Shortcomings Review: Park's Debut Aptly Mines Racial Politics For Humor [Sundance]

Shortcomings Review: Randall Park's Debut Aptly Mines Racial Politics For Humor [Sundance] Sundance2023

Shortcomings, based on Adrian Tomine's graphic novel and adapted by the author himself, makes for a strong directorial feature debut by Randall Park. The movie aims to be both an untraditional rom-com and an examination of race relations within relationships, and it manages not to lose focus even if it never rises to greatness. Park bets big in Shortcomings, casting the charming Justin H. Min as a charmless man-child, and the humor mostly hits the spot.

SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY Ben Tanaka is an aspiring filmmaker who spends his time managing an arthouse movie theater rather than working on his craft. He is blessed with a beautiful and rich girlfriend, Miko , whom he openly disdains in favor of white women. Naturally, he is blindsided when she accepts an exciting offer to move to New York instead of sticking around to be second best for him.

To the film's credit, as with the graphic novel before it, Ben isn't meant to be read as a straightforward hero. His very large blindspots are part of the painful process of growing up, and Shortcomings is calculated to make audiences root for that growth throughout. The subplot of Alice finding love with Meredith helps greatly, as it offers real romance to contrast with Ben's almost mercenary relationships.

Shortcomings' biggest flaw is baked into its narrative, because Ben has stooped so low by the end of the film that it's almost impossible to believe he can turn things around in the available runtime. If he does at all, it's thanks to Min being a magnetic performer and to the strength of his heartwarming friendship with fellow problematic fave Alice.

At the end of the day, what matters is that a film like Shortcomings exists, and that Randall Park was given the chance to leave his mark on it. There are nuances to Ben's story that cannot be covered in less than two hours, but all the other elements come together to bring life to his realistically flawed character.

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screenrant /  🏆 7. in US

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