Dìdi review: Sean Wang's tender coming-of-age drama is an instant classic
HT at Sundance | American-Taiwanese filmmaker Sean Wang's feature film debut breathes new life into the tried and tested genre of coming-of-age dramas.
Each year at the Sundance Film Festival, there's one film that seems destined to become a major breakout. One knows it straightway even if it's the very first time they are watching it. This year, I felt the same way in my bones while I encountered Dìdi, the feature-length debut from director Sean Wang. From the very first scene, which begins with an explosion, I was sucked right into its world; walking beside its protagonist- a 13 year-old American-Taiwanese immigrant boy somewhere in the summer of 2008. (Also read: Girls Will Be Girls review: Richa Chadha, Ali Fazal’s maiden production portraits a complex mother-daughter relationship)
That Dìdi comes from a deep seated place of personal experiences is palpable. For the next 91 minutes, we are invited to follow Dìdi (or Wang Wang, or Chris- he suits his name according to the situations), as he takes on the year before high school in Fresno, California. Played by Izaac Wang, this impressionable kid lives with his Chinese-speaking mother Chungsing (a terrific, heartbreaking turn from Joan Chen), his elder sister Vivian (Shirley Chen), who will soon leave for university, and his constantly nitpicking grandmother Nai Nai (the director's real grandmother, Chang Li Hua stars in scene-stealing form). The only person from this family whom we don't meet is the father, who works in Taiwan and sends the money.
Like most kids his age, he has his own squad of friends who call him Wang Wang. He has a crush on a girl named Madi (Mahaela Park), with whom he lies his way to get attention. It all comes together to a hilarious scene in the park where they meet alone and Madi grills him about his love for A Walk To Remember and asks him what's the colour of the Yoda. Elsewhere, he faces ridicule and has a difficult time coming out of his awkward shell. His computer screen takes up the entire screen space as he searches videos on how to kiss, what actually is his-new-favourite-film A Walk To Remember about and what are some words to say to a bunch of older skateboarders he befriends for a while.
Sean Wang charts all the highs and lows, moments of cringe-inducing laughter and heartbreak with such a keen ear for dialogue that it almost feels like a documentary. The cinematography of Sam Davis is attuned to the kinetic world of Dìdi, while the soulful music of Giosue Greco provides infinite texture to its rich palette. Dìdi is restless and exhausting, and Sean Wang encompasses his journey with a specificity in detail. There's so much material and perspective and humanity in it. Editor Arielle Zakowski pieces the many tender and poignant moments together into a tightly wound drama that never, for a second, stumbles in its pace.
At the heart of Dìdi is Izaac Wang, who delivers one of the finest child performances in recent memory- so alive to every single turn and beat this restless beast of a film challenges him to. Still, Dìdi shines the brightest when Sean Wang's script carefully examines the sidelined reality of this child's mother. Her story is universal too. As Dìdi and Vivian's mother, Joan Chen is utterly unforgettable as the protective parent who was also a woman. One who dreamed of becoming an artist. One particular scene where she musters up the courage to show Dìdi a painting she has made to send to a national competition -only to be rebuked by him- hits like a sudden, unexpected storm. Wang hangs for a few seconds on what she has drawn. It tells you everything you need to know about her.
Will Dìdi make new friends? Will he learn for the better? By the end, you know he will be just fine. And if not, there's always home. He's a boy who will soon be a man, one who will hopefully start to love himself a little more as the world around him changes. We start to love him too- but from a distance, which is perhaps best.
Santanu Das is covering the Sundance Film Festival 2024 as part of the accredited press.
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