Joy Ride (2023)

Despite my enjoyment of the Joy Ride trailer, I was prepared to be underwhelmed by the movie. There was enough good word about it to make it something I wanted to prioritise, but I worried that I might have already been made aware of all the best bits. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case.

Ashley Park plays Audrey, a young woman with a successful career who is tasked with heading to China to complete a major business deal. Although everyone assumes that Audrey should have no problems in China, due to her being Asian, the fact that she was adopted at a very young age means that she isn’t necessarily well-equipped for the trip. As she doesn’t speak any form of the language, she heads there with her best friend, Lolo (Sherry Cola). Lolo ends up bringing along her awkward, K-pop-loving cousin, “Deadeye” (Sabrina Wu), and Audrey turns the trio into a quartet when she connects with another friend, Kat (Stephanie Hsu). Kat is a successful actress, having made her reputation as a wholesome and virginal “good girl”, despite some very raunchy episodes in her past. The business deal is the focus, but Lolo also tries to convince Audrey to seek out her birth mother.

Directed by Adele Lim (who helped to write a little film you may have heard of called Crazy Rich Asians), this is an enjoyably bawdy comedy that also manages to insert some interesting commentary and genuinely moving moments without everything feeling forced. There are at least a few big laughs, one gag prompting me to laugh louder than I have in the cinema in years, and plenty of dialogue and moments that manage to both entertain and allow viewers to consider the way society treats race, gender, sex, and family.

The screenplay, written by Cherry Chevapravatdumrong and Teresa Hsiao (neither of whom have the biggest body of work, but both seem to have worked together well on the TV show “Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens”), fleshes out an idea that Lim helped to create, and uses a familiar comedy feature template to give equal time and space to each of the four main characters. Although a lot of the beats are fairly familiar and predictable, there are enough little moments that stray from the formula to make this feel a bit more special than other films in the genre. It would have been very easy just to make this into another Bridesmaids with some different wardrobe choices throughout, but it manages to avoid feeling too indebted to that film, despite it being the closest cinematic touchstone.

Park is a good lead, able to play the “straight” acting more than the others, but certainly not without the ability to play into the comedy, but kudos to her for often just being present in scenes where the others shine. Cola, Wu, and Hsu get the majority of the laughs, with each one seemingly dealing with their own hang-ups as the fun trip that was planned starts to turn into one mishap after another. Or perhaps the hang-ups belong to other people, and those other people should just let people be their natural selves. Ronny Chieng has a fun few minutes of screentime, and there are sweet, and all-too-brief, moments for Daniel Dae Kim and Michelle Choi-Lee.

No matter who you are, if you have ever wrestled with your own identity (in terms of your family tree, in terms of your sexuality, in terms of a fandom you are part of, in any way) then I recommend Joy Ride. It has plenty of food for though, some big laughs, and a big heart. It could have been trimmed slightly, there could have been a few more jokes dotted throughout, but it’s a fun time that should have you smiling broadly as the end credits roll.

8/10

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Crazy Rich Asians (2018)

Crazy Rich Asians is a bright and fun romantic comedy, made into something that feels a bit different from so many others thanks to the cultural caricatures and lavish displays of wealth. Both of these things could put off anyone looking for reasons to be put off, but they work well in service of the actual focus of the movie, which is a very standard tale of love, family, and identity.

Constance Wu plays Rachel, a young woman who is about to accompany her boyfriend (Nick, played by Henry Golding) to a wedding that will allow her to finally meet his family. What she doesn't realise is that Nick is part of a ridiculously wealthy family. We're talking "let's just buy the island" kind of money. Hoping to make a good impression, Rachel soon realises that she doesn't have a fan in Nick's mother (Eleanor, played by Michelle Yeoh).

This could have been a much more unpleasant movie to watch if everyone had been snotty and quick to look down at those who don't have a gazillion pounds in their bank account, which is why the script from Peter Ciarelli and Adele Lim (adapting the novel by Kevin Kwan) is commendable for offering such an enjoyable array of characters. There are plenty who enjoy their wealth, some who prize it above everything else, and some who couldn't care less about it. Of course, it's easy to say you don't care less about wealth when you have it, which is why Rachel is the constant we root for in the busy series of gatherings, parties, shopping, and general socialising. Things are also helped along by a prologue that shows part of why this very rich family may have such an ingrained desire to keep hold of their position in society.

Wu and Golding are a solid central couple. The film focuses on the former, of course, but Golding isn't shown as a complete pushover. He's a nice guy who doesn't want his wealth to affect the woman he loves, and the film keeps him around long enough to remind viewers that he's exactly how he puts himself across. We never have doubts about Wu, or the integrity of her character, so making time for Golding is equally important here, underlining the fact that the main obstacle in this particular romantic adventure is the close family, the matriarch driven by self-preservation and a misplaced notion of what is best for her son. Yeoh is excellent in her role, easy to dislike while also easy to grudgingly admire. Everything she does is for her family, even if that doesn't mean things are going perfectly in the lives of her children. Gemma Chan is quite lovely as Astrid, Nick's sister and a shining example of how to act while representing the public face of the family (despite personal difficulties), and there are laughs to be had in most scenes that involve Awkwafina (playing Rachel's friend, Peik Lin Got) and Ken Jeong.

Director John M. Chu does a great job, crafting a layered film that provides plenty to think over while it also provides simple entertainment. The subgenre tropes may be hidden under a different coating but they're all there, nonetheless, and Chu makes sure to tick them off the checklist. He also takes the script and embellishes the dialogue with relevant mise-en-scènes, great work that peaks in a third act scene showing an important game of Mahjong between two central characters.

Everything is topped off by a soundtrack full of great cover tunes, plenty of moments that will have people daydreaming about what they would do if they ever had their own overstuffed bank accounts, and a standard rom-com finale that proves to be as satisfying as expected.

8/10

You can buy the movie here.
Americans can buy it here.