This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
Oriental Vacation
Plot Overview
London, 1995. Eleanor Young (Michelle Yeoh) with her Chinese brood in tow are refused accommodation at the Calthorpe Hotel until money talks and the Lancaster Suite suddenly becomes available to “the new lady of the house.” We groove to an overlay track of “Money (that's what I want),” sung by Cheryl K.
New York, 2018. The boy with her, Nick (Nevan Koit), now grown into a man Nick Young (Henry Golding) is wining and dining his Chinese-American girlfriend Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) who chides him for nibbling down her dessert instead of ordering one for himself. Nick suggests that since “we've been dating for over a year now” they take “an adventure east.” He wants her to accompany him to his best friend's wedding in Singapore. Rachel being an economics professor used to correcting students for their blunders tells the Pacific Airlines stewardess she's making a mistake putting them in first class. Her cheap boyfriend surely couldn't afford anything better than economy. Well, he can. He'd just been slumming for a while.
Singapore. At the arrivals gate Nick's best friend Colin Khoo (Chris Pang) warmly greets him with less reserve than one usually sees in Chinese. A Chinese track plays for us, “Wo Yao Ni” (“I Want You”) to a jazzy tune of “Rag Mop” or the like. The “wedding festivities start Wednesday,” they are told. It becomes increasingly apparent to Rachel what all Singapore knows, that this will be “the wedding of the century.” Rachel finds herself under increasing scrutiny from Nick's elders, from her female competition, and from herself, as well. As the pageantry unrolls, Rachel's old college friend Piek Lin Goh (Awkwafina) helps her pick out dresses and offers her advice.
Ideology
The Youngs come from old money; their progenitor made a bundle in Old China in the 1800s and came to Singapore to expand upon it, bringing with him his traditions. The 1800s were a booming time for English missionaries, resulting in the Youngs becoming Methodists. Protestantism is less suited to the big screen than is Catholicism with its rituals, traditions, and emblems; the Protestants' all-important word of God—with some notable exceptions—does not agree so well with a visual medium. Even the church in CRA needed some waterworks to embellish the wedding scene (“Is this a church? Or a paddy field?”)
While Rachel and Nick are in flight,
we eavesdrop on Eleanor leading a Bible study with her sisters
and sundry women. They all recognize the passages in this topical
study and turn to the appropriate books with familiarity. Their ladies'
Bibles are no longer pristine, showing signs of wear. They are sized
right to fit in a woman's clutch for easy carry. Their covers are
individualized. We enter the study when Eleanor is reading (Col. 3:1-2), “If you have been raised with Christ, seek
the things that are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand
of God. Set your mind on things that are above, not on things that
are on earth.” This is more or less consistent with Eleanor's
later remark to Rachel that the Chinese are more concerned with fulfilling
family duty than are the Americans who give themselves to the
pursuit of their own passions.
Their study next proceeds to (Eph. 6:4), “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” In the manner of what's good for the goose being good for the gander, this passing on of instruction is demonstrated in the way their mother(s) taught them to make their own dumplings, not to use prepared foods and the microwave. Discipline is demonstrated in the way their moms taught them to play Mahjongg.
Their study is about to proceed “on to Corinthians” when the scene changes, so we have to guess at the passage. My money is on (1Cor. 7:29-31), “This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no goods, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.” These elements all show up in the movie: Nick's ex-girlfriend Amanda Ling (Jing Lusi) has a hard time letting go of the fish that got away. Rachel sucks it up keeping a stiff upper lip when she is snubbed at the wedding without a seat. The girls are overly giddy at the bachelorette party. Nick finds it charming when Rachel buys herself dessert and then doesn't mind when he eats it. Nick took a year sabbatical from business expectations to go to America to avoid the insane women who were after him.
Production Values
This romcom, “” (2018) was directed by Jon M. Chu. Its screenwriters were Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim. It was adapted from Kevin Kwan's 2013 best seller, Crazy Rich Asians. The movie stars Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, Gemma Chan, Awkwafina, Chris Pang, Lisa Lu and Ken Jeong. Henry Golding and Constance Wu had good chemistry together and charm to match. Michelle Yeoh as the mother does an excellent job of radiating cold vibes. The various small parts provide most of the humor while the main couple work on their drama.
MPAA rated it PG–13 for some suggestive content and language cussing God's name. The movie is visually attractive and very upbeat. The food dishes all look yummy. The characters were very sympathetic.
Review Conclusion w/ Christian Recommendation
A lot of this movie was silly, but then it did have Crazy in the title. Ditto with Rich and the flaunting of wealth. And of course, they had ethnic actors playing the Asian characters. It delivers what it said it would. I liked it, but then I like all kinds of movies.
Movie Ratings
Action factor: No action, foreign adventure. Suitability for Children: Suitable for children 13+ years with guidance. Video Occasion: Good Date Movie. Special effects: Well done special effects. Suspense: Predictable. Overall movie rating: three stars out of five.
Works Cited
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Anglicised (ESVUK). Copyright © 2001, Crossways Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Movie, WEB.
bibles.n7nz.org