The film “Shirley” directed by John Ridley focuses on the life of Shirley Chisholm, portrayed by Regina King, assumed a presidential campaign in 1972. As the first Black woman to be elected into congress and the first woman to run for the democratic presidential nomination, Shirley’s contributions to the Black community in America have been profound. As the storyline of the film moves on during the later stages of her electoral campaign, “Shirley” portrays Chisholm with unrelenting aggression in the face of misogynoir aimed to delegitimize her efforts throughout her life whilst beautifying her fierce desire to become a dynamic political force.
Yet, similar to last year’s documentary film “Rustin,” which also sought to delve deeper into the life’s work of African American social and political activist Bayard Ruskin, the Achilles heel of what appeared to be a compelling idea in the Netflix’s formula emerges once more with “Shirley.” A bland and clinical narrative incorporated within the film.
“Shirley” opens with a snapshot capturing Chisholm’s Headshot with several whites and this was taken at the center of the congress building. She visibly stands out due to her broad shoulders and high chin in comparison to other men, and if foul remarks are aimed at her, she responds with dignity and straight-on resolve. Right from the beginning, you can see Shirley still has a strong presence: one which cannot be compromised or shaken in any sense of the term.
Right after this, the film cuts to the beginning of Shirley’s Presidential campaign, the target audience of course being the Americans as well as the world. Shirley mobilizes herself and puts her team together consisting of her spouse, Conrad (Michael Cherrie), her advisors Wesley McDonald Holder (Lance Reddick) and Arthur Hardwick Jr.
As the audience meets the legal scholar Robert Gottlieb, portrayed by the growing star Lucas Hedges, they witness the formative, yet shocking events around the struggle through the lens of two people in charge of her campaigns — Terrence Howard and Robert Gottlieb. The pair are fully aware of why Shirley is considered the underdog in the race; aside from her eruption in the public eye being linked to her race and gender, she is relatively inexperienced and only completed one term in Congress which was light years ago.
But that was not how Shirley perceived, claiming that “power belongs to the people”. She did not seem to benefit from those principles which shy away from extremes – she even claimed to Mr. Gottlieb in one of the interviews that modesty can be a form of self-importance. Miss “Shirley” takes great offense with regards to the imagery of the flick’s titular, but the plot moves just as rapidly to a piece of information with chronology rather than taking a few moments to expand on Sarah’s experiences.
“Shirley” presents itself as a fast-paced, brash, gripping political narrative with no context to back it up, serving only as a bland fill-in-the-blank history. It is an abysmal misfire, with zero attempts to infuse creativity and emotionally earned visuals to create depth where instead there are simply annotated similes and tear inducing narratives that feel scripted.
What we know about Shirley can be summarized in two aspects: her steadfastness, and the calendar of her achievements. Such biography is hardly more exciting than her Wikipedia article and such a hasty and trivial caricature of an American hero evokes little ado.
No character in ‘Shirley’s’ cast can shield the movie from the fate of being abhorrently dull as the events rather than the people shape the story and the people make the story worth telling. Shirley as a character appears so abstract in the film that she does not feel like the main character but rather an accessory whose optimistically true headlines are the only things that are given attention to. The film suggests emotional complexities via Chisholm’s vicious sister and an unsatisfied spouse but even at these moments of closeness (which apparently, most scenes are, but remain unmentioned), the conversations are awful in their creativity.
There is no easy way to appreciate Chisholm’s true beauty, it is simply disfigured by a desire to use her as a banner. Exploited yet unyielding hope and will are always at the front. But up to a certain extent even king’s open critical acclaim is weakened by choppy jokes and brisk facial expressions making Shirley’s character seem stale hence the movie too.
In the shadows of the political goddess, Shirley is not created to be a fully fledged person and therefore, emotionally, there is an apparent lack of audience investment. Regina King is great. Showcauses incredibly passionate and playful Gwendolyn, with a voice that is filled with strength every time she pronounces Chisholms name. Regrettably, the unity of achievement and persona in the film leads to a scenario where performers emotions and performance comes in last.
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