26/37
A man quits his job to take care of his dying grandmother, motivated by his wealth. He plans to win her favor before she dies. This is actually the debut film of Usa Semkhum, a 78-year-old housewife who plays the role of grandmother Meng Ju. M: Do you feel alone sometimes? Amah: I wouldn’t call it loneliness. It’s part of the process of life. Amah: I have a problem with the day after Chinese New Year. When all the leftovers from the night before are in the fridge and I know I have to eat them all alone. No matter how hard you try to hold back your tears, chances are that the wall will come crashing down at the end, against the backdrop of a van saying goodbye so beautifully. Watching this scene raises a question. Are the tears flowing because the film is well made, or simply because viewers (myself included) immediately connect the events on screen with personal memories? The answer is “both.” “How to Make a Million Before Grandma Dies” is a book that particularly touches us because it shows us how family dynamics work, especially in Asian families. How an inheritance can erase affection, how meeting at grandmother’s house is a warm moment that is always awaited, how the grandmother waits impatiently for the arrival of her children and grandchildren wearing her most beautiful clothes, and how loneliness after living together is so painful, especially for the elderly who live alone. The memories of all those moments spent together are a truly precious legacy.