Joy Ride: A Great Comedy With Emotional Depth

This year is shaping up to be a massive resurgence of the theatrical R-rated comedy with the arrival of Joy Ride in theaters following the success of No Hard Feelings a few weeks ago. Unlike No Hard Feelings, the underlying narrative and character work in Joy Ride
make it so even if none of the comedy lands for a viewer, something is entertaining for everyone watching.

Joy Ride follows Audrey (Ashley Park), Kat (Stephanie Hsu), Lolo (Sherry Cola), and Deadeye (Sabrina Wu) as they travel to China for a work trip for Audrey. When the meeting goes awry, the four have to track down Audrey’s birth mother so she can salvage the deal and make partner at her law firm.

What works about Joy Ride is that, while there are a ton of great comedic moments, the narrative is also interesting enough to keep viewers engaged. Each character in the movie has flaws, secrets, and personal issues that keep them feeling like real people trying to navigate a complex situation. While both Lolo and Audrey feel like they’re responsible for the other, neither communicates properly with the other, especially once Kat enters the movie and becomes a major player. The discomfort that comes from the smaller groups withholding information from each other to spare feelings never ends up feeling contrived either.

One of the other really strong aspects of the film is the emotional resolution to Audrey’s arc, especially considering how it still works as a gut punch despite it being sort of cliché. As her story unfolds, it is fairly obvious to see where the inevitable end of the story is, however, the fact that they have an actor with the ability of Daniel Dae Kim to help deliver the resolution along with a very strong performance from Ashley Park makes it so the ending resonates as she comes to terms with her origins as an adoptee.

All of that is not to say that the comedic aspects are weaker than the dramatic, the comedy works way more often than it doesn’t. There is a rapid-fire approach to comedy throughout the movie where the jokes are coming so quickly that even if one doesn’t work, there are multiple others in quick succession and at least one of them will make everyone laugh.

Joy Ride is a fantastic summer comedy that is worth watching in a theater. It has some of the best emotional moments in a movie this year and a solid amount of great comedic beats to make it a worthwhile theatrical viewing experience.

Final Rating: 9/10