Critics are all in for “Crazy Rich Asians,” Jon M. Chu’s adaptation of the bestselling novel by Kevin Kwan.
“Jon M. Chu has delivered a highly satisfying, decidedly old-fashioned romantic comedy, garnished with soapy elements and enough mouth-watering shots of food to inspire a big meal before or after,” wrote CNN’s Brian Lowry. Refinery29’s Anne Cohen said, “Ultimately, the film delivers as a blockbuster romantic comedy: It’s joyous, decadent, and yes, extremely predictable.”
Justin Chang of the Los Angeles Times called it “a tour de force of lifestyle pornography.”
TheWrap’s Carlos Aguilar wrote, “Ultimately, ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ doesn’t need to subvert all its predictable elements, because even if we know where it’s going, we’ve never seen that story told this way.”
The film, which opens in theaters on Aug. 15, currently holds the highest possible score on Rotten Tomatoes at 100 percent.
“Crazy Rich Asians” stars Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, Gemma Chan, Awkwafina, Ken Jeong, Jimmy O. Yang and Chris Pang. It follows a New Yorker woman who travels to Singapore to meet her boyfriend’s family — who turn out to be extremely wealthy.
“‘Crazy Rich Asians’ understandably feels like an occasion — a big, colorful coming-out party for Asian (and especially Asian-American) talent. Set aside the cultural significance, though, and director Jon M. Chu has delivered a highly satisfying, decidedly old-fashioned romantic comedy, garnished with soapy elements and enough mouth-watering shots of food to inspire a big meal before or after.”
“‘Crazy Rich Asians’ is for anyone interested in catching a romantic comedy with their friend/friends, date, significant other or partner. It’s on the more extravagant end of the genre’s escapist fantasy stories, but that makes it all the more fun. Between its humor, romance, and heart, ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ provides an exceptionally entertaining experience that has something for everyone. There may have been a drop-off in studio rom-coms over the last decade, but the story of Nick and Rachel is poised to bring the genre back in a big way. Truly, ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ is what studio romantic comedies should be, and hopefully it will help usher in a new era for the genre, bringing more diverse stories to a revival of the big studio rom-com.”
“Has a movie title ever doubled better as its own elevator pitch? It’s all there in those three words: Mad money, bad behavior, a pin dropped on race and place. And if ‘Asians’ really only grazes true Crazy, the movie is still a deliriously glossy, globe-trotting trifle — two hours of romantic fantasy and real-estate porn poured on so thick it’s almost lickable.”
“You might have heard that ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ is the first major release by a studio about Asian Americans in a quarter-century. (Its predecessor is 1993’s ‘The Joy Luck Club.’) The film’s arrival is undeniably momentous. But it’s nearly as vital that ‘Crazy Rich’ is a romantic comedy–a genre that relies on charisma above all else. The film’s stereotype-busting approach is multifarious.”
“Jon M. Chu’s big screen adaptation of the material, a groundbreaking studio film that is entirely populated by Asian-American performers (the first of its kind since ‘The Joy Luck Club,’ 25 years ago), is a loving take on Kwan’s books, bundled up in a wildly entertaining package.”
“Directed with an exuberantly personal touch by Jon M. Chu from a spirited if uneven script by Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim, this adaptation of Kevin Kwan’s 2013 international bestseller is many things: a tour de force of lifestyle pornography; a slick, enjoyable divertissement; a surprisingly trenchant study of class and cultural difference. Most of all, it’s a concerted effort by a long-neglected Hollywood minority to storm the big-studio citadel and possibly even beat it at its own game.”
“Ultimately, the film delivers as a blockbuster romantic comedy: It’s joyous, decadent, and yes, extremely predictable. But seeing new characters inhabit and thrive within a story we’ve seen countless times before is a major achievement in itself. Who said blonde-haired, blue-eyed Cinderella had a monopoly on the happy ending?”
What If Historical Movies About White People Starred Asian Actors Instead? (Photos)
Western movies about the Asian continent typically star an audience surrogate -- someone to whom the other characters can explain basic plot stuff for the sake of viewers. It's a pretty common trope in storytelling, but the way Hollywood often uses it in these types of movies is offputting for many people.
That's because the surrogate is usually a displaced generic white guy who ends up becoming the main protagonist (like Matt Damon in "The Great Wall").
To illustrate why folks find this trope baffling, we've swapped the leads in several movies about European and American history with East Asian actors, mirroring the storytelling cliche that repeatedly inserts white people into East Asian history. If this makes you feel weird, good -- that means you get it.
Art by TheWrap's Jordan Burchette.
"Gladiator," starring Chow Yun-fat Picture pretty much the same movie -- about a Roman general who's named Imperial Regent when Marcus Aurelius decides his own son isn't fit to become Emperor.
Except we'll have an extended prologue about Chow's character walking 8,000 miles to Rome from southern China and quickly winning everyone's respect with his mad-but-exotic fighting skills. But there's still some racial tension. This is more or less how all "white people in Asia" movies start.
"The Patriot," starring Ken Watanabe Like "Gladiator," this version of "The Patriot" is mostly the same, but with a new backstory for the lead plus some racial tension: Watanabe plays a Japanese sailor whose ship was caught in a storm that sent it drifting across the Pacific Ocean, eventually reaching the California coast.
He then makes his way east, collecting a wife and making some children along the way, stumbling into the French and Indian War. He helps out the British, winning their respect with his mad-but-unorthodox skill with an exotic weapon called a katana. Then, after this prologue montage, it's otherwise just the same movie as before.
"Forrest Gump," starring Stephen Chow This mid-20th century "American Dream" fairy tale takes on a whole new meaning when, instead of being about some dimwitted white boy from Alabama, it follows a Chinese tourist looking get the full American experience: playing college football, going to war in Asia, accidentally investing in Apple in the '70s, watching his mother die for lack of good healthcare options, and settling down with the cool rebel girl who's found Jesus and stopped doing drugs.
"The Alamo," starring Jackie Chan Chan plays Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier. The only change to the story would be the racial slurs white people sling in Davy's direction -- but like totally in a friendly way, like white people do.
"Thirteen Days," starring Andy Lau What if the real hero of the Cuban Missile Crisis was not the made-up white BFF of the Kennedy brothers but instead the made-up Chinese diplomat BFF of the Kennedy brothers?
They're longtime drinking buddies, and it's up to Andy Lau to make sure the Kennedys didn't accidentally initiate global thermonuclear war. This would have ramped up the tension considerably, with the Joint Chiefs steaming extra hard and whining about that interloper (by way of racial slurs).
"300," starring Lee Byung-hun Having been captured by the Persians during a border skirmish on the eastern side of the Persian Empire -- this brave warrior managed to escape west, where he hooked up with the Spartans and taught them some cool exotic fighting techniques.
These new unorthodox techniques come in handy when the Persian Empire comes calling -- thanks to this warrior from the Far East, 300 Spartans are able to hold off the invaders while the bulk of the Greek forces retreat at the legendary Battle of Thermopylae.
"Braveheart," starring Donnie Yen A wandering Chinese warrior is exiled from his home after, I don't know, being framed for crimes he didn't commit. He ends up landing in Scotland and helping the locals rebel against the oppressive rule of the English.
"Kingdom of Heaven," starring Masahiro Higashide Can this half-Japanese blacksmith, who's made his way to the Levant in the mid-12th century after discovering that Liam Neeson is his real father, help bring some kind of understanding between the Christian Crusaders and the Muslim forces of Saladin before one side wipes out the other?
"Troy," starring Michelle Yeoh I think Michelle Yeoh would make a fine Achilles, personally.
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We examine Hollywood whitewashing by putting the shoe on the other foot
Western movies about the Asian continent typically star an audience surrogate -- someone to whom the other characters can explain basic plot stuff for the sake of viewers. It's a pretty common trope in storytelling, but the way Hollywood often uses it in these types of movies is offputting for many people.
