Here’s an early holiday gift: a romantic movie starring Emilia Clarke and Henry Golding. Even better? It’s co-written by Emma Thompson!
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the “Game of Thrones” star and “Crazy Rich Asians” breakout are set for “Last Christmas.” The movie will be directed by Paul Feig, who worked with Golding in the recently-released “A Simple Favor.”
The screenplay is by Bryony Kimmings and Thompson, who last penned 2016’s “Bridget Jones’s Baby” and won an Academy Award for writing 1995’s “Sense & Sensibility.”
Little is known about “Last Christmas,” other than that it’s a holiday romance set in London.
Clarke is wrapping up the final season of “Game of Thrones” and has appeared in movies including this year’s “Solo: A Star Wars Story” and the romantic weeper “Me Before You.”
And Golding has quickly become a leading man in demand after his breakout turn in the blockbuster romantic comedy “Crazy Rich Asians.”
It seems as though the summer movie season is crawling to a close. All the superheroes have gone home (for a while, at least), and the bigger budget spectacles are making way for the arthouse hits and critical darlings that define the fall and winter movie seasons. Things are glum right now, but not hopeless.
In this remarkably grey and dreary landscape, muted by the resigned shuffle of countless children headed back to classes, comes the glittery, altogether fabulous “Crazy Rich Asians.” And what’s more, it has somehow manifested itself not only as the go-to cinematic experience of August but potentially the movie of the entire summer.
“Crazy Rich Asians” is based off the best-selling novel by Singaporean-American novelist Kevin Kwan, which was first published in 2013 and quickly became a sensation. (It spawned two successful follow-ups: 2015’s “China Rich Girlfriend” and 2017’s “Rich People Problems.”) It’s the story of Rachel (Constance Wu), who travels with her longtime boyfriend Nick (Henry Golding) back to Singapore, where she learns that he is part of one of the country’s wealthiest families. (Eep.)
Reading that synopsis, it’s hard to find anything particularly revolutionary about its conceit. In fact, it’s such a classic construct that it could probably be found in countless novel (romantic and otherwise) through the years, and it bears at least a superficial resemblance to a number of glittery modern romantic comedies (there are traces of everything from “My Fair Lady” to “Splash” in this bubbly concoction). But its plot is not what makes “Crazy Rich Asians” feel so startlingly new.
Firstly, there’s the look of it. Director John M. Chu and cinematographer Vanja Cernjul have festooned this movie with all sorts of clever visual signifiers (a sequence that dramatizes the spread of juicy gossip from America to Asia is a tiny narrative triumph in and of itself, like the opening sequence of “Up”) and opulent embroidery, especially when the movie moves to Singapore. (It was shot on location.)
The movie is overstuffed with decadence, which is both fun to watch and absolutely works in a narrative sense too because we’re able to place ourselves in the (very expensive) shoes of the main character, experience this wealth and extravagance for the first time.
But the thing that makes “Crazy Rich Asians” so powerful, so important and, yes, the movie of the summer, is its cultural specificity. “Crazy Rich Asians” is unapologetically leaning into its culture and the movie is all the better for it. It doesn’t compromise one iota; there are several swaths of subtitled dialogue, the filming locations are authentic, and the actors, you can tell, understand everything about that culture and way of life. This is a totally different world, as unique and occasionally as fantastical as Dorothy’s trip to Oz.
But it’s in this specificity that the movie becomes universal; you see more of yourself in the characters, relate to the relationships and situations, and become even more emotionally invested. (Even if you are a Texas boy in Southern California.) Without the details, which give the movie texture and depth, it would have been just some mildly exotic romantic comedy. With the care and attention obviously lavished on every frame of “Crazy Rich Asians,” it brings it closer to something downright profound.
It’s hard not to think back to “Black Panther,” a movie made about a perpetually overlooked audience that ended up making all of the money. Like “Crazy Rich Asians,” there wasn’t anything particularly audacious or new about the story of “Black Panther.” It was, besides a few political overtones, the same superhero origin story we’ve seen at least a dozen times in the past ten years, but its lively execution (again, led by a visionary filmmaker) and its cultural specificity are what made it the unstoppable blockbuster it became. This feels similar, with a project that does a great job raising a marginalized cultural group, putting them in the spotlight, and making a terrifically entertaining movie (all at the same time, no less!)
If this is making “Crazy Rich Asians” seem like some self-serious “message” film, well, it’s not. It’s silly and quirky and ends with one of the all-time cinematic wedding sequences, plus it’s got more frothy drama than an all-day marathon of “Housewives” (pick your city). If you go, you’ll have a blast.
But you’ll also, while watching the parade of couture and custom designs, also get an itchy feeling in the back of your brain — like you’ve never quite seen anything like “Crazy Rich Asians.” It might be a watershed moment for cinema, like you’re a witness to something downright revolutionary. Isn’t that cool?
Lionsgate released the first full trailer for “A Simple Favor,” which stars Lively as Emily Nelson, an elegant and impossibly cool woman who strikes up a sort-of friendship with fellow mom Stephanie (Anna Kendrick). Emily is mysterious and eccentric — even her husband (Henry Golding) calls her a “beautiful ghost.”
Then, Emily literally ghosts and disappears without a trace after calling Stephanie for the titular favor. Is she dead? Where did she go? Should her husband be a suspect?
The movie is based on Darcey Bell’s mystery thriller of the same name and directed by Paul Feig, who’s going a bit darker than his usual projects. It seems like there will be a lot of twists and turns and revelations, with Linda Cardellini at one point issuing this warning to Stephanie: “She was not a normal person like you or me. I’d never seen such a beautiful girl want to be so invisible.”
Meeting your boyfriend’s family and friends for the first time is always a nerve-wracking experience. But when those family and friends just happen to be some of the wealthiest people in Asia, and definitely don’t approve of you, that’s an entirely different experience.
That’s the dilemma Rachel (Constance Wu) faces in “Crazy Rich Asians,” when her longtime partner, Nick (Henry Golding), invites her back to his native Singapore to attend the wedding of a friend. When they’re greeted curbside at the airport and ushered into a luxurious first class lounge, Rachel suspects Nick has left out more about his lavish lifestyle than she initially thought. She has no idea.
Aside from the shock of attending opulent parties where Nick’s pals actually throw giant wads of cash in the air like confetti, Rachel also has to square off with Nick’s mother, Eleanor (Michelle Yeoh), who makes it quite clear that Rachel isn’t good enough for her son. But Rachel isn’t about to back down from a challenge.
“If Nick chose me, he would lose his family,” Rachel tells Eleanor. “And if he chose his family, he might spend the rest of his life resenting you.”
The also trailer features plenty of over-the-top examples of Nick’s wealth (not to mention Nick’s abs — looking good, Henry Golding), as well as a hilarious supporting turn from Awkwafina (also starring in this summer’s “Ocean’s 8”). We’re already counting down the days until this flick hits theaters.
“Crazy Rich Asians,” directed by John M. Chu, is slated for release on August 17.
When the first photos from the upcoming big screen adaptation of Kevin Kwan novel “Crazy Rich Asians” surfaced late last year, it seemed clear that this flick would definitely live up to its title. Now, fans have their first look at footage from the opulent film.
The teaser — released on Thursday, in anticipation of the debut of the full trailer on Monday — gives viewers a quick rundown of the plot: Rachel (Constance Wu), a Chinese-American professor, accompanies her hunky boyfriend Nick (Henry Golding) back home to his native Singapore for a friend’s wedding. What Nick neglects to mention, however, is that his family is ridiculously wealthy — crazy rich, you might say.
In the clip, there are quick cuts to demonstrate this wealth, including luxurious cars, lavish fireworks displays, palatial mansions, and over-the-top parties.
“You really should’ve told me that you’re like the Prince William of Asia,” an overwhelmed Rachel chides Nick.
“That’s ridiculous,” Nick replies with a wink. “I’m much more of a Harry.”
Royalty or not, it seems clear that Nick’s world isn’t something Rachel is used to. That tension drives the flick, and should provide plenty of fish-out-of-water moments, particularly when it comes to interactions with Nick’s imposing mother, Eleanor (Michelle Yeoh).
“Crazy Rich Asians” is set to hit theaters on August 17.
We were already happy to hear that hilarious “Fresh Off the Boat” star Constance Wu was set to headline her first feature film, “Crazy Rich Asians,” which is due out next year. But now that the first photos from the flick have arrived, we officially can’t wait for the extravagant production to hit theaters.
Entertainment Weekly debuted a bunch of sneak peek images from the feature this week, and based on what we’ve seen, it appears that the movie more than lives up to its name. Just about every image is practically dripping with luxury, featuring grandiose mansions, ridiculously fancy floral arrangements, glittering gold jumpsuits, and an over-the-top wedding gown that probably costs more than most people’s houses.
Based on the novel by Kevin Kwan, “Crazy” stars Wu as Rachel Chu, an economics professor who accompanies her hunky fellow professor boyfriend, Nick Young (Henry Golding), back home to Singapore for a friend’s wedding. Nick doesn’t warn her, though, that his family — led by his formidable mother, Eleanor (Michelle Yeoh) — falls into the titular category, and Rachel is suddenly thrust into a world of opulence that is overbearing — and less than welcoming of an outsider.
“Crazy Rich Asians,” directed by John M. Chu (“Now You See Me 2”), also stars Gemma Chan, Sonoya Mizuno, Awkwafina, and Ken Jeong. It’s set for release on August 17, 2018.
Meeting your boyfriend’s family and friends for the first time is always a nerve-wracking experience. But when those family and friends just happen to be some of the wealthiest people in Asia, and definitely don’t approve of you, that’s an entirely different experience.
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We were already happy to hear that hilarious “Fresh Off the Boat” star 
Based on the novel by Kevin Kwan, “Crazy” stars Wu as Rachel Chu, an economics professor who accompanies her hunky fellow professor boyfriend, Nick Young (Henry Golding), back home to Singapore for a friend’s wedding. Nick doesn’t warn her, though, that his family — led by his formidable mother, Eleanor (Michelle Yeoh) — falls into the titular category, and Rachel is suddenly thrust into a world of opulence that is overbearing — and less than welcoming of an outsider.