Any film that is mostly casted by minorities is always subject to knuckle-dragging keyboard warriors bashing out nebulous complaints about reverse-racism or rampant misandry, or whatever incel-adjacent buzzword is trending that week on the right-wing internet. And, predictably, the upcoming film Joy Ride, which stars mostly Asian-Americans, has been subject to similar criticisms, even though as of this article beng published it has an impressive RT rating of 91 percent on the famous Tomatometer.
So, according to all the reviews we’ve seen so far (and that RT rating), the film doesn’t need too much defending from the sort of criticism that falls into the Ben Shapiro school of bad takes. However, Star Trek star and Twitter hero George Takei still decided to make fun of one such early reviewer for what is obviously an opinion driven more by personal and political beefs than an actual appraisal of the film.
Now, privileged yet utterly mediocre white guys giving their silly opinions about things they don’t understand is the bedrock of cultural criticism in the West, but in recent years most people have realized you don’t actually have to engage with these overgrown toddlers when they’re saying something silly. And Takei’s sarcastic response to the original tweeter showcases the best way to deal with this kind of attempt at courting contrarianism for views: by making fun of them. After all, there’s no worse thing in the world for these types of folks than the notion people think they’re a joke (see: Musk, Trump, etc.), so comedy at their expense is a powerful tool.
Joy Ride tells the story of childhood best friends Audrey and Lolo as they attempt to journey across China in search of Audrey’s birth mother. Accompanying them is Audrey’s former college roommate Kat, and Lolo’s strange, K-Pop obsessed cousin Deadeye. Along the way they encounter a surprising amount of debauchery, and the quartet bond as they discover more about themselves and each other. So, it’s no surprise that more regressive-minded people have a problem with it.
Emily in Paris star and Tony Award-nominated Ashley Park plays the role of Audrey, with Lolo being taken on by comedian Sherry Cola. Academy Award-nominated Stephanie Hsu is Kat, a character who is a famous actress in her native China.
Plenty of early reviewers of the film have noted the movie’s raunchy comedy, and likened it to the brilliant and similarly groundbreaking Bridesmaids – which became an iconic female-led production when it was released over a decade ago. Joy Ride is directed by Crazy Rich Asians writer Adele Lim, and is her feature-length directorial debut. The world premiere of the film was back in March at SXSW, and it is due to be released in theaters in the U.S. this Friday (July 7).