Crazy Rich Asians Is A Sweet Romantic Comedy That Entertains While Breaking Cultural Barriers

      

      The summer of 2018 brought many blockbusters that came and went with most consisting of being comic book sequels such as Marvel's Infinity War, Deadpool ll, Ant-Man And The Wasp along with other blockbuster much anticipated sequels such as Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom, and Incredibles ll. However with all the major blockbusters that came out in the first two thirds of the summer, the real story was both the critical and box office success of a romantic comedy that ended up being the first Asian-led, major Hollywood studio to hit theaters since 1993's The Joy Luck Club, while also becoming the biggest romantic comedy in six years. Based on the adaptation of the book with the same title written by Kevin Kwan, Crazy Rich Asians is a contemporary romantic comedy, that focuses on a native New York economics professor named Rachel Chu, who travels to meet her boyfriends family and becomes shocked upon the realization they are among the richest people in Singapore. As of the writing of this review, the film has grossed over a total of $236 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing romantic comedy in over a decade. For those who haven't seen the film yet, the question still begs of whether the movie was any good on it's own excluding the hype and box office success that made it one of the great success stories of 2018. To put it in blatant terms, the answer to that question that's on those moviegoers minds is an enthusiastic yes.

      Crazy Rich Asians is a charming, sweet, and entertaining romantic comedy that takes what's essentially become a generic formula with romantic comedies, and manages to place its own stamp on the genre while being heartfelt and monumental with doing so. Bringing the film from book to the big screen was always a risky move with the inclusion of an all-Asian cast not having been done before on the big screen in the last 25 years. Watching the film, one always gets the feeling that the movie was destined to become a hit not just because of it's cultural breakthrough in the genre with it's cast, but how it manages to hit all the right notes for a romantic comedy that would make for a surefire hit it with audiences. The film doesn't attempt to take itself more seriously than just being great fun for it's target audience while poking fun at some of the classic stereotypes that are associated with Asian culture. The film tackles themes such as racism, extreme wealth, traditions, expectations placed upon those within Asian families, pursuing ones happiness, pursuing one's passion, royalty, sacrifice, love, respect, and knowing one's place. The ultimate message that the film delivers by it's end is that wealth does not make happiness, love does. The film explores and delivers all of these themes in a fashion that doesn't take itself too seriously, but always remains heartfelt upon doing so. The film borrows all the classic formulaic elements from the romantic comedy genre while taking a bold step forward in regards to representation of Asian culture on film.

      As far as acting and performances go, Constance Wu delivers a strong and likeable performance as Rachel Chu with Henry Golding performing equally well, making the young romantic couple totally believable, convincing, and engaging to where the audience wants to follow their fun-filled journey and inevitably see them together at the end of the film. Gemma Chan and Harry Shum Jr. deliver strong supporting performances, but the one true standout of the film is Michelle Yeoh, who plays the main character Nick's disapproving mother taking aim at his relationship before ultimately warming up to the idea by the films end. The romance presented in the film comes with it's complications with Rachel being on Nick's arm raising hostilities towards them with jealous friends and socialities along with Nick's mother participating in the resistance. The script written by Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim, is a strong one for the genre as it allows for the audience to take delight on the situations happening on the big screen with them also thinking about it from a cultural standpoint. The writers mix old school styles and formulas that go with romantic comedies while incorporating serious topics into the script such as societal boundaries. Director Jon M. Chu directs the film in a style that makes it feel both like a musical as well as being a classic black and white romantic film, that comes with much visual flair to it. The cinematography, art-set decoration, and costume designs are top notch with the film fully embracing the culture of the characters it represents while showing the audience the richness of the story.

 It can be said that Crazy Rich Asians is not your typical romantic comedy. The film deliberately separates itself from the other romantic comedies and comes at the audience with a new approach while tackling important issues such as growing up while giving perspective such as what it's like to grow up in Asian culture and the expectations, that are placed on the children of the families while growing up. The film is a simple yet charming tale about love that not only entertains and charm the pants off its audience, but also manages to leave an impact on it's audience while breaking new ground for the genre. While it can be argued that the storyline for Crazy Rich Asians is rather generic for a romantic comedy and reasoning behind the films success is because of it being the first Asian led Hollywood production since The Joy Luck Club, one can also say that it's also the movies heart and approach to it's story while maintaining absolute respectability to the culture it represents that made it a smash it both critically and financially. The movie feels like it was made with a labor of love as well as excitement and passion to tell this story and to do so in a way which can make the audience see the world from a different perspective and get into their shoes. If that was the intent of making this movie then the filmmakers succeeded as Crazy Rich Asians is nothing short of being fun to watch while making the audience feel good upon leaving the theater. It's truly quite surprising that one of the greatest box office stories of the year so far just happens to be the best romantic comedy of the year. Crazy Rich Asians is the perfect romantic comedy that audiences have been looking for and desire to see.

                                                                                                            Final Verdict: SEE IT