Review: Cha Cha Real Smooth
A man who works as a bar mitzvah party host strikes up a unique friendship with a young woman and her teenage daughter.
Cooper Raiff, Dakota Johnson, and Vanessa Burghardt
The unofficial sequel to Cooper Raiff's stunning directorial debut, "Cha Cha Real Smooth" takes everything we loved about Shithouse and elevates it. Cooper Raiff has a special ability to really suck you into his films a way many directors can't do for me. Instead of watching a film its like youre watching someones life unfold and every moment is something that needs to be captured.
The young adult time in someone's life is something that is quite malleable. You've reached maturity but in the grand scheme of life you're still fresh and raw. In this film you get to see Andrew take his wins and losses and adapt to them to use again in the future. He finds love, friendship, and heartbreak all in a few days time which is rough on anyone.
Dakota Johnson is utterly fantastic in this film and her and Raiff's chemistry is phenomenal. Everything feels so raw and natural between them and especially with Lola there is so much depth and emotion. On their own Lola and Andrew create a fantastic bond something which is forced to break you at the end of the film.
Being put in a situation where you know you've found who you've always been looking for is and Cooper Raidd captures it to a T. There's one specific scene towards the end of the film that really captures the full theme for me and that letting people go to help them live their best lives.
To perfectly wrap up a film like this is no easy task but the ending is so emotional and so deep. Domino and Andrews scene in the parking lot is easily my favorite scene in the film and one of my favorite scenes across cinema. Them both accepting that they are better off apart is heartbreaking while also being a massive step forward for both of them.
Between this and Shithouse i would say that Cooper Raiff has cemented himself as one of the most talented up and coming directors of our generation. Everything he makes is so gentle and attacked with so much love. It's hard to find flawless films these days but for mr this is one and it's a film everyone needs to watch.
