Bay City News
It's rare for a filmmaker to score an Oscar nomination for a short and nab two awards for his feature debut at the Sundance Film Festival -- in one year.
Talented rising star Sean Wang did just that and is seeing his shot-in-Fremont "Ddi," winner of the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award and the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Best Ensemble Cast at Sundance, open Friday in Bay Area theaters. The 30-year-old Fremont native deserves all the acclaim he's been receiving for both "Didi" and "Nai Nai & Wi P," his Oscar-nominated short about his sweet grandmothers.
This week, we look at "'Ddi" as well as the excellent immersive documentary "Hollywoodgate"; the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival's "East Bay Big Night" selection; the CatVideoFest and something free for fans of the Peanuts cartoon.
Wang's life as a kid in 2008 Fremont inspired "Ddi," a painfully funny and aware R-rated (due to language) glimpse into the mindset of a 13-year-old skateboarder and nascent videographer in the era of MySpace and YouTube. Chris (newcomer Izaac Wang) so wants to fit in with his East Bay classmates and friends; yet they call him the "coolest" Asian and a white Asian. The ignorant remarks can't help but sting, even if the intent isn't malicious. Wang's feature is filled with identifiable, teen moments such as those with Chris trying to learn to kiss by watching a hilarious YouTube video to his constant feuding at the dinner table with his college-bound sister (Shirley Chen).
My favorite scenes, though, happen between Chris and his unglued, exasperated mother (Joan Chen). Even though the two argue and Chris hurls hurtful words at her, both struggle with the same issue--trying to feel like they belong. Chris' mom, who immigrated from Taiwan, wants to pursue painting and is raising two children alone since her husband works in Taiwan. She also cares for her husband's hypercritical mom (Wang's real-life grandma Zhang Li Hua).
Chen and Wang, excellent portraying awkward and angry at the same time, are terrific in the anger-fueled moments, which are so realistic they make you feel uncomfortable. "Ddi" is indeed the real deal: a sincere, frank but not misty-eyed look at a teen with immigrant parents who's navigating an adolescent world that doesn't necessarily make sense or even allow him to celebrate who he truly is.
Another great find this week is the informative, immersive documentary "Hollywoodgate," a close-up look at what happened just after American troops pulled out of Afghanistan in 2021. In it, director, co-producer and cinematographer Ibrahim Nash'at, an Egyptian, Berlin-based filmmaker, tags along with members of the Taliban military as they take stock of what Americans hurriedly left behind ($7 billion in weaponry, according to the Pentagon) at a vacated American base called Hollywood Gate.
Illuminating the hasty dash to exit Afghanistan, the film shows items from storage bins of medicines and prescriptions to jet fighters and even hacked-to-bits computers and mainframes.
Nash'at's access was limited (and surveyed by the Taliban), but even with those restrictions what he managed to capture is enlightening, illustrating where the Taliban is going and how it took over and retains power.
Nash'at spends the most time with Mawlawi Mansour, who takes command of the Afghanistan air force, and Lt. M.J. Mukhtar, who wants to climb up the military ranks. A scene involving visiting dignitaries is eye-opening as are comments made about women, including how Mansour's wife was told by her husband to stop being a doctor when they married. "Hollywoodgate" opens Aug. 2 at the Landmark Opera Plaza in San Francisco. It also screens, with Nash'at participating in a Q&A at 3:40 p.m. Aug. 3 at the Roxie in San Francisco.
The San Francisco Jewish Film Festival wraps up this weekend with the highly anticipated annual East Bay Big Night. This year, it's Samuel Habib and Dan Habib's documentary "The Ride Ahead." The film chronicles 21-year-old Samual Habib's journey as he talks to disability rights advocates and pioneers--including the late, great Judy Heumann featured prominently in Netflix's "Crip Camp"--seeking advice about how he can avoid feeling isolated and move forward on a path to a fulfilling adult life. Samuel has a rare genetic mutation and uses a wheelchair along with a communication device. "The Ride Ahead," a California premiere, screens at 8:15 p.m. Aug. 4 at the Landmark Piedmont Theatre.
For those in need of cute kitty comfort, there's the purrfect CatVideoFest. As a bonus, the 75-minute compilation with kitties galore, cavorting and doing adorable things, also will make viewers feel good for being charitable. A percentage of the proceeds will go to animal shelters and animal welfare groups. Starting Aug. 3, CatVideo Fest meows its way into the Elmwood Theatre in Berkeley, the Sequoia in Mill Valley and Roxie in San Francisco.
Should you be a Peanuts fan (and who isn't?), Berkeley's Elmwood Theatre is the place to be at 11 a.m. Aug. 3-4. The venerable theater will present two free family screenings of "Bon Voyage Charlie Brown," a 1980 animated adventure in which Charlie Brown and company take a passage to Europe where they visit England and France and get into some G-rated trouble.
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