A Chinese-American youth was nominated for this year's Oscars with his first feature-length documentary.

Nikita 2022-11-05 14:30:45

The debut feature of British-Chinese director Liu Bing. When I heard the name, I thought it was a story of passionate youth that recorded a few young people working hard for their dreams, but after watching it for less than half an hour, I found that the three protagonists, like me, are trying hard to make their youth not in vain, but Overwhelmed by reality again. Director Liu Bing and his mother were abused by his stepfather since childhood, and he couldn't let go of the shadow of his stepfather's domestic violence; Zach's mother left him when he was two years old, and moved out because he didn't want to obey his father's discipline. Living together with his girlfriend, his girlfriend's unexpected pregnancy made him a father unprepared. Zach, who yearned for freedom, had to give up his favorite skateboards and beer for the sake of his children, and learned to become a mature and stable man. Unfortunately, the good times did not last long, and the burden of reality made Zac lose his patience. He quarreled with his girlfriend over various trivial matters, and even developed into fisting and kicking with his girlfriend Nina; Keir ran away from home because of a quarrel with his father, and skated while working as a waiter in a restaurant. His black identity, his father's stick education, and his mother's one-on-one new boyfriends accompanied his youth. Three teenagers who have been tempered by life gathered together because of their love for skateboarding. In the second half of the documentary, Zach said to the camera that he didn’t want his children to fail like him; Liu Bing and his mother frankly spoke to the camera about the harm their stepfather had done to them at the beginning; Keir knelt in front of his father’s cemetery with tears in his eyes. own voice. They are all trying to find a way to reconcile with life. The pictures at the beginning and end of the documentary where Zach is on his skateboard and zipping down the streets are beautiful. "We didn't grow up on our own will." "When you're a kid, be yourself. Then you lose yourself at some point in the process."

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Minding the Gap quotes

  • Keire Johnson: I feel like life might be moving too fast.

    Zack Mulligan: We have to fully grow up and it's gonna fucking suck.

  • Keire Johnson: It would kind of be like a drug in a way. Like, I can seriously be on the verge of having a fucking mental breakdown, but as long as I'm able to go skate then I'm completely fine.