Slanted is a searing, satirical body-horror masterpiece that explores the high price of assimilation.
If you’ve seen the trailer for Slanted, you know exactly why I went into this viewing leaning more on the cautiously optimistic side. It’s bold, it’s provocative, and it was immediately clear that this was going to be one of those divisive films that sparks a thousand internet think-pieces. But I think it’s crucial to go into this experience remembering that the writer and director, Amy Wang, is Asian herself. This isn’t an outsider’s caricature or an attack on the culture; rather, it’s a deeply personal, albeit extreme, exploration of the immigrant experience and the ghosts of assimilation.
The premise is intentionally jarring: Joan Huang, a high school senior played by Shirley Chen, is so desperate for ultimate validation – the Prom Queen crown – that she undergoes an experimental racial transformation surgery to become White.
It sounds absurd, and at times the film leans into that absurdity with biting humor and a fair amount of body horror. But beneath the shock factor lies a poignant celebration of culture. By showing the literal erasure of Joan’s heritage, Wang highlights just how vibrant and essential that heritage was in the first place.
What makes this surreal premise actually function as a grounded piece of cinema is the sheer technical brilliance of the performances by Shirley Chen and Mckenna Grace. It is genuinely uncanny how well these two actresses inhabit the same soul. You can tell Amy Wang’s direction was key here – right down to specific mannerisms, the way Joan nervously tucks her hair and pulls at her nose, Mckenna Grace perfectly mirrors the foundation laid by Shirley Chen.
It’s a haunting achievement to watch a different face move with the exact same internal rhythm. It makes the nightmare aspect of the surgery feel all the more real because, despite the radical physical change, you can still see the original Joan trapped underneath, struggling to navigate a body that doesn’t belong to her.
As a mother of two girls, the core themes of this movie hit me right in the heart. We’ve all felt out of place at some point. We’ve all had that desperate, itchy desire to just fit in and stop feeling like an outsider. But seeing that universal insecurity pushed to such a physical, permanent extreme is haunting. High school is a notoriously brutal chapter of life, but Slanted reminds us that there is so much more life waiting for us after graduation.
The relationship between Joan and her mother is the soul of the film. The scenes featuring Vivian Wu and Mckenna Grace were particularly gut-wrenching. As I watched Joan basically attempt to erase her lineage, I couldn’t help but think of my own daughters. I want nothing more than for them to walk through the world with their heads held high, unashamed of their roots and confident in their own skin.
Watching Vivian Wu’s character look at a daughter who has intentionally made herself unrecognizable was devastating. There were several moments where I found myself reaching for tissues, especially during that haunting final shot.
If I have one grievance, it’s a good problem to have: I simply wanted more of certain characters. Shirley Chen is magnetic as the original Joan, and I wish we had more time with her before the transition. I also felt that Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, who plays Joan’s best friend Brindha, was underutilized. Their friendship represents the life Joan is throwing away, and I would have loved to see more of their chemistry. Brindha serves as a necessary anchor to reality, and Maitreyi brings such a charm to the screen that you miss her whenever she’s off it.
Overall Thoughts On Slanted
Slanted is a wild ride. It’s uncomfortable, it’s funny, and it’s unapologetically loud about its message. At its core, it is a story about the journey from self-hate to self-love. It’s a reminder that the “American Dream” is often an emotional and physical nightmare if it requires you to leave your soul at the door. It’s a film that will stay with me for a long time, not just as a critic, but as a parent.
About Slanted
As a senior in high school, Joan Huang idolizes winning Prom Queen as the embodiment of popularity, beauty and the ultimate form of acceptance into American life. In her relentless pursuit for the crown, she undergoes an experimental racial transformation to become White and win Prom Queen.
However, what she thought was a dream come true soon reveals itself to be an emotional and physical nightmare. Slanted offers a searing and unapologetically satirical view on race and the uncomfortable journey of learning to love yourself and your culture.
Slanted comes to theaters on March 13th.
