54
Metascore
24 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 70Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzArizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzThere's a lot of promise here, all over the film, and not just with Takahashi and Paige. Fans of "Fresh Off the Boat" know that Huang can be funny (though he didn't like it). It's nice to see him stretch out into more dramatic territory, even if he's not quite on as sure footing there. Certainly "Boogie" makes you want to see what's next.
- 70The Hollywood ReporterInkoo KangThe Hollywood ReporterInkoo KangIt’s a solid first film, with a firm grasp on its melancholy but romantic tone, which never gets in the way of its propulsive momentum.
- 70Screen DailyTim GriersonScreen DailyTim GriersonSometimes marred by plot contrivances, Boogie works best when it breaks free of cliches to deliver an honest portrait of the struggles to attain the American dream.
- 70Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangLos Angeles TimesJustin ChangBoogie tries to appreciate its own contradictions, and also to complicate the audience’s expectations. It positions Boogie as an underdog of the underrepresented, a potential breakout star in an arena where the odds are stacked against him. But it also resists the temptation to turn him into an easy emblem of success, while neatly sidestepping the feel-good uplift and predictable, reconciliatory outcomes that tend to hold sway in the sports-movie genre.
- 58The Film StageJared MobarakThe Film StageJared MobarakLuckily the familial and personal stuff has the strength to stick in our heads when the battle on the court fades because the work the actors put in is effective.
- 50San Francisco ChronicleChris VognarSan Francisco ChronicleChris VognarBoogie has some hops. But its all-around game could use a little work.
- 50VarietyNick SchagerVarietyNick SchagerBoogie is most assured when focusing on specific Chinese American routines, rituals and mindsets, yet it falters when crafting its larger portrait of Boogie’s predicament. Huang’s script routinely indulges in leaden exposition to get its message, as well as character details and dynamics, across.
- 42The A.V. ClubNoel MurrayThe A.V. ClubNoel MurrayIn basketball terms, it’s not just that Boogie’s a star player who never passes the ball. He also rarely shoots. He mostly just stands in one place, listlessly dribbling.
- 25Slant MagazineSteven ScaifeSlant MagazineSteven ScaifeThe film’s characters hardly possess a sense of a history or an interior life to adequately convey racism’s psychic toll.