Test Please (2025) is each bit as enjoyable as its premise makes it out to be. Written and directed by Shane Chung, the brief movie is a couple of Korean and a Korean-American duking it out over who will get the consideration of paying the invoice after a deliciously filling bout of KBBQ. Brief, candy, and to-the-level, this brief packs a wallop of a punch whereas doling out most hilarity. For followers of motion, notably those that love ’90s Hong Kong cinema, Test Please is simply what the physician ordered to fill the motion void in your coronary heart.

Set in a comfortable restaurant area, the brief focuses on Jay (Richard Yan) and Su-bin (Sukwon Jeong), two colleagues ending up their dinner. The dialog primarily focuses on the meals, although refined jabs are made by Su-bin concerning the high quality of the meals (made by Yankees, because it have been, per his phrases). This units up the battle surrounding Korean American identification from the bounce for Jay. Nonetheless, an ideal alternative arises when the verify arrives. Who can be paying?

What ensues is a battle that, actually, I think about a few of my pals having, however as an alternative of it being inside their minds, it performs out on full show in Test Please. The battle is dramatic, with the psychological and bodily battle between Jay and Su-bin reaching escalating ranges of depth as their desperation grows. The battle choreography is nicely-completed, with sound results paying homage to these ‘90s martial arts motion pictures, punctuating each the hilarity and seriousness of the state of affairs between the 2.

Simply when Jay will get the higher hand, a second of seriousness happens, the place Jay’s frustrations boil over. If there may be something to complain about throughout this second, it’s that the sound may have been clearer, permitting for a greater understanding of what he was saying. However that’s actually a nitpick contemplating the remainder of the bundle.

Test Please delivers infectious, motion-packed enjoyable.

Additional including to the humor is the bored restaurant employee within the background, implying that this sort of shenanigans performs out on the common. The distinction between her blasé angle whereas ready on the register in comparison with the frenetic, excessive-octane preventing between Jay and Su-bin is what transforms this second into comedy gold. This, and the way often the 2 get the higher hand on each other, retains viewers laughing and questioning who is definitely going to return out on prime.

This again-and-forth dance continues till the very finish of Test Please, taking the viewers on an adrenaline-stuffed journey. This guessing sport is a part of the enjoyable of this brief, by no means relenting on who’s the true winner till the very finish. At all times bear in mind, in the event you assume you may get away with paying for the invoice, the opposite particular person will at all times discover a approach to return the favor whenever you least count on it. Often, simply as you guys arrive at no matter restaurant you’re going to.

Sure, I’m giving freely commerce secrets and techniques. No, this received’t provide the higher hand with your pals.

All in all, as an introduction to Shane Chung’s work, Test Please  is a enjoyable, motion-packed journey that makes me curious to know extra. With the information that he’s planning to broaden the brief right into a function, I’m additionally curious to see how the story will evolve and develop. Because it stands, Test Please is a hilarious romp that can have you ever wanting extra.

Test Please performed as a part of the 2025 Fantasia International Film Festival.

Learn extra of our Fantasia protection right here.