World’s Best Movie Review: Who knew math and rap could be so much fun?

STORY: A math whiz, Prem (Manny Magnus), wants to explore his skills as an MC after discovering his late dad Suresh (Utkarsh Ambudkar), was a talented rapper.REVIEW: Prem is a 12-year-old who loves math so much that he dreams about it. While his mom Priya (Punam Patel), is thrilled about his way with square roots and equations, Prem is an outcast in school, constantly teased for being a nerd. Even his closest friend Jerome (Max Malas) distances himself from Prem as the former tries out new things. So when Prem discovers his late father, Suresh, was a world-class emcee and rapper, the young boy sets out in search of his own voice.A coming-of-age tale featuring a nerdy kid of South Asian heritage, ‘World’s Best’ has a lot of expected beats, but they play out in interesting ways. It also helps a great deal that newcomer Manny Magnus is immensely talented as Prem and seamlessly shifts from the geeky numbers guy to a charismatic bar-spitting rapper with smooth moves. His great chemistry with Utkarsh Ambudkar draws you into their father-son dynamic. Ambudkar’s breezy air ties in perfectly with the happy-go-lucky character Suresh is supposed to be. Punam Patel is also adept as Prem’s doting mother, Priya, who’s coping with being a single mother after losing her husband. Battling with her own grief, Priya isn’t quite prepared for Prem’s attempts to connect with his father’s past. Although there’s not much room to go into the depths of this angle, it poses a fairly captivating conflict around their relationship.An area where the film excels is its catchy hip-hop, with inventive original tunes penned by Utkarsh Ambudkar along with classics from the genre. Ambudkar and the young Magnus are fun to watch as they perform together. Suresh and Prem take a unique approach to their rhymes which ties in brilliantly with the latter’s nerdiness. The production values of these fanciful numbers also stand out, and each of them has a vibrant, foot-tapping energy that’s uplifting.While the film's deeper themes are intriguing, they don’t get much exploration. Still, ‘World’s Best’ is a delightfully funny and heartfelt family film with Manny Magnus in a breakout role.