The Farewell (2019) - A Review

 

The Farewell is a must-see movie.

 The Farewell is a drama/comedy (dramedy) movie released in the United States in 2019 starring Awkwafina, Zhao Shu-zhen, Tzi Ma, Diana Lin, Lu Hong, Jiang Yongbo, Chen Han, and Aoi Mizuhara. The Farewell was written, directed, and produced by Lulu Wang.

Zhao Shu-zhen as Nai Nai (left) and Awkwafina as Billi. Their relationship is absolutely believable.

In The Farewell, Awkwafina plays Billi Wang, a Chinese-American writer living in New York. She is very close with her grandmother, Nai Nai (played by Zhao Shu-zhen), who lives in China. After being rejected for a prestigious fellowship, Billi finds out from her parents, Haiyan (played by Tzi Ma) and Lu Jian (played by Diana Lin), that her grandmother has terminal lung cancer and she has only three months left to live. Nai Nai does not know that she has lung cancer or that she is dying because the whole family is hiding her diagnosis from her. The family has set up a wedding for Billi's cousin Hao Hao (played by Chen Han) and his girlfriend Aiko (played by Aoi Mizuhara) as an excuse to see Nai Nai one last time. Billi is not invited, though, as the family feels she will expose the truth about Nai Nai's health condition.

Billi goes to China anyway to see her grandmother. The whole family is shocked to see her there, especially Nai Nai. As the wedding nears, the mood is solemn, and Nai Nai suspects something is wrong, judging by Billi and her father's behavior. Billi promises to keep the secret from Nai Nai, but she is conflicted throughout. She questions the morality of keeping the truth from Nai Nai, but she learns that this is a difference between Chinese and American/western culture. Billi and Nai Nai spend a lot of time together and learn a lot about each other. Can Billi keep the secret from her grandmother, and will the wedding go off without a hitch?

The love of a family prevails.

The Farewell is based on director Lulu Wang's grandmother, and what she and her family went through after the terminal cancer diagnosis. The movie is very moving and emotional, and nothing feels fake or melodramatic. Awkwafina (whose comedy I am a fan of) is really understated in her portrayal of Billi. Really, everyone is pretty solemn in this movie, except for Nai Nai. Since she does not know that she is dying, she is the one full of life and not holding back emotionally. Really good performance by Zhao Shu-zhen as Nai Nai. Also great is Lu Hong playing herself as Nai Nai's younger sister. Though the movie is a bit solemn and sad, there is some nice comedy in it as well (nothing over the top, though). The visuals are great, the acting is excellent, and the story is interesting. It makes you ask yourself: What would you do in this situation?

Nai Nai supports Billi in ways Billi's parents may not have.

As you can imagine, I highly recommend watching The Farewell. It is a touching, emotional story that also makes you think. There are questions of morality and a clash of American/western and Chinese culture. It is the story of a family that really loves their grandmother/mother/aunt/sister, and the things they go through to protect her. Awkwafina and Zhao Shu-zhen were perfectly cast in their roles. I cannot wait to see what other stories Lulu Wang has to tell.

Reviewed by David Williams

Minari (2020) - A Review

 

An American classic.

 

Minari is an American drama movie released in the United States in 2020. It stars Steven Yeun, Han Ye-ri,  Alan Kim, Noel Kate Cho, Youn Yuh-jung, and Will Patton. Minari was written and directed by Lee Isaac Chung.

Han Ye-ri as Monica Yi (left) and Steven Yeun as Jacob Yi (right).

In Minari, Steven Yeun plays Jacob Yi, the patriarch of the Yi family. The Yi's are an immigrant family from Korea who have just moved from California to Arkansas in the United States in the early 1980s. It is Jacob's dream to run a farm and make a living from it. His wife, Monica (played by  Han Ye-ri) is not so into his dream, but she supports him. They have two kids, Anne (played by Noel Kate Cho), the oldest, and David (played by Alan Kim), who has a heart condition (heart murmur). Monica worries about David a lot, and the others stop him from over-exerting himself. David just wants to be a kid.

Monica struggles in Arkansas, not only at work, but also with loneliness. They go to church to make new friends, with some people being more welcoming than others. Jacob gets help starting his farm from a rather strange and religious man named Paul (played by Will Patton), who is very enthusiastic about helping Jacob any way he can.

After a huge argument with each other, Jacob and Monica decide to bring Monica's mother to their trailer home in Arkansas. Soon-ja (played by Youn Yuh-jung) arrives, and David is not a fan. He says she doesn't look or act like a grandma, so he avoids her or plays pranks on her. After Soon-ja's arrival, things take a turn for the worse for the family. Can Jacob and Monica's marriage survive the bad times, and how will David's next doctor appointment go?

Alan Kim as David Yi.

Minari is an excellent movie, straight up. This is a semi-autobiographical tale about the director, Lee Isaac Chung's life. This makes the movie feel more real, and in turn, makes you more immersed in the story and in the characters. The movie portrays real life: there are ups and downs. When you finally succeed at attaining a goal, something happens to tear it all down. You just got to to keep persevering. The movie is not somber all the way through, though. There are a lot of light and comedic moments as well. Alan Kim as David brings a lot of the lightness (and does a great job at it).

The movie is spoken in a mix of Korean and English, as immigrants from Korea would probably really talk like. This doesn't bother me, as I grew up in a bilingual household, but it bothers others for some reason. Even though the movie is spoken mainly in Korean, with a majority Korean/Korean American cast, the story is an American one. Jacob and Monica Yi are striving for the American dream, but in different ways. Every actor in this movie gives an incredible performance. Will Patton is particularly memorable as the weird, and at first off-putting, Paul. Steven Yeun as Jacob is determined to get his farm started and keep everything else (including his family) in working order. Han Ye-ri as Monica is not a fan of Arkansas, or their trailer home, or her job; she just wants to go back to California where David will get better health care. Alan Kim as David is just a kid who wants to be a kid, but is held back by his chronic health condition (I can relate). Noel Kate Cho as Anne Yi is the one who deals with the most overt racism, and she realizes the state of her parents' marriage. Youn Yuh-jung as Soon-ja is a very nontraditional grandmother, but she tries (she likes pro wrestling, so she can't be all bad). The director and actors made these people feel like a real family. Great job all around.

Youn Yuh-jung as Soon-ja (left), David's grandma. David is not a fan.

I highly recommend watching Minari! This movie is just so good. The acting is impeccable, the characters are deep and memorable, the story is involving and relatable, the cinematography is exquisite, and the musical score is mesmerizing. It's an emotional story that you'll never forget. Lee Isaac Chung made a modern classic, that's for sure. Minari shows us that to achieve the American dream, you need faith, perseverance, and family.

Reviewed by David Williams

Ping Pong Playa (2007) - A Review

 

Ping Pong Playa is quite the hilarious movie!

Ping Pong Playa is a sports comedy movie released in the United States in 2007 and stars Jimmy Tsai, Khary Payton, Andrew Vo, Jim Lau, Elizabeth Sung, Roger Fan, Kevin Chung, Javin Reid, Smith Cho, Peter Paige, Scott Lowell, and Stephnie Weir. The movie was co-written by Jessica Yu with Jimmy Tsai, and directed by Jessica Yu.

Jimmy Tsai plays C-Dub (Chris Wang). Dude can talk some trash!

In Ping Pong Playa, Jimmy Tsai plays Christopher Wang (though he prefers to go by C-Dub), a young man in his twenties who still lives at home with his parents. His dream is to become a big time NBA (basketball) player. He thinks very highly of his skills and routinely beats little kids in basketball games at the park. His friend, JP Money (played by Khary Payton) has more ambitious goals and is working toward them (he is even studying how to speak Chinese). JP likes and believes in Chris, but he feels Chris needs to realize where his basketball skills are actually at.

When Chris's brother, Michael (played by Roger Fan)  and mom (played by Elizabeth Sung) get injured in a minor car accident, he has to take over teaching his mom's ping pong class. Being a slacker, Chris does not take this very seriously, but the young students Felix (played by Andrew Vo), William (played by Kevin Chung), and Prabaka (played by Javin Reid) really look up to him. It turns out that the annual ping pong tournament is coming up, and Chris's parents want him to enter it. The tournament is how Chris's parents make their money: Michael enters and wins the tournament, which makes people want to learn how to play ping pong from the tournament winner's mother and buy sports goods at the tournament winner's father's store. Chris is really not into this, until some racist ping pong players (played by Peter Paige and Scott Lowell) entered in the tournament start trying to steal the ping pong students from his mom's class. Chris begins to take things seriously and trains with his father (played by Jim Lau) and his ping pong students to get ready. Can Chris get serious enough about his future and win the tournament?

C-Dub is a hero to his ping pong class.

Ping Pong Playa is a really funny sports movie! Though this is basically a family comedy, there is a bit of an edge to it (profanity is censored using funny sound effects, though). Chris is a guy that talks like a gangsta and doesn't really take anything seriously. He has no pressing motivation, though he wants to become a famous NBA player, and wants to get with Felix's older sister, Jennifer (played by the incredible Smith Cho). Even though he is kind of a jerk, he is still very likeable. Jimmy Tsai kills it in this role. When Chris realizes the stakes at hand and starts taking things seriously, you root him on. He comes to find out that being in this tournament is all about him and how he handles things, not about winning. There is a lot of funny shenanigans in this, and the little kids in this movie are great. In fact, all the actors in this movie are great. Though the story might be a little cliched, it is still really fun and entertaining to go through.

C-Dub is quite good at ping pong!

I highly recommend watching Ping Pong Playa. It is a slice of life sports comedy showing the life of an Asian-American man in his 20s living in southern California in the late 2000s. The movie is very funny without being offensive or corny. This is a pretty good movie for the whole family, but there are some edgy jokes in here. The actors are great, the story is interesting, it's actually funny, and the whole movie is entertaining. What more could you want? Check Ping Pong Playa out, it's really underrated and it's really good!

Reviewed by David Williams

[Fight Scene Friday] Twisting Tiger (Martial Arts Hood Drama) 2022

 It's Fight Scene Friday™, and this week I'm sharing a short film done by the Team Red Pro crew. Twisting Tiger is finally out, and man, this is really good! If you remember, I posted the first five minutes of this short film a few months ago, and the full thing is already out on YouTube. I think it came out great! Not only is Joseph Le the director and action director, but the Martial Club crew is involved as well! Tarell Kota Bullock plays the main character, and he really gets to show off his prodigious martial arts skill. Enough of my yammering, just check it out!

 

Twisting Tiger (2022): First 5 Minutes - Teaser

 Check out the first five minutes of Twisting Tiger, the latest short film from Team Red Pro! It is directed by Joseph Le, and the Martial Club guys are involved with the action design as well. This looks very promising! I can't wait to watch the whole thing!

The official synopsis: After committing to a life of zen, a Black Shaolin Disciple with PTSD must break his vow of nonviolence and save his students from a bloodthirsty Asian gang.

(Language warning!) 

 

Better Luck Tomorrow (2002) - A Review

 

Incredible movie directed by Justin Lin.

Better Luck Tomorrow is an American drama/crime drama released in 2002. It stars Parry Shen, Karin Anna Cheung, Jason Tobin, Sung Kang, Roger Fan, and John Cho. The movie was written (along with Ernesto Foronda and Fabian Marquez) and directed by Justin Lin.

The movie follows Ben Manibag (played by Shen), an intelligent high school student who is working hard on making his high school transcripts look appealing to the Ivy League colleges he wants to apply to for college. He's on the basketball team, the debate team, he translates Spanish at a hospital, he works at a fast food place, and he indulges in petty crime. Being bored and having the perfect cover of being an over achieving student, he takes part in petty theft and vandalism with his friends Virgil (played by Tobin) and Han (played by Kang). 

Another over achieving student, Daric (played by Fan) spotlights Ben in a school newspaper story about being a bench warmer on the basketball team. Ben does not appreciate the attention, as he is fine with his position. Later on, Daric convinces Ben to make a cheat sheet for an upcoming test, paying him for his efforts. This becomes the group's money making scheme, until they start doing more risky crimes. Ben and his group become infamous at their school.

Ben also has a crush on Stephanie, who he begins getting close to. Unfortunately, Stephanie already has a boyfriend, Steve (played by Cho). Steve goes to private school, comes from a rich family, and is on a rival debate team. Ben and Steve have a complicated relationship. All of this comes to a head on New Year's Eve, and it is shocking, to say the least.

This is a great movie. The story it tells is fascinating, and it's never boring. Even though it is a drama, there are little bits of comedy here and there.The cinematography is nice, a bit understated, but there are some amazing shots in there. This movie has a good soundtrack, too. The film score is good, and the soundtrack rules. The song playing in the school dance scene is so good. This movie is truly underrated, I feel.

The characters are fully formed. They are believable. Ben, as the main character, is the 'every guy' you root for. You want him to be a good person, and you still root for him when he makes bad decisions. Virgil is basically the try-hard character who is a bit unhinged. Jason Tobin is a tour de force as Virgil. He kills it in his role. Han is the strong, silent type. He is the most mysterious character. He may do bad things, but he has a conscience. Daric is one of the most manipulative, self-centered jerks in cinema history. He knows just what to say to make characters do what he wants. I hate Daric. A lot. Stephanie has a bit of a complicated backstory, but she is great. Her motivations are believable, and even though she is a straight arrow, even she gets influenced by Ben's rebellious side. Steve is an arrogant, troubled rich kid. He is cool, but he has problems. John Cho plays him perfectly. Arrogant, awkward, and aloof. The performances in this movie are top notch!

If you've never seen Better Luck Tomorrow, see it! NOW! I highly recommend it! I watch this movie every New Year's Eve. It is one of my all-time favorite movies. Though it has a dark ending, it is somehow optimistic as well. You never know how life is going to go, you just have to hope for the best.

DVD I watched for the review.

Back cover of DVD.

The DVD disc that I watched. I really need this movie on Blu-Ray!

Reviewed by David Williams