Bad Genius

Bad Genius blew me away with its unique take on the heist genre. Instead of your typical bank or casino robbery, this film turns the world of academic exams into a high-stakes game, and the results are nothing short of brilliant. The tension is palpable from start to finish, and every scene feels meticulously crafted to keep you on the edge of your seat. I have not seen the Thai movie that it was apparently adapted from but I so enjoy this one that I think I just might try to find it and watch it was well. I always like to compare how the same story is told differently from a different filmmakers point of view.

A wonderful, standalone based-on remake, with so thrilling and intense situations that you could compare it to an academic entrance exam heist. Superb acting by Lynn that drives the whole movie forward. She needed a "friend and partner" as charismatic as she in the name of Banks.

The movie flew well up until their "escape" and after the ending that felt unsatisfying but universally just, we need a more intense sequel with at least three "Callina Liang". She already is a trademark.

• Screenplay/storyline/plots: 7
• Production value/impact: 7
• Development: 7.5
• Realism: 7
• Entertainment: 8
• Acting: 8
• Filming/photography/cinematography: 8
• VFX: 8
• Music/score/sound: 7
• Depth: 6.5
• Logic: 4.5
• Flow: 8
• Thriller/drama: 7
• Ending: 6.

What an interesting film. It's based on a 2017 Thai film with the same name. Supposed the original is such better, but I must say, this version was great. It's sort of a heist thriller, but instead of swiping a pile of money, the thieves are gaming the academic testing world. And, instead of your usual ragtag bunch of con artists, you have a group of high school students.

"Bad Genius" is about a brilliant young Chinese American girl Lynn (Callina Liang) who's received a scholarship to a prestigious school. It's not long until she's befriended by a group of rich white kids who take advantage of her by having her supply them the answers to various exams. Then they take it to the next level by having her figure out how to cheat on the SATs.

It sounds like a boring premise, but believe me it's not. The story grabs you right from the beginning and you'll find yourself rooting for these kids until the end. I though the acting, story, and filming were all fantastic. I just noticed the original movie is streaming on Netflix, so that immediately went into my queue! Looking forward to checking it out.

--MovieJunkieMark.

Bad Genius is a remake of the Thai film of the same name from 2017. This remake was directed and partly written by J. C. Lee. With this remake he makes his directorial debut.

The brilliant, scholar Lynn Kang (Callina Liang) would like to continue studying at a university, but unfortunately she and her father Meng Kang (Benedict Wong) do not have the money for this. In order to get money, Lynn decides to abuse her intelligence and help other students by letting them copy the correct answers for school tests. In return, Lynn is paid by them. With this money she hopes to be able to go to university, but when she is caught for her false actions, she risks her chances of still being admitted.

This more western remake seems to modernize the film a bit, not doing much special than just copying the original version. This remake also seems to have been put together a bit too quickly, so that you do not really get to know most of the characters, so that you do not really care about them. This can make it feel a bit long-winded at times.

Due to the rushed, copied aspects, most of the cast also don't really manage to do anything special with their roles. Benedict Wong comes out best as a caring father, who tries to be there for his daughter despite his financial problems. Unfortunately, he doesn't have such a big role in the film.

Lynn (Callina Liang) is a brilliant student with no family money. His widowed father Meng (Benedict Wong) works tirelessly in his laundromat business. She gets a scholarship to a prestigious Seattle high school. She is befriended by rich girl Grace (Taylor Hickson) who slowly pulls her into the rich kids' world. They recruit her into passing answers to them. Bank (Jabari Banks) is the other smart scholarship kid in their class.

Apparently, this is adapted from a Thai film which I haven't seen. All I know is this movie needs a change in Lynn. I get the idea of a poor innocent Chinese girl being lured into doing bad by a bunch of rich white kids. It would be more fun if she starts the movie doing some scheme to make money. I would even accept a narration where she reads the people around her. She needs to be emotionally smart like she is later in the movie. The first thirty minutes are very standard and rather boring. It's downright uninspired. It takes a long time to get into something interesting. At times, I thought that Banks should be the lead character, but it really should be Lynn... with a change.