Bad Genius

A high school thriller that follows Lynn (Callina Liang), a standout high school student, who devises a systematic plan of cheating on exams to bring justice to a rigged system.

Directed by J. C. Lee and co-written by Julius Onah, Bad Genius is a remake of the 2017 Thai film of the same name. A movie that takes the heist framework into the school setting. The original movie was inspired by real events involving a S. A. T. Cheating scandal. A film interested in social commentary about wealth inequality and how success is easier for some few while for most people it is a difficult and long path. Something succinctly put by its protagonist when she was talking about the S. A. T.: "It's a scam, engineered by people with money and sold to other people with money to protect their status." Mei Ling creates a system to outsmart the rigged game, as they think of it, and help not only her schoolmates but also herself and her struggling father.

Bad Genius is engaging from the start, never loses its momentum and it is full of scenes where tension is present keeping you at the edge of your seat. A movie about a reality that easily interpellates most people. A reality that uncovers a truth sometimes best left unsaid, not because it is unknown, but because sometimes forgetting is easier, that people are just a means to an end and relationships are nothing but transactions. Everything is a transaction and everything has a price, even if they hide the price tag.

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.

Loved this movie. It has suspenseful moments where you're on the edge of your seat hoping they don't get caught. But, you're not rooting for the good guys, rather, the students who are cheating who really should be caught. They try to justify their actions by claiming it's a rigged system run by the elite rich. But cheating on tests, so you get into a better college, is just as bad as getting hired because of your ethnicity or social grouping. We also find out that one of the characters who is a "victim of the system" is actually gaming the system themselves as an illegal immigrant.

It ends well when Lynn turns down an offer to make sure she gets into Juilliard when she says "I want to believe I got in because I deserved it."

It does contain a couple of F-bombs which are totally unnecessary. It also reinforces the notion that minorities can't get by without welfare assistance. Overall, it's good entertainment and keeps you guessing what's gonna happen next.

My review should be at the top! As a Chinese American 1st gen. I related a lot. Stern father who made me so hw as soon as I am home. So it is very relatable to Chinese 1st gen girls.

Excellent movie!!

It was good !! I liked it a lot! I am a 1st Gen Chinese American girl in NY & my immigrant Chinese father def drilled college into my life.

So I related to the relationship between her & her father, it reminded me of my father and I.

I thought it was an original story line but I found out it was a remake. For the American version, it woulda been more up to date if it was like a test required to like live or a test to get into this like elite only one like this type of college. (Even magic lol). If the SATs were still important...but I guess even if it's not that big of a deal to colleges, I'm sure it's a big deal to some old school parents / care about ur education parents.

But what am I saying! I enjoyed this movie, I think the plot is original (even if this pertains to the original) - I loved the actors (esp Benedict Wong <3 ) & the actress is a stand out .. looks like a promising young addition to the "Asian Actresses" in the Hollywood community. Love that she speaks Canto.. can see her in future romcom movies & graduating to action films.

The other teen actors/actresses fit your stereotypical hs ppl, actors can be interchangeable , Where unless this replace the whole race of the character is harder to change / stand out?

We need more Asian centric movies!!

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.