8/10
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings was a great martial arts movie. It marries the spirit of the Hong Kong martial arts movies that have come before with Marvel production values and humor. The chemistry between Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) and Katy (Awkwafina) is delightful - they feel like friends that have grown up together. The movie takes the time to let the audience get to know them before things go off the rails. I also enjoyed that the film didn’t need to
Shang-Chi (the film) continues the trend started by Black Panther where the main villain of the film gets developed into something more than “the same as the good guy, but using their powers for evil”. Tony Chui-Wai Leung does a great job as Xu Wenwu, Shang-Chi’s father and weilder of the titular Ten Rings (they’re more like bracelets tho).
Meng’er Zhang is enjoyable as Xu Xialing - Shang-Chi’s sister. Her character starts off a little by the numbers, but she quickly grows on you.
The movie drags a little in late act 2 when there’s a lot of CGI critters and scenery, but it’s a minor annoyance since you get to see Michelle Yeoh. I don’t want to say anything about act 3 because, while I have feelings about it, I don’t want to spoil anything. It looked good doing it, I will say that.
Overall I enjoyed the film and if you feel comfortable doing so, I recommend seeing it in the theater rather than streaming. The big screen an theater sound system really elevates the movie.
There are a couple of entertaining cameos sprinkled throughout that were amusing. There is both a mid-credits and end credits scene, so stick around to the end.
