FilmSnobReviews

Title: Didi
MPAA Rating: Not Yet Rated
Director: Sean Wang
Starring: Izaac Wang
Runtime: 1 hour 31 minutes

What it is: A young Asian skater named Chris goes through the struggles of puberty in the late 2000s. MySpace, Paramore, skate videos, flip phones, and old fashioned YouTube fill this movie top to bottom as Chris embarks on a journey of growth, navigating the highs and lows of preadolescence.

What We Think: Nostalgia, nostalgia, nostalgia. This film was filled to the brim with nostalgia and humor. Having been about the same age as Chris at this particular period of the 2000s, it definitely took me back to those particular years. This film was a very fun film. I found myself genuinely laughing at some of the humor on screen. That being said, in true 2000s fashion, I did feel that some of the humor it relied on was gross out humor which didn’t always hit, but it was more or less excusable when considering that we were watching a preteen become a teen. I thought the story overall was pretty decent. The dialogue, while fun, felt a little stilted at times. There were times I genuinely had to ask myself if preteens really talked like how they were talking. Ultimately, that wasn’t enough to ruin my experience of having a good time with this film, though. Didi had a lot of heart and investment put into it, one could tell. It was a great coming of age story and one that I think captured what it was like growing up in the late 2000s.

Issac Wang, who plays Chris, did a terrific job playing his character. He carried the movie very well and was able to portray a likable pretreen protagonist that also had many flaws.

Our Grade: B, Didi is a fun ride from beginning to end and accurately shows what it was like being a teen in the late 2000s. Some of the humor is hit or miss, but all in all, solid flick.