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Shanghai

Shanghai

Drama · Thriller · Mystery · 2010

An American man returns to a corrupt, Japanese-occupied Shanghai four months before Pearl Harbor and discovers his friend has been killed. While he unravels the mysteries of the death, he falls in love and discovers a much larger secret that his own government is hiding.

Movie details

Shanghai

“In a world filled with secrets, solving a mystery can be murder.”

2010 Drama · Thriller · Mystery 1h 45m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.1 / 10

Community rating

An American man returns to a corrupt, Japanese-occupied Shanghai four months before Pearl Harbor and discovers his friend has been killed. While he unravels the mysteries of the death, he falls in love and discovers a much larger secret that his own government is hiding.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Shanghai?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Mikael Håfström

Written by

Hossein Amini

John Cusack

John Cusack

Paul Soames

Gong Li

Gong Li

Anna Lan-Ting

Chow Yun-Fat

Chow Yun-Fat

Anthony Lan-Ting

David Morse

David Morse

Richard Astor

Ken Watanabe

Ken Watanabe

Tanaka

Franka Potente

Franka Potente

Leni Müller

Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Conner

Court is in session

Put Shanghai on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.