Joy Ride revs up with important representation

Joy Ride is ready to take moviegoers on a wild road trip this summer.

Our travel adventure begins in 1998 with an adoption storyline that leads four friends on the search for family history across the globe. There are twists and turns along the way with some unexpected results.

One character says, “If you don't know where you come from how do you know who you are?” This quote sums up the reason behind Audrey's quest for identity no matter what the cost.

This hilarious romp runs for approximately an hour and a half and was brought to life by the producers of Neighbors and the co-screenwriter of Crazy Rich Asians, Adele Lim, who directs the picture. The LGBTQ+ representation is strong in the cast with the lead performers, Ashley Park as Audrey, Sherry Cola playing Lolo, Stephanie Hsu portraying Kat and Sabrina Wu channeling the character of “Deadeye.”

This bawdy flick is clearly not meant for children but adults that aren't triggered by sex, drugs and K-Pop will love it.

There is a lot of eye candy within the cast also such as Australian actor Alexander Hodge whom some will recognize as “Asian Bae” from season three of Insecure and another Australian performer of Chinese descent, Desmond Chiam, from Gregg Araki's quirky television show Now Apocalypse.

Joy Ride deserves a sequel and should be a massive success as a fresh summer movie not weighed down by an over-bloated running time or past franchise history found in many of the cinematic offerings so far.

Lionsgate test drives Joy Ride in theaters on July 7, 2023.