There is a scene on A24 and Netflix meat Where Ali Wong quietly stops the show and hits you in the heart, truly connecting to the core of her very complex character, Amy Lau, and her concerns about unconditional love.
In the seventh episode, “I Cage”, after Amy’s husband George (Joseph Lee) confesses to emotional cheating, Amy talks to her therapist, Dr. Katherine Lane (Kayla Blake) about it. Without revealing her past physical infidelity, Amy talks about her relationship with George, her fears and doubts about motherhood, and her deep concern that tolerance will inevitably run out, even in loving and communicative relationships.
“Do you really think it’s possible to love someone unconditionally?” she asks. “You know, there has to be a point where we all fall out of love, right? The mistake is too great, and then the love has to stop.”
“Beef” is one of the best Netflix shows ever, and it’s all about chemistry
Filmed by director Jake Schreier and written by creator/showrunner/executive producer Lee Sung Jin, it’s a truly stunning performance by Wong, who we’re used to seeing as confident, funny, and provocative. In this scene in meatHowever, Wong takes Amy to a near breaking point (although not quite yet, unfortunately for Amy), knowing that her entire life is about to come crashing down with the truth of her actions.
“It’s one of the scenes I was probably most nervous about,” Wong told Mashable. “Because I talk for a long time, and I’m used to being able to stand up, and nod a lot. I’m just sitting in a chair with one other person, so it’s a really calm scene. Well, we don’t have much time, we just have some time,” the manager told me. He was only going to do one setup, as the camera was going to go from here (behind Wong) to here (in front of Wong). So, I felt a lot of pressure.”
“That was an interesting scene that Jake Schreyer shot, the camera pans really close on it, and there’s a lot of pressure on Ali,” Lee said. “But she brought it on. I think by taking two or three, the waterworks were coming, and you could tell she was touching something real inside of her. I don’t know what she was thinking to get her there, but you can feel really oppressed, because he’s starting to loosen up.” Very proud of this scene, and I just admire Ali’s performance every time I watch it.”
With Wong’s exceptionally controlled performance of Amy as she struggles to mobilize her core vulnerabilities, the scene captures the deep cracks in Amy’s well-constructed facade, how deep her guilt and self-sabotaging tendencies run, and how her feelings about conditional love come back. To her childhood and her parents (yes, they always do ¯\_(ツ)_/¯). It’s a fleeting moment, only three minutes at most, but it captures the desperation inherent in her character, who smiles through gritted teeth at everyone else’s bullshit for the most part.
“Amy can’t speak freely about anything in her life,” Lee said, “but she desperately wants someone to tell her it’s going to be okay, that despite everything she’s done, she’s still worthy of love.” Mashable. “But I think her inability to express it so freely leads to her being trapped in a labyrinth of her own making. (If) she’s only being honest, I think the latter half of the season just won’t exist.”
“I left all of that behind, and got on with writing,” said Wong. “I didn’t expect to be as emotional as I did. I think it’s one of the things I look at and I’m like, ‘Wow, who was that person?'” I can’t believe I did that. It’s one of my favorite things, in fact.”
meat Streaming now on Netflix.(Opens in a new tab)