Teenage boyhood can be tough, especially in a world where it’s easy to cultivate an online persona that is disconnected from the one you embody in person. Nuclear Boy tackles that formative phase of life through a coming of age story that feels all too relevant to our times. Themes of masculinity and connection have been threaded through great movies such as 1955’s Rebel Without a Cause and 2018’s mid90s, but this film carves out its own space by grappling with how the rise of online culture alters the chemistry of our brains in a way we can’t always grasp.
The film hinges on the performance of Guus Blanken as Aike, a largely ignored teenager fascinated by chemical detonations who feels more comfortable streaming content for his online followers than engaging with the physical world around him. Blanken excels in his first feature role, serving as a stand-in for a generation of young boys who have found themselves isolated, but also feeling unique in his character’s interests and personality. Director Joren Molter finds a very creative way to tell his story, personifying what could have been an invisible internet audience and playing with the way Aike’s online and IRL experiences blur together. It’s all underlined by a subtle but chilling radiation metaphor and an unsettling score from composer Rutger Reinders that at times toes the line of horror. For those seeking to understand the pressures young people face in finding themselves, this is a must watch.
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Writer and director Ballard C. Boyd’s first feature film, Jackrabbit, follows New York City millennials George and Avery (played by Kuhoo Verma and Taylor Ortega, respectively) as they traverse the city searching for their mutual friend Trish (Soojeong Son), who has come up missing. The catch is that George and Avery only just met and have yet to hit it off, so they must learn to navigate each other as they race against the clock to solve the case. Fans of female-led comedy-mysteries such as 2013’s The Heat may find some enjoyment with this film, but it’s unlikely to leave much of an impact.
Things kick off splendidly as the film leans into the comedic back-and-forth banter between the two leads. Verma in particular (who audiences may know from her excellent leading turn in 2021’s teen pregnancy comedy Plan B) shines as a quirky and sharp-tongued transplant to the city who is trying to make a name for herself in the field of journalism. About halfway through, the comedy takes a backseat to the mystery of it all, and the film begins to take itself a bit too seriously. The story beats as the investigation plays out become tedious, and every new twist and turn feels like an attempt to trick the audience instead of building to a conclusion that pays off in a significant way. Had Ballard fully committed to what could have been a wacky ride, Jackrabbit may have stood out as a more effective comedy romp.
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I can’t imagine audiences not falling in love with Isle Child, a thoughtful, tender, and beautifully shot exploration of identity through the eyes of a Korean American teenager who was adopted as a toddler. Si Miller, played by Ethan Hwang, grows up in Boston largely unaware of his background and heritage. That all changes one day when a letter arrives in the mail informing him of his birth mother’s ill health. Suddenly, Si finds himself looking at nearly every experience he has through a new lens, and must reckon with who he truly is.
Hwang carries the film with a performance that is quiet, yet always alive and piercing through the screen. Writer-director Thomas Percy Kim’s dialogue for him is somewhat limited for a protagonist, but he doesn’t need it; his processing of a life he didn’t know he had is prominent in every frame. One of the highlights of the film is Si’s dynamic with Yang (played by The Long Walk’s Ben Wang), a Chinese American student who joins his baseball team. Their interactions are a big part of Si’s identity exploration, and the commentary on differences between distinct Asian cultures was well handled. There are a few meandering plot points in the middle of Isle Child concerning Si’s other teammates and girlfriend that don’t serve his journey as well as they could have. Ultimately, though, the film course corrects in the final act as Si is able to take an important step in connecting with his roots. While the film focuses on a very particular experience, the universal theme of discovering who you are will resonate with anyone.
