MOVIE REVIEW: Why Am I Doing This?

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MOVIE REVIEW: Why Am I Doing This?

POSTED: Friday, October 9, 2009, 2:00 PM

Filed Under: Movies | Film Fest Movie Review

Why Am I Doing This? screens as part of the 2009 Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival.

Lester Niles (Anthony Montgomery) is a small-time black comedian who's not black enough, while his roommate and best friend Tony Chang (director Tom Huang) is a small-time Asian actor who's not Asian enough. Both have mildly turbulent family lives and their own whiney problems with the ladies. They suddenly get big career breaks and their dream girls in the same day, but race soon impedes their progress, prompting an agonizing 45 minutes of moping around. The stale eyeball close-up scenes are interspersed with Lester's karaoke music video and a couple of Tony's Zach Morris-style time-out interludes, both serving as weak comic relief for even weaker emotional tension.

Why Am I Doing This? needs to decide whether it's a comedy or tragedy. It's frustrating when you can't empathize with the characters onscreen; they laugh and cry, while we don't. The basic plot is decent but the constant voice over narration defends the trite humor with defeatist, momentum-stifling disclaimers.

Why Am I Doing This?, Sun., Oct. 11, 3:15 p.m., $5-8, Ibrahim Theater at International House, 3701 Chestnut St., 215-387-5125, phillyasianfilmfest.org.

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