Close Call (2004)

Very disappointing...

So much average

Good concept, poorly executed.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Now, when I say that this is an educational video, I mean that it resembles those god-awful videos that they make kids watch in sex education or in the classroom portion of driver's training, where everything is packaged and contrived in order to illustrate a specific point. Nobody cares if you signal 100 feet or 120 feet or 80 feet before a turn, as long as you do it safely. Nor is any police officer on earth going to pull you over because you turned your brights off 447 feet away from an oncoming car rather than the required 500. Similarly, no kid on earth is going to be at a party with his high school buddies and respond with, "No, I'd better not. It's bad for my health, and I don't want to get involved in any kind of trouble," when his friends say to him, "Say, Jim, wouldn't it just be swell if we passed around a marijuana cigarette or two?"Unfortunately, this movie doesn't know any of that, and it's horribly misguided cast and crew think that they can string together a horizonless array of similar claptrap and pass it off as a lesson on family values and proper child-rearing. Every single scene is ridiculously manufactured, so the movie falls flat on its face because it doesn't ever display the flimsiest scrap of realism. Consider one scene in the film where Jenny and her friends are lounging around on the benches in a local shopping mall, and just before her father walks up to the group and demands to know what is going on, Jenny stonily says, "I am sooo stoned..." When I was in high school, I was a troubled kid, too. I ditched school and drank and smoked and got arrested a bunch of times and hung out with exactly the kinds of kids that are portrayed in this movie. I don't say that because it's cool, just because it happened. And let me tell you this if nothing else, those kinds of kids would not be caught dead in a shopping mall, that's exactly the kind of conformity that they think they are cleverly and originally rebelling against, and is a perfect illustration of how much about troubled kids this movie simply doesn't know. There are countless realistic films that deal with exactly the same subject matter and succeed brilliantly, because the people involved in their productions have lived those kinds of lives and learned the lessons that the accompanying trouble and mistakes carry (see SLC Punk). Consider this, no matter how screwed up your teenage daughter is, she will never ever ever ever fall asleep with potato chips spread all over her face, but this happened in this movie, I suppose in order to illustrate a deepening sense of disconnection and lack of interest in responsibility, not to mention personal hygiene. I point out these specific scenes because they exemplify how every single scene is artificially put on, designed with the heavy and obvious hand of grown adults who see strange behavior in kids and immediately assume the worst. In the false world in which this movie lives, any kid who gets caught with cigarettes or fights with their parents is also having orgies with their drugged out friends, who go on to stash tens of thousands of dollars in heroin in their purse before getting stabbed by some junkie in an alleyway, continuing a chain of events that will lead to attempted suicide. This is exactly the kind of thinking that makes parents and teenagers unable to communicate, because the parents are stupid, just like both of Jenny's are. All of Jenny's mothers lines in the film can be interchanged with "Stop being exactly like me!" and the movie would start making more sense. Secondly, Jenny's behavior is unbelievably erratic. It's not the behavior of a troubled teenager, but a psychotic one. And I don't mean uncontrollable-rebellious-teen psychotic, I mean schizophrenic psychotic. Her behavior changes back and forth so fast from polar extremes that the multiple personalities are clear as day. I have studied abnormal psychology, and I've seen this exact behavior in videos of schizophrenic patients. If you were to take the time to watch the several short video clips that are included on the DVD, you will witness Jenny Lee giving an interview in which she cheerfully reveals that she knows nothing about the lifestyle that she portrayed. She did, in fact, "try beer" in preparation for her role, because she "didn't even know what it was like to be buzzed." Now, if you were to wonder how someone so completely and utterly unqualified for this role managed to be cast, you need only learn that the film was directed by her father, who also horribly miscast his other daughter in the film as Jenny's counselor, and also involved other talentless family members, such as the writer, the equally oblivious Jimmy Lee.That being said, consider the scene where Jenny and her friend decide out of the blue that they like each other's t-shirts, so they decide, in another spectacularly phony display, to strip them off and trade right in front of a bunch of boys in a crowded club, I suppose of the variety that let's in 16- year-old girls, as long as they go topless at some point during their stay. Realistic, right? Or consider the scene where she and her friend (or friends, I forget how many there were) have a sweaty orgy with a bunch of boys (Jenny's line in this scene? "Come on, let's rape these guys!!"). Or how about the one where her counselor (her real life sister, you remember) tells her what an "asian hottie" she is, and that maybe she might do a little porn. Yeah, that's her father behind the camera. The man trying to teach you about family values.

This film really blew me away. I didn't expect anything like it. It was very edgy and unique. The director's style and pace always kept me at the edge of my seat. You never know what to expect. One minute it'll make you cry, and the next it'll make you laugh. I enjoyed every minute of it. The actors were all newcomers, except for Jeff Fahey, and they all were great. I definitely have to have this for my DVD collection when it gets out. I've watched it 3 times already.The story is familiar, but I have never seen it told in this way before. Very realistic and honest. The Asian American aspect of it was so refreshing and gave me a greater insight into the culture and different points of views. I left the theatre breathless and with more appreciation for my family and life overall. I actually called my dad after I watched the movie.There was a mother and daughter watching it together in the audience and they both left the theatre in tears holding hands. It is rare to see a film that touches people in this way. It was a pure joy ride. I laughed, I cried, and actually felt like I was in the movie. I definitely recommend seeing this if you're lucky to get the chance.

Good movie making.The story line actually depicts the lives of many teenagers growing up n the chaotic city of Loa Angeles. Unfortunately so many teens actually live this nightmare with patents working and having no good role models to guild them day to day. The interaction and on-screen chemistry between Annie Lee and Philip Moon give the film a real sense and believability of a true father daughter relationship. Annie Lee's acting is well done, and she has so much potential as she continues to mature as an actress and develops her art.The editing and story line are well integrated and flow smoothly from seen to seen without the sudden shift to other realities found in many other movies of this caliber. It follows the characters lives well and avoids viewer confusion. The move is admittedly long running, but the amount of information only helps the viewer understand the true challenges the characters faced in the movies story line.

Above-average to talented performances are marred by a repetitive script and ponderous pacing and editing. What could have been an interesting hour long after-school special (or, considering its occasionally graphic sex and violence scenes, hour-long cable movie) gets padded with too many of the same reminders that Jenny is a troubled teenager or that David really wants his daughter to succeed in school. Kudos to writer/director Jimmy Lee and his vision to bring his story to the screen, but ninety-four minutes feels a hundred minutes longer. Maybe changes can be made before DVD release to better realize the story.Shining spot: Annie Lee's engaging portrayal of a girl with no sense of direction or goals.