Have you seen Better Luck Tomorrow?

I thought it was pretty horrible, and didn't do anything for Asian-Americans at all despite the way people were talking about it.
 
I thought it was a decent movie but not sure why it got all the buzz it had. Kids running amok and doing stupid/illegal/dangerous shit. The only difference was this time the kids were Asian.
 
Yea I saw the movie. Sadly I had some kind of "gangster phase" back then and saw how some of the stuff they did was bad ass- type and I could "relate" back then. But really it's not that great. If I wanted to watch asian actors messing around with shit, I'd go watch some real foreign films instead. That's just my thought.
 
When it first came out, I was in high school and my HS was basically all Asian kids. So of course everyone talked about how good it was. Couple years later, finally watched it when it was on TV and it was decent, nothing to rave about. A little overhyped IMO.
 
eh i thought it was ok. i too had that phase and i had friends that tried to pull scams like they did..but the gun and the murder plan waws a little over board....i still would like to buy that dvd...
 
man dat movie was dumb! but I knew one guy who loved it,

he was like

"omg that movie was so powerful! I mean I like how one guy was like 'so what is it you want' and the other guy was like 'man... I just wanna live'. it toally moved me!"

pffft yeah rite!!
 
[quote name='1SwtDeception']Yea I saw the movie. Sadly I had some kind of "gangster phase" back then and saw how some of the stuff they did was bad ass- type and I could "relate" back then. But really it's not that great. If I wanted to watch asian actors messing around with shit, I'd go watch some real foreign films instead. That's just my thought.[/QUOTE]

Haven't seen it but I think it's nice that Asian-AMERICAN actors were able to find work with it in the States instead of having to work overseas in the countries their parents or grandparents were from. Jeez I mean GOD forbid people who speak English and who are born here should be able to make a living acting here.
 
My point was taken about the plot. It's great Asian-AMERICAN actors are in the American movie biz, but the roles aren't taken seriously? Well some people.. would find it moving. Yea they all have to start someplace, but I didn't like the movie.. not really about the focus on actors.
 
I'm gonna hafta agree w/ 1SwtDeception. Speaking as an Asian, it's nice to see my fellow cohorts getting their due exposure. That said, the movie itself wasn't that great. I saw the pressures they go through but I saw the movie w/ a few of my friends of immigrant european parents (Russian, Serbian, & German if you're wondering). They said that it reflected the pressures they were going through as well so I don't think it necessarily reflects on Asian-Americans alone.

At the time of the movie's release, being asian was a trendy thing to be - reflected in the mannerisms, fashion styles, etc. but at the core of it all, had you replaced all the actors using children of immigrant euros, it probably wouldn't lose much in the way of translation/impact. The only difference would be their ethnicity.

The reason it gets so much attention is that Asians are still not integrated into the American psyche as much as, say, black people or latinos. This is reflected in the media I've watched over the years. Watching shows such as Good Times & the Jeffersons and recently Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, as well as the mainstream acknowledgement of stereotypically black culture such as gangsta rap you can see the evolution of social acceptance black people have in America. What are asians mostly known for? Chop-socky kung fu flicks or foreign film. You'll get the occasional asian in shows like star trek or Lost but they're the exception, not the rule. Even moreso, if anyone is willing, count how many asian males vs. females are in vivid exposure in american entertainment. You'll see far more females being allowed into a wider selection of roles than males since they have exotic appeal which caters to the all-important 18-35 demographic. How many males can/have you seen in roles that didn't involve using a martial art or tuning up a Civic? Very few. I don't think it's necessarily america's fault either. I think it's due to asian communities insular' nature. For the most part, asians have lived in homogenous communities and thus hang out predominantly w/ other asians. It's only recently you'll see much more diversity than before because there are more 2nd/3rd gen asians who hang out w/ a wider selection of ethnic friends. I myself hung out w/ all latinos growing up and didn't have any asian friends till college. Even now, I have more non-asian friends than I did before.
 
i believe the story is loosely based on the murder of stuart tay. the murder was huge in southern california b/c it happened in a pretty big asian community.
http://goldsea.com/Features2/Murders/murders2.html (read the part about the "high school killers")

i liked the movie b/c i know a lot of asian latch key kids that lived almost the same life like the kids in the movie (except for the murder of course :lol: ). the script writer did a fantastic job of giving us an accurate portrayal of a lifestyle that is often seen in our high schools. i agree with jaykrue in that it's not just asian americans who are like that, but immigrants from all over the world. many of the people i knew were rich asian kids who lived in a nice apartment in high school, drove bmw's and received a huge allowance from their parents who were still overseas. a lot of these kids are really smart, but they have no boundaries and are spoiled with too much money and free time.
 
bread's done
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