Now more than ever, representation is a hot topic. Heavy hitters like Black Panther, Wonder Woman, and Coco have all shown there is something magical as an audience member watching someone that looks like you in stunning HD.
Crazy Rich Asians is a feel-good romantic comedy that boasts an all-Asian cast with a mix of new and familiar actors. It has excellent pacing, well-developed characters, and breathtaking visuals of the film’s settings, Malaysia and Singapore.
The story follows Rachel Chu, played by Constance Wu from Fresh Off The Boat, and Nick Young, played by newcomer Henry Golding. Rachel is a spunky economics professor at New York University, who was born in America to a single Chinese immigrant mother. Nick is her seemingly-perfect boyfriend who, unknown to Rachel, is the heir to a multi-million-dollar real estate empire in Singapore.
Rachel discovers Nick’s secret when he invites her to his best friend’s wedding in Singapore. Rachel has to deal with the culture shock of high East Asian society on top of meeting Nick’s family.
Nick’s family is full of the usual suspects, featuring an overprotective mother, Eleanor Young (Michelle Yeoh), and Nick’s cousin Astrid (Gemma Chan). Rachel also has her hilarious best friend Peik Lin (Awkwafina) with her own quirky family to provide much needed comic relief for the audience and emotional support for Rachel. Rachel has her work cut out for her trying to earn the respect of Nick’s disapproving mother and dealing with jealous ex-girlfriends, all while trying to cope with the difference in status between her and Nick.
Every member of the cast earned their place on-screen. You’d never guess it is Golding’s first feature credit from his performance, and he has wonderful on-screen chemistry with Wu, who does an excellent job portraying the anxieties of meeting a significant other’s family for the first time. Yeoh makes a compelling antagonist, capturing the essence of a disapproving mother, by delivering her lines with a level of harshness that will send chills down your spine.
Romantic comedies often get a hard time for falling into overused, predictable storylines. Crazy Rich Asians follows in their footsteps; however, it uses clichés to its advantage by showing how similar we all are despite our perceived differences. Its themes are universal, and you don’t need to be fluent in Mandarin to understand that. It doesn’t matter whether you’re rich or poor, Asian or not, we all fall in love, and sometimes we lie to protect the people we care about.
If you’re looking for a quirky light-hearted movie that will make you laugh, and tug at your heartstrings, then Crazy Rich Asians is definitely worth a watch.
