Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

The latest film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has arrived with “Shang Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings”. The film introduces audiences to Shang Chi (Simu Liu); an easygoing San Francisco resident who spends his time parking cars and hanging out with his friend Katy (Awkwafina) and her family. Life is steady if unspectacular until he is accosted on a city bus by a group looking to take a pendant his mother gave him. When Shang Chi shocks Katy and the occupants of the bus with his martial arts abilities; he attempts to find his sister Xialing (Meng’er Zhang); who runs an underground fight club. While Xialing is estranged from her brother; their father Wenwu (Tony Chiu-Wai Leung) has conspired to bring them and their pendants before him. Their father uses the power of sacred devices known as the Ten Rings to rule for over a thousand years and destroys all who would oppose him thanks to their power and the army he has gathered over the centuries. Wenwu wants to revive their long-dead mother as he is convinced that she is calling to him and he wants to be with her as he was able to be a better man and forsake the power and abilities the rings offered him. When it is learned that Wenwu plans to go to a mythical realm that their mother came from and free her or burn the place to the ground; Shang Chi must make some hard choices between family and doing what he believes is right. What follows is an action-filled thriller with plenty of mysticism and humor. The film has a very engaging visual style that combines Asian and Western cinematic styles which results in some very engaging visuals as well as action sequences. What really sets the film apart from many Super Hero films is that the characters have a solid base to them as they have a complexity to them in regards to their past and their motivations. Their relationships with one another are key to the film as family, honor, and justice are key elements to the film but they are not given lip service but are developed well along with their characters. While the final act may be a bit FX heavy for some; I found it in keeping with the story and the characters and the great Sir Ben Kingsley provides some very welcome comic relief in his return as Trevor. Awkwafina is also great as she provides some very laugh-out-loud moments but is not afraid to mix it up when the situation calls for him. Simu Liu was very enjoyable in the lead role as he performed the physical aspects of his character well but added a restrained sensitivity to his character as he is a complicated individual who is conflicted by choices he made in his youth and the ramifications of them now as an adult. There are bonus scenes that set up future adventures well including one that will no doubt have Marvel fans heatedly debating when the film premieres. Once again Marvel has shown why they have had such a sustained success with their films as they have done a great job again of introducing a new character to the Cinematic Universe but also connecting him to their cinematic past and future. 4 stars out of 5

Rewatched for the Once Upon a Franchise podcast. Listen to the full episode here: open.spotify.com/episode/5ocYTfyec0F4eXA4C2qG9O?si=37b2cc91c3674863 Rating: A- SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS remains, on rewatch, one of the MCU's most confident and culturally rich origin stories — a film that pairs some of the best hand-to-hand action the franchise has ever produced with a genuinely tragic, three-dimensional villain in Tony Leung's Wenwu, all wrapped around a story about grief, legacy, and identity that never loses its own voice even while working inside Marvel's familiar formula. It stumbles a little in a third act that trades grounded choreography for greyer, weightless CGI spectacle, but between Simu Liu's star-making turn, Awkwafina's surprisingly controlled comedic work, and a genuine Dragon Ball fan's delight at that closing energy-blast callback, it holds firm as one of the better entries of Phase Four.

Take That 👊 💥 DELTA-21 . . . . . . Marvel Studios Presents The " _M o t h e r_ " Of All Superhero -{ FANTASlES }- . You've Been Warned . . . . . . The Bonkers Level Here Is, Er, Well : " _E X P O N E N T I A L_ 😂 🐲❗" . A - _B I G_ - Screen MINI Review. Viewed Sept. 5, '21. Katy : "That's fine...... you can just explain on the plane". { Said to Shaun a.k.a Shang-Chi, marking a "sudden and unexpected" twist of events }. 1. " So -{ MANY }- Upsides : "Crouching Tiger, Hidden MARVEL" { Gosh . . . . where do I even start❓} " : Ang Lee's circa 2000 quasi-mystical Martial arts spectacular is the -Very- first film that came to my mind whilst watching a certain beautifully -{ " Atmospheric " }- segment of the opening-act of 'Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings' ( 'Shang-Chi' for short ) . . . . you'll know it -Immediately- upon seeing it . . . . featuring "ever-fabulous" Malaysian Mega Star Michelle Yeoh ; who of course was one of the -Principal- characters in 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon', -As well- . { FYI : this is by no means intended to be a spoiler ; -several- of the movie -official- teasers & trailers 'gallantly' feature the said scene, albeit briefly }. And what's more ...( trailers also )... if you're someone with 'even the slightest bit' of true passion for all things within the realm of sheer cinematic -{ FANTASY 🌠 }- , then you'll be absolutely -delighted- to know that Shang Chi -Also- has a distinct 'Harry Potter' aspect to it . . . & if even -that's- not enough for you . . . then, get this, its got a 'full-blown dollop of Narnia' thrown in there for good measure, at that. To be -Really- honest, it felt a bit disorienting , -At First- , seeing all "those types of elements" in an 'MCU' ( 'Marvel Cinematic Universe' ) picture, but then I suddenly realized that 'Infinity War' -And- 'Endgame' both -Very- prominently feature, well ...{ a walking, -"Talking"- demolition derby of a, err, -"Raccoon"- }... in them, & I began to feel at home again, pretty darn quick. 2. " There -Is- One 'Stark' Downside, Alas . . . . The MCU has had -{ WAY }- Too Much "Muddled & Obfuscatory" Messaging  Vis-a-vis 'The Ten Rings', Over The Years " : In 2008's -superbly- received { and completely -iconic- } 'Ironman', which is where we were all introduced to the bespoke militant organization, ( 'TTR' for short ), for the -Very- first time . . . . there is an "Explicit And Unequivocal" reference to the film's ( initial ) setting as being sometime within the  USA's long 'War In Afghanistan', ( where the -Official- state religion is Islam ). Hence, by -{ EXTENSION 💡 }- , there is the correspondingly "Glaring", ( although tad more "Implicit" ), suggestion that TTR is . . . . . { from the immediately apparent ethnic backgrounds of the mostly Urdu & Arabic speaking members portrayed, to the group's visually -Distinctive- flag, right down to the undeniably frightening 'Imminent-Beheading' type video featuring a thoroughly bruised & bloodied Tony Stark as its centerpiece ( all too reminiscent of the -Horribly- tragic & bloodcurdling news stories that we've been, sadly, accustomed to reading about, hearing about and watching over the years ) } . . . . . 'yet another' archetypal, classic "Islamist-fundamentalist" type group. When in fact, as is -Strongly- conveyed to us in -This- particular picture, ( beginning all the way with the trailers itself ), that this is simply -{ Not }- the case. The said militia does, of course, turn out to be, ( at its very 'Core' ), & by way of, this, its Origins-Story ; "Not Arab Or Middle Eastern -At All-" , but in fact . . . . -{ " 100% _CHINESE_ " }- . Certainly very confusing, -especially- for the majority of us, who -haven't- read any 'Mandarin vs. Shang-Chi' comics . . . . . . . . . . Go Figure 🤷‍♂️ 🤔 3. " Final Analysis " : -{ If }- you can get yourself to basically -Overlook- the aforementioned, & "Legitimate Inconsistencies" pertaining to Marvel's cinematic representation of its Ten Rings Organization, then . . . . -Yes- , for the most part at least, you -{ Should }- believe all the "Rave Reviews" that this 'Utter Delight Of A Movie' has -already- garnered, 'Globally'. A -Huge- Shoutout to its 'rookie' ( -relatively speaking- ) Director 'Destin Daniel Cretton', who"s been able to achieve this feat with, get this, just his -"5th"- Directorial-venture . . . Ever 👏 . What started as a humble yet impassioned little comic book effort about 10 very magical, & { Phenomenally Empowered Alien " _MAKLUAN_ " Rings } . . . by the "Truly-Legendary" Stan Lee & Don Heck in Feb. 1964 ( "Tales Of Suspense, No.50" ) . . . has now become the supremely enthralling "Fresh New Face" of Marvel's 'BOLD NEW ERA' { that started with 'Phase Four' }. The film's 'Star' is newcomer Simu Liu, whose portrayal of the outwardly nerdy-seeming yet immensely likeable 'Shaun' works wonderfully { not to mention all his ( " Super 😉 " )-impressive Kung Fu skills, of course }, with his ever-jocular best companion 'Katy', ( Awkwafina ), showing an absolute -ton- of heart, courage, & most of all, -{ " Fierce " }- Loyalty, throughout. Tony Leung, Meng'er Zhang, Fala Chen, Michelle Yeoh, & of course Shang-Chi's Big, Fun, "Open-Surprise" .....the 'one & only' Ben Kingsley.... perform their respective roles with -{ " Panache " }- . So, all told, it's going to be " A Completely Charmed, Fiery 9.50 Marks Out 10 From Me . . . . ROCK ON, MARVEL 👊 🔥❗"