Leave Your Brain At the Door

ctowyi

I saw the trailer for May Who? during a screening of Our Times, and there is just no way I would see something so silly. But I spoke too soon. Thought it will be fun to catch it with my mom...

Pong is a high-school geek who belongs to a group of high school outcasts known as the "Invisibles", and enjoys letting his imagination run wild by drawing cartoons. May-Who is also one of the "Invisibles" and has an extraordinary secret: an ability to discharge electricity like a Tesla coil. Whenever her heart beats faster than 120 beats per minute her body releases a powerful electricity charge. Pong accidentally learns about this and promises to keep it a secret in exchange for helping each other win over their own high-school crushes.

Doesn't the synopsis sound like Our Times? The essence of it might be the same but both movies are poles apart in terms of execution. There is only one way to watch May Who? - you must leave your brain at the door. My expectations were low and surprise surprise, this teenage rom-com does serve up quite a few solid moments. At times it nearly hits a home run but a downright ridiculous moment will follow up and take the soul away. It's a shame really... it should have trusted us to understand that the electrical charge power is just a metaphor for teenage social behavior awkwardness, but the director decided to milk it too literally. Still, there are some warm moments and I enjoyed the animated sequences, in particular the Roger Rabbit-inspired one at the end. I also like Pong and May's character because they remind me of who I was - socially awkward and non-confrontational. For me, loving someone from a distance is as good as it gets.

There is also something to be said about watching the movie with the right crowd. I was surrounded by teenage girls and their spontaneous and hearty laughter made me accept the outrageous story easily. Sometimes it is good to watch a movie through teenage eyes.

score 5/10

ctowyi 18 November 2015

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3357350/