By Riley Hamilton
In a recent interview with IndieWire, writer/director Sean Wang of the Sundance Film Festival darling, Dìdi (弟弟), said: “There’s nothing more scary for a 13-year-old boy than silence.” In a film that starts with a literal bang, Dìdi (弟弟) comes alive and breaks your heart in it’s quietest, earnest and reflective moments.
“In 2008, during the last month of summer before high school begins, an impressionable 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy named Chris (Izaac Wang) learns what his family can’t teach him: how to skate, how to flirt, and how to love your mom.” Dìdi (弟弟) contains the greatest hits of other coming-of-age films past and present: first crushes, pranks, loud-mouthing, irreverent humor, strained friendships, embarrassment, self-discovery, self-admonishment, selfies, etc. And while the film finds its footing in those familiar trappings, Sean Wang carves his own path in the genre by telling a moving story about a Taiwanese-American family dealing with the pressures of high expectations while living in Fremont, California. In all of it, Mr. Wang reveals to us a very simple truth: it’s hard to just be yourself sometimes, even behind the veil of the internet.
Top-to-bottom, Dìdi (弟弟) is wonderful. The cast of both young and veteran actors knock it out of the park, including Sean Wang’s own grandmother, Chang Li Hua, who plays Chris’ Nai Nai. In fact, some of the film’s most moving moments are found with interactions involving Chris’ mother, Chungsing Wang, played by Joan Chen (she’s fabulous; her eyes tell a thousand stories.) Dìdi (弟弟) contains multitudes: it’s a coming-of-age story that doubles as a love letter to mothers, sisters, grandmothers and even to friendships once beloved, then lost and then sorta rekindled again (teenagers are confusing, man.)
Familiar yet fresh, funny yet full-hearted, and just plain weird in the best way possible, Dìdi (弟弟) is both a time capsule from the summer of 2008 (16 years ago, holy s***) and a reminder that the experiences and feelings involved with being a teenager haven’t changed a lick. We were all Chris! We all did things we weren’t proud of! We all hung out with people we really didn’t like for God knows why! We all kind of sucked at one point or another!
I firmly believe that in a story about a confused, nervous, pubescent 13-year-old Taiwanese American skate filmer, we can all find something to latch on to. The film’s tagline, after all, is “for anyone who’s ever been a teenager.” Dìdi (弟弟) is a film for all of us.