Growing up can be a real pain. Set in the summer of 2008, Dìdi (弟弟) is a coming-of-age comedy-drama movie written and directed by Sean Wang. This film follows 13-year-old Chris (Izaac Wang) as he heads toward his first year of high school. We chronicle his relationship with his friends, sister, mother, and grandmother as he figures out how to grow up in an online era. This type of movie is designed to resonate with people born in the mid-1990s, with its representations of MySpace, Instant Messaging, and the early days of uploading YouTube videos. But there is a lot that speaks to a more universal experience of adolescence.
Wang is hot off the heels of his Oscar-nominated short film Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó (奶奶跟外婆). One of the subjects of that documentary, his real-life grandmother, plays Chris’s grandmother. How’s that for a hint about how personal this movie is? This film feels like it could be autobiographical at times. Chris and Chris’s actor share a last name with the director, and we can feel Wang’s perspective as a Taiwanese-American boy reflected in this protagonist. He takes an interest in videography (like a future filmmaker) and uses it to film skateboarding videos for a group of local skaters.
The film does an excellent job of describing a culturally specific Asian American experience. There are unsolicited body-related comments and medical advice from parents, umbrellas on sunny days, marked 99 Ranch discount days on calendars, and the occasional feeling of being an outsider in America. Some elements can resonate not only with Asian Americans but also with children of immigrant parents. One of the strongest elements of this film is how it portrays the struggle of a single-parent household. Chris’s father makes money overseas, and he is left in a house with his older sister, Vivian (Shirley Chen), his grandmother, Nai Nai (Chang Li Hua), and his mother, Chungsing (Joan Chen).
Dìdi feels like an Asian American male take on Bo Burnham’s 2018 movie Eighth Grade. Wang’s goal is a little different here, as he aims to capture a moment in time when he was younger and bring it to life through this cinematic lens. He grasps a lot here that is very true to reality, such as the inappropriate ways that teenage boys talk and how explicit they can be, especially with teen girls. Hormones run high, especially as Chris finds himself crushing on a girl named Madi (Mahaela Park).
There’s a certain way in which Wang portrays the innocence of teen crushes that feels true to real life. This quality persists for the rest of the film. It rarely ever feels like you’re watching actors act. Wang primarily cast locals, many of whom were new to acting. It’s hard to tell because everyone feels so organic in their portrayals. It feels as if he encouraged each young actor to be themselves as much as possible, especially given how organic much of the dialogue sounds coming out of everyone’s mouths.
The film works less during a few more outlandish moments. Some comedic elements are absurd, much like the absurdism that we saw during parts of Everything Everywhere All at Once. These ideas feel out of place because we can have very real, grounded, dramatic scenes mixed with scenes where the grilled fish on Chris’s plate begins to open its mouth and talk to him. But the movie works best with Wang’s excellent handling of the performances and the quieter, more subtle moments that impact its characters for the worse and the better.
Izaac Wang gives an excellent lead performance here. He has a challenging job because this character makes many bad decisions. It can be hard to keep rooting for him because Chris is always messing things up in his life, but you pity him because of what he goes through. He acts out, and we see how painful his life can be, but we also see the perspective of his mother. Joan Chen is the most high-profile actor in this cast, and she gives a performance for the ages. She’s phenomenal here, and everything surrounding her textured character is compelling and tragic.
The most beautiful aspect of Dìdi is the relationship between the protagonist and his mother. The sibling relationship works well, but it also jumps too quickly between two extremes. Chris’s relationship with his friends also grows a lot throughout the movie, and it’s a well-written depiction of the inevitable loss of people as you grow older and go in new directions. Not many movies showcase this in a way that feels as authentic as this one. There’s a soul behind this movie that you rarely find in films, allowing it to be emotional, personal, and touching in all the best ways.
SCORE: 7/10
As ComingSoon’s review policy explains, a score of 7 equates to “Good.” A successful piece of entertainment that is worth checking out, but it may not appeal to everyone.
