Better Days (2019)

This is not aptly named, because there are no better days depicted here. At core is the culture of shame that pervades Asia, and the consequences that bullying can wreck on a young girl's life when she is targeted. A girl who has unfortunate parentage but an enviable academic record has a chance to make it out of poverty, but her merciless classmates make each passing day a mental and physical challenge. In order to make it over the finish line she enlists the help of a boy who is more or less homeless and a bit of a thug. He has a duck taped together dwelling, a minibike, and an attitude that that her feel safge. This is also about alliances that are unpredictable, how any one can be pushed too far, and the downstream consequences of a culture that ignores the little things. It did not win in the category of Best International Film, but it is well worth watching.