So Young (2013) User Reviews

Great movie...if you can relate to it

[ticalisoul · 7/10 · 7 May 2013]

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.

A good movie from China

[DogePelis2015 · 6/10 · 21 December 2020]

The romantic plot is good and the interpretations from the actors are fine, I recommend it.

This Laowai really enjoyed it!

[michaelmontero · 8/10 · 7 October 2013]

I actually saw this movie during a flight to Shanghai and really enjoyed it. Award winning Chinese actress/singer Zhao Wei makes her directorial debut in "So Young" and does a fine job. Most of the actors are newcomers, which I found refreshing. Lead female Yang Zishan's performance was great and I expect she will be a successful working actress for years to come.

I won't write any spoilers or plot lines, but only say that this film simply deals with life - friendships, relationships, love, loss, the decisions we make in our youth and how those decisions shape our adult lives. These things are universal; one need not be Chinese to enjoy this picture. As an American, I found it to be wonderful.

So Young, so what?...

[paul_haakonsen · 3/10 · 9 June 2018]

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.

A fantastic, masterful directorial debut by Zhao Wei, this film is fearless, delirious, tender and full of heart-warming nostalgia

[moviexclusive · 8/10 · 8 June 2013]

If you grew up watching Pretty in Pink (1986) and all those brat pack era college movies, it's likely a sign of being over-saturated with the by-products of Western acculturation. Truth be told, it's not often that we think of what high school life must be like, for the Chinese, and this film shows their many travails and hopes in the springtime of youth.

In the vein of these coming-of-age college dramas, and portraying the excitements and tribulations of teenage romance in a much better way than the faux-hit that was the Taiwanese Cape No. 7 (2008), Zhao Wei makes her directorial debut with So Young.

More commonly known as the titular feisty, spunky princess of the popular Huan Zhu Ge Ge series, Zhao Wei has her character imprinted deep in this film. Originally approached by Xin Yiwu,the author ofTo Our Youth that is Fading Awayto play the lead role, Zhao Wei eventually turned down the acting role to direct the movie.

The first 30 minutes of So Young is a hilarious joyride as the camera moves through the seedy, hormone-charged hysteria of the Chinese college hallways. As the audience are given a taste of college dorm life in China through numerous campus shenanigans, we are introduced to the different characters, their relationships and dynamics. It's often the interesting and varied people we meet at school that stay on in our memories, and the fresh cast, made up of many first-time actors, brings tons of character into their different roles. The hot- tempered, boyish Xiao Bei (Liu Yase), demure Ruan Guan (Jiang Shuying), and bookish Chen Xiaozheng (Mark Chao) are but a few who make up the colorful cast. The film scores high in this aspect, evident from the heaps of delight and reactions from an ostensibly amused audience.

Yang Zishan, the actress who plays the lead character Zheng Wei, that uncannily sounds like "Zhao Wei," is the star of the movie with her thoroughly loveablespirited, cheeky, girl-next-door demeanour. Her loud, curt airs are uniquely paired with a vulnerable naïveté that steals the show in a moving climax of the film.

Partly-inspired by her experiences living in a Chinese college dorm, Zhao Wei portrays these spaces in the film as hothouses for academic excellence, but also the fertile, experimental grounds for teenage angst, passion and innocence. For the parts which could have potentially tipped into the realm of "cheesy," Zhao ingenuously turns them into slapstick laughs. She proves to be quite the savvy producer as well, adding in interesting bits such as the cameo of a popular mainland singer as a radio DJ with a late-night Aunt Agony talkshow, and a side story with a very cathartic payback scene involving Xiao Bei.

Many years later, with the shift into adulthood, most of the characters will lose the spunk of their youth. When once they wore their hearts on their sleeves, they have now matured, or rather, become jaded with the harsh realities of life and having to be responsible for themselves and others. Poignantly, one of the film's deeper themes revolve around this resignation, and the bitter realisation of what it means to live "successful" lives and the sacrifices it takes to achieve this lie. It is here that the warm, dreamy hues of young adolescence fade into a cold, sombre grey that characterises a subdued adulthood. It is a stark transition, manifest in the mise-en-scène, and critiqued by many for causing a sudden sag in pacing. Yet, this is where I think the film truly excels, in not only being able to spin the audience wild with its characters' carefree insouciance early on, but to also portray the heart-wrenching life-changing moments that they experience growing up.

To add to the free-spirited, whimsical tone of the film, ice queen Faye Wong lends her vocals to the theme song of the film, "To Youth."But be warned, however, watching So Young will have you strongly yearning for your youth.

Zheng Wei fell in love with a guy she hated initially, only to be dumped...

[tiffanyyongwt · 9/10 · 4 June 2013]

This movie reminds me of the movie "You Are the Apple of My Eye. Nope, they are not similar in plot, but in the setting. Both are about school days, staying in hostel, growing up, lost time and youth. In fact, if you take a close look, there are certain angles where Zheng Wei (Yang Zishan) resembles Michelle Chen.

So if you are a fan of the "Apple of My Eye" movie, I am sure you will love this movie too. Although, I prefer So Young. Perhaps it is because they didn't end with the characters marrying to someone else. I like how there were many surprises in the movie, despite it being a romantic comedy. The little "magical effects" where stories like Princess and the Pea, Cinderella, the Little Matchgirl were added in, making the 80s setting a little dreamier.

You will hear a lot of laughter during the movie, not because it is comedic, but how everyone can actually relate to the humor in the film...

More photos at http://tiffanyyong.com/2013/06/05/so-young-movie-review/

Engaging, moving romantic drama. Beautifully captures the flush of first love

[djbs99 · 8/10 · 3 April 2015]

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!

Growing up in the university and beyond

[magnoliacream · 8/10 · 24 November 2020]

"So Young" is an appropriate title for this movie about a group of university students, but mostly about a girl, Zheng Wei, who, even several years later, still has a lot of growing up to do.

The character I like most in this movie is Zheng Wei's boyfriend, Chen Xiaozhen. He kept growing. Though he didn't like her childish, scandalous, stalkerish behavior at first, he learned to love her. He might have been materialistic which was pretty evident from their first meeting when he pushed her to save his project, but he realized later on that success at the cost of failure as a person is not worth it. He came from a poor background so he wanted to better himself and not inflict his poverty on the one he loves. If he had a more supportive, less selfish girlfriend, she would have been happy with the opportunity that came his way. Instead, his too-full-of-herself girlfriend would have a hard time forgiving him for not putting her above everything else.

I love the open ending. If they get back together, it would mean she has grown up and has shed off that "I should matter the most in your life" mentality. If they don't, there's hope he would find a girl more worthy of his affection and dreams. However, as I think over the last few minutes of the film right now, the ending might not be as open as it seems at first, once Zheng Wei finds out what Chen Xiaozhen told the dolphin trainer... But then it begs the question, why didn't he go ahead with his plan? So yeah, open-ending...

A movie that presses all the right buttons.

[vgrass-ph · 8/10 · 24 November 2013]

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.

Sweet and entertaining

[imuckenschnabl · 8/10 · 28 November 2019]

A very good coming of age movie. Definitely worth watching! Great acting ,good script. Enjoyable