I’m a fan of all kinds of films and that goes for party films as well. Porky’s, Animal House, Girls Trip, and The Hangover are some of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen. That goes for Crazy Rich Asians as well. Joy Ride is a mix of all these films wrapped into one. And a road trip movie as well added in for good measure. All these genres are used to great results in this new movie.

Aubrey Sullivan (Ashley Park) is a fledgling businesswoman trying to make an impact. When her job is on the line she has to go back to where her family is from. Along with her childhood friend Lolo (Sherry Cola), and her oddball cousin Deadeye (Sebrina Wu), they go to the far east to help save her career. In the process, they meet up with Kat (Stephanie Hsu), an actress friend of Park’s character, and end up on a road trip through China. 

The director, Adele Lim, who has had success as a screenwriter of the aforementioned Crazy Rich Asians and Reya and the Last Dragon is well versed in Asian culture, but this is her directorial debut. She took her experience with all things movie-making and Asian culture and made one of the funniest films I’ve seen all year. She had help from screenwriters Cherry Chevapravatdumrong and Teresa Hsiao. Together they have a pretty good handle on this material. 

Joy Ride doesn’t miss a beat to make the audience laugh. Right off the bat, there is a laugh-out-loud moment when the two main girls are introduced to each other. From that moment on this movie doesn’t cease to amuse. It is filled with raunchy sequences and debauchery. Whatever these women could get into they did. Whether it’s make-believe boyfriends or nightclubs, everything is fair game in this film. I couldn’t stop laughing and that goes for the credits as well. 

Over the last few years, there have been several Asian-centric films that show homage to this culture of people whether it’s Chinese, Japanese or Korean, or others. These cultures have been ripe for the pickings for filmmakers and studios like A24, Warner Brothers, or this case Lionsgate. These people have their own stories to tell. This one is rather ridiculous but equally funny. I for one want more American versions of Asian-centric films, The Farewell or Minari, and television series like Kim’s Convenience or Fresh off the Boat. There is a lot of gold to mine here.

I’ve talked about various aspects of this movie but I haven’t talked about the acting as a whole yet. These Four ladies put everything on the line in this film. They made me laugh with and at them. They made me feel bad or cry with them and they made me a middle-aged Caucasian guy, care about all of them.  That’s the true nature of this film and its legacy. If it can make me love it then it can make anybody can love it and should.

Joy Ride is the funniest film you’ll see all year so far. The four women who star in it Park, Cola, Hsu, and Wu put everything they have into making the audience laugh, cry and care about them. The director Lim and the writers have made one of the best party/road trip movies of all time.  It just shows that if you put a lot of heart and thought into a film it can indeed be good no matter what race, Creed, or religion it features. Asian cinema is great and it’s here to stay.

4 ½ stars

Dan Skip Allen