John Apple Jack

Heart. That's all there is. Heart.

This "movie" was tough. On the surface, it's not that good. It's too convoluted, underwritten, not that funny and while it has the right goals, it misses its mark. And yet...it's very, very hard not to give it the absolute benefit of all the doubts.

Each and EVERY cast member had the aforementioned HEART. Everyone gave their 110% and I couldn't help but truly admire that. They all tried, they all believed and end of the day, they made the movie they wanted to make. This has to be a very low budget it with a crew trying to make a genuine movie. You just have to give it to them. They succeeded. Even when the script really didn't.

Obnoxious, rich-family Johnny has it all, thanks to his wealthy family dynasty of restaurants. He surely takes advantage of all his family bestowed him until he asks for it all to be taken away. Soon he learns, life has to be earned, not given and his long-time friend who has a life-long crush on him might teach him a thing or two about true love.

Seriously, the script is awful. The dialogue was meh and the direction was film-schoolish. The movie is truly saved by the cast that really set out to make a light-hearted rom-com about two lost-souls who were truly meant for each other despite the obstacles they put in front of each other. And this only succeeded because of the actors.

Admittedly, I did laugh at times and I did absolutely tear up in the last act, despite it not really proving to be what it should've ended up being in more experienced hands. So, bravo. They did their job and I absolutely praise this cast and crew for really giving it their all.

For film students and for those yearning to make a break into cinema, this is a good watch. I love to see this many passionate actors really, really trying. It's inspiring.

***

Final Thoughts: Okay, okay...I'm a sucker for cute Asian actors and that's one of the reasons I selected this movie to see from Prime. And yes, he's (Kent S. Leung) is absolutely breathtaking. He was also a good actor - for what he was provided here. Glad to see his career flourished and he's still continuously acting since this movie to this day.

I'm going to be completely honest... I'm a black man and I thank GOD there weren't any black men in this movie (at least the first 30 mins I could stomach). The stereotypes, fetishization, and racism towards the Asians was ridiculous! Like my face was seriously frowned up and I cringed so much from the acting! Nothing made sense and there was no plot! No point and no purpose. Like... Everyone else summed it up so I'm not going to spend time on this. If I can give lower than a 0 on this I would. Like they would have to owe me in order to watch this garbage dump of a movie. Smh... Just have someone run over your foot with a car. It'll be way better than sitting through this mess.

This is just plane horrible. It completely fetishises Asians on so many different levels. So the Asian mother just has to have a ridiculous accent? The Asian boy toy of course just has to be so feminine and slutty. Chinese guys just have to be sexually repressed and only has responsibility in their life and finally, it is another white guy's opportunity to be the savior.Asian gay men, just like Asian women become this projection of stereotypical infatuated loyal husband that loves the white guy for 20 years, and whatever stupid thing the white guy has done the Asian guy will just always take him back. All the talk about Chinese food is just infuriating, the western-centric assumption of "westernizing Chinese food". This movie is practically a hate crime against Chinese.Why is this even legal on the market.

(I'm going to say this review contains mild Spoilers but little not already mentioned or strongly alluded to in the opening description)This movie had such potential but ultimately made little sense. Even the brief description is wrong. John (the playboy) was JACK's boyhood crush not vice versa. The characters were wildly inconsistent at times, at least in part, to be humorous. But mostly it is just annoying and didn't make sense. For example, the father fires John from the family company, cuts him out of everything completely and but by movie's end all is well. They never showed how this transition came about. It was never explained why Jack had a crush on John for TWENTY years. Or whether he had any boyfriends in the meantime or why he would wait so long. Why did John fall madly in love with Jack after almost ignoring him 20 years? No answers in this film. Most unfortunate - why did they cast the gorgeous hunk "Paul" only to give him such a small part? Would have loved to see him in a Speedo swimsuit.

The best thing about this movie is the trailer, which promised a light, silly, and cute gay comic romp. It is actually a tragedy, a trite & tedious concept that plods so insipidity that it is a tragic waste of the viewer's time. Nice camera work & pleasant soundtrack, though.