Advertisement

arts entertainmentPop Culture

'Crazy Rich Asians' is a typical romcom -- and that's why it matters

You may be disappointed to know that the storyline for Crazy Rich Asians follows a classic romantic comedy. The disappointment might stem from the fact that it has a dominantly Asian cast, or that it received an offer from Netflix, or that it has high stakes to do justice for the community it represents. These factors should make the movie different, right?

Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) and Nick Young (Henry Golding) are a couple who put their love to the test when they fly to Singapore to meet Young's family. Chu quickly learns that Young's family comes from old money. They live an extravagant lifestyle with shockingly deep pockets, and it puts a strain on their relationship with his family.

Chu and Young experience every trial and temptation that is similar to any other romantic comedy in Hollywood. And that's just it -- Crazy Rich Asians is another romantic comedy, but that's why it matters.

Advertisement

In the years I've been watching television and movies, I began to accept that the world of entertainment didn't cater to "people like me." Asian-American actors are usually cast as minor characters who are either nerdy or downright strange. The movies they were in, more often than not, were about martial arts. Asian men are seen as inferior to other races, and Asian women are submissive or depicted as edgy, goth-like characters with blue hair.

News Roundups

Catch up on the day's news you need to know.

Or with:

This movie was different. Rachel Chu is an NYU professor who was raised in the U.S. by a single mother. She is sensible, smart and completely capable of handling someone as intimidating as her boyfriend's mom. She stands out and faces challenges on her own. She has friends who are equally as confident and, most importantly, her hair is a natural color. She is everything a female lead ought to be.

Advertisement

It goes the same for Asian men -- Nick Young embodies a true male lead, and he's a far cry from the inferior Asian man we're used to seeing onscreen. He even mentions that he once lost a fight back in the day, sans taekwondo skills. It was refreshing to watch and experience the movie as an Asian-American.

In between the street food and innuendos to Asian family and culture, I sincerely felt like I was being represented.

The movie not only touched on these stereotypes for actors, it also showed a slice of the discrimination that Asian-Americans -- and any other race -- may feel on a day-to-day basis.

Advertisement

At the beginning of the movie, Young's family runs into a hotel lobby, drenched from the rain. Eleanor Sung-Young, Nick's mother, asks the front desk to help them check into their suite. After scanning them and the state of their wet clothes, the manager denies her request. She tries again and again, only to be turned down at every attempt.

Eleanor finally makes a phone call to her husband. She walks back inside, and as the staff begins to throw the Young family out once more, the owner of the hotel stops them. He embraces Eleanor and announces that the Young family is buying the property. In iconic Pretty Woman fashion, she walks away with her head held high. 

I must admit that I truly couldn't relate to Rachel — or any of the characters — on a deeper level. Her world is so different from mine, and that's OK. I've found that I relate to other Asian-American characters like little Eddie Huang from Fresh Off the Boat or Grey's Anatomy's Christina Yang. My story doesn't always have to be told simply because a character is Asian.

However, we can't ignore that Asian-American representation in Hollywood is minimal at best. Crazy Rich Asians speaks volumes to the fact that Asian-American actors can play something other than their preconceived stereotypes, and this is something the industry should acknowledge.

If the movie feels like a generic romantic comedy, that's because it is. Unfortunately, a dominantly Asian-American cast doesn't mean the movie is award-winning, but Crazy Rich Asians is ground-breaking in a different way -- it proves that it is just like any other movie in Hollywood and that Asian-American actors are just as capable of taking on leading roles as anyone else.