Junior Caucus Hosts Movie Night

The Junior Caucus hosted their first movie night at Stuyvesant, featuring the popular romantic comedy-drama “Crazy Rich Asians.” The event was held after school on December 14, giving students an opportunity to relax and enjoy the movie with friends. The movie was projected onto a screen in the Murray Kahn Theater.

The movie was free to attend, making it accessible to all students. This was rewarded with a very high turnout, with both the ground and mezzanine levels of the theater being used. “I was super happy with turnout. I was not expecting to use the balconies and we did,” Junior Caucus Co-President Zeynep Bromberg said.

The Junior Caucus booked the theater and got the event approved through Assistant Principal of Safety, Health, and P.E. Brian Moran. Proceeds from concessions went toward the Student Union general fund, which in turn goes toward funding for future events, clubs, and other activities at Stuyvesant.

The movie and the event were both received positively on the students’ part. “Crazy Rich Asians” is the first film by a major Hollywood studio to have a majority Asian American cast in a modern setting since “The Joy Luck Club,” released in 1993. Stuyvesant students related to certain aspects of the movie, and for many, it was moving to see Asian representation in film. In the film, Nick Young takes his girlfriend, Rachel Chu, to meet his extravagantly wealthy family during his visit to Singapore to attend his best friend’s wedding. Rachel faces drama, new experiences and culture, and the Young family matriarch’s disapproval in an adventure of a lifetime.

Members of the Junior Caucus were pleased with the outcome of movie night, despite some bumps along the way. “Getting another adult supervisor here so that the event would run more smoothly [would be a priority],” Bromberg said. During the event, noise and movement in and out of the theater created distraction and disorganization. Bromberg said that in the future, additional supervision would prevent this from happening.

Despite this, students still were content with the movie night. “I really enjoyed the movie. I really liked the dynamic that [the movie] drew between the rich family archetype that I don’t know if a lot of us understand very well,” senior Shayan Chowdhury said. He was motivated to attend the event because of extra credit offered by health teacher Lisa Weinwurm.

Junior Justin Lam agreed. “I heard about the movie over the summer, but I really never got to watch it. [That day] was my opportunity, and I wasn’t disappointed,” he said.

Both Chowdhury and Lam agreed that they would attend more movie nights offered in the future, which the Junior Caucus plans to follow through with. “Overall, it was supremely successful,” Bromberg said.