Crazy Rich Asians is by far the craziest feel-good movie of 2018. All aspects of the film were perfectly well-thought of and all elements blended well with each other, too.
Knowing that there are hundreds of existing racial discriminations and Asian stereotypes all over the world, especially in the US, I knew beforehand that it was gonna be hard to pull off. But darn it, the author and other storytellers of CRA sure do know how to prove people wrong.
But before anything else, I want to discuss the film's technical elements in detail:
TRAILER
CRA trailer led me to have crazy expectations that I seriously doubted they could not uphold. but boi was I wrong? It was produced in America so it was understandably fast-paced and playful, which I'd like to believe was the reason why it attracted so many people. I mean, it did, for me at least.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
Visuals. Visuals. Visuals! It's the first thing I notice. Now I know that some films don't require a big ass budget to pull this aspect off but a story like CRA does. I mean it's just common sense to have a big budget for a story about crazy rich people, right, right? Anyway, the cinematography was great but I will not say more because it was the least of my favorite things about the film because it was already expected from the trailer.
SOUND DESIGN & SCORE
Here's my actual favorite element. I don't know about you, but whenever I watch a film my ears are the one who does most of the critiquing. and booiii? There's not enough words to describe how I felt about what I heard the entire time. I mean didn't ya'll feel that intense moment at the wedding when Colin was nervously at the same time excitedly waiting for Araminta? That moment when she was finally at the other end of the aisle and Kina Grannis (who sung the song her rendition of Can't Help Falling In Love perfectly) together with the music accompaniment stopped and all you can hear was your own heart pounding (or whoever was sitting next to you, crying). Then out comes the water which explained the whole unusual design of their wedding. Also, cue in the tears as she walked super slowly while Nick and Rachel look at each other realizing that they are exactly like Colin and Ara who are meant to spend the rest of their lives together? I MEAN? AAHSJKEHIW Just writing about it again makes me wanna cry a 'lil bit.
My second favorite part from the movie because of the score was when the song Yellow originally performed by Coldplay was in its Chinese version by Katherine Ho (yeah, that's right, I did my research)! I loved it because it blended with their montage of everything that went wrong after the wedding.
CHARACTERS
I obviously haven't read the book so whatever description I put here, for the people who have read the book, don't judge (LOL).
Nick Young - The Prince Harry (as he preferred) of Asia was the realest bachelor. For a debut in film, Henry Golding did incredibly well. Although, we have to admit, it wasn't hard for him to act all manly and gentleman-like because well... that's just his natural self.
Rachel Chu - I love Constance Wu. I used to watch her series Fresh Off the Boat before which is the extreme opposite of CRA because it's was filled with racism. Her role from FOTB was also the exact opposite of Rachel. Her character was very lovable and even without reading the book, I can confidently say that no one could've played the part better than her.
Eleanor Sung-Young - Second baddest bitch in the movie. At first, she was the typical Asian mom who doesn't approve of anyone her son dates. But then you realize it wasn't about the money, it was about tradition and culture which was amazing. In all honesty, I think that if Rachel was born in Singapore or has Chinese values at least, I don't think it'll be too hard for her to be accepted. Alsp, Eleanor's backstory was also a favorite of mine. The fact that Eleanor still continues to prove herself to her mother-in-law is really sad yet it proves how strong of a woman she is.
Astrid Leon-Teo - Okay, I think everyone who has watched CRA fell in love with Astrid the most. She is a strong independent woman who every girl wants to be. I loved how down-to-earth she was the way she rewards herself with her shopping and the way she never bragged about it to anyone especially his no-good husband. Didn't ya'll cheer for her when she said: "It's not my job to make you feel like man, I can't make you something you're not." That's right, you go girl.
The rest of the characters in the film also helped compliment each other with the major roles. It gave non-asians the idea that there is something truly beyond the Asian stereotypes. From Nick's cousins to Rachel's friends, you now know that there is a lot of types of Asians as much as there's a lot of other races.
SCREENPLAY & STORY
As an aspiring storyteller, I can say that this film brought out all sorts of elements needed for a story to work. What's great about it is that it didn't focus on the boy meets girl or boy loves girl aspect and it was able to differentiate an Asian with an Asian American.
Prior to watching CRA, I watched Yappie which was a short Youtube series by Wong Fu Productions. It basically focused on what it's like to live as an Asian American. It kind of made me realize that even if you're born in the US but is Asian by blood, people will always see you differently. You live your life as an American but Americans will always see you as an Asian and people who were born and raised in Asia will see you as an American. And I guess this puts Rachel Chu in the Yappie category who is more American but will always be Asian.
Also, I can't forget the romantic aspect of the film. If you think about it, this story has been told a thousand times before. But then what the audience (who thinks this way) have to realize is that almost all stories have already been written. But CRA as well as other films, can still become one of a kind depending on how they choose to tell their version of the story with their own twists and turns.
Nick and Rachel's story is not new but the way it was told? Was one of a kind.
Let's now talk Mahjong. Since it was one of the people's favorite scenes that you can admit was a bit confusing, it actually had a lot of different meaning. See Mahjong symbolizes Asian culture which Eleanor was desperately trying to maintain within her family. And Rachel was a game theory professor which she rocks at as seen on the first scene. Rachel knew she was winning the game, but she also knows that Eleanor was not like her student from the first scene who only wanted to play safe. She knew Eleanor would play to win so she let her, the same way she let her win by deciding to leave Singapore and leave Nick.
ENDING
I had to create a separate one for this because of how much I loved the ending. I kinda knew it was going to be a happy ending even without reading the book. But what made it even more amazing was Nick's surprise party for Rachel. It was the sweetest and also one of the most emotional parts of the film. I don't know, why, but didn't ya'll tear up when you saw Harry Shum Jr.? Just kidding. But really, it was a great ending.
Knowing that there are hundreds of existing racial discriminations and Asian stereotypes all over the world, especially in the US, I knew beforehand that it was gonna be hard to pull off. But darn it, the author and other storytellers of CRA sure do know how to prove people wrong.
But before anything else, I want to discuss the film's technical elements in detail:
TRAILER
CRA trailer led me to have crazy expectations that I seriously doubted they could not uphold. but boi was I wrong? It was produced in America so it was understandably fast-paced and playful, which I'd like to believe was the reason why it attracted so many people. I mean, it did, for me at least.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
Visuals. Visuals. Visuals! It's the first thing I notice. Now I know that some films don't require a big ass budget to pull this aspect off but a story like CRA does. I mean it's just common sense to have a big budget for a story about crazy rich people, right, right? Anyway, the cinematography was great but I will not say more because it was the least of my favorite things about the film because it was already expected from the trailer.
SOUND DESIGN & SCORE
Here's my actual favorite element. I don't know about you, but whenever I watch a film my ears are the one who does most of the critiquing. and booiii? There's not enough words to describe how I felt about what I heard the entire time. I mean didn't ya'll feel that intense moment at the wedding when Colin was nervously at the same time excitedly waiting for Araminta? That moment when she was finally at the other end of the aisle and Kina Grannis (who sung the song her rendition of Can't Help Falling In Love perfectly) together with the music accompaniment stopped and all you can hear was your own heart pounding (or whoever was sitting next to you, crying). Then out comes the water which explained the whole unusual design of their wedding. Also, cue in the tears as she walked super slowly while Nick and Rachel look at each other realizing that they are exactly like Colin and Ara who are meant to spend the rest of their lives together? I MEAN? AAHSJKEHIW Just writing about it again makes me wanna cry a 'lil bit.
My second favorite part from the movie because of the score was when the song Yellow originally performed by Coldplay was in its Chinese version by Katherine Ho (yeah, that's right, I did my research)! I loved it because it blended with their montage of everything that went wrong after the wedding.
CHARACTERS
I obviously haven't read the book so whatever description I put here, for the people who have read the book, don't judge (LOL).
Nick Young - The Prince Harry (as he preferred) of Asia was the realest bachelor. For a debut in film, Henry Golding did incredibly well. Although, we have to admit, it wasn't hard for him to act all manly and gentleman-like because well... that's just his natural self.
Rachel Chu - I love Constance Wu. I used to watch her series Fresh Off the Boat before which is the extreme opposite of CRA because it's was filled with racism. Her role from FOTB was also the exact opposite of Rachel. Her character was very lovable and even without reading the book, I can confidently say that no one could've played the part better than her.
Eleanor Sung-Young - Second baddest bitch in the movie. At first, she was the typical Asian mom who doesn't approve of anyone her son dates. But then you realize it wasn't about the money, it was about tradition and culture which was amazing. In all honesty, I think that if Rachel was born in Singapore or has Chinese values at least, I don't think it'll be too hard for her to be accepted. Alsp, Eleanor's backstory was also a favorite of mine. The fact that Eleanor still continues to prove herself to her mother-in-law is really sad yet it proves how strong of a woman she is.
Astrid Leon-Teo - Okay, I think everyone who has watched CRA fell in love with Astrid the most. She is a strong independent woman who every girl wants to be. I loved how down-to-earth she was the way she rewards herself with her shopping and the way she never bragged about it to anyone especially his no-good husband. Didn't ya'll cheer for her when she said: "It's not my job to make you feel like man, I can't make you something you're not." That's right, you go girl.
The rest of the characters in the film also helped compliment each other with the major roles. It gave non-asians the idea that there is something truly beyond the Asian stereotypes. From Nick's cousins to Rachel's friends, you now know that there is a lot of types of Asians as much as there's a lot of other races.
SCREENPLAY & STORY
As an aspiring storyteller, I can say that this film brought out all sorts of elements needed for a story to work. What's great about it is that it didn't focus on the boy meets girl or boy loves girl aspect and it was able to differentiate an Asian with an Asian American.
Prior to watching CRA, I watched Yappie which was a short Youtube series by Wong Fu Productions. It basically focused on what it's like to live as an Asian American. It kind of made me realize that even if you're born in the US but is Asian by blood, people will always see you differently. You live your life as an American but Americans will always see you as an Asian and people who were born and raised in Asia will see you as an American. And I guess this puts Rachel Chu in the Yappie category who is more American but will always be Asian.
Also, I can't forget the romantic aspect of the film. If you think about it, this story has been told a thousand times before. But then what the audience (who thinks this way) have to realize is that almost all stories have already been written. But CRA as well as other films, can still become one of a kind depending on how they choose to tell their version of the story with their own twists and turns.
Nick and Rachel's story is not new but the way it was told? Was one of a kind.
Let's now talk Mahjong. Since it was one of the people's favorite scenes that you can admit was a bit confusing, it actually had a lot of different meaning. See Mahjong symbolizes Asian culture which Eleanor was desperately trying to maintain within her family. And Rachel was a game theory professor which she rocks at as seen on the first scene. Rachel knew she was winning the game, but she also knows that Eleanor was not like her student from the first scene who only wanted to play safe. She knew Eleanor would play to win so she let her, the same way she let her win by deciding to leave Singapore and leave Nick.
ENDING
I had to create a separate one for this because of how much I loved the ending. I kinda knew it was going to be a happy ending even without reading the book. But what made it even more amazing was Nick's surprise party for Rachel. It was the sweetest and also one of the most emotional parts of the film. I don't know, why, but didn't ya'll tear up when you saw Harry Shum Jr.? Just kidding. But really, it was a great ending.
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