I never planned on seeing Ping Pong Playa, but it became one of those films that I heard people talking about in between sleeping, screening and eating. I think Jen from Rotten Tomatoes was the first one to mention it to me. Not that she had seen it, just that she had heard good things. So in between two screenings last night I was able to jet over and catch a viewing of Jessica Yu’s ping pong sports comedy. The only way to describe Ping Pong Playa is to play the Hollywood executive game: “It’s Karate Kid meets Bad News Bears but with Ping Pong” And even then, you have no idea what the film is about.
It’s a lower budget fictional indie film (yes, Jessica Yu has made her transition from documentaries to fictional cinema) about Christopher “C-dub” Wang (Jimmy Tsai) a young man full of excuses and failed basketball dreams. He lives at home with his highly accomplished older brother, a ping pong champion, his mother who teaches ping pong lessons, and a father who operates a ping pong shop. Everything is connected. The neighborhood children are sent to lessons because of the champion brother, and the ping pong shop earns based on local sales. So when C-dub’s brother and mother are injured in a car accident, Chris must step up and teach ping pong while he gets up the nerve to compete for the coveted Golden Cock in the California ping pong championships.
Cute is the first word to come to mind, but it’s more than that. A chuckle-fest with a unique sense of humor not found in Hollywood films. I wish there were more filmmakers making movies with Asian American culture and actors in this country. I thought that Justin Lin, who was responsible for Better Luck Tomorrow, would be the one to take the asian american film to the mainstream. But instead he has chosen instead for a paycheck (Fast and the Furious Tokyo Drift?) over art. I now hope that Jessica Yu might be the person to take on this role in American cinema. With the right budget, I have no doubt that she will be able to make an incredible film. I don’t know how much money was invested in Ping Pong Playa, but it doesn’t seem like much, and just look at the results.
/Film Rating: 7 out of 10
September 15th, 2007 at 11:53 am
I’m so jealous that you saw this after telling you about it and missing it myself at TIFF. At least I know that my desire to watch it was justified…and hey, thanks for the shout out! Peter S. rocks!
September 17th, 2007 at 10:45 am
justin lin has made a film that went to the mainstream, it’s called BETTER LUCK TOMORROW. Also, his new film (with an Asian American cast) is coming out in theaters in October. it’s called FINISHING THE GAME. i saw it at Sundance and really loved it. Hopefully with films like his and Jessica’s we’ll see more Asian American films made in the mainstream
September 19th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
i really liked Finishing the Game and want to see Ping Pong Playa. the company that made Better Luck Tomorrow and the other two films are the same one- Cherry Sky Films- they might make a mainstream Asian American film since they’ve been making all of these films.
September 21st, 2007 at 1:41 pm
geez, take it easy on Justin Lin. Like Chanel mentioned, after FF3 he went completely indie with FINISHING THE GAME. And what is your hang up with getting paid for making films? There’s a little thing that you might have heard about called FOOD, DEBT, TAKING CARE OF YOUR FAMILY.
There is nothing wrong with directing for money. Do you have any idea how hard it is to be an indie filmmaker? Can’t expect him to struggle through life just to satisfy your love of indie/art films.
September 21st, 2007 at 2:46 pm
the definition of Hack is “work for hire”