Five Michelle Yeoh films you shouldn't miss

Michelle Yeoh just won the Golden Globe for her incredible performance in the film, Everything Everywhere All at Once. You might remember her from 2021’s Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, but did you know, she’s one of the most notable actors from the East and is known not just for her acting, but also for her martial arts skills? She has been a Bond girl (Tomorrow Never Dies), an action-adventure superhero (Silverhawk), and here are five films that you should watch to appreciate the incredible range of her performance and her ability to bring to life roles that might be absolutely in contrast to one another.

Supercop (1992)

If anyone could keep up with Jackie Chan in Supercop, it was Michelle. Supercop was the third instalment of Police Story, so the full title was Police Story 3: Supercop, but unlike the first two instalments, Jackie Chan didn’t direct this movie. Under the direction of Stanley Tong, it was one of the best films of that year, a huge box-office grosser, and pushed Michelle into stardom with her incredible fighting skills and jaw-dropping stunts, most of which she performed on her own. It resulted in her landing the lead role in Supercop 2 (1993), also directed by Tong, a spin-off of her role in Supercop.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000)

Directed by the legendary Ang Lee, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a treat to watch. As the love interest of Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-fat), Yeoh plays Yu Shu Lien, a lady who is extremely well-versed in the art of combat and runs a security establishment. Although she loves Li Mu Bai, she’s unable to express her feelings to him (and vice versa) since her dead fiancée was Mu Bai’s best friend. She aims to protect and guard the sword, Green Destiny, with her life, resulting in some of the best action witnessed in cinematic history that year, interspersed with moments where the slightest gestures evoke a wealth of meaning.

Memories of a Geisha (2005)

In the Oscar-winning 2005 adaptation of the novel by Arthur Golden, Yeoh plays Mameha, an older geisha and a mentor for young geishas, reuniting with her co-actor Zhang Ziyi of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon fame. As Mameha, she is asked to mentor a young Chiyo (Zhang), who is later renamed Sayuri as she decides to become a geisha. In this, there are moments where the helplessness and pain of her decaying youth presents itself all too poignantly, and Yeoh delivers with a level of sensitivity that is a treat to watch.

Sunshine (2007)

Directed by Danny Boyle, Sunshine is a sci-fi movie starring Cillian Murphy, Rose Byrne, Chris Evans, Benedict Wong and Michelle Yeoh. Although it doesn’t have a great box office record, this was a film that had a lot of contradictory opinions from film reviewers. As a result, it was one of the movies that later developed a bit of a cult following. As the biologist Corazon, Yeoh is in charge of a spaceship’s oxygen supply, and she is one of the key players in completing the mission that the ship is originally supposed to fulfil.

Crazy Rich Asians (2018)

As the overbearing Eleanor, the protagonist’s future mother-in-law, Michelle Yeoh is fabulous as the woman who everyone loves to hate in Crazy Rich Asians. She is very aware of her status and social standing and doesn’t want her son to be with a woman who doesn’t fit in with her requirements. However, although she’s tough, she also loves and is fiercely protective of what and who she considers her own, something that many may identify with. Apart from that, she sports some of the most beautiful ensembles throughout the film that made her all the more unapproachable and aloof as a character.
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