It’s
here! I’ve been waiting for this movie
for a long time. I was so glad to see
it, and I walked out of the theater so, so satisfied. Rom-com isn’t one of my usual go-to genres,
but there are plenty of good ones that there that I genuinely love – The Mindy Project, Amélie, Jane Austen – and this is a fine addition.
Rachel is
nervous but excited when her boyfriend Nick suggests she accompany him to his best
friend’s wedding in Singapore, where Rachel is poised to meet his family for
the first time. Little does she know,
Nick is actually from one of Singapore’s wealthiest families, and she’s in for
a shock at the outrageous displays of wealth/excess, as well as the suspicion
of her as a no-name gold-digger who’s snared the most eligible bachelor in
Singapore, in store for her.
Oh my
goodness, this movie is fast, it’s funny, it’s smart, it’s sexy, it’s opulent,
it’s intimate, and so much more. I like
the breezy air it brings as the various Singapore elite drop crazy sums of
money, the sets and costumes are appropriately jaw-dropping, and I think Hannibal was the last time I saw food
porn this good. I also appreciate the
attention given to the female gaze, letting some of the male cast members do
their part to fight the stereotype that Asian men aren’t sexy.
I was a
little apprehensive about the fact that I read the book so close to watching
the movie, but I think this is a terrific adaptation. It’s always faithful where it counts, and
when it makes changes, it’s frequently for the better. Some of these are just the energy an actor
brings to their role, while others are thoughtful story differences that flesh
out a character’s motivation or heighten the dramatic/emotional impact. I especially like how the film brings the
theme of Rachel being an outsider, as an Asian-American among Asians, forward
in meaningful ways, and I really love how the resolution is handled. (Plus, it’s a little thing, but I like that
Ollie is specifically gay instead of just gay-coded. Of course, he has no visible love life to
speak of – goodness knows who’d want that
:eyeroll: - but he does introduce himself to Rachel as “the rainbow sheep” of
the family.)
#StarringConstanceWu!
I’ve adored Wu as Jessica on Fresh Off the Boat, and it’s such a
treat to see her leading her own film, especially playing such a different
character than Jessica. Rachel is
definitely thrown into the deep end of a world she’s not ready for, but she
handles herself with strength and tenacity, and Wu brings the funny, the drama,
and the romance in equal measure. Newcomer
Henry Golding has a charming, grounded presence as Nick, and aspects of the
script help iron out some of the frustration I have with the character in the
book. Michelle Yeoh is, unsurprisingly,
fantastically formidable as Nick’s mom, and Awkwafina is straight-up hilarious
as the new-money rich Peik Lin. The film
also features Ken Jeong, The Daily Show’s
Ronny Chieng, Gemma Chan, and a host of other actors that I wasn’t familiar
with but who are all great. A knockout
cast from top to bottom.
Warnings
Language,
sexual content, drinking, drug references, and thematic elements (including
references to domestic violence.)
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