Dìdi (弟弟)

It’s been a while since I felt so much from a film, so much that is just relatable in different degrees. An altogether bittersweet, beautiful yet so devastating expression of a troubled and fatherless Taiwanese immigrant family living in the US through the lens of an adolescent who also deals with a plethora of personal issues. The performances of both Izaac Wang and Joan Chen was electrifying and so polarising, pain and angst so palpable. Also the casting of writer director Sean Wang’s own grandmother Chang Li Hua who displayed so much wit and vitality at the age of 86. Setting this coming of age film at the pivotal moment of Wang Wang’s life prior to entering high school and his sister (Shirley Chen) entering college, a time of change. The moments here are characterised in such a relatable manner (albeit exaggerated at times), stalking the social media profile of your crush (done very well visually e.g. relationship status: single), trying to fit in with the crowd, trying to belong and seek validation even if it means lying, searching up uncomfortable things, fighting with your family, being silly, making mistakes, reckoning with the state of your family and bond, loosing friends and making friends, in the process learning and understanding. All part of the growing pains. Painfully hilarious, painfully heartbreaking, painfully sentimental. Sean Wang with the power of his own personal story lays bare the harsh truths of growing up in a place where you’re looked down upon and seen as inferior or exotic and the concoction of emotions that come with it. My absolute favourite for this year thus far. *Didi, you are my dream. 弟弟，你們就是我的夢想。*