The Big Picture

The Tiger’s Apprentice is a bright and entertaining adventure that doesn’t over-explain its cultural elements. The animation is visually stunning, with vibrant colors and a clear distinction between the real and magical worlds. The all-star cast, including Henry Golding, brings depth and humor to their roles, and there is potential for more stories in the same world.

Every family has secrets, but no family has a secret quite like the Lee’s. In The Tiger’s Apprentice, streaming on Paramount+ on February 2, director Raman Hui brings to life the story of a young boy tasked with continuing his family’s legacy as a guardian with the help of the animals of the zodiac. What follows is a vivid and imaginative adventure for the whole family that manages to tell a story that is both magical and incredibly grounded.

The Tiger’s Apprentice Tom Lee, a Chinese-American boy, after the death of his grandmother, has to be apprenticed to the talking tiger Mr. Hu and learn ancient magic to become the new guardian of an ancient phoenix. Release Date February 2, 2024 Director Raman Hui , Yong Duk Jhun , Paul Watling Runtime 99 minutes Writers David Magee , Christopher L. Yost , Laurence Yep

What Is ‘The Tiger’s Apprentice’ About?

Based on the book by Laurence Yep, The Tiger’s Apprentice follows Tom Lee (Brandon Soo Hoo), a Chinese-American highschooler who lives with his grandmother (Kheng Hua Tan), has trouble fitting in, and is just trying to impress the new girl Rav (Leah Lewis). But bullies with half-hearted insults become the least of his problems when he returns home from school one day to find Hu (Henry Golding) waiting outside his house. Hu claims he is an old friend of Mrs. Lee’s, but it turns out the two are more than just friends, they’re colleagues of sorts. Hu tells Tom that his grandmother is a guardian tasked with protecting humanity from the forces of evil.

When disaster strikes, Tom is forced to take his grandmother’s place as a guardian to defend a phoenix egg from the nefarious Loo (Michelle Yeoh), who seeks to use it for her own purposes, which would put all of humanity at risk. Hu, one of the twelve members of the zodiac, takes Tom under his wing — or paw, perhaps? He is a tiger after all — and introduces him to the rest of the animals, including Mistral the dragon (Sandra Oh), and Sidney the rat (Bowen Yang). Together, they embark on a mission to stop Loo and her dark forces before it’s too late.

‘The Tiger’s Apprentice’ Is a Bright, Entertaining Adventure

Hui previously shared that he felt a personal connection to bringing Yep’s story to life, saying “Having lived in San Francisco and being Chinese American, I found the fantasy of mythical Zodiac warriors helping a Chinese kid in San Francisco Chinatown to become the guardian fascinating,” and that connection is felt throughout. As anyone whose culture is not the “default” will say, explaining and bending one’s own existence to suit a dominant (read: white) lens is draining, and can even result in feeling othered within your own culture and experience. Fortunately, The Tiger’s Apprentice doesn’t give in to that particular temptation and trusts its audience to keep up. Mrs. Lee’s spiritual practices are understood for what they are by everyone on screen, but the movie doesn’t portray the San Francisco Chinese community as a monolith either — everyone might understand what it is Mrs. Lee does, but a lot of them (teenagers, mostly) think it’s strange.

Without that need to over-explain, The Tiger’s Apprentice is instead allowed to simply exist as the mythological, adventurous treat that it is. The animation is bright and vivid, an eye-catching spectacle in a world that feels increasingly inclined towards washed-out shades of grey. The colors even paint a clear distinction between the real world and the magical one, blurring gradually as the two become increasingly entwined. Beyond the visuals, there is the actual story, which is the sort of adventure narrative that can entertain the whole family. Yes, the central tension — protecting the phoenix egg — can feel a little flat at times, in terms of mounting stakes. But there is enough humor and heart within the ensemble cast that it more than makes up for it.

An All-Star Cast Elevates ‘The Tiger’s Apprentice’

More than anything, it’s the cast of the movie that is its greatest strength — not just as a who’s who of East Asian talent working in Hollywood today, but because of how much they bring to their roles. Golding in particular is a standout, and should absolutely consider doing more comedy if he’s this funny doing voice work alone. There is also the intriguing dynamic between Hu and Mistral, which really jumps out despite spending most of the story in the background.

The ensemble as a whole is also entertaining and varied enough, that should The Tiger’s Apprentice find its audience and connect, there’s great potential here for more stories set in the same world, focused around other animals of the zodiac, or even further adventures centering Tom and Hu. Loathe as I am to suggest absolutely everything get the cinematic universe treatment, there is so much scope in the premise they’ve built here — not to mention a surprise reveal towards the end — that suggests the filmmakers must at least be considering a sequel. Whether they make one or not, The Tiger’s Apprentice is a self-contained, satisfying story that will both entertain and tug at the audience’s heartstrings.

The Tiger’s Apprentice REVIEWThe Tiger’s Apprentice is a fun, heartwarming adventure for the whole family with a quirky cast of characters, and a compelling take on mythology and culture. ProsEngaging characters, and an equally engaging take on the mythology of the Zodiac. The film is bright and beautiful. ConsThe stakes didn’t feel consistently high.

The Tiger’s Apprentice will be available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S. starting February 2.

Watch on Paramount+