‘Crazy Rich Asians’ is crazy-enriching
Rachel Chu confidentially walks over to confront Eleanor Young, her boyfriend’s mother. “Crazy Rich Asians” shows the audience how to let go of outdated traditions and be more accepting to change.
August 24, 2018
“Crazy Rich Asians,” released on Aug. 15, is one of the most amazing movies I have seen since the summer began. There is no question as to why it’s been topping charts for must-see movies right now. This movie, which scored a 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, is a real-life fairy tale.
But that dream quickly became a nightmare when she had to meet her boyfriend’s family in Singapore.
— Staff Writer Jordan Owens
Imagine dating a person from a powerful and wealthy family. For many, this is a dream come true, and for Rachel Chu that dream became her reality. But that dream quickly became a nightmare when she had to meet her boyfriend’s family in Singapore.
Rachel’s boyfriend, Nick Young, is an attractive, young, rich man from Singapore getting ready to take over the family business. Rachel is a college professor from New York City. They had been dating for almost two years when Nick asks Rachel to come with him to Singapore to meet his family. Once there, she is thrown into a new life filled with expensive tastes, high-end living, and disapproving relatives.
Nick’s family judges Rachel because she does not come from a rich family like they do. Though many of his family and friends, after getting to know Rachel, admire her for her personality more than her wealth, there are some who still mock her. Rachel isn’t bothered by being mocked, however, because she knows money isn’t everything.
When going to meet Nick’s family, Rachel knows that winning over his mother, Eleanor Young, will be the hardest part, but Rachel does not expect his mom to dislike her as much as she does. Throughout the movie, Eleanor calls Rachel out for not being Chinese enough since she was born in America. Rachel, by adapting to life in Singapore and bringing some American flair, shows Eleanor that just because she is from America doesn’t make her any less Chinese.
Related Stories
In “Crazy Rich Asians” Rachel shows us how not to buy into stereotypes, like the assumption that some Asians are known to be quiet, very smart, and extremely good at playing different instruments. Rachel tells us to just be our true selves.
Through her performance as Rachel Chu, Constance Wu also tells women to not buy into the ‘women are supposed to stay at home and take care of the family’ stereotype, and that women are never too ambitious when it comes to chasing our dreams. At the start of the film, Eleanor believes Rachel is too ambitious and will not put family before her own needs if she marries Nick. Rachel proves to Eleanor that taking care of your family means taking care of yourself first.
Not only is “Crazy Rich Asians” phenomenal in changing the status quo, it is does a phenomenal job breaking long-standing racial barriers. It is the first movie in America in twenty-five years to have a completely Asian cast, and since the movie’s release it has racked up $25.2 million, which was $7 million more than what the producer originally expected.
“Crazy Rich Asians” is a movie that makes you laugh. It’s a romantic movie that rebels against the old fashioned way of thinking, and creates more diversity in the movie industry that will help pave the way for more movies like it.
