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PG-13 | 1h 57m | Drama, Biography, Politics, History | March 22, 2024 (USA)
The daughter of Guyanese and Bajan immigrant parents, Shirley Chisholm (born Shirley St. Hill) was the epitome of the American Dream. After growing up in Brooklyn, New York, and eventually becoming a teacher there, Chisholm defied all odds by getting elected to the House of Representatives for the 91st U.S. Congress in 1968.
Upon arriving at her new post, Chisholm, unsurprisingly, was greeted with disdain and disrespect. Within the first few minutes of “Shirley,” Chisholm (Regina King) is repeatedly chastised by a fellow white male congressman who questions why she and he should receive the same annual salary ($42,500). He does this not because she’s black but because she’s a female. Just two years prior, only 11 of the 435 House members were female, and just five were black males.
Not a Firebrand
To writer and director John Ridley’s credit, “Shirley” isn’t rooted in racial prejudice (although that is a minor component) as much as it is political sexism. Mr. Ridley does a good job of not alienating at least half of the audience out of the gate by not only avoiding color issues but also not painting Chisholm as a gender firebrand (which she most certainly was not).
With an attitude not far removed from that of President Donald Trump, Chisholm was anti-establishment and anti-swamp. She was a populist and was acutely aware of the electoral process.
After employing some impressive narrative shorthand during the opening salvo, Mr. Ridley slips into autopilot for most of the movie’s first half. After being assigned to a committee appointment which Chisholm rightfully felt inappropriate to her district, she decided to run for president. Even if this was the case in real life, it is played out here too quickly and without explanation or reason. “Shirley” begins to take on an old-school network, made-for-TV feel at exactly the wrong time, and it spends a good 20 minutes getting back on track.
It’s in the Voice
It doesn’t help matters that Ms. King’s physical rendering of Chisholm is less than authentic. As anyone alive at the time will attest, Chisholm spoke with a minor impediment, not dissimilar to that of football coach Lou Holtz. It’s not a complete deal breaker, but it is distracting and reminds us that we’re watching a movie. Ms. King (also a co-producer) compounds the issue by speaking with an accent that is certainly not Brooklyn, but more of an unidentifiable mix of African and Caribbean.
It is also worth noting that “Shirley” is not a cradle-to-grave biography, but rather just the two years (1968–1970) when Chisholm served in the House of Representatives and then chose to run for president. Granted, this was the most noteworthy period of her life, but it would have been better if Mr. Ridley had included at least a small depiction of her earlier and later years for context.
In defense of Mr. Ridley, incomplete, Oscar-winning biographical movies about Abraham Lincoln (“Lincoln”) and Queen Elizabeth II (“The Queen”) included only partial, carefully selected chunks of their subjects’ lives. But in the case of Chisholm, a broader brush might have worked better.
A pre-end credit summation of the main characters in the film goes far in filling in some gaps, but Mr. Ridley could have easily made these points through abbreviated live-action depictions instead of text and stock photo inclusions.
What Chisholm did in her House election and with the history of presidential elections cannot be overstated; she forever changed the landscape of American politics.
Not a Chance
Chisholm never had a snowball’s chance of securing the 1972 Democrat presidential nomination, which ultimately went to losing candidate George McGovern, but she greatly succeeded in rattling the cage and raising public awareness regarding the nominating process.
Chisholm wasn’t a martyr and didn’t “fall on the sword” to satisfy a misguided or twisted ego. She upset the apple cart for all the right reasons. It might be safe to say that without Shirley Chisholm there would not be a Donald Trump. Both Chisholm and President Trump were interested in changing the status quo and both succeeded in their goals.
Both caused the swamp to shiver and quake in their boots and, on that point alone, we owe each of them our undying gratitude.
The film begins streaming on Netflix on March 22.
‘Shirley’
Director: John Ridley
Stars: Regina King, Lance Reddick, Terrence Howard, Lucas Hedges
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 1 hour, 57 minutes
Release Date: March 22, 2024
Rating: 3 stars out of 5
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