Review of Crazy Rich Asians (2018) by Johnathon W — 18 Aug 2018

Charming and often funny romantic comedy that does a good job condensing the book, though could have gone a little further. The cast is uniformly excellent, with the main appeal being that this an all-Asian cast depicted in ways Asians aren't usually done in film.

Constance Wu & Henry Golding make appealing leads, with Golding giving such a dashing performance he makes a case for an Asian James Bond. They get great support from the rest of the cast, with Awkwafina and Nico Santos stealing scenes with their hilarious performances, while the great Michelle Yeoh holds court with her withering stare (rumor has it, she had many more lines until the filmmakers saw what she could do with just a glance).

Behind the camera, director Jon M. Chu delivers a fun rom-com along with showcasing life in Singapore, a part of Asia and it's culture that is rarely seen in movies, showing a world filled with rich, successful people who are Christian and speak the Queen's English.

He does an especially good job showing off the foodie nature of Singapore (you will get hungry watching this film) but could have done more highlighting the history along with Rachel Chu's economics degree to point out how Singapore become so prosperous (it consistently ranks in the top 5 countries on the World Economic Freedom Index).

Plus, while Chu condenses the book nicely for the most part, he could have gone a bit further, particularly the subplot involving Nick's cousin, Astrid (an elegant Gemma Chan), which slows the film down every time it's emphasized.

Nevertheless, for a romantic comedy, it still hits all the right notes and remains an important film as well, with it's all Asian cast depicting characters they rarely get to play (similar to what "Black Panther" did for blacks earlier this year).