Film Review Friday: ‘Boogie’ (2021)
Eddie Huang’s debut film ‘Boogie‘ hit theaters last Friday, March 5th. I came into the theater with high hopes for the film and left with mixed emotions towards it. It’s a coming-of-age sports film with a plot similar to dozens of sports films before it. The character Alfred “Boogie” Chin (Taylor Takahashi) is an arrogant hotshot who has the talent to lead his team to success, if he could overcome his enormous ego and act like a team player. He dreams of someday playing in the NBA, but he must first land a scholarship at an elite college to begin that journey. He deals with the pressure that many teen athletes face, with parents with different views about what’s best for their son, on-court rivals and a girlfriend who unlocks emotions in him that he has never felt before. The only difference between Boogie and the protagonists of other basketball films is he’s an Asian-American.
This difference allowed for worlds to collide and for many Asian-Americans, it was something reflective of our own lives. As an Asian-American myself, the thought of a film set around a Chinese athlete BORN & RAISED in the United States excelling in sports had me anticipating the movies release the day Eddie Huang announced it’s production. The plot was there but the execution was not.
The majority of the film feels stale and under thought. There were numerous times in the film that the plot seemed scattered and many scenes seemed like they didn’t belong. This could be due to the fact of the passing of Bashar Jackson, better known as Pop Smoke, before filming ever wrapped up. Pop Smoke plays Boogie’s high school rival Monk. The role of Monk could have been recasted, but I find Eddie Huang’s decision to keep Pop Smoke as Monk admirable. It wasn’t an easy task keeping him in, but it was a great way to honor a talented young man taken away from us too soon.
There is little dialogue between the two characters and the way the film set the rivalry was rather awkward, with Boogie watching Monk from a distance with no interaction as he plays pick-up basketball games. In fact, many of the scenes had Boogie choosing staying silent over speaking up and standing up for himself, something that “high school big shots” excel at doing.
The film excelled in displaying Chinese culture and how first generation Asian-Americans live with the pressure of bettering their families. Boogie is not the average “model minority” asian many Americans are accustomed to and that’s what brings him his charm. He is the product of when Urban and Chinese culture collide. He listens to rap, talks with no remorse and lives his life in a way that breaks the asian stereotype. In the film, Eddie Huang makes it a point that asians in America have been reduced down to “Beef & Broccoli”, when we are so much more than that.