Movie Breakdown: Didi

Pre-Screening Stance:

Didi looks a whole lot like Mid-90s, a coming-of-age film that Jonah Hill wrote and directed back in 2018. Since I really love that movie, I’m just going to go ahead and assume that I’ll dig this one from Sean Wang.

Post-Screening Ramble:

Didi is both entirely uncomfortable and an easy-to-enjoy dose of nostalgia. The semi-autobiographical film from writer/director Sean Wang is centered around Chris (Izaac Wang), a Taiwanese-American pre-teen on the verge of starting high school. In general, his life is pretty much fine but there is a lot that’s changing for him – his sister is about to leave for college, his best friends have seemingly out-paced him socially, etc. – and the byproduct of all of this is that Sean now finds himself feeling alone and desperate to fit in anywhere he can. So, naturally, cringe-inducing moments and learning lessons are then had in abundance. And thankfully, it’s all funny – whether it’s Chris’ unnecessary fibbing and general awkwardness or the various nifty looks back at early-2000s social media shenanigans (hey there, Myspace), everything hits in a way that’ll make you laugh and remember how ridiculous things were at that age. It’ll also probably make you miss your mom, as the absolute heart of the film is Chris’ mother Chungsing (Joan Chen). Seriously, there really is a lot to like about Didi, but if I’m picking one thing to champion, it’s definitely the very warm performance from Chen.

If you’re into coming-of-age films or, really, you just want to take in a good story, you should for sure carve out some time to see Didi. The film hits theaters this Friday, August 2.

One Last Thought:

Don’t be surprised if you roll out of Didi with a rather strong desire to listen to all the various emo and hip hop acts that dominated the early 2000s.