Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings | Average Guy Movie Review

For ten years Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) - the son of The Mandarin (Tony Leung), keeper of the Ten Rings - has been running from his past, trying to escape the life his father intended for him. Unfortunately that past has now caught up with him, endangering the lives of those he cares about. Now he must return home, face his father and learn the secrets of his family.

If there's one thing that Marvel is good at, it's taking lesser known comic book characters and turning them into major players. Clearly they haven't lost their touch because Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is everything fans love about the MCU and so much more. Whilst keeping things very much rooted in this world, Destin Daniel Cretton has carved out a new piece of the epic film franchise - one steeped in asian culture and mythology - to bring us Marvel's first Asian superhero. 

It seems insane to think that just a few years ago Simu Liu tweeted Marvel about Shang-Chi, and now he's playing the new hero on Marvel's block. The Kim's Convenience star really is the perfect choice to spearhead this new chapter, and he's in good company thanks to an excellent supporting cast (Michelle Yeoh, Fala Chen, Ronny Chieng, Florian Munteanu). Liu brings strength and vulnerability, as well as some good humour to Shang-Chi (also known as Shaun), as he is forced to deal with some pretty big family issues. Granted, he's not the first superhero to have a troubled childhood, but it does feel like there's something more here. Tony Leung's 'Wenwu' isn't your typical big bad, in fact he's rather complicated; consumed with grief and power, yet not entirely evil. It's his relationship with his family that makes this villain so interesting. He clearly loves them, but that love has been corrupted.

If anything, this should probably be called Shang-Chi and some serious family issues, as the movie barely scratches the surface of the Legend, and the Ten Rings. That said, Shang-Chi's entry into the MCU is certainly legendary, as is the power of the Ten Rings. It would have been great to learn a little bit more about the rings and where they came from, but it's fun to think that Marvel has big plans for them, and seeing Wenwu single-handedly unleash hell on entire legions is a sight to behold. But when it comes to the action, it's the martial arts that really impress. There hasn't been anything quite like it in the MCU thus far. Although it is a shame that the mysterious, masked henchman (Death Dealer) goes completely unexplored, only getting one or two decent fights. All of the fight choreography takes inspiration from the likes of Jackie Chan and movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - with a little help from Buster Keaton - and it's mind-blowing. Cretton and Cinematographer Bill Pope (The Matrix)'s highly kinetic shooting style puts us right in the middle of the action. The bus fight seen in the trailers, as well as one that takes place on a high-rise scaffolding are particularly memorable, with Shang-Chi and his friends taking on droves of Wenwu's minions in some adrenaline-fueled hand to hand combat.

However, as has been proven time and time again, a superhero is nothing without someone to remind them that they are still human. Someone who will say to them; "you might have been trained as an assassin, but you're still just Shaun to me". In this case it's Shang-Chi's best friend Katy who fulfils that role, and Awkwafina does a marvelous job. She brings this loveable sense of rebellion to the character, meaning she can bring levity to pretty much any scene and in a world full of superheroes and highly trained assassins, she is still a force to be reckoned with. Although towards the end it felt like they were reaching for things for her to do. But between Katy and his tough as nails sister Xu Xialing (Meng'er Zhang), Shang-Chi definitely has his work cut out for him. Luckily, Wong (Benedict Wong) is on hand to help out - hopefully his appearance here and in Spider-Man: No Way Home indicates a much bigger role for the beloved sorcerer, moving forward.

The thing about Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is it isn't simply an origin story. For one thing, the movie actually manages to correct at least some of Marvel's past sins. Watch out for a fun dinner scene. This includes the return and (weirdly enough) redemption of a rather unexpected character. And it's these little tinkerings and modifications that have allowed Cretton to make the MCU more inclusive. Now there are certain origin story beats present. It's pretty much a requirement when introducing a character like this. But what Cretton and his fellow writers, Dave Callaham and Andrew Lanham, have created here is a story about family (not the Vin Diesel kind). Granted it's a very funny and action-packed family tale, but it's also relatable. If anything, this is a tragedy, about the destructive effect grief and power can have on family (again, not the Vin Diesel kind). By taking you to places you don't quite expect (both figuratively and literally), the movie actually manages to bring a new sense of awe to the MCU. In many ways it's like being back at the beginning, back in the days when we could see the connections, but we didn't exactly know where it was all going. Well once again we don't know where the MCU is headed, but it should be good fun finding out.

Shang-Chi's entrance into the MCU represents a bold but necessary step for Marvel to take. Destin Daniel Cretton has opened up this comic book world to a whole new realm of possibilities - not to mention generations of fans. It would have been nice to learn a little more about the Ten Rings, but it still brings all the excitement, heart and laughs that Marvel are known for.

9/10

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