The screening took place on the Festival’s opening night on 19 March
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE BY UNIVERSAL
The BFI Flare 2025 opened last night (19 March) with a screening of Andrew Ahn’s new film The Wedding Banquet. Starring Lily Gladstone and Kelly Marie Tran, this queer retelling of Ang Lee’s classic film brought a powerful depiction of a sapphic couple experiencing IVF to the Flare’s audience.
For those of you who have been living under a rock, Ahn’s retelling of The Wedding Banquet follows Angela (Tran) and Lee (Gladstone), a couple who have been unlucky with their IVF treatments but can’t afford another round. Their friend Min, who isn’t out yet, has a lot of money but a soon-to-expire visa. The only natural solution to these problems? A green-card marriage between Angela and Min so that the sapphic couple can pay for IVF and Min can stay in the country.
Speaking to the stars of this new film on the opening day of the Flare, it’s clear that the representation this film offers is more vital now than ever. “I think it was really important to all of us to portray [this relationship] in an authentic way,” Lily told DIVA.
Kelly added: “We are getting more queer representation in the media, but when I read the script initially for this movie I was like ‘What the hell!’ It’s so different and it addresses all these themes in a really interesting way.”
By placing IVF at the forefront of the film’s plot, Ahn’s film opens up discussions about queer motherhood and parenting in a way that we have rarely seen before on screen. For Lily, this storyline is vital. “The IVF narrative is so important, especially in the States right now. It’s one of the rights that’s under attack for queer or straight women who are trying to have children through IVF.”
Last year, Senate Republicans blocked a bill that would have established a federal right to IVF.
The entire cast celebrated the film’s Opening Night screening at the Flare, with Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Bowen Yang, Han Gi-Chan and director Andrew Ahn in attendance. Icons Nicola Coughlan and Matt Rogers also attended the screening.
Speaking at the BFI Flare, director Ahn spoke about the necessity for this film to be watched by LGBTQIA people everywhere. “I can only hope that this film coming out […] is an opportunity for people to build community, watch this film together, gain some strength, and then be able to go out there and fight for what is portrayed on screen,” he said as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
You can find out more about BFI Flare 2025 here: whatson.bfi.org.uk/flare
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