Paul Magne Haakonsen
As a huge fan of the Asian cinema, then of course I jumped at the chance to sit down and watch "So Young" (aka "Zhi wo men zhong jiang shi qu de qing chun") when I got the chance to do so.The movie is very, very slow paced. And that made it quite an ordeal to actually sit through it.This is a movie that really doesn't have much of any appeal of any kind. And it had a rather pointless story to be bluntly honest. "So Young" had a rather good cast, and they all put on some very good acting performances. The characters in the movie were ones that you didn't really care about. Especially the Zheng Wei character was unfathomably annoying and just frustrating to the point of ruining the movie.I gave up after sitting through one hour of this ordeal of a movie. I just couldn't take it anymore.
djbs99
Seeing it as an Indian, with zero exposure to Chinese films or culture, the movie beautifully transcended all cultural barriers. Loved the youthfulness of the movie, though the lead character's ebullient nature was at times a little over the top! The college setting was true to life, not clichéd or hackneyed and the relationships forged also came across as genuine. Enjoyed how the four best friends have been given very distinct personalities. Spoiler: Would have liked to know more about the room mate who gets expelled from college. Really liked the way the different subplots came together in the end and that the director opted to leave an open end. And since it made me feel nostalgic about "falling in love", I'd say the movie has been able to convey romance just right!
vgrass-ph
This movie just turns out to be one of my favorites in 2013. All i know about this movie before watching it is that it is a directorial debut of one of my favorite actress in Chinese cinema Zhao Wei. And her directing did not disappoint. I even wonder if some of those scenes were actual experiences of hers as the scenes were somewhat personal and very real. Its like i'm hearing her emotions through the lenses. I'm so totally impressed with the acting of the female lead and I hope I can see more of her in future movies. Also maybe i'm just a sucker for stories about youth and first love. Plus the movie deals with architecture which is the field i'm currently in thereby making the film more engrossing to me. That kissing scene where in the girl just opens her eyes in order not to forget the moment and the dolphin scene nailed it. Last year i saw a movie called Architecture 101, also about 1st love and architecture but this one is just better. If you want to see idols and cutesy love story then this film maybe is just not for you. I say part of this films effectiveness were the newbie actors and actresses. They made this film felt real. Again hats off to the new director Zhao Wei.
ticalisoul
Zhao Wei's directorial debut, and all I can say is, this was definitely made for a niche audience. To get the true feeling of nostalgia that this film portrays, you have to be a 70s or early 80s baby who grew up in China. That being said, a lot of IMDb-ers are not Chinese, considering this website was blocked from Chinese internet until very recently.Personally, I thought this movie was good. I am Chinese-American and grew up in California, born in the late 80s, and with that background, I can feel empathetic towards many of the situations in this movie. However, I still feel like an outsider, and the feelings of nostalgia become lost on me, because frankly I've never been through the stuff the movie characters have. I went through the American education system. College consisted of drinking, smoking weed, frat parties, raves, and the occasional library session. Chinese universities are just so vastly different, you can probably imagine what it must be like for them, but that's it, you can only imagine.Overall, this movie was well-made, and while some of the acting was stiff by Hollywood standards, it didn't really get in the way of the story. I was able to somewhat relate to this movie because of my culture, but for many foreign movie-goers, the (Chinese) pop-culture references will fly right over their heads. Watch at your own risk.
AD
