Crazy Rich Asians – Review

Director: Jon M. Chu

Runtime: 120 minutes

While this isn’t my usual film, I was really excited to hear about the release of Crazy Rich Asians. It destroyed at the box office in its opening weekend (although August is a quiet month) and the concept of an all-Asian cast had me really excited!

The plot of the film is relatively simple. Based on the novel of the same name, Crazy Rich Asians follows the relationship between Rachel Chu (an economic professor from New York) and Nick Young (billionaire in hiding). Their relationship is established early in the film and they jet-set off to Singapore for a wedding. Rachel agrees to accompany him without knowing the full extent of the family and billionaire world that she will be joining.

The plot was rather predictable in parts, with stereotypical rom-com tropes throughout. During a particular scene where she gets ready for the wedding, I found myself slightly frustrated by the cliche, as well as a moment at an airport that screamed ‘90s romantic comedy. The university friend (played by Awkwafina) was the traditional ‘funny best friend’ that we have grown accustomed to in every romantic comedy. However, even though there were these cliches, I found myself still enjoying the film.

The film wouldn’t break ground on being the most unique of the century, but it was truly amazing to have an all-Asian cast and creative portrayal of the Chinese culture. Sometimes the culture felt forced, but some of the best moments of the film were these quiet little scenes between characters, like the making of dumplings and playing of mahjong. I also enjoyed the use of Chinese and Cantonese throughout the film as the languages play a major role in the accurate portrayal of their culture. All of the scenes with the traditional grandma were spoken in Chinese which gave those scenes an authentic feel.

Rachel and Nick were a couple that you could fall in love with instantly. Nick was charming and caring, quiet yet decisive. From the very beginning of the film he truly was in love with Rachel and tried to shield her away from his family. Rachel was relatable as a not-so-poised and awkward woman whose intelligence was the primary feature of her character (rather than being submissive or simple eye candy). We were placed in Rachel’s shoes as she tried to navigate through the crazy world of the rich and famous (something all of us have wanted to experience). I enjoyed that film began with the relationship already established, rather than trying to rush the relationship from dating to meeting the entire family.

Nick and Rachel’s story was the primary romance, but I did find myself drawn to Astrid as a character. Established early as being one of Nick’s closest relatives, Astrid’s story had some real heart and I found myself desperate to know how her story would end. Luckily I had that chance as the end credit scenes held some hints as to where her future would lead. Astrid’s character had some major growth and she became a strong and independent woman by the end of the film. Although Astrid was never portrayed as a submissive character, she seemed to be ashamed of her wealth and power. By the conclusion of the film, she had embraced her life and status. One of her lines, towards the end of the film, was by one of the best and had me wanting to scream “Yas Queen!”.

You can really feel for Rachel as she goes up against crazy rich ex-girlfriends, crazy rich mothers and crazy rich bachelorette parties that accuse her of being a gold digger. There are many times where she seems knocked out for good, but she always stands back up and proves her worth time and time again. The scenes with her mother are heartwarming and ground the film into reality after spending so much time with unbelievably rich families.

Crazy Rich Asians is a typical romantic comedy with wonderful and heart warming scenes. It is rather predictable in parts, but it still entertains and inspires love. The sequel, a focus on Astrid and her story, is already in the works which will hopefully mean even more representation of Asian characters.