Video courtesy of Warner Bros Pictures and YouTube

     Crazy Rich Asians, a bubbly and charming movie, has managed to capture the hearts of audiences everywhere, while still encapsulating an admirable message about diversity.

    The movie focuses on New York native, Rachel Chu, who faces many obstacles as she fights for approval from her fiancé’s mother, Eleanor. Rachel’s fiancé, Nick Young, has taken her to Singapore to attend his friend’s wedding and introduce her to his family and friends. Unfortunately, Eleanor doesn’t see Rachel worthy enough for her son, only due to the fact that Rachel lives in America. Rachel struggles to adapt to everyone’s expectations in Singapore to please Eleanor, but she later realizes that she could never fit Eleanor’s ideal for a “perfect wife.” On the contrary, Rachel learns that who she is matters the most, not everyone else’s opinion.

    The reviews have been remarkably positive, with a 93% rating from Rotten Tomatoes and a 5/5 rating from Common Sense Media.

    Not only has this movie received such positive feedback, it has also broken records by becoming the first successful movie with an all Asian-cast, since The Joy Luck Club in 1993.

    Sophomore Brooke Cleary notes how the movie represents cultural diversity unlike most movies.

    “It was an entertaining movie, and I am glad that it featured a minority group that doesn’t get represented enough,” Cleary said.

    Emily Dolim, an English teacher at Monte Vista, also shares her thoughts about how successful the movie has become in such a predominantly-white industry.

    “It’s shocking that it’s taken so long, but I wasn’t surprised that this happened either,” Dolim said.

    While the movie has introduced audiences to the lack of Asian representation in Hollywood, it has also taught the importance of staying to one’s true self rather than trying to fit the expectations of others.

    Rachel and Nick Young’s family have completely different values. Rachel focuses more on being independent while the Youngs focus more on taking care of the family. Due to the significant difference between Rachel’s modern values versus the Youngs’ traditional values, tensions between them continue to grow throughout the movie as they get to know each other. Not only that, Rachel is constantly bullied and pressured to act just like everyone else in Singapore, as she was only trying to make friends and gain trust from her fiancé’s side of the family. To Nick’s family and friends, this was just a test for Rachel to see whether or not she deserved Nick.

    Christopher Lum, a teacher at Monte Vista, expresses his opinion towards the movie’s main message of staying true to yourself.

    “I think it’s important to be honest with yourself because at the end of the day, it’s you that you have to live with for the rest of your life,” Lum said. “How we live, how we treat others, and how we treat the people closest to us reveals who we are regardless of what we say or who we pretend to be.”

    This was clearly shown throughout the movie when Rachel felt the need to change her looks and personality in order to please Nick’s mother. She continuously faced the challenge of not being accepted, but she finally discovered that it is more important to be yourself.

    Other people’s views and opinions about someone shouldn’t define who that person really is. No one should change themselves just to please others because those people don’t have the right to do that. We are our own selves, and no one else has the authority to control who we are.

    Crazy Rich Asians has definitely broken the barrier for representing minority groups in America. Most importantly, it has taught that everyone should strive to be themselves despite opposition, which is significant to why the movie has become so successful.