August 3, 2023
FILM: SHORTCOMINGS
DIRECTED BY: RANDALL PARK
STARRING: JUSTIN H. MIN, SHERRY COLA, ALLY MAKI
RATING: 3 stars out of 4
By Dan Pal
When Crazy Rich Asians was released to great acclaim and box office success in 2018 the thought was that films focusing on the Asian population would finally become more prevalent in American cinema. With very few exceptions (Minari, The Farewell) that hasn’t been the case. Earlier this year there were a record number of Oscar-nominated performances by Asian actors, fueled in part by the huge success of Everything Everywhere All at Once. Now perhaps the tide may really be turning. The indie film Shortcomings, directed by Randall Parks, may contribute a bit to this new wave. It is based on a graphic novel by Adrian Tomine (who also wrote the screenplay) and stars Justin H. Min as Ben, as a twenty-something man struggling with his relationship with Miko (Ally Maki.) Over the course of the film, the couple separates and Ben seeks out other women while dealing with the trials and tribulations of being young, cynical, and single.
Right from the start it becomes clear that the film wants to shatter some of the stereotypes found in typical Hollywood films that center on, in particular, East Asian characters. There’s even a spoof of sorts of the aforementioned Crazy Rich Asians. Since Ben works at a movie theater, there are a lot of discussions about how Asians have been historically depicted in film. Randall Parks and Adrian Tomine make it clear that the reality of the Asian community is far more diverse than our cinematic characters would typically suggest. Ben, of Japanese descent, for instance, has a fascination with complicated white women. His friend Alice (Sherry Cola) is a Korean-American lesbian who hides her sexual orientation from her more traditional parents. There’s even a big discussion about the mystery and fetishism of white men who are attracted to Asian women.
This is the kind of film that feels right at home in the canon of Sundance indie flicks. Characters walk and talk as if they’re in a Richard Linklater or Woody Allen film. There are allusions made to John Cassavettes’ films, Quentin Tarantino, and Noah Baumbach’s Frances Ha. The dialogue is intense and intellectually-minded. The characters talk as if relationships can only be understood if dissected and rolled through the mud several times.
Generally, the characters are well-developed, particularly those that are female. The overall script meanders a bit though as characters and situations come and go as if they are chapters in a graphic novel (which they are.) Finding the common thread then becomes a bit harder to discern. Just what exactly is Ben’s problem with women and, well, life in general? He can’t seem to make much of anything really work for him. The character is fairly interesting but it’s only his Asian-American heritage that makes him different from similar characters we’ve seen in a host of other independent films.
In the end, this is an enjoyable enough romp through one character’s twenties. Its universal appeal may be that people going through that particular decade of life are always trying to make sense out of the dating world and typically struggle with relationships ending and feelings that fresh starts are seemingly out of reach, even for Asian-Americans.
Shortcomings opens this week in limited theatrical release.
FILM: SHORTCOMINGS
DIRECTED BY: RANDALL PARK
STARRING: JUSTIN H. MIN, SHERRY COLA, ALLY MAKI
RATING: 3 stars out of 4
By Dan Pal
When Crazy Rich Asians was released to great acclaim and box office success in 2018 the thought was that films focusing on the Asian population would finally become more prevalent in American cinema. With very few exceptions (Minari, The Farewell) that hasn’t been the case. Earlier this year there were a record number of Oscar-nominated performances by Asian actors, fueled in part by the huge success of Everything Everywhere All at Once. Now perhaps the tide may really be turning. The indie film Shortcomings, directed by Randall Parks, may contribute a bit to this new wave. It is based on a graphic novel by Adrian Tomine (who also wrote the screenplay) and stars Justin H. Min as Ben, as a twenty-something man struggling with his relationship with Miko (Ally Maki.) Over the course of the film, the couple separates and Ben seeks out other women while dealing with the trials and tribulations of being young, cynical, and single.
Right from the start it becomes clear that the film wants to shatter some of the stereotypes found in typical Hollywood films that center on, in particular, East Asian characters. There’s even a spoof of sorts of the aforementioned Crazy Rich Asians. Since Ben works at a movie theater, there are a lot of discussions about how Asians have been historically depicted in film. Randall Parks and Adrian Tomine make it clear that the reality of the Asian community is far more diverse than our cinematic characters would typically suggest. Ben, of Japanese descent, for instance, has a fascination with complicated white women. His friend Alice (Sherry Cola) is a Korean-American lesbian who hides her sexual orientation from her more traditional parents. There’s even a big discussion about the mystery and fetishism of white men who are attracted to Asian women.
This is the kind of film that feels right at home in the canon of Sundance indie flicks. Characters walk and talk as if they’re in a Richard Linklater or Woody Allen film. There are allusions made to John Cassavettes’ films, Quentin Tarantino, and Noah Baumbach’s Frances Ha. The dialogue is intense and intellectually-minded. The characters talk as if relationships can only be understood if dissected and rolled through the mud several times.
Generally, the characters are well-developed, particularly those that are female. The overall script meanders a bit though as characters and situations come and go as if they are chapters in a graphic novel (which they are.) Finding the common thread then becomes a bit harder to discern. Just what exactly is Ben’s problem with women and, well, life in general? He can’t seem to make much of anything really work for him. The character is fairly interesting but it’s only his Asian-American heritage that makes him different from similar characters we’ve seen in a host of other independent films.
In the end, this is an enjoyable enough romp through one character’s twenties. Its universal appeal may be that people going through that particular decade of life are always trying to make sense out of the dating world and typically struggle with relationships ending and feelings that fresh starts are seemingly out of reach, even for Asian-Americans.
Shortcomings opens this week in limited theatrical release.