Junn (Ching Pei-pei) never knew her late son Kai (Andrew Leung) was gay. So the sudden appearance of the boy’s well-intentioned ex, Richard (Ben Wishaw), leaves Junn puzzled and inwardly jealous of the affection her son lavished on his “best friend.” The stoical Cambodian-Chinese widow refuses to adapt to the culture — even though she’s been living on British soil for eight years — so Richard hires a translator (Naomi Christie) to aid in communication between Junn and her nursing home boyfriend (Peter Bowles). The forcible performances are encumbered by a so-so script and wilting direction from newcomer, Hong Khaou. The interpreter device gets old fast, and with the exception of a few exterior bridging sequences, everything about Khaou’s staging of his original screenplay screams canned theatre. Spoiler alert: as hard as the filmmakers try to jerk tears, Junn thankfully lives to see the final fade-out. (2014) — Scott Marks
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