“The Bitter Tea of General Yen” has to be judged with the historical context in mind. In 1933, it was one of the first Hollywood movies that portrayed interracial attraction, and, in that sense, it was quite progressive, maybe even subversive. Yet from a modern perspective, the race aspect is quite uncomfortable for the most part and the same can be said for the romance, since it starts as a captive/captor relationship. Maybe even a bigger problem than the movie being uncomfortable is that I also find it boring and oddly paced. Barbara Stanwyck is a queen like always, Nils Asther is very charismatic despite the yellowface, and Frank Capra delivers great visual direction, yet all in all, I could never get fully into this movie.