Jessie: *he's thinking about other women* Lee: *gathering random facts*

I thought Lee was just an expert at Hip Hop but he really knows everything! So cool, thank you for sharing

I think a lot of the success in the US was due to the majority Asian cast, as you said the last movie like that was a little indie film 20 years ago (which I really like, I recommend checking it out! It's called Saving Face). In the US few movies with predominantly non-white actors are made because investors think they won't sell well. So when we got Crazy Rich Asians, a lot of people were excited to finally have a movie like this. There was a similar effect for black americans when Black Panther came out, it did really really well in the box office. It ALSO inspired Ke Huy Quan to return to Hollywood which lead to his incredible performance in Everything Everywhere All At Once!

I'm Greek but I've read my fair share of manhua and manhwa (although I'm mainly a manga reader). This type of story is very common in those as well (especially Korean ones, they seem to have a thing for conglomerate company heirs lol). Yet, I liked this movie. Not because of the plot or whatever message, it's a romantic comedy so you know how things will go. All the wealth and upper class attitude depicted was just pure camp for me. I enjoyed it for what it is.

The movie was designed for overseas Asians not mainland

The movie did well in our country, the US, because it was the first full Asian cast over 20 years. People were supporting it because it was long overdue for Asian actors in America. Before Crazy Rich Asians, most films that portrayed Asian characters are usually negative stereotypes and people (or rather the film industry) don’t take Asian content seriously. As an Asian diaspora person, I share this view with so many Asian Americans, it felt so different to see Asian content in an American film where we’re seen as beautiful people and it was a good story. It might be a boring story in China, because it’s not new there, but for us it was so different to be respected. A lot of us cried during this movie because it was the first time we’ve seen ourselves on the big screen without being seen as a joke. And so many people, including people who are not Asians, we’re excited to see it for the same reason, to support the Asian community in the US. Even when this movie did well in the US Box Office, the film industry, that was run by old school people, could not believe that film audiences want Asian content. This movie is why The Farewell, Everything Everywhere All at Once, Shang Chi, so many Asian American films now exist. This movie was also why Ke Huy Quan returned to acting. Prior to this movie, he couldn’t get any roles because he was Asian.

I never expected to learn so much Chinese history when I decided to click on this video! Thank you so much for educating me about Li Xianglan(李香兰) and Yoshiko Kawashima (川島芳子). I ended up doing a wiki deep dive and am so grateful to have learned about such fascinating, yet very complicated women. 谢谢！

I understood the ending scene She won the game but she made the ultimate sacrifice. She gave up Nick because she didn't want Nick despising his family the rest of his life because in their eyes she was not good enough and just an ABC... American Born Chinese. But Nick's mom in the end finally realized how smart and tough she was and didn't want Nick to resent her so she gave in.

Yes, filmed in SG, but the family mansions they use are in Malaysia. I love this movie and not just because Singapore! 😊Happy CNY from 🇸🇬 BTW when you change back and forth between languages while you are talking it is called code switching. Not uncommon here! 😅

We have a ton of older rom/com movies(especially in the 2000s) just like this in the US too. I think maybe it was successful because of the cast and the visuals? There is not much substance to it, but there is plenty of spectacle, which I think a lot of Americans like.

keep those movie reactions coming :D Edit: at the beginning it looks like Lee has crazy contact lenses 😆

As an South Asian, I think the story of this movie isn't that different from the dramas I watched with my parents as a child. I was instead amazed to see a story about the uber rich of Asia, as well as the majority Asian cast. It's not just amazing to showing this other world, but for humanizing a group that are usually portraited as one note in the West and even I just accepted the status quo. Some are nice, some are cowards, some are insensitive, some are vain, some are funny - similar to the people I grew up around. Southeast Asia is a place where South and East Asian cultures meet, and this movie at least sparks an interest in me to go there myself and see what's really like. This movie is clearly glamorising it all, but it challenges so many norms in Western media and asks us regardless of our background to compare what already know and grow more our it.

Lee is a wealth of information!

I love how much knowledge Lee has. This did really well in the US because of the mostly all Asian cast. I'm not into stories like this, but I did watch it because I wanted to support the cast and show Hollywood we really do want movies that have more than just European Americans as the main and majority cast. A lot of Americans are tired of the "if they're not white, it won't sell" mentality. I also really love watching Ken Jeong act and do stand up, so of course I'll watch something that has him in it. 😆

happy new year you two lovely people! I really love these movie reaction videos. Lee's interesting facts is a unique touch that keeps me coming back for more.

wow first youtubers who provide background story, contexts, history lessons, reference images-- so cool! Appreciate you guys :)

Thank you for this. I keep meaning to see it. Yes it made money in America and they were "proud" that it had an all Asian cast so (stupidly) thought that would be a big selling point in China - never seemed to understand that almost EVERY film in China has an all Asian cast. IT'S ASIA. I want to see it for Michelle Yeoh and Gemma Chan, you probably don't know her but we all love her in the UK. She is British, born here. Her parents come from HK and the mainland, they met at the same University in Scotland. Oh...and she's super smart. A qualified lawyer who found modeling more profitable and sliding into acting easy...full disclosure...I AM A HUGE FAN. If you get the chance she's featured in a UK TV show called Humans...all English language. Actually, I have never heard her speak Chinese. Maybe she can't?

Lee just has all sorts of random knowledge. It's amazing, always really interesting to listen to! You both really know your movies too, from what I've seen of you guys mentioning all the references in Everything, Everywhere, All At Once.

Ken Jeong keeps bad asian stereotypes alive and well in the States. That's his job here: he makes sure everyone in the US has heard every bad asian joke for his own personal gain.

13:35 I love the way Lee thinks. His remark had me laughing so hard! I'd push the guy out of the way, "Get off the plane and go confess your love, Romeo!"

Yeah, as a fan of Chinese dramas, I didn’t find it particularly special. Although it was an all Asian cast, it was also a little discomforting because they all spoke English with different accents even within the same family groups. Love it that Lee knows all these random facts. He must be great at Trivial Pursuit! 😄

I thought the the movie wasn't too bad and it was nice seeing an all Asian cast on screen in a Hollywood movie that wasn't something martial arts related. The books are so much better though as always. Love your and Li's reaction

Really enjoyed this movie and have watched several reactions which I’ve enjoyed. That being said I appreciate the additional background info you guys provided in this one.

This was cool. Would love to see you do Everything Everywhere all at Once

Jessie pointing and yelling "scumbag" tickles me pink.

I like the " give her the middle finger " comment - ha ha ha !

Yaaay!!! Been waiting for this one!! Please do "Always Be My Maybe" next :)

In addition to everything people have already said in the comments about Asian characters being portrayed positively in this movie, the other reason why the movie was so successful in the US is because Hollywood has not made good romantic comedy movies in YEARS. To see one of this scale, this budget, this large of a cast, and to see it be romantic AND funny, it was refreshing for many Americans.

"Quiz time: here's the answer" haha It's absurd the amount of media reference he's able to identify. It's like you've sat down and watched the top movies of every generation.

I loved that movie it was refreshing here in France. The movies of that kind we have are about interreligious weddings btw Jews, Muslims or Christians and I never found that subject interesting. In West, we do not have many movies about family disapproval about a wedding except those interreligious but still boring. I do believe that the subject is interesting in crazy rich Asians but for me the movie is very exotic and this might explain its success. It made us travel. The last Chinese movie I saw was the rise of the red lanterns and To live. I cannot compare how high they are in front of this one... Thx ny the way, I really enjoyed your video!!!

The man reacting is so informative 🤌

Lee is so knowledgeable. He is like a live wiki for Chinese things.

I didn’t really like this movie either. If I remember correctly I thought it was strange that the point of the movie was that money and your background doesn’t matter while at the same time the movie continues to show off these extravagant houses and wedding. But I’m glad a movie with an all Asian cast did well in the U.S. I like most of the actors and it’s cool they showed parts of Chinese culture. Happy Lunar New Year Jessie!

新年快乐!

I don't know about the movie, either. But your observations and thoughts about it are really interesting. And obscure references to old movies, art, culture and music: 挺好了

Really enjoyed your review! I have to say...the book was more entertaining than the movie. The movie is a great visual feast 😁

I'm surprised you hadn't seen this earlier but I suppose if it didn't last long in China, it wouldn't have made an impression. I think it did well in the US because of its colorful depiction of foreign lands. I was disappointed because the characters seemed like stock urban stereotypes and I felt I'd seen them all before. But it looked very pretty!

A lot of the point of this movie was to prove to Hollywood executives that an all-Asian cast film could be made in Asia on a small budget and make money in the US. They were NOT trying to make a movie that would sell in China or would do anything new. They wanted it to be predictable. As long as it made money in the US, which it did, they could prove that this business model is viable. That will hopefully open the door for other directors to make better Asian-led movies for the US market.

I do think a lot of its success in America had to do with the fact that there haven't been nearly as many relatively big budget romance movies as much recently. So while this story would be tired in China, there hasn't been much like it on the big screen here.

Personally, this movie resonated a lot with me not only because it featured a mostly Asian cast, but because it spoke to me as diaspora Chinese. I am a 2nd generation immigrant, and have been called banana or bamboo stick often. Yes, it is a Cinderella story, but Rachel never knew about the money--she just loved this guy. Though compared to the original novel where it was adapted from, this is a lot more entertaining for general viewers. I preferred the book in regards to its love-letter narrative to the nation of Singapore.

I do remember a lot of the hype around it was due to the representation of asians from America and how there is not a lot of representaiton in hollywood. 新年快好

原來Jessie 是江西人！之前覺得妳的中文有南方口音，所以好奇了一下😂 這部電影其實我還挺喜歡的！尤其是最近過年可以當賀歲片來看～ 就像聖誕電影一樣，雖然劇情老套，但它的重點是感受節日的氛圍 所以這部對美國人來講，是體驗亞洲有錢人文化的電影，自然是有吸引力許多 對我這種不夠有錢的人，也是覺得這部挺有趣好看的🤣

It is like ordering Chinese food in the US, not sure why the Americans like the way it is cooked, but it is quite popular.

Have you ever done a commentary on Kill Bill? I’d love to see your thoughts on it and specially Vol 2, which is where we see the Bride’s origins and her training with Pai Mei in China, who only speaks Chinese through out the movie. Una Thurman does too during that part of the story, and would be curious to know if hers was good ^^

I was just catching up with your channel and I'm surprised you reacted to this movie! I have watched American's reactions to it, but never really got to see the reaction from people living in China haha. Also you asked if Singaporeans speak English with a British accent... We actually don't! Some of us can fake the foreign accents, but we have our own Southeast Asian accents. Uncle Roger, for example, uses a more exaggerated version of it. Just some input as a Singaporean: this movie didn't do very well here either. As you mentioned, it was a common plot that we have seen many times in Asian media. Also, Singapore has way more races than just Chinese, and the way the movie portrayed us just felt very inaccurate and backwards. To us, it was the equivalent of an American movie with just Caucasian actors. A big step forward for the US in representation, sure, but a huge step backwards for representation in Singapore. Aaand also it portrayed most of the locals here as either cruel, insufferable, or old-fashioned, whilst propping up those with more Westernised views/attitudes. It's no wonder it didn't do well here. As for why this movie was so popular in the US, I think the other comments have pretty much addressed it. What is perhaps the most interesting to me, however, is that the original novel was written by an ex-Singaporean who is actually part of the super rich. So he was basically adapting things from his own childhood, making it a very interesting and enlightening read. The original book included many details of Singaporean culture, and was also extremely critical of the consumerism and worship of money that existed amongst the rich. I believe that was part of the reason why his novel did so well, as he was providing an authentic, inside view of how the Asian high society worked, while also introducing the Singaporean culture to a Western audience. The movie, on the other hand, went for a completely different approach, focusing more on the perspective of Asian Americans and second-generation immigrants. I believe this alternative take was due to the fact that the director, scriptwriter, as well as most of the cast were second-generation immigrants themselves, hence this was a lot more authentic for them. Interestingly, the movie also removed most of the anti-consumerism that the book had... and it's not difficult to guess why. That said though, the different approaches in the novel and the movie are really fascinating. For the original novelist, it was about his nostalgia for Singapore and a commentary on the Chinese high society, while for the movie director, it was about his own life and personal struggles as a Chinese living in the West.

When Lee mentioned Boston, I was like :O

因为一八年大家在西方对中国的故事中国这个国家的发展开始感兴趣开始享受，所以我们很好奇中国人的生活，特别是有钱的，还是那时候中国的留学生特别多，我们西方的文化和中国文化开始交流，人家开始教中国的朋友，其实代表西方对中国开始开放佩服😊

It was very refreshing to hear commentary from other Asians that are not ABCs.

Hi Jessie & Lee!! I Wish You & Your Loved Ones a HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR OF THE RABBIT!!! May A New Year Bring Renewed Strength to Overcome our troubles!!! May this New Year Bring Peace, Calm & Health to Both Body & Mind; for whatever problems or difficulties we may still be facing, or yet to come!!! May our New Year Bring Love, Compassion, Kindness & Wisdom to Ourselves & Others, as we Face this Future Together!!! With Loving-Kindness to All!!! ❤️❤️❤️

I loveeeeeeee that movie

lee is so naturally funny lol

The producer of this was someone I knew in high school.

I’d love for y’all to react to Spirited Away (my fave film of all time) or another Ghibli film! Also the first rush hour or the god of cookery would be fun :)

I had very similar opinions when i watched this.

I enjoyed it as an easy watch, definitely a formulaic romcom but with a bunch of people in it I like and not the typical setting. And it was cool to see a big project aimed at a western audience that centred asian actors and an asian setting without being a martial arts movie, even if it's uh not exactly a slice of life. But I could absolutely see audiences in China and the rest of Asia shrugging if they don't care about novelty factor! A basic romcom with rich people and some Americans and Brits (Also I've been trying to put a little time into learning Mandarin, still at the newb level but now I'm picking up some stuff you're saying and in the subtitles! Which is fun, also comparing your pronunciations because pinyin is messing me up. ALSO how does Lee know so much)

The story is formulaic, but the filming is beautifully done, which is why I enjoyed it.

It didn't just do well because it had an all Asian cast. It also did well because it represented what a lot of immigrant or second generation Asians (or people of color in general) feel when compared to people from the homeland. The feeling of never being enough

It also did surprising well in Hong Kong Definitely different to the Mainland Chinese market where there is already an abundance of similar films I guess the selling point is just the simple romance?

Just wondering, from other of your videos that include names, is Lì Ming-Yue or Zhāng Yāngxiān be a chinese name, and what does it mean?

You guys should try Joy Luck Club next

Michelle Yeoh and Awkwafina are both on Crazy Rich Asians and Shang Chi

CRAZY POOR ASIANS (on GMA’s comedy show Bubble Gang in the Philippines)

Goddamn Lee just drops the knowledge in this one! Your BF is a well-read guy!

Have you seen 'the half of it' There's some Mandarin conversations in that movie

❤

"Ghost story" I've seen the serials. Divide people 30+ and others

Henry has british english accent because of his family! He's from malaysia haha but there's some sg folks who sound a wee bit british

I want to ask ... does Mandarin has these bad slang like Cantonese such as 67 or on9 ... by the way 7:02 means beat you with a wooden stick XD can be on the a55

I'm Chinese American and my friends related to the movie. There's really no other movie that shows the "Asian parent disappointment" and difference in Chinese cultures until Everything Everywhere all at Once. To non-Chinese people, all Chinese people have 0 difference, they don't even understand that Mando and Canto are different. Though I can see how this story would get old in China where this type of story is common, everyone there is Asian and has been parented by Asians lol. There were not enough Asians in Hollywood to tell this story until recently.

Lee's actually wrong for the cover of 'yellow'. It is not the cover by Zheng jun but was done by a Chinese American college student named Katherine Ho. She was actually on 'The Voice' USA but was kicked out after one round. The song in the wedding also was a cover done by an Asian American singer from KZfaq. Her name is Kinna Grannis.

I'm chinese and didn't watch the movie... sorry. But, I enjoyed watching it with you guys! 😊

我喜欢啊。

How does he know so much information? Wow

New sub😀💛

Jessie ❤❤ can you visit Hong Kong?? ❤❤

这个发型换了之后怎么那么好看

Pity they didn't base it on the most expensive every held in China in the last 20 years, that I would like to see, Wedding crashers style.

I saw this advertisment board in Penang, Malaysia. Currently where my hometown and I'm celebrating Chinese New year at.

Yes yes! It's just okay of a movie. But I'm happy what it did for Asians in Hollywood

If this guy can get someone as beautiful as her then I've hope

Agree with most of the comments that the reason why it succeeded in the US was more due to visuals and the fact that there hadn’t been a good romantic comedy in America in years. Also, add to the fact that it was an all Asian cast, which really brought out the support of Asian Americans, In my opinion, the book was a lot better than the movie - you should read it if you have the chance!

As an ABC, I didn’t find this movie that groundbreaking either. I enjoyed Shang Chi much more, but that may just be because I grew up on Hong Kong martial arts films rather than romantic dramas.

I am here for Lee's facts

感觉这部电影是拍给海外华人和外国人看的

Maybe it did well in USA because of these reactions: Non-Asian American, “Wow! Asians can act like us! Woohoo! And there’s nothing implied that’s critical of USA! Woohoo! Lots of Money. Simple. Yeah!” Asian American, “Wow! Finally! After hundreds of years, Asians are main characters in a movie and we aren’t just portrayed as kung fu artists and madams in brothels!”

I liked it because it fit the romantic comedy genre so well. It was light hearted, visually appealing, funny, sweet and had a few moments of vindication. Something we Americans seem to enjoy in romance movies. I don't think it was appealing because of the ordinary girl finding a rich man... that story is not as popular here because (in theory) anyone can make money or marry money if they work and strategize for it. Not everyone wants to do that. But most people going to these types of movies, DO want romance❤ I think that part of the story is why it did so well.

可是我覺得很好看欸~ 是我的品味太獨特了嗎？😂 （我來自台灣） BTW，那幾句應該是閩南語，不是潮州話

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

Grandma liked Rachel, so not all the family disapproved just Nick’s mom

Me: when will Jimmy show up? Then he appeared riding a jeep 😂

I would love for you guys to react to Mulan (1998)!

They really don't have TV dramas like that, not in the same amount that Asia has.

4:20 hokkien

Li is the narrator from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure with all these random facts

You should react to bad English in Chinese movies!!

Yellow 算流行摇滚👍

Hello!

In the book the dad was based overseas.

I'm pretty sure the lack of success in Asian markets had way more to do with the marketing budget being domestically focused. I'd be really interested to see how much money they spent comparatively in Asia vs the US. The Chinese gov't also delayed the release in Mainland China by a full 2 months after its actual release...because...well...censorship and communism. It's a cute movie, not a great movie. But I'm sure the studio knew it would flop in China and didn't put money into advertising towards them. Good business decision considering it wasn't an overly expensive movie to make and made over 250 million USD globally. Hell, despite having an almost entirely Chinese cast, the whole movie was filmed in Singapore and Malaysia.

Constance Wu is good in this film, but I prefer her character in "Fresh Off the Boat", she completely steals the show in that series.