'In Waves' Review: Stunning Animation Can't Save a Clichéd Coming-of-Age Story
By
Kate Erbland
19d ago· 6 min readenReview
100/100
Golden Brown
Bagelometer↗
Hand-rolled, kettle-boiled, baked to perfection. Worth every minute at the bakery.
Score100TypereviewSentimentnegative
Summary
A review of Phuong Mai Nguyen's animated film "In Waves," based on AJ Dungo's graphic memoir. The film tells the story of shy teenager AJ who falls in love with a surfer girl with a terminal illness. While the animation is praised as beautiful and emotional, the review criticizes the narrative as clichéd and familiar, ultimately failing to deliver the emotional impact its visuals promise.
Key quotes
· 3 pulled'In Waves' features beautiful, emotional animation, but is bogged down by its clichéd story of a man coming of age by falling in love with a dying (surfer) girl.
Phuong Mai Nguyen's adaptation of the graphic memoir of the same name is stunning to see, much harder to truly feel.
Ostensibly set in Los Angeles (although the local geography is wonky as hell), the film is largely told from the point of view of shy, artistic teenager AJ.
Cannes: Phuong Mai Nguyen's adaptation of the graphic memoir of the same name is stunning to see, much harder to truly feel.
