Why "Crazy Rich Asians" could open the gates for even more (and better) Mainstream Asian Narratives

I’m not going lie. I really enjoyed Crazy Rich Asians. For a guy who sees romantic comedies as a concession for my wife, dragging me out of my typical sci-fi/action-adventure/superhero fare, to see movies that she wants, I took a certain liking to this much-hyped flick, which really baffled me.

It’s barely relatable. It’s a movie about super rich people who probably spend more money in a day that I would make in a year.

It’s not representatively “Asian” enough. It only features a small slice of Singapore, which is in itself an even smaller slice of the much broader, much more richly diverse Asian experience. (And the only aspects that piques my “Filipino-ness” are the rich people’s army of Filipina maids, Nico Santos's portrayal of Oliver, the flamboyant cousin, and Kris Aquino’s brief cameo)

At best, it’s just a slightly above average romcom, whose “love overcomes all” plot is atypical to most movies in its genre. (I did appreciate the bits of foreshadowing that led to the climactic confrontation between our heroine, Rachel, and her boyfriend’s mom, Eleanor, which I won’t spoil of course)

The more I thought about it, I liked the movie for much deeper reasons. Forget the flashy displays of wealth and the colorful band of characters deftly played by a talented, all-Asian cast.

At the end of the day, it’s a story of conflict between traditional (eastern) versus modern (western) values, familial versus personal obligations, elitism versus egalitarianism, while told in the Chinese-Singaporean and Chinese-American context, are broadly shared experiences by many different Asians and Asian-Americans.

Most importantly, it portrays the above through instances that all sorts of Asian audiences, rich or middle-class, may find familiar: the gossip-mongering within the community, the open-home hospitality of close acquaintances, the large banquets composed of an impractical amount of extended family and friends who are all there to flaunt their professional and material successes, the family sharing an tradition related to making or eating food, the intimate moments between parent and child, paired with the occasional subtle threats of the child being disowned at the slightest sign of defiance. etc. etc.

I feel, that’s the whole point of the potential broader cultural impact of "Crazy Rich Asians". There’s going to be much more popular interest in uniquely Asian stories, most importantly through the context of the mundane: the real-life, day-to-day moments that define the individual experiences of the richly diverse Asian cultures.

The movie may not be the best romcom, nor the most representative movie for Asians out there. But it’s going to open the flood gates for more Asian narratives, paving the way for them to become part mainstream Hollywood norm that the rest of the world can enjoy.

The stories that local Asian moviemakers have already been telling in their respective countries for a long time may possibly become part of the conventional, widespread consciousness of the global movie-going audiences. That’s what excites me.

Forget the old portrayals of Oriental mysticism, from high-flying kung fu to cheerfully-outlandish Bollywood style song and dance numbers, or typical token characters, from the bumbling Chinese / Indian / Japanese nerd, to the funny-yet-wise old Asian man / lady who runs a dojo / hole-in-the-wall restaurant.

What the world could see more of are Asian male and female leads, who portray strong, empowering characters, in more meaningful stories that accurately depict diverse Asian experiences that even non-Asians can appreciate, or even sympathize with.

Now one may ask, do we really need Hollywood to validate the Asian experience’s relevance to the world? Of course not.

But don’t forget, Hollywood is still the world’s largest, most influential media-industrial complex that’s (arguably) the best in producing, distributing and promoting culturally impactful movies.

And that's the kind of muscle that the Asian narrative needs to become even more far-reaching to the global audience.