JOY RIDE will have you rolling on the floor with laughter at its completely inappropriate R-rated comedy while catching you off-guard with heartfelt moments that tug at the heartstrings. I could not have loved it more.
Stephanie Hsu as Kat, Sherry Cola as Lolo, Ashley Park as Audrey, and Sabrina Wu as Deadeye in Joy Ride. Photo Credit: Ed Araquel
JOY RIDE Review
JOY RIDE is R-rated fun with inappropriate humor and loads of laughs. I laughed so hard I cried. Grab your best girls and go see it. You’ll laugh till it hurts and have a few heartfelt moments.
Sabrina Wu as Deadeye, Ashley Park as Audrey, Stephanie Hsu as Kat and Sherry Cola as Lolo in Joy Ride. Photo Credit: Ed Araquel
Think The Hangover meets Girls Trip—it’s the summer fun movie we all need to just sit back and laugh, and maybe even have a few moments of unexpected feeling.
My sister and I were rolling in laughter the entire film, all while texting my best friend laughing about the scenes we’d watched.
Stephanie Hsu as Kat, Sabrina Wu as Deadeye, Ashley Park as Audrey, and Sherry Cola as Lolo in Joy Ride. Photo Credit: Ed Araquel
One of the best parts about the movie is that even though some of the scenes are so extreme, there is something contextually relatable for everyone, and Adele Lim has ensured that is the case. JOY RIDE is riddled with R-rated ridiculous inappropriate comedy but sprinkled with heartfelt moments like any true friendship is. It’s unapologetically raunchy while rich with self-discovery and adventures in friendship.
Sabrina Wu as Deadeye, Ashley Park as Audrey, Sherry Cola as Lolo, and Stephanie Hsu as Kat in Joy Ride. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Lionsgate
We all have friends (or at least know people with friends) who kind of fall into these categories—the business-savvy friend, the hot mess express, the college friend who’s not as she purports to be, and the eccentric cousin—together they share a journey that is so relatable in ways that most people don’t expect to BE relatable until they deepen that joy ride of debauchery and self-discovery and realize what it means to love yourself and your friends.
While most people don’t have stories about being drug mules, genital tattoos, sexual exploits with basketball teams, or creating K-Pop sensations, most people CAN relate to some shenanigans with friends over the years.
Absolutely looking forward to whatever else Adele Lim creates in the future.
Verdict
Those who love raunchy adult comedies will love Joy Ride. It’s a perfect film for GNO with the ladies.
This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the movie being covered here wouldn’t exist.
About JOY RIDE
From the producers of Neighbors and the co-screenwriter of Crazy Rich Asians, JOY RIDE stars Ashley Park, Sherry Cola, Oscar nominee Stephanie Hsu, and Sabrina Wu. The hilarious and unapologetically explicit story of identity and self-discovery centers on four unlikely friends who embark on a once-in-a-lifetime international adventure.
When Audrey’s (Ashley Park) business trip to Asia goes sideways, she enlists the aid of Lolo (Sherry Cola), her irreverent, childhood best friend who also happens to be a hot mess; Kat (Stephanie Hsu), her college friend turned Chinese soap star; and Deadeye (Sabrina Wu), Lolo’s eccentric cousin. Their no-holds-barred, epic experience becomes a journey of bonding, friendship, belonging, and wild debauchery that reveals the universal truth of what it means to know and love who you are.
Also starring Ronny Chieng (Crazy Rich Asians, Shang-Chi), Lori Tan Chinn (“Awkwafina is Nora From Queens”), David Denman (Greenland), Annie Mumolo (Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar), Desmond Chiam (“The Falcon and the Winter Soldier“), Alexander Hodge (Insecure), and Chris Pang (Crazy Rich Asians).
Director: Adele Lim
Screenplay: Cherry Chevapravatdumrong & Teresa Hsiao
Story by: Cherry Chevapravatdumrong & Teresa Hsiao & Adele Lim
Cast: Ashley Park, Sherry Cola, Stephanie Hsu, Sabrina Wu
Producers: Seth Rogen, p.g.a.; Evan Goldberg, p.g.a.; James Weaver, p.g.a.; Josh Fagen, p.g.a.; Cherry Chevapravatdumrong, p.g.a.; Teresa Hsiao, p.g.a; Adele Lim, p.g.a.
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