Film Analysis Paper: 'Crazy Rich Asians'

The film ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ is very interesting and mainly focuses on the cultural aspect of sociology. The film is about a lady named Rachel Chu and a man named Nick Young who are in a relationship. They have a fairly normal and very intimate relationship. Rachel Chu has the occupation of an economics professor at New York University and Nick Young is a businessman. They come from different backgrounds but have commonality. Then one day Nick Young asks Rachel Chu to come with him to his home country Singapore for his friend's wedding and well Rachel agrees because she doesn’t know much about Nicks family as they are all back home in Singapore and has not met them, and this is when their story unfolds. The main points I will be discussing in my paper are the three theoretical perspectives, sociological imaginations, sociological concepts, and research methods.

Theoretical Perspectives

The three theoretical perspectives: symbolic interactionism, functional analysis, and conflict theory all play a huge role in the film ‘Crazy Rich Asians’. In the film, a scene that represents symbolic interactionism is when Rachel goes shopping with her mother, Kerry and they are looking at appropriate clothing Rachel can potentially wear when meeting Nicks family in Singapore and Rachel picks out a striped blue and white dress and Kerry states, “blue and white is for Chinese funerals” and that red “symbolizes good fortune and fertility” (Chu). This scene displays that colors have associated meanings attached to them in certain cultures like here in Chinese culture. Another scene that demonstrates the use of symbols is during the flower ceremony the “tan huas which are flowers that bloom once in a long time” (Chu). It signifies and foreshadows the start of a new journey for Rachel. The journey which is negative and where the term hardship enters love for multiple relationships. This concept is also portrayed in the scene where Rachel finds the dead fish lying on her bed with blood. It symbolizes that Rachel is seen as dead to the girls and it is a sign of unwelcoming. “Symbolic interactionism is that society is produced through our interactions and interpretations” (Jovel, 09/13/19). This is a very strong perspective because it is the meanings we tie to objects and various things. Symbols definitely play a huge role in society today and there are consequences associated with some if they are abused like the American flag and any flag in general. It is seen as a symbol of many rights and freedom and it must be respected, and this can be a universal concept as well because many other cultures must respect the flag. A scene from the film that demonstrates functional analysis is when Eleanor tells Rachel that, “She will never be good enough” (Chu). She is referring to her worth and views her as incapable in running the family business and being a part of such an elite family. “Functional analysis is society is stable whole unit made of interrelated parts that work together” (Jovel, 09/13/19). This is a critical perspective because it makes up society and if individuals don’t complete their designated tasks then society is at instability and an example would be if I didn’t complete my assignments for class then the professor wouldn’t be able to do his/her job by grading my work. A part in the film that represents conflict theory is when Rachel states, “She looked at me like I was nothing” (Chu). This scene represents conflict theory because it shows the amount of power and authority Eleanor has. She can't even try to enter the family no matter how bad she wants to. A different scene that displays conflict theory is when Colin is talking to Astrid about her status in society compared to him, “You’re always the prettiest, richest, most perfect girl in the room while, I am just this lucky bastard that will never level up” (Chu). This scene clearly indicates the competition of power between this particular husband and wife. There are clear inequalities between their statuses, and they strive to be at equivalent statuses but can’t. This perspective conflict theory means “group compete for resources, power, authority” (Jovel, 9/03/19). Symbolic interactionism differs from functional analysis because it specifically focuses on the meaning of symbols while functional analysis focuses on how various segments contribute to and make society a whole. Symbolic interactionism differs from conflict theory because conflict theory focuses on class and status while symbolic interactionism focuses on symbols. Functional analysis differs from conflict theory because conflict theory is concerned about status and functional analysis is about how everyone part makes up something big. Symbolic interactionism was founded by George Herbret and Charles Harlton Cooley and what they contributed to this perspective was his teaching and eventually they were put together to produce a book. Functional analysis was founded by Robert K. Merton and his contribution was that “functions help keep a group...in balance” (1.4 Pearson). That the opposite “dysfunctions are the harmful consequences of people’s actions” (1.4 Pearson). He emphasized the importance of tasks conducted by every individual when he analyzed the inequality between men and women. Conflict theory was founded by Karl Marx and his contribution to this perspective was that “the key to human history is class conflict” (1.4 Pearson). That individuals always strive to be the best and the struggle is ultimately the status of their class. The founders contributed greatly to the field of sociology and without the perspectives we wouldn’t understand much.

Sociological Imagination

Sociological imagination is portrayed throughout many scenes of the film. The time and location shape the lives of the characters in the film and certainly has impacts on them. The film takes place in both New York and Singapore. Rachel is very nervous and anxious to go to Singapore because she has never been out of the U.S. and isn't really sure how the people will view her because she is American. Nick is very excited and optimistic for her to go to Singapore and to get her involved in the traditions he was raised in and grew up from. When Rachel does eventually get to Singapore, she quickly understands the culture and that it is completely different to the culture she is used to in America. Despite the year this film was produced in the culture is still portrayed as very cultural and traditional in terms of following a set of norms and values. A scene in the movie that illustrates social context is when Eleanor tells her son Nick at the wedding that, “We cannot be link to this sort of family” (Chu). It is evident that the family still follows a set of regulations and values. Compared to America if Rachel fell in love with an American man, she would have been accepted and the family would just be happy that their son found someone they love. If Rachel and Nick fell in love in the past circumstances would have been harder for them. Eleanor even talks about her experience in getting married, “And A-Mah thought I wouldn’t make an adequate wife for her son” (Chu). The values that were first established remain very powerful and prominent in the family. Nick’s social location impacts his experiences because he is Asian, comes from a wealthy family due to being born in one and he has a lot of power. People look up to his family and him thus his mother and grandmother don’t like the idea of him marrying someone different and not of the same social location as him. Rachel’s social location is she’s Asian-American, comes from a poor family, a single mother raised her, she’s educated, and is an economics professor. If she wasn’t American and had come from a normal family as in mom and dad and many relatives, then her experiences would have been very different; Nick’s family would have been more or completely accepting of her.

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Sociological Concepts

In the film, ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ there are many sociological concepts depicted in specific scenes. “Resocialization is learning new norms, values, attitudes, and behaviors to match a new situation in life” (Jovel, 9/24/19). A scene that depicted this concept was when Rachel was making dumplings with Nicks family and really enjoyed how they have this family tradition because she really didn’t have any and it is her first-time making dumplings. She is definitely learning about their family values. A more intense scene in the movies that indicated resocialization was when Astrid finally left her husband and accepted that she was going to be single due to her husband's affair. She is entering a different situation in life and even seems relieved because her husband prevented her from every reaching her fullest potential. The second concept seen in the movie is looking-glass self which is “process by which our self develops through internalizing others’ reaction to us” (Henslin, 3.2). A scene that demonstrates this is when Ah-Mah analyzes Rachels facial feature, her nose and tells her she has a nice nose. It is clear that Nick’s grandmother likes Rachel and enjoys seeing her. Then Eleanor perceives Rachel negatively and states, “you’re not our own kind” (Chu). She clearly doesn’t see her in the future of the family and considers her as a completely different individual compared to her and her family. The third concept is dramaturgy which is broken up into three parts that consist of performance, front stage, and backstage and this term means, “people are performers and society provides the stages” (Jovel, 9/17/19). Rachel's performance is her trying her best to make a good impression on Nicks family and that mainly takes place during the family party. A scene that illustrates her front stage is when she is talking to Princess Intan a superior woman in society, and Rachel tries to demonstrate herself to Eleanor and show she can start conversation with someone superior and well-known individuals and share commonalities. Rachel’s backstage is when she is with her friend Peik and is completely comfortable with being herself. Rachel knows she can trust her friend and discusses the issues and problems she is having in her life like the issues with Eleanor.

Research Methods

The research study I would propose in relation to this movie is interviews. The main topic I would have for the interview's method is marriage. I chose this research method over the other ones because I feel like I would be able to connect with the characters on a more personal level and see their very own views and perspectives on their marriage. The issue is that marriage is difficult. My hypothesis is that majority of the participants will state that situations get tough and there can be no strength to continue the marriage and that marriage is only seen as a beautiful concept in the public but people don’t really have an understanding of what the true relationship be between a husband and wife behind closed doors. I would interview all the characters that are married in the film and try to gain some more insight on why they might think that their marriage is the way it is and what they think they can do to solve the issues they are fixing if it is something they desire to improve. I would also ask why they perform the actions they do in front of the public but once they are off camera, they transform into their true selves and I would ask how much longer they want to be a part of the marriage. The advantages of this research method are that it is ‘authentic and intimate’ (Jovel, 9/5/19). The disadvantages are that it is ‘time consuming’ because of sitting there and asking all of the characters the same questions. The results would be that most characters were telling the truth and that marriage cannot be fixed in their situations. Another research method I would choose is participant observation and the details this method would provide is actual data and results because it would be happening right in front of me. The pros of this method would be gaining ‘useful information’ (Jovel, 9/5/13) and the cons would be ‘people not acting natural’ (Jovel, 9/5/13). The information it would allow me to gain is truth and transparency because I would actually be there with the couple both in and out of the public eye despite it not all being real and natural. My results would be less formal because it would be my observations and not how the characters would answer the questions of mine in the interview method.

Conclusion

The social forces that were most prominent in this film ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ by Jon M. Chu were social status and culture. There were numerous scenes that involved these two aspects and some characters were continuously reminded of their status and culture was an extremely important factor in the Young family and so it was emphasized heavily throughout the film. I learned so much about the concepts of sociology and definitely understood them better with the help of scenes from the movie. I also learned the great impact sociology has on so many aspects of our lives and how diverse the application of sociology can be to all aspects of our lives. It is a great field and has many examples and scenarios that help explain a certain concept/term. This assignment did put a lot of my knowledge to the test and overall really inspired me to view society and my own world through the lenses of sociology and really view situations under careful examination.