# Detective Chinatown 1900 (2025) — Celluloid fact sheet

Source: https://celluloidscore.com/movies/detective-chinatown-1900/
Last reviewed: 2026-08-31

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| Celluloid Score | 68% |
| Editorial Rating | 85/100 |
| Audience Snapshot | 80% (excluded from composite) |
| Letterboxd | 2.9/5 |
| IMDb | 6/10 |
| Director | Chen Sicheng, Dai Mo |
| Genres | Comedy, Mystery, Crime |
| Runtime | 135 min |
| Festival premiere | HKIFF 2025 |

## Quick answer

Detective Chinatown 1900 (2025) earns a 68% Celluloid Score — Recommended. An unwieldy, overlong mix of slapstick and history lesson that still lands real points about exclusion-era America — Wan Directed by Chen Sicheng, Dai Mo.

## Celluloid verdict

An unwieldy, overlong mix of slapstick and history lesson that still lands real points about exclusion-era America — Wang Baoqiang and Liu Haoran keep the sprawl watchable even when the mystery machinery creaks.

## Synopsis

Chen Sicheng's franchise rewinds to 1900 San Francisco, where the murder of a white woman in Chinatown puts the entire immigrant quarter on trial. Herbalist Qin Fu and frontier tracker Ah Gui — an unlikely Holmes-and-Watson pairing — must find the real killer before opportunistic politicians use the case as a pretext to raze Chinatown for good. Set against the machinery of the Chinese Exclusion Act, the period whodunit became one of the biggest hits of China's 2025 Lunar New Year season, grossing over $450 million.

## Cast

Wang Baoqiang, Liu Haoran, Chow Yun-fat

## Accolades

Premiered at HKIFF 2025.

## Where to watch

Indonesia: Netflix, KlikFilm
the Philippines: Netflix
Malaysia: Netflix
Thailand: Netflix

## Critic reviews on Celluloid: 1

## Common questions

**Is Detective Chinatown 1900 worth watching?**
Detective Chinatown 1900 holds a 68% Celluloid Score. An unwieldy, overlong mix of slapstick and history lesson that still lands real points about exclusion-era America — Wang Baoqiang and Liu Haoran keep the sprawl watchable even when the mystery machinery creaks.

**What is Detective Chinatown 1900 about?**
Chen Sicheng's franchise rewinds to 1900 San Francisco, where the murder of a white woman in Chinatown puts the entire immigrant quarter on trial. Herbalist Qin Fu and frontier tracker Ah Gui — an unlikely Holmes-and-Watson pairing — must find the real killer before opportunistic politicians use the case as a pretext to raze Chinatown for good. Set against the machinery of the Chinese Exclusion Act, the period whodunit became one of the biggest hits of China's 2025 Lunar New Year season, grossing over $450 million.

**Who directed Detective Chinatown 1900?**
Detective Chinatown 1900 (2025) was directed by Chen Sicheng, Dai Mo.

**What is the Celluloid Score of Detective Chinatown 1900?**
68% — calculated from available Celluloid editorial (85/100), Letterboxd (2.9/5), and IMDb (6/10) inputs. Audience sentiment is excluded.

**Where can I watch Detective Chinatown 1900?**
Detective Chinatown 1900 is on Netflix, KlikFilm in Indonesia; on Netflix in the Philippines; on Netflix in Malaysia; on Netflix in Thailand. Availability varies by region.

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Reviewed and scored by Celluloid · Editor: Kaiser Khan (https://celluloidscore.com/author/kaiser-khan/)

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