Don’t Make Me Go Movie Review: John Cho and Mia Isaac’s Road-Trip Film Features An Endearing Start, But A Highly Polarising Ending (LatestLY Exclusive)

Don’t Make Me Go Movie Review: “You won’t like how this story ends,” says Wally Park (Mia Isaac) in the first few lines of Don’t Make Me Go of the film. In a general sense, you would think “Oh, this is meant for the characters of the movie,” but rather it just sets you up for the inevitable disappointment that’s going to hit you in the third act. Thor Love and Thunder Movie Review: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman's Marvel Film is a Bumpy Ride With Occasional Sparks of Taika Waititi Charm (LatestLY Exclusive).

Directed by Hannah Marks and written by Vera Herbert, Don’t Make Me Go is a road-trip dramedy starring John Cho and Mia Isaac. With Max Park (John Cho) discovering that he has a terminal disease and with only a year of life-expectancy left, he takes his rebellious daughter Wally Park on a road-trip across the United States of America to reunite her with her estranged mother. Along the lines, some life lessons are being taught as well where we see both the father and daughter bond over the course of the story.

After that aforementioned opening line, we are directly thrusted off into a cold opening that takes place on nudie beach where Max and Wally are appalled by the sight they see. In a moment there I thought “Okay, we are opening in the middle of the movie, there will be some payoff for the scene here,” but rather it’s the most inconsequential sequence that provides for some forced shock factor I didn't appreciate. We are transported off to a week earlier, where we see the setup to their road-trip journey.

The beginning did leave a sour taste in my mouth considering I really hate when movies open up right in the middle of their plots. Mission: Impossible – III is the only one that has gotten it right in my opinion, but then again you can’t compare oranges to apples. However, Don’t Make Me Go still ends up making a good case for itself where the story of Max and Wally Park does pull you in.

Watch The Trailer:

With a father-daughter story being at the center of it, Don’t Make Me Go features all the tropes of the genre, but still manages to elevate them as John Cho and Mia Isaac put on some great chemistry.

Cho sells Max’s middle-life crisis routine quite well. Being a single dad and having a friends-with-benefits deal with someone that he fancies, his life is sent into a complete whirlwind when realising he has a tumour in his head. Rather than telling his daughter about it, he decides to impart some life lessons on her and the main confrontation for the movie is established. Honestly, just make John Cho everyone’s dad in movies going forward. The man can have a great rivalry with Pedro Pascal regarding who plays the best on-screen dad.

Mia Isaac too performs brilliantly by bringing that rebelling nature of teenagers to life. We all have sneaked out of our house to go to a party, or try to defy our parents while driving. That performance adds a great layer to the relationship of Max and Wally. With certain tropes already being seen in coming-of-age movies like Eighth Grade and more, I was quite surprised with how well Don’t Make Me Go handled them.

With the road-trip aspect of it too, it will remind you of films like Little Miss Sunshine or Honey Boy where the beautiful vistas of countryside America are captured. With the movie being shot mainly in New Zealand as well, director Hannah Marks did a great job at capturing the essence of the locales. Bolstered by a soundtrack featuring the likes of “Blue Monday” by New Order and “The Passenger” by Iggy Pop, it added a layer of pizazz that I got on to appreciate.

But while Don’t Make Me Go does decent with its actors, music and certaining plot elements, it will pull the rug right underneath you in what’s one of the most polarising finales I have seen in awhile. To that point, Don’t Make Me Go was running straight across the highway with a bumpy start, but took a turn so sharp that the car ended up crashing.

It honestly came to a point where the movie just got ruined. Imagine Darth Vader telling Luke Skywalker that he is his father without any of the build up that made the moment so special. The film ends abruptly to the point where “you won’t like how this story ends,” ended up feeling like a warning. Ms Marvel Episode 6 Review: Iman Vellani’s Disney+ Series Fails to Stick the Landing With A Frustrating Finale (LatestLY Exclusive).

In stories like this, you need a cathartic payoff where the characters accept their flaws and grow into something more. That hope and optimism is completely undercut with how empty I felt when the credits started rolling.

Yay!

John Cho and Mia Isaac

Road-Trip Aspect

Nay!

The Opening

Third Act

Final Thoughts

Don’t Make Me Go was going well until it wasn’t. Despite an endearing storytelling and chemistry from John Cho and Mia Isaac, the movie blindsides its viewers in the worst way possible that will rather have them feeling more empty than optimistic. While you might enjoy the journey, you will definitely hate the destination that Don’t Make Me Go will land on. Don’t Make Me Go is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 15, 2022 07:02 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).