Well, if there’s one thing I can say for sure, it’s that the film delivers exactly what the title promises. Crazy Rich Asians is the highly anticipated adaptation of the book of the same name by Kevin Kwan. It’s notable for being a rare studio film that is centered squarely on Asian talent, both in front of and behind the camera. It’s sad considering the last time we’ve had anything like since The Joy Luck Club came out in 1993 (which is literally the year I was born, so that’s definitely a problem). That film was well received and did fairly well at the box office, but I guess nobody paid much attention. Director, Jon Chu and writers, Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim, are hoping to change that with Crazy Rich Asians, so Hollywood can finally realize that catering to a typically underserved audience will not only be a smart creative decision, but a smart financial one as well.
The film itself is pretty straightforward. It follows Rachel Chu (Constance Wu), a NYU economics professor who finds out her boyfriend, Nick Young (Henry Golding), is actually the heir to a massive business empire. They go to Singapore, and visit his family where she not only deals in finding out just how insanely wealthy he is, but also the problems that arise with certain family members due to her status, particularly with his mother, Eleanor (Michelle Yeoh).
If you read that synopsis, and figured out how the story will unfold, you probably won’t be wrong. However, as I mentioned in my review for Set It Up, the plot is never what makes a movie, much less a rom-com, interesting. With a good rom-com, it’s all about how well the characters are fleshed out, how good the chemistry is, how invested it makes you in the minutiae of relationships. On that basic level, Crazy Rich Asians absolutely succeeds. Constance Wu is an effortlessly endearing presence that grounds the audience as she is taken through a constant displays of obscene wealth, and her chemistry with Henry Golding is electric. He’s also quite a doll if I do say so myself. You really root for the two as obstacles begin piling up as the film goes on.
Plus, the movie is also really funny. Granted, a lot of that is placed on the shoulders of Goh Peik Lin (Awkwafina), who is Rachel’s best friend. She’s been a scene stealer in everything I’ve seen her in, from Neighbors 2 to Ocean’s 8 earlier this year, and this is no exception. How she hasn’t been given a full lead role yet, I have no idea. But even when she isn’t on screen Rachel’s various misunderstandings and general awkwardness leads to some very amusing moments in between the awe-inspiringly lavish parties, dresses, and mansions that make this seem like something out of George Cukor’s filmography.
What makes this particular film stand out is the way it is rooted in culture. As the film goes on, the various twists and turns are heavily informed by Chinese culture and traditions. Obviously, we’ve seen the disapproving parent archetype in films like these, but the motivation is what makes it unique to this film, and thus, making it more relatable to its target audience. It’s the kind of film that is able to have a game of Mahjong without having the need to stop the movie dead in its tracks to explain how the game works. I don’t know how the game works, but the sequence is driven by the changing dynamic between Rachel and Eleanor, which is why it was still compelling, despite me missing some extra possible significance and meaning in their various moves in the game.
There’s not a whole lot else to say about Crazy Rich Asians. It’s just a lovely rom-com that is crafted with some stunning visual flair that just so happens to evoke cultural idiosyncrasies and specificities in the same way My Big Fat Greek Wedding did over a decade ago, resulting in an experience that is both familiar yet revolutionary at the same time, and there’s no reason this movie shouldn’t be the phenomenon that My Big Fat Greek Wedding was. There weren’t much in terms of missteps aside from a few nitpicks. I wish we saw more of Rachel in her everyday life so that the whole “crazy rich” part would feel like a bigger surprise, the film makes several comments about Nick’s father, but he never once shows up, not even through voice or even a picture, there’s a whole subplot that is only there to build up to a mid-credits scene, and it felt really superfluous, and the payoff won’t make sense to anyone who hasn’t read the book and its sequels. Like I said, minor nitpicks that don’t really detract from the overall experience. I don’t know if this will be some kind of romantic comedy classic down the line, but it is a damn good one, and hopefully, it will open the floodgates for more films that can speak to the experience of other people who have been similarly underserved.