, it is possible to say that the English title is better than the original in Spanish because it reflects with more accuracy what happens in the film. In English, takeaway refers to food that is ordered to a restaurant and then it is delivered to the customer’s house. As regards the figurative meaning of the title, we can consider Jun as an unexpected “takeaway” that is received by Roberto. As well as this, we can see the literal meaning when the characters eat Chinese food. In this scene, which is the climax of the film, Roberto and Jun are able to express their feelings in an open way when the delivery boy is forced to work as an interpreter. In Spanish, the title is “Un cuento chino”, which can be literally translated as “A Chinese Tale”. It is important to point out that in Spanish a Chinese tale can refer figuratively to a lie. Nevertheless, in this film there is no lie so Borensztein must have chosen this title just to make reference to the nationality of one of the main characters.

Chinese Take-Away is a simple story with few characters. It will not change the history of film but this comedy successfully deals with universal themes such as friendship, loneliness and solidarity. Besides, language barrier plays an important role in this work, where we can see how Roberto and Jun try to communicate with each other. As usual, Darín’s acting is convincing and Ignacio Huang gives an outstanding performance as a helpless Chinese boy. All in all, Chinese Take-Away is well worth seeing because it is a dramatic comedy that will make you laugh but at the same time, its moving topics will make you reflect on the meaning of life.