What happens when a young, rich Asian man brings his girlfriend home for the first time? To put it simply, one dramatic incident after another.
The two lovebirds at the center of Crazy Rich Asians are Nick and Rachel—and boy do they have some obstacles to face. Mostly, their challenge is to prove to his family that their love is real…namely his mother, her conniving friends, and their daughters. In the end, their love is real, but we're not sure his mom is convinced.
Let's get into it.
Nick and Rachel are in love in New York City. After two years of dating, he's finally ready to introduce her to his family. But just a small catch: they don't know she exists, and they are very particular about who marries into the family.
After traveling to Singapore to meet the fam and attend Nick's friend's wedding, Rachel's troubles begin pretty quickly: she's subjected to a gauntlet of women trying to get between her and Nick, including, and especially, Nick's mom. While at a bachelorette party, Rachel is bullied by the socialites, even finding a dead fish in her hotel room. (Ick.) Meanwhile, Nick is trying to save his best friend Colin from the worst bachelor weekend ever. Sounds like a bad weekend for some last-fling-before-the-ring parties.
While all of this is happening, Nick's cousin Astrid, one of the most beautiful women in Asia (you know, casual), finds out that her husband is having an affair with another woman. And possibly has another son. Kinda makes the dead fish sound like no biggie…) The remainder of the story focuses on Astrid figuring out why her marriage fell apart and taking advice from her ex-fiancée Charlie to figure out what to do next. Sure, why not get advice from your ex-fiancée.
After the wedding, Rachel has had it with the other girls treating her terribly and packs her bags to go. Nick begs her to stay, and whisks her away to propose. But waiting at the proposal site is…wait for it…his mother and grandmother. And they're stuffed to the gills with reasons why Rachel isn't good enough for Nick, including the fact (apparently) that the father she thought was dead is actually alive…and in prison.
Woah. Plot twist.
Days pass, and Rachel breaks up with Nick because his family isn't the best. We can't really blame her. Nick gets encouragement from his bestie to "make everything possible" (3.16.54) so he's not totally giving up on her just yet. Rachel's mom shows up in Singapore, stopping Rachel from going to China to meet her father because…he's not her father. These twists and turns got you tired yet?
Rachel's mom spills all the family secrets, including who Rachel's real father is and why she had to smuggle Rachel out of China long ago. (It has something to do with acid in a baby's eye. No really.) Cue the hugs, tears, and "I love you so muches," as well as a reconciliation with Nick.
Sigh. Love.