The main characters of four mothers and each of their daughters, The Joy Luck Club tells a fascinating tale of two generations, in two different continents. The story ping pongs from mother to daughter, present, to past, and United States to China starts with Suyuan Woo, who passed away and her daughter, Jing-mei "June" Woo taking over her mother's seat at the mah-jong table which triggers the unraveling of memories and events in all of the characters. The varying stories of the daughters" ranging from marital problems to individual, inner matters, to cultural issues effortlessly and naturally entwine with each others" and their mothers" stories. All four of the mothers" hardships exposed and shared, each differed greatly yet equally rough, laced silkily through the numerous stories tied smoothly together at the end. The film elaborates the distinctive stories of the eight women, yet still emphasizes mother-daughter relationships, and touches on the Chinese culture as well.
This story shows what is lost or misinterpreted between friends, mothers and daughters, generations, and culture, then shows what is saved. Lindo and Waverly Jong's mother daughter combination proved that with communication, a relationship has potential to transform. All of her life, Waverly tried pleasing her excessively critical and negative mother and felt as if she never lived up to her expectations. Finally, at 35, divorced, and a single mother about to re-marry a man who was not Chinese, she builds up the courage to express to her mother all the feelings that were bottled up and they have a bonding moment. She then realizes her mother's intentions were to not harm, but tough love, and part of the Chinese culture. Lena St. Clair's marriage demonstrated how sometimes it takes a major event to trigger the building of strength that allows a person to take themselves out of a bad situation. Although she lost her marriage, she regained her self worth and integrity finally speaking up for herself to her controlling husband.
