Some people will do anything for money. Some people will do anything for fame. Some people will do anything for fun. Other will just do anything.

The four lead characters of "Better Luck Tomorrow," an official selection at the Sundance Film Festival now in limited release by MTV films, fall into these four archetypes. The film, Justin Lin's directorial debut, is a black comedy, a new look on an old story, a succuessful and likeable protagonist's fall from grace. It follows four buddies, Asian-American high school students in SoCal who get caught up in a tumultuous rush of drugs, crime, and violence. What starts out as an innocent yet morally-depraved way of making money turns into felony. The climax makes your squirm and bite your lip because by the end of the movie, you're so emotionally involved with the character that it's painful to watch his downfall. The movie ends openly, leaving much room for interpretation. After watching the film turn around so many stereotypes and moral standards, what ending you choose for Ben Manibag, an extremely loveable Parry Chen in his most high-profile role to date, ends up being a judgement on your own character. If you choose the bad ending, then you yourself are morally depraved. But if you choose the somewhat happy ending, then there's hope for you. You're not condemned to burning in hell.

Even though the characters are the ones who made the bad choices that led to their decline, you empathize with them. Justin Lin, chosen as one of Variety's Top Ten Directors to Watch, does of good job of setting up the motive for their crimes. The opening sequence paints a portrait of the quietus and quaintness of suburbia and the stifling boredom it can induce. He expertly conveys the overachievers' conundrum: the need for the rebellion, but the fear of the consequences. They're bored, trapped, need to break loose, but unlike hardened criminals, they have too much to lose. Grades, reputations, college acceptances--too much is at stake for them, but they risk it anyways, for money, fame, fun. "When you're happy," Roger Fan as Daric Loo says, "You want what's left."

There is, of course, the issue of this being a film with a predominantly Asian-American cast. The film deals with this classily, choosing a sardonic and comic portrayal of issues such as affirmative action. "Better Luck Tomorrow," as I've said before, is huge step forward for Asian-American actors, film-makers, and entertainers in general. Just as it was important for blacks in the latter part of the 20th centruy to see people who look like them onscreen, it is important for Asian people now, who are increasingly making up a significant percentage of the population, to see people who look like them onscreen. "Better Luck Tomorrow" is an important film for Asian-Americans. But all issues aside, this is an important film for all teenagers to see, because it carries such a strong warning against succumbing to the temptations of rebelling against suburbia.

The innovative direction, cinematography, and musical underscoring all add up to one racy picture. "Better Luck Tomorrow" slowly grabs you by the collar and doesn't lets go, not until you sit back at the end and watch the credits roll, dumbfounded by the intensity and rawness of the movie.