This is a great movie! I had to watch it several times to figure out the plot, etc., but now it's one of my favorite movies.

I actually liked this movie. But here's the thing, watch it with English subtitles. Don't watch it in English. When you have multiple main characters whose first language isn't English, the scenes seem weak. Poor John Cusack was the only native English speaker!

A 2010 film that feels like a 90's film and I appreciate this movie even more.

It is in my top 3 favorite movies of all time! Lots of humor, plenty of action and great dialogue! Definitely rewatching again!!!!

This is a quite atmospheric, intriguing period drama thriller film, with some nice settings and costumes. I thought John Cusack did quite well as the 'gumshoe on the scene', as it were - he provides narration/voice-over at times, which I thought was quite good as it sounded very much like someone deep in thought, so there is certainly an element of authenticity present, from what I could tell. The colours appear somewhat muted at times. I liked the incidental music in the background, it added to the tension felt in key scenes. It's also fairly engrossing, I thought. As a foreign set period drama, this is a good film - one I'd recommend.

It's good movie to watch

Excellent modern film noir, beautiful set design, great cinematography and acting.. Staggering how completely obtuse film critics are...

This movie rating is the strongest example I've ever seen that Rotten Tomatoes (a site I generally like) can be utterly utterly misleading. This movie is a spy/Neo-Noire gem. Not in any half-arsed way, but a real well put together classic in the same broad genre as the Quiet American (Michael Caine version). I'm a fan of Neo-Noire and spy films and WWII dramas, but that just makes it my genre. I'm still super critical when it comes to movies, and this one rocks. 4% my ass. I laugh at the other reviews here!

Shanghai is not without it's flaws, with a cliché-ridden script and uneven editing. But it pulls together enough elements to create a fun, action-adventure neo-noir. The performances in the film benefit from a talented cast and three-dimensional characters. The costumes are beautiful and the cinematography is excellent. Overall, Shanghai is a superb thriller that provides action, mystery, and romance.

Boring and unecessarily bloody

Not sure why this was given such a poor rating. Granted, the story-line isn't always clear. But it is beautifully filmed. It has a film noir quality. A heavy weight international cast. John Cussck is very good in this. Can't wait to meet him at Chicago's Comic Con.

This Was a Good To Great Movie, Considering The "Crapola" Coming Out of Hollywood

It's obvious that many critic detractors of this film are ignorant of the atrocities that occurred in mainland China in 1941. Hence the blind rejection of a rather compelling, well acted tale of deceit and justice. All I can tell you is its well worth a look and well worth a lot more than the awful reviews that it has received by the so called professional critics. What do they know anyway?

well crafted spy vs spy period film a bit slow but the amazing cast makes up for that flaw even the minor parts r filled by talented actors of today.

I enjoyed the heck out of it. I didn't find the plot lacking. I am presuming by 'key components' the other reviewer wants to see sex scenes. Everything else that should be in a war or a spy movie is there. Deception, back stabbing, false assumptions, correct period costumes, correct period equipment (nice build of the aircraft carrier BTW, and the Japanese tank is quite recognizable even without the Rising Sun emblem). In the 1920s and 1930s Shanghai was considered to be one of the most violent, crime filled cities on Earth. A spy movie that is also a good detective murder mystery..

This movie is so historically inaccurate that it hurts. Shanghai was overtaken by the Japanese in 1937 adds insult to injury when it downplays the brutality of the Japanese in Nanjing.

Enjoyable and intriguing.

Wonderful production values in this Pre WWII who done it. Great cast in this movie that sat on the shelf for 5 years.

It's often tough to judge a movie based on its background or its pre-release publicity. Here's a case in point: What if I recommended to you an American movie which was originally shot seven years ago, took two years to edit and was only released overseas, before sitting on a shelf for another five years until finally becoming available in U.S. theaters, only to receive a 5% critics rating from a leading movie rating website? Doesn't sound very promising, does it? Okay. What if I then told you that the movie has an international cast of award-winning actors, some of which are past Oscar nominees, and the script was written by another Oscar nominee? At that point, you might express some interest. You also might remind me that a strong pedigree is no guarantee of a strong movie. And you'd be right. In this case, however, the movie in question - "Shanghai" (R, 1:45) is well worth a look - because of the reputation of the cast and filmmakers, and in spite of the film's long and questionable road to American theaters. With stars from the U.S., the U.K., Germany, Japan, Hong Kong and China, a writer from Iran and a director from Sweden, all working on a film set in China, but also involving the British, Americans, Germans and Japanese and taking place early in World War II, it would be hard to imagine a wider international effort in the service of a more international story. In fact, in its story, international flavor and tone, this neo-noir drama-mystery-romance reminds me more than little of 1943's "Casablanca". It's 1941. World War II is raging in Europe and in Asia, but the United States is still officially neutral. Japan has swallowed up most of China, with the notable exception of one specific area. Shanghai is an international city which is still technically under the control of the Chinese government. In reality, the city is divided into sectors in which various foreign countries have virtual autonomy, a remnant of decades-old trade treaties imposed upon the Chinese by other more powerful nations. Within this large city, there is a British sector, an American sector, a German sector and a Japanese sector. There's an uneasy peaceful coexistence among Shanghai's many nationalities. Tension resulting from various ongoing hostilities and fear of international conflicts spreading hang like a dark cloud over every action and reaction, every conversation, every interaction and every relationship between potential foes. This is the situation in which Naval Intelligence Officer "Paul Soames" finds himself. It's not his real name. Much like everyone around him, there is more to "Paul" than meets the eye. After a stint working undercover in Berlin while posing as a journalist who is a Nazi sympathizer, he is "transferred" to Shanghai to work with a close friend and fellow Naval Intelligence Officer called Conner (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). As Paul arrives in Shanghai, he learns from his handler (David Morse) that Conner has just been murdered. Paul is determined to find out who killed his friend and why, for reasons that are both personal and professional. Solving this mystery will require him to carefully navigate the increasingly shaky relationships between people who seem to trust each other less and less with each passing day. Paul uses friendships that he established back in Berlin, especially with Leni Müller (Franka Potente), as a way of getting to know the major players in Shanghai. Through Mrs. Müller, he meets Japanese army officer Captain Tanaka (Ken Watanabe) as well as a local Chinese crime boss, Anthony Lan-Ting (Chow Yun-Fat), and his wife, Anna (Gong Li), a woman who seems to have more secrets than... well, than China has rice. Paul also makes contact with Conner's informant, Benedict Wong (Juso Kita) and tries to find Conner's mistress, Sumiko (Rinko Kikuchi), who disappeared on the night Conner was murdered. Meanwhile, Paul has to maintain his cover with his British newspaper editor (Hugh Bonneville). Paul has a lot to juggle as he retraces Conner's footsteps to discover the reason for his murder. "Shanghai" is a classic neo-noir in every sense of the term. Besides shady characters, an imperfect protagonist, a crime to be solved and various forms of intrigue along the way, its judicious use of narration by Paul, the way the various characters speak to each other, and more than a few surprises and plot twists, should recommend this film to all fans of the genre. It may not have the charm of "Casablanca", but it has even more action and intrigue. This is the best neo-noir since "L.A. Confidential" back in 1997. "Shanghai" should not be judged by the twists and turns that brought it to American theaters, but by the creative and entertaining twists and turns that the film serves up on screen. "A"

OK BUT SLOW STORY LINE ABOUT HOW THE WAR CHANGED A CITY AND PEOPLE.