Critics in city where hit film is set complain that it leaves out minorities and is ‘simplistic’
It has been heralded as a milestone for representation of Asian people on screen, the first Hollywood blockbuster to feature an all-Asian cast in 25 years.
But Crazy Rich Asians, which raked in $26.5m (£21m) at the US box office over the weekend, has proved polarising among the community it is supposed to represent, many of whom have said it perpetuates racist stereotypes and presents a single version of Asia that is “palatable” for Hollywood audiences.
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The film, set in the opulent world of Asia’s hyper-wealthy in Singapore, is an adaptation of a popular book by Kevin Kwan. The story follows a New York University professor who flies to Singapore to meet her boyfriend’s family, only to discover they own one of Asia’s largest fortunes. A whirlwind of wealth, champagne, extravagant parties and designer handbags follows.
The film has been praised by critics, both for challenging the norms of Hollywood, where Asian characters are few and far between, and often played by a non-Asian actor, but also for being a highly enjoyable “glimpse through the curtains at an intensely insular world, the 1% of the 1%”.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest A scene from Crazy Rich Asians. Photograph: Sanja Bucko/AP
But some viewers in Singapore and across Asia disagree. In a two-part takedown of the film, Sangeetha Thanapal, an activist and writer of Singapore-Indian origin whose work explores Chinese privilege, said the film “simply is not the ‘Great Asian Hope’ that it is being portrayed as”.
“While it is being billed as an Asian movie, it is made up almost entirely of east Asians,” said Thanapal. “The few brown people featured in it are seen in service positions to the glamorous and wealthy Chinese characters. The dominance of east Asia in the worldwide imagination of who constitutes the idea of Asia is troubling, especially since brown Asians make up a sizable portion of the continent.”
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A key criticism of the film is that it entirely erases the 15% of those in Singapore who are Malay and the 6.6% who are Indian. “Brown Asians have been overlooked from the American definition of Asian for generations,” Thanapal said.
The journalist Cat Wang pointed out that in the context of Singapore, the film “renders minorities invisible”.
“The movie perpetuates the misguided view that to be Asian means to be Chinese,” she wrote. “So while critics and starstruck fans have hailed Crazy Rich Asians as a decisive victory for Asians everywhere, in reality, such an assessment is simplistic at its very best and destructive at its very worst.”
Another journalist, Kirsten Han, said it was significant that the story was based around a specific type of Asian community – super-rich, ultra-glamorous, and extremely westernised. “Would the white Hollywood executives who backed the film have done so if it hadn’t been about over-the-top Asian wealth?” questioned Han.
A review of the film by a Singaporean film critic was equally scathing. “The main cast also comprises non-Singaporean actors who mostly speak in western accents,” he said, alluding to vetoed attempts by local members of the cast to include more “Singlish”, a form of local patois.
The film still does not have a release date in China, but international Chinese audiences have not all warmed to it either. Writing on the popular Chinese review site Douban, one reviewer said: “My [American-born Chinese] friends loved the film, but my Chinese friends really hated it.”
Another wrote: “Starring all Asian faces is really not easy in Hollywood. Still, I felt uncomfortable. The revival of Chinese culture doesn’t mean telling a Chinese story in a western way.”
But the film’s director, John M Chu, said the film would never be able to live up to all the expectations placed on it. “We decided very early on that this is not the movie to solve all representation issues,” he said in a press conference. “This is a very specific movie, we have a very specific world, very specific characters. This is not going to solve everything.”
SINGAPORE - Crazy Rich Asians may not be the first Hollywood movie to receive the backing of the authorities here, but it is the most successful "made-with-Singapore" movie to date.
The red carpet premiere of the movie in Singapore takes place on Tuesday night (Aug 21) but it had already proved to be a blockbuster in the US where it opened a week earlier.
Last weekend, the film beat blockbuster shark movie The Meg to reach No. 1 at the American box office with a strong US$35 million opening over five days. The tally put it in the company of other big-budget films like Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, which made US$34.3 million over four days during its opening week.
The movie features Singapore prominently both on screen and off, in part because the Singapore Film Commission (SFC) and the Singapore Tourism Board threw their weight behind it.
The SFC, for one thing, provided Crazy Rich Asians with a Production Assistance grant, which "provides funding for productions that highlight Singapore talents in credited roles, and infuse data and/or digital technologies into content for distribution on new and/or digital platforms".
The SFC also facilitated the filming in Singapore locations such as Gardens By The Bay and Newton Circus by linking up the movie producers to local government agencies such as the Ministry Of Home Affairs and Land Transport Authority.
Meanwhile, STB supported Singapore cast members in Los Angeles by pitching them for interviews and press opportunities in the United States. STB and SFC did not say, however, how much they spent supporting the movie.
Blink and you'll miss it. Can you point out all the Singapore places and faces in the trailer of the movie, Crazy Rich Asians?
The statutory board has also been marketing Singapore as a tourist destination to overseas audiences through various film-related initiatives, including a three-day event earlier this month in Los Angeles known as the Crazy Rich Singapore Week. The event introduced Singapore-themed cocktails, food, and art in hip L.A. rooftop bar The Highlight Room by Tao Group.
Ms Lynette Pang, STB's assistant chief executive, marketing group, told The Straits Times: "As the movie is set in Singapore and showcases Destination Singapore in a way that celebrates Singapore's culture, food and attractions, it is a natural opening to get the conversation going about the real Singapore and pique interest in visiting the country."
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She added: "Due to the large Singaporean cast and crew involved in the production, STB is also focusing our marketing message around our home-grown talents and personalities as they are a key anchor of our Passion Made Possible brand. The film shines a spotlight on them, and how they are making their passions possible on a global stage."
The SFC thus describes the movie as not just "made in Singapore" but "made with Singapore".
The Warner Bros production had 297 Singaporean or Singaporean permanent residents as production crew members, with 30 in key roles.
The film also makes history for being the Hollywood studio film with the most number of Singaporeans in the cast itself, with 12 home-grown names such as Pierre Png and Fiona Xie in the mix.
Mr Joachim Ng, director of the Singapore Film Commission, told The Straits Times: "Crazy Rich Asians is important for the local film industry, as it facilitates the exchange of skills and experience, and benefits local talent by providing them the opportunity to work with international talent and companies."
Other "made-with-Singapore" films in the past include Hollywood action thriller Hitman: Agent 47 (2015) starring Rupert Friend, and sci-fi flick Equals (2015) starring Kristen Stewart and Nicholas Hoult, which were also shot here and had employed Singapore crew members.
But both of them bombed at the box office and were largely forgotten after they were taken down from cinema screens.
SINGAPORE - Hundreds turned up at the Capitol Theatre on Tuesday night (Aug 21) to greet the stars of the film Crazy Rich Asians at the Singapore premiere of the surprise Hollywood hit.
The main attraction was lead actor Malaysian-British actor Henry Golding, who plays Nick Young, the heir to a fortune amassed by Singapore's wealthiest family.
He was joined on the carpet by his wife, actress and fitness instructor Liv Lo.
Also present were Singapore actors Pierre Png, Tan Kheng Hua, Koh Chieng Mun, Fiona Xie, Selena Tan, Janice Koh, Amy Cheng and Constance Lau, as well as photographer Russel Wong and others.
With them on the red carpet at the Outdoor Piazza in front of Capitol Theatre were director Jon M. Chu and producer John Penotti.
The film's weekend takings of over US$35 million (S$47.9 million) in the United States has far exceeded expectations for the romantic comedy, with many seeing its success as a sign that audiences are hungry for fun love stories, and will welcome films that feature non-whites in leading roles.
The movie was also No. 1 at the US box office over the weekend.
But it remains to be seen if a Hollywood picture featuring mostly Asians will be a hit in this region.
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The film, based on the 2013 bestseller of the same name by novelist Kevin Kwan, opens in theatres in Singapore on Aug 22.
Centred on the romance between Chinese-American protagonist Rachel Chu and Young, the story looks at the lives of the ultra rich and famous here.
Singapore locations featured in the film include Gardens by the Bay and Newton Circus.
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - “Crazy Rich Asians” celebrated its Asian premiere in Singapore on Tuesday night, with local-born stars such as Fiona Xie delighted to be bringing the film home to the city where it was filmed.
“I’m so looking forward for every Singaporean to watch this because Singapore is so beautiful on screen. Everybody (in Hollywood) was like, is this CGI? Does this place really exist?,” Xie, who plays gold digging opera star Kitty Pong, told reporters.
“This is a homecoming!” she said.
The film, the first Hollywood movie in 25 years with an all-Asian cast, is a rare Hollywood showcase of Asian identity and culture, which the filmmakers hope will be enjoyed by moviegoers of all backgrounds.
The romantic comedy about an Asian-American New Yorker who goes to Singapore to meet her boyfriend’s wealthy and tradition-bound family of Chinese descent is based on the 2013 best-selling book of the same name by Kevin Kwan.
The Warner Bros film directed by Jon M. Chu, launched above expectations, garnering $34 million in just five days.
The film, with a mostly eastern Asian cast, has drawn criticism for not representing Singapore’s multi-ethnic society.
“The film is set in Singapore, where 15 percent of the population are Malay and 7.4 percent are Indian, and none of them are represented in the film except as the background help,” said activist and journalist Kirsten Han on Twitter.
However, others saw it as an opportunity to tell other diverse Singapore stories.
“This movie is going to open more doors for us to tell the world more Singapore stories,” 19 year-old university student, Andrea Raeburn told Reuters at the premiere.
The film’s producer, John Penotti also shared similar sentiments:”We hope this starts a very long-running trend celebrating Asian-focused films that play around the world, that’s exactly the hope for the portrayal of Asians, that’s exactly what is starting to happen. There are many more stories, this is just one,” he said.
FILE PHOTO: Author Kevin Kwan (R) and cast members Henry Golding and Constance Wu pose at the premiere for "Crazy Rich Asians" in Los Angeles, California, U.S., August 7, 2018. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
