Why John Carpenter’s Big Trouble in Little China is both problematic and progressive

In 1986, a strange coincidence occurred in Hollywood. Despite the industry having previously shown little interest in the subject, two major Chinese-themed fantasy films were released in the same year: John Carpenter’s Big Trouble in Little China and the Eddie Murphy vehicle The Golden Child. Ever the cynic, Carpenter refused to believe in serendipity. “How many adventure pictures dealing with Chinese mysticism have been released by the major studios in the past 20 years?” he asked Starlog...