Saw it last night. Fucking loved it. Super surprised TBH.
No it doesn't. The main character's background and conflicting status is the whole thrust of the film.
Their background and conflicting status is based on class and east vs west. It has nothing to do with ethnicity.
Any positive Asian representation is a gateway to more Asian representation. Are you Asian?
Yes, I am Asian. And there are a whole lot of Asians that are not into this movie.
I'm old enough to remember when MASH was the only place you saw Asian-American actors. And most of the pioneering Asian-American tv/film actors were on that show. So, I'm coming from a time when representation, ANY representation meant so damn much. And we've reached a point where we don't have to clamor for a quantity of walk on roles, extras or side characters, but to clamoring for quality in leading roles.
Don't make the error of overlooking what and how long it took to get it.
This movie isn't Asian Black Panther. It's not supposed to be Asian Black Panther. Stop making the suggestion that all things are all equal to underrepresented groups.
Millions of Asian-Americans are pumped for this shit. Let us have our fucking fun.
I can have fun and excitement for the whole cast of Asian-Americans involved in this movie, the refusal to let the lead be changed to a white woman, for them deciding not to take the money and go to Netflix, which would have been more convenient for me as a consumer, but gambled on the audacity of a major studio release. I'm Korean, I don't have to limit my excitement to Ken Jeong and half of Awkwafina.
I agree with the rest of your post, we should all be celebrating the existence of this film. But the fact is that in order to push the envelope forward, we should also be criticizing what it is. In some sense it isn't the film's fault because it's based on a book, but where the fuck are the brown people in Singapore beyond what lots of people (critics and viewers alike) are pegging as a racist scene. It's time to talk about the colorism that exists in our own communities and to be told to line up or shut up for this film by people on Resetera has been one of my most disappointing experiences on this forum...It's interesting everyone here seems to dogpile on any negative review, the film is a damn popcorn summer rom com, not some future classic.
As for the bolded, See my response to Ogre below.
It's a fun movie that plenty of Asians can enjoy and relate to. Plus it opens doors for more Asian cinema. It's also based off of a popular book
It's based off a book that also has a lot of criticism against it.
Speaking of Certified Fresh...
My wife and our friends are heading out to see this on Sunday. They gonna be representing that Filipino, Cambodian, and Korean support. They fuckin' hyped, especially now that the reviews are good too.
And ofc I work that night ;_;
I have many Pilipino and Korean friends on my feed that just disagree, these people are still playing ethnic Chinese characters.
Ignoring all the "lol he didn't reply" posts.
Anyway, I'm glad I got to see it back in April, I had wished they had cut out the scene with the Sikh guards between now and then and they didn't. I will say it is very difficult to sympathize with anyone but the character Constance plays and her mother, they have so much money their problems are honestly trivial...I think the book handles this better and it's hard to capture the satire on film.
Anyway, I'd like to sum up my perspective, per a response on my FB feed that I found reasonable:
"1) No one should be telling anyone to shut up.
2) CRA could've definitely been better about representing the diversity of Asians in Singapore.
3) The desire for representation isn't just to see ourselves on screen. It's the opportunity for more Asian/Asian American stories to be invested in by Hollywood Studios so that the cultural stories can be absorbed by mainstream audiences. When I applaud this film and hope for its success, I think of all the Asian American films allowed a chance to be produced that will better represent brown Asians and/or the diversity of Asians in Singapore. It won't happen if none of these AA stories (however flawed) succeed. If it DOES succeed, then we can make the next one better.
And to be clear, the book doesn't paint the rich Chinese Singaporean group in a good light, except for a small handful of the characters. They basically see the main character Rachel as a second-class citizen, undeserving of being a part of their society."
And here's something that I think is taking it a bit too far but once again, the discussion should be had:
"I've decided personally not to contribute to its box office gross. Even though in the American context, this movie is diverse, in its original context, it is white-washed. As a Chinese-American, I am becoming more aware of China's history and the continued actions of its people around Asia and the world. As someone who works with refugee populations, particularly children, I am fully aware that some Asian refugees might look at me and identify me with their oppressors. They aren't wrong to feel that way: that is what my skin color represents to them. And even though I'm removed from the situation geographically, that doesn't mean I don't benefit from light-skinned privilege and other kinds of privilege. So yes, it's on me to be like "No, we shouldn't support this movie because it's not good enough and it's not really worth being problematic now on the off-chance Hollywood does better next time."
Also if we should celebrate the movie we should also celebrate the fact that now we can have these conversations within our communities. Just because something is "Asian" (although once again, some critics disagree), doesn't mean we stop voicing criticism.
I had a fine enough time with it but took away absolutely nothing and already forgot it until seeing this thread. But that's how I feel with most romances, like what is my takeaway meant to be anyway?
Everything will be okay if you are rich and light skinned.
