rubyn choi

This movie at multiple points made me want to stop watching. Just from that sentence alone, it may sound like I didn’t like the movie. However, that’s not the case at all. I grew up around a similar time in a Korean American home. This movie brought some good and bad memories of that time. I was also a loner. I felt like I fucked everything up. I had horrible grades, kids always seemed to just not like me, and honestly I caused myself the most problems. My coping strategy was similar to Chris. I always projected on my family when things were out of my control outside of home. I’ve come to learn to love my family years later so it’s sort of comforting seeing someone else go through what I went through and learn just as I did. During that time of your life it’s very easy to take the people in your life for granted. This movie also just resonated with me so hard through aesthetic and details. I am also a very big paramore fan and I skated all the time with my friends. Another thing I realized was how annoying teens are. As an adult it’s cringe looking back at how our minds worked and the lack of communication. We become closed off and angsty. I’ve had moments during the movie where I just couldn’t bear to watch because of how close it hit home. All the embarrassment and anxiety. The pacing was a bit off but I thought the writing and acting was phenomenal. The movie didn’t have a happy ending per se. However the movie as a whole did its job telling a story about a confused and lost teen who learns to appreciate and love his mother. That sometimes your life’s meaning is in the people that surround you with love. Chris desperately searches for meaning in life through skating, friends, filming, etc. His mom also shares her thoughts about a fulfilling life and her dreams to be a successful artist. Yet she beautifully tells her son that no matter how much she dreams her life’s purpose is fulfilled by her children. And she’s ok with that.