Better Luck Tomorrow

Name: Better Luck Tomorrow
Genre: Drama, Crime
Released: April 11, 2003
Duration: 101 min
Rating: 67
Cast: Jason Tobin, Parry Shen, Sung Kang

2003

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 32 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 13 Ratings

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7.2

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7.2	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 13 Ratings

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Movie Details & Credits

MTV Films | Release Date: April 11, 2003 | R

Starring: Jason Tobin, Parry Shen, Sung Kang

Summary: The story of a group of overachieving Asian-American high school honor students in a conservative Los Angeles suburb who lead a double life of mischief and petty crimes that alleviate the pressures of perfection. (Paramount)

Director: Justin Lin

Genre(s): Drama, Crime

Rating: R

Runtime: 101 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Roger Ebert

Not just a thriller, not just a social commentary, not just a comedy or a romance, but all of those in a clearly seen, brilliantly made film. Read full review

Sean Axmaker

Lin energizes the grungy palette with stylistic zing, a hopped-up pace and understated humor. His cast carves out vivid characters and the open-ended aftermath takes stock of the moral scarring without moralizing. Read full review

Todd McCarthy

Lin's nicely turned out picture is sometimes both predictable and a bit far-fetched narratively, but still provides a generally absorbing look at a slice of society normally taken for granted, both in life and onscreen. Read full review

Rene Rodriguez

The same premise could have been turned into a satirical comedy, but Better Luck Tomorrow opts for a more corrosive, challenging route, one whose troubling, morally ambiguous ending offers no easy resolution. Read full review

Kim Morgan

A film that merges cocaine, Ivy League, college applications, the Asian American experience, dark comedy and high school drama while maintaining a personal tone and likable lead characters is just too impressive to knock. Read full review

Charles Taylor

Follows a consistently predictable arc. In some sequences, you can tell not just what's going to happen next, but what shot is coming next. And the movie's weird mixture of moralism and affectlessness cancel each other out. Read full review

Scott Tobias

Perhaps the worst thing that could be said about Better Luck Tomorrow is that, on a slow night, it's easy to imagine these delinquents wanting to rent a film just like it. Read full review

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User Reviews

DasP

Jun 27, 2009

A great, accurate movie. the scary part is that I know that myself and my fellow Asians feel Ben's anger and frustration quite often, and sometimes all the time.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

brasd

Apr 3, 2013

The crazy jackrabbit character. Seen it. The smooth criminal operator. Seen it. Stealing stuff easily through an inside job. Seen it. The protagonist that wants out but can't get out. Seen it. Simply a movie that drags itself along by shooting cliche after cliche.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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