Ah Marvel. You’ve been gone for some time now. Yes, we had Black Widow and the excellent Disney+ shows, but we’ve been missing that feeling of epic adventure you gave us in the theater. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings sounded like an interesting premise, and trailers built excitement, but the odds are that the average person didn’t know who he was or what the 10 Rings were outside of the brief reference in Iron Man 3. Much as they did with that character and the Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel Studios has raised another forgotten superhero from the dust and unleashed a fantastic film that is bound to generate legions of new fans.
Shawn (Simu Liu) and best friend Katy (Awkwafina) are perfectly happy with their carefree and irresponsible lives. Working by day as valet drivers and partying by night closing karaoke bars, neither longs for nor wants more than what they can do and enjoy in the present. Unfortunately, when a group of assassins sent by the criminal organization The Ten Rings attacks the two of them, Shawn is dragged back into a world he had thought long forgotten and buried. The REAL Mandarin (Tony Leung) has emerged and is looking to take back from Shawn what he believes is rightfully his and will pay any cost and make any sacrifice to acquire it.
The easiest way to sum up Shang-Chi would be to simply call it Crouching Tiger, Hidden Marvel. As much as we have had countless fight scenes in the last 20 plus years of films, this is the one that goes full kung-fu and amps up the fun and chaos by 1000. Fight scenes with actors on wires unfold hpynotically as they glide, fly, and perform martial arts stunts the likes of which we haven’t seen since Crouching Tiger. One-take, long-shot battles are the norm, and it is refreshing to see style and technique trump the rapid-fire cinematography that has become stale over the last two decades.
Movies cannot live by action alone though, and Shang-Chi shines with the story and emotions that are woven throughout. As much as there is a cosmic catastrophe hanging in the balance should our heroes fail, the focus is on family and relationships. Having the quiet and intimate moments take center stage not only does a better job of advancing the film and developing characters, but it also means the action set pieces become that much more stunning by comparison since they are not overused.
Marvel has always had a villain problem, but this one is perfect. A good villain is always the hero in his own story, and Shang-Chi’s could very well have been an actual hero had he taken a different path in life. It’s easy to feel sympathetic and identify with him and his decisions because, if any of us were in identical circumstances, we might do the same thing. He’s not evil incarnate just a man doing what he truly believes is right.
I know I’ve spent some time trying to do so, but I cannot put into words just how amazing this is. From the opening until the final after-credit scene (there are two, so stay until the very end), I was completely enraptured. It is slightly long at 132 minutes, and there is some fluff that could have been left out, but not once did it drag or outstay its welcome. If this is any indication of what is to come in Phase 4, then I’ll happily wait in line to see whatever else is on its way. Until then, you can catch me back in the theater watching this one a few more times. It’s that good.