Mr. Chu (Sihung Lung) is a venerable tai chi master who moves from Beijing to New York, hoping to spend his last years in peace and comfort with his only son (Bo Z. Wang). There's just one problem--he just can't seem to get along with his son's caucasian wife (Deb Snyder), a nervous writer who misinterprets Chu's every move. Even Chu's expertise in the tai chi exercise of "pushing hands" can't help him achieve harmony and balance in his son's conflicted household.

PUSHING HANDS is Ang Lee's directorial debut and the first film in his Father Knows Best trilogy that explores the changing role of the Chinese father in the late 20th century. As with all the films in the trilogy, Lee's attention to domestic detail is superb; in just the first few minutes of the film, he establishes the contrasts between Chu and his daughter-in-law using only visual means. A funny, often heartrending look at cross-cultural and intergenerational miscommunication, PUSHING HANDS has all the comedy and pathos found in Lee's more famous films, THE WEDDING BANQUETand EAT DRINK MAN WOMAN. Lee based the film on the loneliness and isolation he felt after he first moved to the United States.