As great and convenient as it is to watch a good film from the comfort of my own home, there's nothing like seeing a movie for the first time on the big screen. I have missed going to the movies so much since the pandemic started and I was so excited to go see Shang-Chi in theaters. It was definitely THE movie to see for my first time in nearly two years, and I'm so glad I didn't wait for this one to hit Disney+.
So, without further ado, my thoughts on the newest entry in the MCU's vast catalog. (Spoilers, obviously)
Things I Liked
Simu Liu - As the titular character, Liu was a great blend of badass and relatable. He wasn't overly broody nor was he goofy. The humorous moments overall did not feel forced or cringe, and there was no annoying posturing and gratuitous shirtlessness. The one part of the film when he was able to show off his physique included a funny line from Awkwafina's character Katy followed by an even funnier Jim Halpert-style shrug from Liu's Shang-Chi.
Tony Leung - For my money, Leung's Wenwu is now in the top ten best MCU villains. He was FANTASTIC in this role. He brought so much texture to the character - you sympathized with him, even while loathing his actions. The character could have so easily been phoned in, but Leung brought him to life in a really beautiful, tragic way. It's so refreshing to have a good villain since that is definitely one of the MCU's weak spots.
The Action - It blows my mind how, even after so many movies and shows, the fight scenes can still feel fresh. There was some re-explored territory - an early fight scene on a bus called to mind a similar scene in Captain Marvel - but what really stood out to me was how beautiful some of the choreography was, particularly the scene between Wenwu and Ying Li when they first meet. Each character had a unique fighting style, too - the closed fists and brute strength of Wenwu and the Ten Rings, the tai chi-inspired moves of Ying Li and Ying Nan - that made all of the fights interesting and distinguishable from one another.
The Mandarin - This was not as big a reveal for me as I would have liked, thanks to seeing pictures of Sir Ben Kingsley at the red carpet premiere, but I *was* pleasantly surprised that it wasn't just a quick cameo. I know some people were really annoyed by the fake Mandarin twist of Iron Man 3, but I was in the camp that thought it was both a good movie writing-wise and also as a way of avoiding all the cringey stereotypes of the old original comics. Having Kingsley's washed up actor character come back and play a somewhat important role in the movie was both a fun callback to earlier MCU fare and also just plain fun. His character definitely garnered the most laughs from the audience at the showing I attended.
The Ten Rings - This weapon is wicked cool. Right up there with Thor's Mjolnir and Cap's shield. I'm really excited to see more of them in future movies, especially up against some of the more well-known weapons and super abilities.
Things I Didn't Like
Wong's Appearance - Listen, I love Wong. He's an awesome character and I'm happy to see more of him and really glad to know that he's going to be playing a bigger role in future projects. But his cameo in the fighting ring was just weird. It seemed a little too out of character for him. Listening to Beyonce and enjoying Ben & Jerry's is one thing; leaving the Sanctum Sanctorum to fight Abomination for, what? Money? I dunno, it was just...strange.
Macau - that whole scene was just kinda meh. I know it was set up to show that Shang-Chi's sister Xialing has her own underground fighting criminal empire thing independent of their dad, but that plot point could have been made in other ways. It felt like a scenery-chewing kind of segment - lots of action and noise and visuals, but not a whole lot of substance.
Death-Dealer's Demise - It seemed like they were building up the kabuki mask-wearing warrior to be at least important enough to warrant a "final showdown" type fight. Instead, he got soul sucked almost as soon as the Dweller in Darkness' minions came on the scene. Kinda disappointing.
Things I Was Ambivalent About
Katy - Awkwafina is the kind of celeb/actor/whatever that seems to inspire strong opinions. Either you love her or hate her and there isn't much room for the in-between. I actually like her most of the time, but felt that her performance ebbed and flowed the whole movie. Sometimes she was great and nailed certain lines or scenes; other times I felt she was just too much and distracted from the movie by being too, well, Awkwafina-y. That being said, I loved the relationship between her character and Shang-Chi. I felt that their friendship was genuine and it was kind of nice to have a non-love interest female side character. They also did a good job of giving her enough to do during the climactic sequence with the dementor dragons that she still felt important without having that no-way-in-hell transformation into a battle badass after only a day of practice.
Shang-Chi's costume - Ok, this might come off as nitpicky. I know it was trying to stay true to the comics while also being true to his character (I did like that he kept his sneakers), but it was a little too underwhelming.
The Humor - This aspect of the movie improved as it went on. The first few attempts were kind of weaksauce, but it definitely got better. I know it wasn't supposed to be campy-funny like Ragnarok or the Guardian films; it felt more like Dr. Strange in the humor department, though I would say Shang-Chi was definitely funnier overall than that movie. I think my feelings about it had to do a lot with Awkwafina and certain expectations. The Morris stuff made me chuckle, and there were a couple other parts that made me laugh out loud (Aladdin karaoke, anyone?), but there didn't seem to be any stand out one-liners that made for instant memeable moments.
Xialing's Arc - Again, maybe this is nitpicky since it's technically Shang-Chi's movie AND it was made clear that this isn't the last time we'll see Xialing. But that post-credit scene of her taking the literal throne at the Ten Rings compound reminded me a lot of the Sharon Carter thing at the end of Falcon and Winter Soldier. I just don't want to see a whole movie about Shang-Chi trying to redeem and recruit his sister; it's just such a been-there-done-that kind of trope, and a lot of that territory has already been explored with Thor and Loki. It did blow my mind a little to learn that this was Meng'er Zhang's first movie! I really look forward to seeing more of her character . . . I just hope the writers don't screw it up.
So, all that being said, I would say without hesitation that this is one of the MCU's best overall movies so far, and definitely one of the best of the origin films. I'm already looking forward to watching it again, and I'm especially looking forward to seeing more of Shang-Chi in future movies and shows.
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