Always Be My Maybe (2019)
First-time feature director Nahnatchka Khan scores nicely in her first feature directorial duty, after a few notable production efforts on television, including the hit, “Fresh Off the Boat”, with Always Be My Maybe (a play off of the Mariah Carey hit, “Always Be My Baby”, which appears in the end credits), which reunites her with the star of her TV show, Randall Park. Debuting on Netflix, it does play like a more laid-back version of a film out in theaters at the time, Long Shot, but with less emphasis on raunchy humor, and more eye toward its blend of rom-com with sitcom fare. Both films feature successful women who’ve soared to the top of their professions to become major recognized figures around the country but find themselves attracted to “ordinary guys” who never grew up, and with whom they find an irresistible connection to someone who understands where they are coming from in a world that only knows them for their public personas.
The main premise is that two childhood friends, Sasha Tran and Marcus Kim, end up consummating their time growing up together as Asian-American teens in San Francisco with their first sexual experience, only to find their friendship has become awkward after going beyond the friend zone. These besties soon drift apart and lose connection as they progress into adulthood, with Sasha hitting the big time by becoming one of the most successful celebrity chefs in Los Angeles, while Marcus works by day in his father’s small-scale HVAC company while performing at the same dive bar frequently with the hip-hop group he’s been in since he was a teenager (dubbed “Hello Peril”, a play off of “yellow peril”, which is an old historical term stemming from the fear of East Asians taking over the West). When Sasha going to the opening of one of her posh restaurants in San Francisco, she ends up getting reacquainted with her old friend Marcus and finds him exactly in the same place, driving the same car, doing the same things all these years, while she’s become a jet-setting millionaire. Neither can stand each other’s lives, but they seem to enjoy each other’s company for the time being, and with both stuck in relationships that may not lead anywhere, there’s a “maybe” that develops, even though it seems their different lifestyles can never coexist without someone giving in.
We can see where it’s all going, of course, as one of the most common stories pushed forward in the world of romance is that the one you’re looking for may be hiding in plain sight, and that someone who can be your best friend is more fulfilling than someone who is exciting and great in bed. Shades of When Harry Met Sally will perhaps be the aptest example of the template this film injects into, which won’t surprise fans of stand-up comedian Ali Wong, who had stated several years before her desire to make her own version of that story. However, there’s enough within Always Be My Maybe, which is co-written by the two leads (who actually are longtime friends in real life), to feel fresh and unique on its own. In this case, it’s really about two people who grew up in the same environment having different outcomes, with one living a life completely foreign to anything she had once known and losing her ability to find contentment, and the other clinging so much to his neighborhood that it might actually be keeping him back on happiness just as well.
Much of the humor and allusions within the film are predominantly west coast, from the music performed, to the hipster wardrobe (paying exorbitantly for clothes that look like they were found in the street), to the ridiculous lengths that restaurants go to give their customers the most unique experience possible, with presentation far more important than actually sating one’s hunger (one restaurant give you headphones to hear a recording of the cow you’re about to consume, to give you time to contemplate the circle of life).
Always Be My Maybe is funnier than it is romantic, but it does succeed in the latter by giving us enjoyable and vulnerable characters we come to like, enough to be content with them, perhaps, finding a way to work it out by the end. There is a genuine quality to the character touches that can only come from someone who has lived the life the two leads find a connection to, with plenty of little details about music, movies and Asian-American culture that propels the authenticity, even if the plot in itself is not particularly original or plausible. In addition tot he two endearing lead performances, the supporting cast is strong, with a dreadlock-sporting Vivian Bang a real scene-stealer as Marcus’s eccentric, free-spirit girlfriend Jenny, only to make way to an even bigger scene-stealing appearance by Keanu Reeves, playing a daffy jerk-face version of himself, elevating the persona created by his fans who envision him as a man of deep thought mixed with macho bravado, yet still caught up in his own celebrity, embracing the absurdness of increasingly upscale lifestyles.
With wit, charisma, and a few unexpected comedic turns, Always Be My Maybe successfully avoids sinking in the morass of rom-com tropes thanks to a game cast, clever writing, and some funny (and catchy) original Bay Area-style rap songs in the mix (one worth sticking through the beginning of the end credits to hear to completion). The fresh writing and comic performances are the keys to making this work, with Khan knowing enough to just let it happen, film it, and try not to do too much as a director to distract from the performances delivering the goods in front of the camera. Perhaps due to Khan’s experience, the film does feel like it is shot as a made-for-TV production, though, given that it is being made for Netflix on a modest budget, it’s not entirely a bad thing that the film isn’t shot to look best for a big screen showing. Unlike the fancy-schmancy restaurants depicted, this one’s not trying to wow you on presentation so much as to deliver a familiar, satisfying meal in a comfortable setting.
Qwipster’s rating: B+
MPAA Rated: PG-13 for sexual content, drug use/references, and language
Running Time: 101 min.
Cast: Randall Park, Ali Wong, James Saito, Michelle Buteau, Vivian Bang, Keanu Reeves, Daniel Dae Kim, Karan Soni, Casey Wilson
Director: Nahnatchka Khan
Screenplay: Michael Golamco, Randall Park, Ali Wong