297.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
8/10
Marvel needs to pick itself up after the events of End Game and introduce us to a new set of characters due to the losses that the MCU has had in recent years. A movie directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, who I have only seen one other movie of his on the big screen which was 'Just Mercy', a film that I really enjoyed. After watching that, this movie is quite far apart in terms of genre for me. Simu Liu is going to bring Shang-Chi to life, a hero that I have never heard and also an actor who has been given a chance at the big time. For me, there was going to be no expectation. Going in with a blank canvas on not knowing where this character and story is going to be wedged into the MCU is going to be an interesting factor. I also expect a lot of great martial art scenes as from what I'm hearing, Disney has made a major coup by signing Tony Leung to the cast. A man who is seen as one of the most successful actors from Asia.
The movie is going to begin with a voiceover and a little bit of history regarding the Ten Rings. We have already heard about them in Iron Man 3 as a terrorist organisation led by Ben Kingsley's characters, which turned out to be a front. We won't delve into that as it's a little long-winded. This movie will follow the actual Ten Rings, found by Xu Wenwu.
The rings give him godly power and grant immortality. Toppling governments and going through history dictating his way through major world events, the Ten Rings organisation is set up until he looks for a village called Ta Lo in a magical forest and this place house magical creatures. He is stopped by a guardian called Ying Li, with the two falling in love and kicked out by the villagers as Wenwu is from the outside. They marry, have two sprogs named Shang-Chi and Xialing and Wenwu looks away the rings.
When Shang-Chi is 7, is mother is murdered and Wenwu brings the rings back out as vengeance. Shang-Chi is put through brutal training and his sister is cast aside as she secretly teaches herself. Wenwu sends his son, now at 14 years old, to complete the assassination on the gang that killed his mother. After completing this, is comes home, only to leave for San Francisco, leaving his sister behind.
We are now in the 'present day' and Shang-Chi has renamed himself Shuan. Working as a valet with his best mate Katy, played by Awkwafina. He receives a letter from his sister, fills Katy in on his history and heads to Macau with Katy in tow to find Xialing. This is all after he is attacked by henchmen on a bus who are after the necklace his mother gave him.
Xialing is running a fight club and there we see Wong fighting Abomination from The Hulk movie, an interesting little cameo and someone who will return in the She-Hulk tv show on Disney+. The club is attacked by the Ten Rings and Wenwu shows up before taking the trio to his compound where the kids grew up. He explains that he has heard his wife calling him from beyond the forest and believes her old village is holding her hostage. He plans to destroy them all unless she is released and when our trio object, he locks them away. All of a sudden, a bit more comic relief is added to the movie as, within their cell, they bump into Trevor Slattery. For those who need a refresher, Trevor played the figure of the Mandarin in Iron Man 3. He has been locked away for impersonating Wenwu and has befriended a little magical creature named Morris, who is from the village and guides the trio to his home.
They travel to another dimension to Ta Lo and explain what has happened so far. They meet their aunt who explains the history of the village, the fact that their mother is not there and they are there to guard a dark gate. Previously a soul-consuming Dweller in Darkness had attacked the village but they were saved by a Chinese dragon named the great protector. They closed the gate and now that evil dweller has been contacting Wenwu, pretending to be his late wife so that Wenwu will open the gate with his Ten Rings. Our trio join the village ranks in training, preparing for their father and his army.
The battle begins and Shang-Chi is beaten by his father who makes his way to the gate. Shang-Chi is hit into a lake and disappears into the depths with some bubbles. With the gate starting to break, some of the smaller soul-eaters escape and start an attack on both armies who are still fighting in the village. The Great Protector revives Shang-Chi and the fight once again starts between himself and Wenwu.
There is a new confidence in the son now and he gets the upper hand over his father before sparing his life. The battle takes a turn as the Dweller breaks free from behind the gate and heads straight for Shang-Chi. Wenwu steps in and saves his son before the Dweller grabs him. He gives control of the rings to his son before being killed and the final battle is one between Xialing and Shang-Chi riding the Great Protector and the Dweller in Darkness.
As the battle hits, the Dweller is getting the upper hand, taking the soul from the dragon but all is saved by our comic relief Katy. She fires an arrow through the Dweller's throat and the Great Protector now in the ascendancy and Shang-Chi strikes the final blow. The movie draws to a close with Shang-Chi and Katy returning home to San Fran and whilst in a pub with mates, Wong appears through a ring and summons them both to Kamar-Taj.
There are a couple of scenes left as our mid-credit scene is set in Kamar-Taj whilst Wong is checking out the rings. He introduces the duo to Bruce Banner and Carol Danvers whilst they all discuss the origin of the rings. Finally, there is an after-credits scene which sees Xialing take the throne at the Ten Rings, which she promised her brother she would disband. She is training women amongst the men and a couple of her lead henchmen are passing around some pictures but I couldn't make out who they were or if they are going to be targeted.
I can honestly say I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. I didn't know what to expect as it wasn't a well-known character, I don't watch too many martial arts movies if any at all and I can't even remember seeing the trailers for this movie looking back. MCU movies at the moment need to make a big impact with the loss of so many massive characters but onwards and upwards and I hope this movie was well received.
The storyline was really interesting as it took a turn halfway through that I had no idea that it would take. I came in with the notion that it would be based around martial arts and maybe that was a bit naive of me but also excited me when we suddenly had these massive mythical creatures fighting rather than just another movie of human combat. For me, the downside was actually having Katy save the day to an extent and I think this was a step too far for her character. I enjoyed her as comic relief, to have her fighting was also a good thing but that's where it should have stopped for her. The show then should have been run by Shang-Chi and any final assistance from his sister Xialing. This would have been the main arch as the siblings save the day from fighting each other earlier in the movie.
The cast for me was very unknown. I didn't know Ben Kingsley was going to be in the movie but picked up where he left off at the end of Iron Man 3 with a comedic performance and was a breath of fresh air. I had seen Awkwakina in Jumanji: The Next Level and she was OK in there, again some more of a comedic in this one and someone who seems will be returning as she was summoned by Wong. Meng'er Zhang who played Xialing and Tony Leung playing Wenwu were both great in their roles. The fight scenes were impressive, imposed the scenes when needed and both had arches that also showed their good sides by the end of the story. The stand out performance was always going to come from Simu Liu. His first major role and a huge step up to be in the MCU which is easily one of the most successful franchises of all time. Without knowing the actor and without knowing the role, I was left with a blank canvas on what to expect. I was impressed as his character was very ranged, popping a joke or two with Katy and then taking a serious side when it came to his father and sister. Simu Liu had the qualities to deliver on all fronts and I look forward to seeing what the future brings.
Because a movie doesn't have too much pressure to deliver to its audience and me personally, it is easier to go into the cinema with a more open mind. This allows you to be less critical of the movie in all aspects and just enjoy it for what it is. It looked really nice at times, especially when entering the other dimension as special effects took over and helped to take this movie over the finishing line. It is a mid-card MCU movie, I'm not going to lie to you but at the same time with it being so different compared to the other movies and it wasn't copying a storyline from something we may have seen before, it felt like it could rank a little higher. I have no idea where the character goes next, no idea if there is a sequel lined up or if he now joins the Avengers. Only time will tell
