Better Luck Tomorrow (2002)

Directed by Justin Lin. Starring Parry Shen, Jason Tobin, Karin Anna Cheung, Roger Fan, Sung Kang, John Cho, Ryan Cadiz. [R]

Overachieving high-schoolers from affluent families need a release from the pressures to succeed, find it in “extracurricular” activities that include petty crimes; as reckless youths are apt to do, they keep pushing it further and further until it inevitably spirals out of control. Perceptive and provocative low-budget feature only falters in later scenes when the specifics of the gang give way to broader motivations and actions that are representative of a parable’s universality; some of the performances blur the lines between authentic and amateurish. Director Lin’s first solo venture as director (he also co-produced, co-wrote, and edited), better known now as the director of several entries in the Fast & Furious franchise. Kang even plays a character who later had a recurring role in the action series, making this almost a…spinoff prequel before the fact? One of the high school teachers is played by none other than the Beaver (a.k.a. Jerry Mathers).

76/100