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Don Reviews "Joy Ride"

Writer's picture: Rob ErvinRob Ervin

I love shows like The Simpsons and South Park because they are the types of shows where that no one, no situation, or news headline is off limits. I cannot count the number of times where I said “OMG, I can’t believe they actually went there” in any given episode. Some hate them because they find they offensive, but I find it funny and appreciate that there is nothing “too PC” for them. That being said, I believe that these shows have paved the way for films like Joy Ride.


Adele Lim makes her directorial debut with a cast that includes Ashley Park, Sabrina Wu, Stephanie Hsu, and Sherry Cola. Audrey (Park)is a successful attorney who was adopted at a very young age by an American couple. When she is sent to China on a work trip to try to finalize a business deal, she brings along her childhood best friend, Lolo (Cola), and her cousin, Deadeye (Wu), as translators. Upon their arrival, they meet up with her college friend, Kat (Hsu), who is a very popular actress in Asia. While on the trip, Audrey goes on a quest to meet her birth mother, which she finds out would help seal the big business deal. From there, the four go on an adventure and what can go wrong, will go wrong.


I am just going to get to the point: Joy Ride is a very vulgar film with a lot of adult and sexual situations that I simply lost count of that makes Bridesmaids look like a Disney film. If you have any kind of sensitivities, this is not a film for you, but it was right up my alley because I feel they did that kind of humor right. I loved the number of times I heard audience members have that “OMG” reaction at the screening I attended, and even though the plot is kind of simple, that is a good thing for the ninety-minute run time that it has. It knows what it needs to be and doesn’t try to do more than that.


From a visual standpoint, this film made me want to visit the Far East just to see the places Joy Ride was filmed. The script has a few emotional scenes, but they were done well and complimented the main storyline. There are no real standout performances here, but the entire cast does what they need to do very well. Overall, this film is simple but still a good time where nothing (and I mean NOTHING) is off limits in a way that I can only classify as Crazy Rich Asians meets Bridesmaids with a mix of South Park thrown in as well” so I will recommend is as a Saturday afternoon showing in the theaters.

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