Film review: ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ represents Asians with the first all-Asian cast in 25 years

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When you think of an all-Asian cast in Hollywood, there isn’t much that comes to mind. “Crazy Rich Asians” is changing film history by being one of two Hollywood movies with an all-Asian cast.

The rom-com directed by Jon M. Chu follows the relationship of Rachel Chu and Nick Young, two professors at NYU who have been dating for a year. One summer, Nick receives an invitation to his best friend’s wedding in Singapore. He invites Rachel along with him, knowing that this would be a good opportunity for Rachel to meet the family. Though Rachel doesn’t know much about Nick’s family, she never expected it to be one of the richest families in Singapore.

Once they arrive at the airport, Rachel is surprised that they are in first class. She believes that Nick’s family is wealthy, but after questioning him, he tells her not to worry. Upon arriving in Singapore, they are greeted at the airport by Nick’s best friend, Colin Khoo, and his soon-to-be bride, Araminta Lee. They decide to eat dinner at an outdoor food market, easing Rachel’s suspicions about Nick and his friend.

The next day, she visits her former college roommate, Peik Lin, who is considered to be rich by American standards. Together they go to a party at Nick’s grandma’s house. Rachel makes many mistakes while meeting people at the party, including Nick’s mom, Eleanor Young, who Rachel quickly realizes does not like her.  

That weekend, Rachel attends Araminta’s bachelorette party at a private island owned by her family. Meanwhile, Nick attends Colin’s bachelor party on a barge that was arranged by a schoolmate of his. Although the women at Araminta’s bachelorette party seem nice to Rachel, they end up mutilating a fish and putting it in her bed. Nick’s cousin Astrid comforts Rachel, who is determined to not let this get under her skin. On the barge, Colin is miserable. He and Nick escape the barge and relax on a little dock on the water, where Nick confides a big secret to his best friend.

“Crazy Rich Asians” was great. We found the movie very exciting and funny because of the personalities of the actors and actresses. All of the characters worked together well, and all have many different personalities.

Nelson Coates, head of production design, made great designs throughout the movie. He made a good decision to film in Malaysia and Singapore, two beautiful cities.

The film had a small budget of 30 million dollars but brought $83,717,149 worldwide in just two weeks. The movie, based on a best-selling novel, is rated 7.7/10 according to IMDB and 93% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Critics are praising the blockbuster. Peter Travers said, “‘Crazy Rich Asians’ is making history: shaping up as the comedy to see this summer, is bringing it all home in a hilarious, heartfelt blast that aims to change the state of cultural representation in mainstream, multiplex-friendly cinema.”

“Crazy Rich Asians is a spectacular, heartwarming instant classic of a romantic comedy that brings some much-needed representation to the genre,” said Molly Freeman of Screen Rant.

The all-Asian cast has many known actors and actresses, including Constance Wu, Awkwafina, Ken Jeong, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, Gemma Chan and Lisa Lu.