Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Joy Ride Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 15, 2023

It's always kind of interesting to see how various studios and/or labels handle the PR on their releases for the home video market, and in that regard, Lionsgate can be one of the most perplexing. I've had a running joke in my reviews for years that they were making their choices for what to release in the 4K UHD market by having a blindfolded employee throw darts at a list of titles, and a number of their specialty 4K SteelBook offerings in particular have been what we've referred to as "stealth releases", in that virtually no one in the film journalism world was alerted to them. But even in the 1080 sphere, how and what Lionsgate chooses to publicize can be a little peculiar. Over the past few weeks, they've at least offered some PR support for everything from what amount to straight to video releases (Confidential Informant) to higher profile films which still may be lacking a certain je ne sais quoi (Cobweb), and yet I at least received absolutely no promotional emails about Joy Ride, a film with a fascinating imprimatur and focus that would seem to make it likely to virtually explode in the home media market. One way or the other, Joy Ride offers the first feature film directing gig to Adele Lim, best known for having written both Crazy Rich Asians and Raya and the Last Dragon. As those two films might suggest, Joy Ride is Asian-centric as well, and it provides a showcase for a really engaging focal quartet of Asian actresses.

Some of the supplemental EPKs included on this disc get into various interpretations this film's "R" rating might stand for, including representation and raunchy, and that second one in particular is probably the most salient, especially for those who get uptight about naughty language and some pretty graphically hilarious sexual situations. But the film also delivers considerable heart and nuance within that context, and that's evident from the get go, with a brief vignette documenting the "meet cute" of two (ostensibly) Chinese little girls on a Seattle neighborhood playground. The neighborhood is rather comically called White Hills, which is an "ethnically correct" label, so to speak. In fact the film opens with the Chinese mother of little Lolo emitting an expletive that there's no diversity, until two white parents come up and present their adopted Chinese daughter Audrey. After another expletive emitted by little Lolo which takes care of a neighborhood bully, the two become BFFs, and the story soon segues into their adulthoods, where Audrey (Ashley Park) is a hugely successful attorney and Lolo (Sherry Cola) is a, well, somewhat less successful artist who basically freeloads off of Audrey, staying at an ADU on Audrey's property.

Audrey's status as an adoptee has always left her feeling like an outsider to her own traditions, but that hasn't stopped her from implying she's fluent in Mandarin so that she can take on a huge assignment for her firm in Beijing and hopefully make partner as a result, having already secretly recruited Lolo, who is fluent, to accompany her as "translator". The fact that Lolo makes her "living" producing highly questionable and often rather provocative pieces of "art" clearly hints that the trip is going to be a disaster, and that feeling only increases when Lolo's cousin Deadeye (Sabrina Wu) tags along. The trip assumes some more emotional heft when Lolo looks on the back of the only photo Audrey has of her birth mother, which has some Chinese script offering information on the adoption agency who handled Audrey's transfer to her Caucasian parents, and Lolo is intent on helping Audrey reconnect with her biological family.

Once in China, the focal foursome is made complete by the addition of Audrey's college roommate Kat (Stephanie Hsu), a famous Chinese actress whose relationship with co-star Clarence (Desmond Chiam) is played for laughs due to the fact that Kat is the female version of a horndog and Clarence is an avowed Christian dedicated to staying celibate before marriage. Even more overt sexual shenanigans enter the fray once the four embark on a road trip of sorts, and in fact there's a whole quasi montage sequence partway through the film devoted to various, um, interesting couplings (and triplings, but I digress).

The film is inherently vignette driven, and some of those moments pay off better than others, but it's the film's inherent sweetness that really carries it through, despite some provocatively scabrous humor. Suffice it to say Audrey's journey to discover her "true self" has a few surprises in store, but my hunch is even frat boy types who have been laughing raucously at all the potty mouthed and sexually charged humor earlier in the film may still have lumps in their throat as the story wends toward its happy but still bittersweet conclusion.

Joy Ride Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Joy Ride is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The IMDb lists the Arri Alexa Mini and a 4K DI as the relevant data points. This is a consistently engaging presentation that takes full advantage of both some really nice location work, but also a freewheeling style that can incorporate moments of animation and whatever the Asian version of a Bollywood dance sequence might be called. The palette is incredibly robust throughout the vast majority of the film, and detail levels are also impressive, not necessarily limited to close- ups. Some of the green screen material can look just a tad soft, but that utilization is relatively brief.

Joy Ride Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Joy Ride features a Dolby Atmos track that frankly may not offer a ton of verticality but which still retains considerable immersive capability, courtesy of both a ton of fun ambient environmental effects in the many outdoor sequences, but also the film's use of music. A number of crowded locations offers nice engagement of the rear channels in particular for the spill of background clamor. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. There are forced subtitles at various junctures during moments of Chinese, and otherwise the disc features optional English, French and Spanish subtitles.

Joy Ride Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• A Grand Adventure: Making Joy Ride (HD; 14:43) is a fun overview with some good interviews with the cast and Lim, along with co-producer Seth Rogen.


• Adele Lim, Director: A Siren Call to Hollywood (HD; 4:48) is a sweet piece with Lim, who recounts growing up in Malaysia, where R rated movies were not exhibited very frequently.


• A Play of Joy: "R" is for Representation (HD; 7:22) offers an "alternative theory" for what the "R" rating stands for.


• Never Too Much: A Comedic Lovefest (HD; 5:58) focuses on the casting and camaraderie.


• WAP Sing Along (HD; 1:37)


• WAP Solo Cast Choreography (HD; 4:03) offers green screen shots of Audrey, Lolo, Kat and Deadeye. Each of the women can be played separately.


• Deleted Scene (HD; 2:17)


• Theatrical Trailer (HD: 1:51)

Additionally a DVD and digital copy are included, and packaging features a slipcover.

Joy Ride Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The whole "White Hills" aspect of Seattle struck a kind of ironically hilarious chord with me, because for the first ten years or so of my life I lived in Salt Lake City, and then my Dad was transferred to Seattle, and it was an eye opening experience for a little boy who had previously been exposed only to the highly insular and I would reasonably state 99.99999999% (a rough estimate) white population of Utah at that time. That said, this film is really kind of remarkable in its depiction of identity and belonging. It's often intentionally over the top, and all of its bits don't connect, but Joy Ride actually is joyful almost all of the time. Technical merits are solid and the supplements very enjoyable. Recommended.