Crazy Rich Asians
Original post date: 19 January 2019
Rating: ✭✭✰✰
This movie got quite a bit of attention merely for being a contemporary romcom set in Asia and aimed at the US (as well as international) market. It seems strange to me that this would be unusual, but there you are. And let us be clear. Though directed by an American (Jon M. Chu, who shares a surname with the female protagonist), this is a truly international project. Despite the Asian setting and the word Asian in the title, the cast and crew are from the US, the UK, Singapore, Malaysia, China and various other countries. As an entertainment, it is a rather delightful throwback to the glamorous, widescreen, Technicolor, location-hopping studio movies of the 1950s and early 1960s. It is also slightly reminiscent of the escapist films of the 1930s that regaled audiences with the exploits of the fabulously carefree and wealthy while most people were enduring the throes of the Great Depression. Adapted from Singaporean-American Kevin Kwan’s novel, it spins its elaborate tale on the slimmest of plots. Modern, young Rachel (daughter of a self-sacrificing Chinese immigrant single mom) is oblivious to the fact that her boyfriend Nick is the scion of one of the wealthiest families in the world—despite the fact she is an economics professor. He whisks her off to Singapore for a wedding and to meet his family, thereby exposing her to their extravagantly privileged lifestyle and clannish hauteur. In the second half, the film nearly seems to be reaching for the alternate title Asian Mean Girls. It takes a while for any real dramatic tension to arise, but it comes when Eleanor, the imperious dragon lady who is Rachel’s prospective mother-in-law, begins to get tough with the interloper. Eleanor would risk coming off as a two-dimensional villain but for two things: 1) a humorous prologue establishes her character in a situation where she uses her fabulous wealth to humiliate racist hotel staff, and 2) she is played by the great Michelle Yeoh, an international star who has appeared in everything from the Jackie Chan vehicle Supercop to the Bond movie Tomorrow Never Dies to Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and even the TV series Star Trek: Discovery. Other standouts include the Brit Gemma Chan as Nick’s serenely regal but kind cousin and the American Awkwafina as Rachel’s daffy former school chum. As a romcom, the movie hurtles along toward its foregone conclusion with the reliability of a Japanese bullet train. This is a true case where the entertaining, sometimes-dazzling journey is much more important than the destination.
Rating: ✭✭✰✰
This movie got quite a bit of attention merely for being a contemporary romcom set in Asia and aimed at the US (as well as international) market. It seems strange to me that this would be unusual, but there you are. And let us be clear. Though directed by an American (Jon M. Chu, who shares a surname with the female protagonist), this is a truly international project. Despite the Asian setting and the word Asian in the title, the cast and crew are from the US, the UK, Singapore, Malaysia, China and various other countries. As an entertainment, it is a rather delightful throwback to the glamorous, widescreen, Technicolor, location-hopping studio movies of the 1950s and early 1960s. It is also slightly reminiscent of the escapist films of the 1930s that regaled audiences with the exploits of the fabulously carefree and wealthy while most people were enduring the throes of the Great Depression. Adapted from Singaporean-American Kevin Kwan’s novel, it spins its elaborate tale on the slimmest of plots. Modern, young Rachel (daughter of a self-sacrificing Chinese immigrant single mom) is oblivious to the fact that her boyfriend Nick is the scion of one of the wealthiest families in the world—despite the fact she is an economics professor. He whisks her off to Singapore for a wedding and to meet his family, thereby exposing her to their extravagantly privileged lifestyle and clannish hauteur. In the second half, the film nearly seems to be reaching for the alternate title Asian Mean Girls. It takes a while for any real dramatic tension to arise, but it comes when Eleanor, the imperious dragon lady who is Rachel’s prospective mother-in-law, begins to get tough with the interloper. Eleanor would risk coming off as a two-dimensional villain but for two things: 1) a humorous prologue establishes her character in a situation where she uses her fabulous wealth to humiliate racist hotel staff, and 2) she is played by the great Michelle Yeoh, an international star who has appeared in everything from the Jackie Chan vehicle Supercop to the Bond movie Tomorrow Never Dies to Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and even the TV series Star Trek: Discovery. Other standouts include the Brit Gemma Chan as Nick’s serenely regal but kind cousin and the American Awkwafina as Rachel’s daffy former school chum. As a romcom, the movie hurtles along toward its foregone conclusion with the reliability of a Japanese bullet train. This is a true case where the entertaining, sometimes-dazzling journey is much more important than the destination.
Comments
Post a Comment