Occasionally, an American high school movie comes along that offers something new for viewers.

This isn't one of those air-headed romantic comedies or gritty sports dramas, it's an almost a gangland drama where the main characters all happen to be Asian Americans, rather than act as they do because they're Asian American.

Ben (Parry Shen) is a grade A student who, with a group of friends, makes a tidy living selling crib sheets to the other students.

But when he and his amoral chums begin selling drugs, things start to get violent. Director Justin Lin welds together a cast of unknowns into a highly believable cast of characters telling a story with real bite.