Shirley – Movie Review
Director: John Ridley (Needle in a Timestack)
Writer: John Ridley (Screenplay)
Cast
- Regina King (The Harder They Fall)
- Lance Reddick (John Wick)
- Terrence Howard (Iron Man)
- Lucas Hedges (Manchester By the Sea)
- Michael Cherrie
- Brian Stokes Mitchell (Tick Tick Boom)
Plot: Shirley Chisholm makes a trailblazing run for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination after becoming the first Black woman elected to Congress.
Runtime: 1 Hour 57 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Shirley starts when Shirley Chisholm (King) gets elected to Congress. She doesn’t just want to make up the numbers there and decides to lead a Democratic presidential campaign. Her team is put together by Wesley Holder (Reddick), Arthur Hardwick Jr (Howard), Robert Gottlieb (Hedges) and Stanley Townsend (Mitchell).
However, the campaign is filled with more challenges as a black woman competing against the dominating white man. She looks to challenge those systems in an attempt to make history no matter what gets in her way.
Verdict on Shirley
Shirley is a historical drama following the first black congresswoman who looks to break even more barriers. She wants to run for president and leads a campaign against the people trying to deny her the opportunity.
This movie shows the inspiration the campaign created, showing the walls that got tackled while trying to make the change. Shirley Chisholm is an important person in American history and her story deserves to be told. However, the movie feels more like a by-the-book biopic and despite getting over the bigger moments of the campaign. It never seems to challenge the bigger story being told. I might have struggled more because I don’t understand American politics, which is confusing to an outsider too.
Where to Watch
JustWatch
Final Thoughts – Shirley is an important story to be told celebrating an important person in history.
