Didi is actually called Chris, but is called Didi (little brother) by his family and Wang Wang by his friends. At 13, he’s at the worst phase of the teen years: he wants out of his sheltered home and into the world of older boys and first dates, but doesn’t know the codes and right language yet. He constantly stumbles into embarrassing situations, like when he tells the grossest story he knows while on a double date with his best friend and two girls. A dead squirrel makes an appearance. It’s a good story for the guys, but it’s a big fail here. Things seem to be going well with the older skaters in the parking lot at first – but Didi can’t skate or film as well as he claims. He reacts to vulnerability with aggression and makes everything worse that way. Sean Wang interweaves his own experiences as a Taiwanese-American teenager and the timeless motifs of growing up into a dense, entertaining coming-of-age film that is directed both at teens and adults. Family plays a big role, the absence of the father, the constant arguing between the mother, who still dreams of making art, and the grandmother, who accuses her of failure, the hated, beloved big sister. Another home, early internet, is just as present, which Wang integrates congenially and smoothly into the plot. Didi finds the girl of his dreams on MySpace, and an important part of social interaction takes place in the rudimentary online chats. Important decisions are made or messed up with a click on “send” or “delete”.

Toni Ohms

Translation: Elinor Lewy