Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

I didn't believe a single thing that happened during Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, but luckily, I don't think I was supposed to.  This is probably the single most goofiest movie the Marvel Studios has ever done off of one of their comics, and yes, I realize that is saying something.  I may not have believed what I was seeing at any moment, but the fact remains, I was having more fun watching it than any other blockbuster I can think of this past summer.  If there was ever a reason to return to the theater during these current times, it's this.

We live in a cinematic landscape that is dominated by the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and considering that they are releasing two more movies before the year is over, it's obviously not slowing down anytime soon.  Saying this, it takes a lot for one of these movies to stand out, especially one such as this that is supposed to kick off a new character into its expanding world.  Shang-Chi does this with a knowing sense of humor, some spectacular action set pieces, a pair of memorable lead characters that I look forward to seeing more of, and an overall sense of wonder that a lot of bloated spectacles can't match.  Sure, the movie is frequently busy, and the climactic battle is probably more chaotic than awe-inspiring, which is a common thing with Marvel.  But, again, I just want to stress how much this movie does right.  This is the best stand-alone film off of one of the comics that the Studio has done in a while, and was able to reach my inner ten-year-old, who loves goofy movies like this.

Yes, I do have an inner ten-year-old.  I feel that if we lose that, we lose a big part of ourselves.  It's the part of me that can smile when a movie presents me with a storyline where its hero starts out as a parking valet, and ends the film riding on the back of a dragon in order to save a mythical hidden land that is under attack by soul-sucking demons.  As the film opens, Shang-Chi goes by the name of Shaun (newcomer Simu Liu, making a big first impression here).  He lives in San Francisco, seems to be going nowhere in life along with his best friend Katy (Awkwafina, hilarious and scene-stealing as always), and is quite happy with that fact.  But then his past catches up with him when a bus ride to work turns into the first of many standout action sequences.  Not since Speed has mass transit played such an integral part to a hero's story.  Ultimately, it is revealed that Shaun is not who he claims to be, and has a secret history regarding his thousands-year-old Chinese warlord father, Wenwu (Tony Leung).

Turns out Dad possesses the Ten Rings, which not only makes him the most powerful man in the world, but nearly immortal.  He trained his son to be a powerful martial arts assassin, but Shang-Chi left that life behind, changed his name to Shaun, and has been living a carefree life until dad's army of thugs (including a burly guy with a retractable machete arm) tracked him down.  Our hero also has a sister he left behind named Xialing (Meng’er Zhang), who is just as skilled in fighting as the rest of the family, and a connection to a hidden land that has existed for centuries behind a living maze-like forest.  I loved how Katy takes all of this information.  Awkwafina brings the right amount of "What the hell am I looking at" sense of humor as she learns these things about her friend.  That's actually the best trait of this movie.  It knows that this is all ridiculous, and treats it with the right amount of seriousness and proper goofiness.  There's a chance for Ben Kingsley to memorably return as his character from Iron Man 3, and naturally a lot of set up for what Shang-Chi's role in the future Marvel timeline will be.

I like the way this movie handles its main characters.  One of its two leads is pretending to be normal, while the other is being thrust into an impossible situation, but is willing to go along with it, probably because she wants to know what's going to happen next, just like the audience does.  The wordplay and chemistry between Liu and Awkwafina is amazingly displayed here, and I look forward to seeing it grow in future installments and cross-overs.  Were it not for these performances and their dialogue, this would probably be a pretty standard hero origin movie, albeit one with some wonderful martial arts action and special effects that grab your eye. (Those dragons!) It's not the first movie to drop ordinary people in fantastic situations, but it does do it a lot better than just about any other recent attempt I can think of.

There are some shortcomings to go along with it all, obviously.  While I liked Xialing, and her story arc about how her misogynist father never let her train to fight alongside her brother, so she had to do it in secret, she never comes across as developed or as strong of a character as I think she's intended.  There's also a CG sidekick who never quite clicked with me named Morris.  It's a furry thing that kind of sounds like Cousin It from The Addams Family, and looks like a failed design for a stuffed merchandise toy.  Intentionally so, I believe.  Both Shang-Chi and Katy have the right reaction to it when they see him for the first time.  Still, he's a bit unnecessary, other to provide someone for Kingsley to play off of.  I always figured Kingsley had gained enough clout in Hollywood to where he didn't have to resort to having a furry CG sidekick, but I guess not.  And as mentioned earlier, some of the movie is quite busy and chaotic, but I guess that comes with the territory.

What's truly important here is director Destin Daniel Cretton (Just Mercy) has successfully made the leap from smaller films to gigantic blockbusters on his own terms, and has done so with a sense of wit and great style.  Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings manages to be a total entertainment, even with the occasional wrong step, and is well worth the trip to the theater to watch.  This movie exists to make its audience want to see more, and it does that effortlessly. 

0 comments