In many ways, writer-director Zhang Lu’s latest feature, Mothertongue , follows the classic Hollywood rom-com template: A semi-famous movie star, Chunshu (Bai Baihe), returns to her hometown after both her career and love life fall apart. She reconnects with her young mother, Fang Lijuan (Peng Jin), as well as her former acting teacher, Zhang Mei (Liu Dan), who suffers from memory loss. More importantly, she crosses paths with Liu Dan’s son, Wang Dongdong (Wang Chuanjun), an eligible bachelor who’s the same age as Chunshu and seems to be ready for a new relationship.

Indeed, Mothertongue contains plenty of ingredients found in flicks like Sweet Home Alabama or Garden State , and ultimately winds up delivering on the genre’s promise. But it has another flavor entirely — one that gi

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