Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings Movie Review

Introduction

With Avengers: Doomsday coming out in the cinema next month, we decided to start reviewing the films in chronological order once again.

We have already been through the Infinity Saga but are now moving on from Avengers: Endgame. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings follows the story of how life has changed for the heroes since the events of Avengers: Endgame.

It has a great action-packed adventure story that introduces us to one of the most exciting new heroes the Marvel universe has to offer plus it brings some much needed martial arts elements.

The film was a monumental moment for Marvel Studios as it became their 25th movie and their first to have an Asian majority cast and crew.

It mixes superhero action with Chinese mythology, family drama and some incredible martial arts. Whilst the last act can be a little generic, it is still one of the original and fun entries in the franchise.

From San Francisco to the Ten Rings

Shaun (Simu Liu) seems like a normal valet driver living in San Francisco. Spending his days driving with his best friend Katy (Awkwafina), he tries to avoid any serious conversations about his past.

But Shaun is actually hiding a dark past. As a child he was brought up by his father Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung Chiu-wai), the immortal head of the powerful organisation called Ten Rings. He had trained from a young age to become a deadly assassin.

When Shang-Chi and Katy are attacked by highly skilled mercenaries, he is forced to face his past. The attack leads Shang-Chi to meet his estranged sister Xialing (Meng’er Zhang).

Xu Wenwu has spent centuries using the power of the Ten Rings. After meeting Ying Li (Fala Chen), Wenwu decided to give up his violent dreams due to her influence.

However, once Ying Li died, Wenwu returned to the organisation and was consumed by his sadness. He is now certain his wife is still alive and trapped on the other side of a mysterious portal.

This makes him determined to find his wife no matter what it takes, even if it puts something dangerous into the world.

Shang-Chi must face his father, come to terms with his dual identity and stop his father from making a terrible mistake. Whilst this is a typical superhero plot, the film has a lot of depth to it thanks to the emotional conflict.

Destin Daniel Cretton Brings a Different Marvel Style

Destin Daniel Cretton was an interesting choice to direct this major Marvel blockbuster. He had previously made a name for himself with small character driven films like Short Term 12 and brings a more personal touch to the $200 million plus project.

This works well for the first two acts of the film, where we really get to know Shang-Chi and his life in San Francisco, his bond with Katy and complex relationship with his family. This gives us a very grounded film.

Cretton also does a great job of combining many genres throughout the film. Starting off with a modern immigrant story, becoming a family drama about loss, parental pressure and trauma.

Then moving to an all out martial arts adventure and finally to a world of chinese mythological creatures.

While these tonal shifts are generally well handled, the move to the magical world of Ta Lo does cause the film to slow down.

Once they have arrived in this world the film becomes obsessed with telling us about the mythology, the creatures and setting up the rules of this fantasy world. While there is some interesting content here, it can sometimes break up the pace.

The most disappointing aspect of the film is how much of Cretton’s personal style is lost in the final act. We get a real love for action, expressive movement and character driven storytelling in the first two thirds.

However, the climax becomes a standard Marvel blockbuster with huge digital creatures and increasingly chaotic visual effects. While it is still entertaining, it feels like a completely different film to what we were watching.

Some of Marvel’s Best Martial Arts Action

Another really standout aspect of the film is the action. The late Brad Allan was heavily involved in the film, as a well known member of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team. This gave the film a really distinct Hong Kong feel.

This film did not use a lot of quick cuts and close-ups like many superhero films do. The actors and stunt teams really got to show off their skills with the camera moving around with the action. This gave more wide shots and smooth tracking.

A great example is the bus fight in San Francisco. The fight starts off as a simple journey but quickly escalates into an incredibly fun fight. Shang-Chi has to fight the mercenaries chasing him.

As the fight takes place in a small space there were lots of opportunities to create some creative action. They used all the bus features such as the hand rails, seats etc. This was a hilarious, fast paced and well choreographed fight.

The fight on the skyscraper in Macau was also a standout moment. The fight used the location really well.

The fight made you feel like you were in real danger as they fought on the edge of the skyscraper.

However, despite being absolutely amazing, the fight didn’t lose sight of where they were. You could clearly see where everyone was.

The flashbacks with Wenwu and Ying Li were also amazing. This gave a completely different style of action. Their first fight was almost a dance.

The fight had smooth movements and precise attacks which slowly turned into a romantic connection.

The use of the Ten Rings was beautiful. The visual effects worked well with the action without overpowering.

The mix of traditional martial arts and superhero powers really gives this film a unique feel. The action felt very physical and well planned.

There were a few moments which were some of the best hand to hand combat in the MCU.

Tony Leung Is the Film’s Greatest Strength

Whilst Simu Liu certainly carries the film, Tony Leung Chiu-wai steals the show.

Marvel can sometimes struggle to make some great villains. Often these characters are too similar with their want for world domination.

Wenwu is very interesting due to his motives being very personal. He isn’t just trying to take over the world but he is trying to fix his family’s tragedy.

Tony Leung plays Wenwu with such sadness. Even when he is being ruthless there is an underlying sense of sadness and his character is still quite intimidating but somehow relatable.

He has so much power due to his centuries of experience but has no idea how to deal with his loss.

The bond between Wenwu and Shang-Chi is the heart of the film. Whilst Wenwu clearly loves his children, he has high expectations and has caused a lot of damage.

He treats Shang-Chi very badly. He raised him to be an assassin and effectively left him once he had no use.

The film highlights how parents can cause damage to their children when they mix their love with control, fear and unrealistic expectations.

Simu Liu is a great protagonist. He gives Shang-Chi a lot of charisma and he really puts himself into the role.

During the action scenes he is very believable and he has a great laid back dynamic with Awkwafina which shows how he fits in with America.

We see a contrast between the confident and funny Shaun we are introduced to and the more troubled Shang-Chi.

Awkwafina provides most of the humour in the film as Katy. She is a great character to relate to as she gets pulled into this whole world of ancient groups, magical creatures and supernatural powers.

Sometimes she can be a bit too predictable but she adds a nice warmth to the story and has a believable friendship with Liu.

Meng’er Zhang is a great character as Xialing. She has felt ignored by her father for years and her choice to create her own identity outside of the Ten Rings is quite similar to Shang-Chi.

She is feisty, competent and can definitely hold her own. However I would have liked to have seen her have a bit more focus during the final fight.

Michelle Yeoh adds her usual charm to Ying Nan. Fala Chen is amazing in the flashbacks as Ying Li. They both add a sense of genuine emotion to the family history.

Chinese Culture and Mythology Take Centre Stage

Another key point of the movie Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is how it includes Chinese culture, language and mythology.

As the characters speak in long speeches in Mandarin, the film makes them seem like they can fluently switch languages which makes them feel more authentic in their culture.

This adds more depth to their relationships with each other as a family.

The mythology within the film also plays a key role. They have not created a new range of random fantasy characters but have taken inspiration from Chinese folklore to create a unique magical world.

The setting is very vibrant, featuring strange creatures and landscapes which sets it apart from the rest of the MCU.

The relationship between Ying Li and Wenwu plays a big role. When they first meet we learn about a new concept of strength for Wenwu.

Ying Li can challenge him without using the same destructive power that has been a big part of his life for centuries.

This relationship becomes the emotional climax of his life meaning her death is a huge impact.

The film also shows us how Shang-Chi struggles with his identity. He grew up in America and went by the name Shaun so has tried to distance himself from the negative parts of his Chinese background and his fathers organisation.

However, his journey is about coming to terms that he cannot forget his past. He must come to terms with both sides of his upbringing and decide who he wants to be.

This gives the film a nice emotional factor and the culture has played a key role in the story.

Spectacular Visuals, but a Disappointing Final Battle

The visuals are also well done especially within the first two acts. The fight scenes are very well shot, the camera work helps with letting the choreography shine.

The sweeping camera work during the fight scenes on the bus and in the skyscraper give them a real energy that you don’t always get with superhero action.

The visual effects are well done and nicely merged with the acting. The Ten Rings are a fantastic addition to the MCU arsenal and have really smooth animations. They react really well to Wenwu’s actions, giving him a unique fighting style.

The flashbacks of Wenwu meeting Ying Li are really beautiful. Everything moves very poetically. The rings are used in a very elegant way which makes it one of the most memorable visual moments in the film.

However, the quality starts to drop in the final act.

Whilst the introduction of the larger supernatural threat gives us a huge fantasy battle it pales in comparison to the intimate martial arts action we had before.

The film becomes very reliant on digital effects to show us the action. We have huge creatures fighting each other, however, it can feel like we are in a digital world.

The final battle doesn’t have the same physicality as before. The difference between watching people do intricately choreographed fighting and watching digital creatures hit each other with huge attacks is obvious. Whilst it might be bigger it isn’t necessarily more exciting.

This is where the film falls into the same issues we often see with Marvel films. In an attempt to give us a huge finale they lose some of the things that made the film unique.

I would have preferred to have seen more beautiful martial arts action instead of another long monster battle using too much CGI.

Family, Grief and the Legacy of the Ten Rings

At it’s core, the film is a tale about family and grief and how it can cause issues.

Wenwu’s struggle to come to terms with his wife’s death influences most of his decisions throughout the film.

Despite having great power and influence over many people, he can’t achieve what he really wants in life.

As a result, he starts to believe that he can somehow save Ying Li from her death, making him susceptible to his grief being controlled.

This makes Wenwu a much more interesting villain than your usual Marvel villain. Even though his actions are unforgivable, you can understand his motives.

The tragedy of Wenwu comes from the fact that he doesn’t realise just how far he has fallen.

Shang-Chi struggles with his past. He has tried to move on from his childhood and create a life for himself with no connection to his fathers organisation.

However, he is still struggling to move on from his past. This shows how much his upbringing has impacted on him as he isn’t willing to face what happened.

The film also looks at themes of cycles of abuse. Shang-Chi has been influenced by his fathers expectations, however he will need to decide whether he wants to continue this cycle or change things up.

Xialing’s story shows another perspective of these themes. She has had to become strong and independent after being ignored by Wenwu.

Whilst her experiences are different to Shang-Chi’s, they have both been impacted by the dysfunctional family environment.

These themes give the film an emotional base and make the father/son conflict much more interesting than the final battle with the supernatural threat.

A New Beginning for the MCU

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings feels like an important step in the MCU moving forward after Avengers: Endgame.

Despite only having a few cameos and links to past Marvel adventures, the film does a good job at making Shang-Chi stand out.

While there are some familiar connections, the film can easily be watched by anyone who has not seen everything before as the plot can be enjoyed on its own.

The Ten Rings organization adds an interesting element to the overall MCU lore. With them being around for centuries, we get an air of mystery from them with their strange signal.

While a lot of questions have been left unanswered throughout the movie, there is plenty of room for future stories.

Also considering this was released when Marvel were trying to figure out how they wanted the cinematic universe to look moving forward from the Infinity Saga, this was a great way to set up a whole new type of hero while adding more cultural and mythological elements into the franchise.

Going back to the chronological review of the MCU ahead of Avengers: Doomsday, it was nice to watch something that felt very different to many of the previous films.

This added a fresh feeling to the franchise while Shang-Chi’s introduction is one of the better ways they have brought in new heroes into the MCU.

Final Verdict

One of the most fun and unique solo adventures in the MCU so far. Destin Daniel Cretton provides a great character driven story and the incredible martial arts gives a unique identity to the film.

Simu Liu brings something very welcome to the franchise however Tony Leung is a true star. He provides a wonderful performance as a father who has become a dangerous villain due to his sadness and desperation.

The supporting cast are also very good, especially Awkwafina, Michelle Yeoh and Meng’er Zhang. The use of Chinese culture and mythology really felt like it was thought about.

The action is another highlight. The bus fight in San Francisco and the skyscraper fight in Macau are both excellently performed and due to Brad Allan and the whole stunt team involved they provide some of the best martial arts in the whole MCU.

The ending of the film doesn’t quite hit the mark. A large fantasy CG battle seemed like an unnecessary addition to the film as the best parts were the physical action and small personal moments. There was also a slight lag in the middle due to the heavy mythology.

However, none of this takes away from how much fun this was. There was a great family story at the centre of the film, an amazing villain and some truly memorable action scenes.

Overall this is a very enjoyable Marvel adventure and a great reminder that the franchise can still be fresh by embracing different styles and cultures.