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What comes after the endgame? It's a new era for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the first new hero to debut has arrived with a spectacular debut: "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings."
Beginning with an epic prologue stretching far into the past, we come crashing into the present in San Francisco, where we meet Shaun (Simu Liu) and his best friend Katy (Awkwafina), a duo of young valets content in their simple, fun-chasing lives, waiting for a calling to arrive. Their normalcy comes to a violent halt, however, when a gang of thugs led be the sword-handed Razorfist (Florian Munteanu) attacks them on a bus. Shaun explodes with a sudden display of martial arts prowess to save themselves and the other civilians, revealing his true identity: Shang-Chi, the son of an ancient, mystic warlord raised from childhood to be an assassin. But after his first mission, Shang ran away and became Shaun, living a peaceful life far from his father's criminal empire. But now, it seems, his father wants him back.
This kicks off an action-packed, globe-trotting odyssey, in which they reunite with Shang's sister Xialeng (Meng'er Zhang) before all being brought together at their father Wenwu's (Tony Leung) base of operations, where he reveals his grand plan to unlock passage to the mystical pocket dimension where Shang and Xialeng's late mother was born. Needless to say, the family reunion does not go as well as it could, and the game is afoot in a race that could spell doom for all reality.
This is an origin movie, so the most critical piece is above-all the introduction of a new hero. And Simu Liu is enthusiastically up to the task. He both imbues Shang with an effortlessly charming every-man appeal while also believably pulling off the intense fight scenes demanded of his character. He's incredibly easy to root for and I look forward to seeing more of him, both in his own films and as a hopeful New Avenger.
Liu isn't carrying the film alone, though. He has plenty of help from the stellar cast that makes up his family, both those bound by choice - hilarious but never grating Katy - and by blood - the magnetically intimidating Xialing and the foreboding Wenwu. They make up an extremely complicated family rife with some very, VERY serious issues far beyond "Dad is a supervillain." And yet you can't help but want them to get past their differences and make it work.
Peace, however, is not in the cards, and the children are left to take a desperate chance to stop Wenwu's plans. And have no doubt about it - he is one of the greatest villains the MCU has yet to offer. Tony Leung Chiu-wai, one of the biggest stars in Asian cinema, makes his Hollywood debut here, and it's easy to see why he's such a big deal. His acting never slips, carrying the weight of a character who has seen a hundred lifetimes come and go before finally finding something worth growing old for, only to have it ripped away. He is as brutal and calculating as his motivations are believably sympathetic. The cast of young actors are all incredible, but whenever Leung is onscreen, he commands the full attention of the scene.
Marvel has brought us great casts before, though. This in no way diminishes the actors, but what truly elevates 'Legend of the Ten Rings' to the top tier of the MCU is the ways in which it excels beyond its peers in the rapidly expanding mega-franchise. First off: The fight scenes. With few exceptions, Marvel fight scenes have too often been poorly choreographed, cut to pieces by over-enthusiastic editing and largely forgettable. They promised something different this time, and they delivered.
The fights are incredible, intense, and often gorgeous to watch. It's a wonder to show how putting in the extra effort to buck current trends can really make a movie stand out and add another level of overall craftsmanship to the work. And in a cinematic universe virtually synonymous with formulaic - albeit a very well-received formula - filmmaking, 'Ten Rings' truly stands out. To really unpack that, I'm going to need to veer into spoilery territory, so be warned!
This feels like one of the most unique Marvel movies we've yet to see. The studio has given director Destin Daniel Cretton the range to really lean into the fantasy martial arts roots of the story he's trying to tell here. The slow-motion, intimate moments in the fights, the no-holds-barred embrace of Asian high fantasy, the willingness to allow large swaths of dialogue in native languages with subtitles attached... It is truly doing its own thing, and that is so incredibly refreshing.
Now, the less-than ideal Marvel trends do start to slide in a bit in the third act. Namely, an over-reliance on CGI. The return of Sir Ben Kingsley as Trevor Slattery was a wonderful surprise, and his performance is a delight, but it could have been even better had his hundun companion Morris been a physical creation, not just a green blob copied over with fur and feathers in post-production. No matter how far CGI comes, especially when a creature has direct contact with a real actor, practical effects remain incomparably superior. And it would have been so easy to make a Morris animatronic. The same goes for the rest of the movie's mystical creatures. You would think after the success of Baby Yoda over at Lucasfilm, that they would give it a try here at Marvel. But that is one commitment they've yet to make.
We also get a lot of the much-critiqued "grey filter" color grading in the finale. Which is a shame for what was such a colorful movie up to that point. I don't really mind the jump to epic, world-shaking stakes in the final act. Yes, it's overused, and Marvel's refusal to tell low-stakes, street-level stories grows increasingly frustrating, but it fits with the epic martial arts fantasy genre that Cretton and crew are trying to emulate her. Plus, who DOESN'T want to watch Simu Liu ride a dragon into battle?
In the end, I'm confident in ranking 'Shang-Chi: Legend of the Ten Rings' amongst the best of the best Marvel films, which is a great relief to any fan worried the studio would start to lose steam in the aftermath of Endgame. This is a roadmap for staying relevant: Allowing fresh new artists to take these new franchises in unique and surprising directions. I hope this trend continues with the movies to come, and that they also dare to keep growing in the technical department, rather than falling back on CGI every time.
All points considered, it's a blast. Definitely go see it, and join me in anticipating the exciting future of the MCU that Shang and the rest of the new generation of heroes will be opening up for us as we return to the theaters.
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