Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

It's a surprisingly coherent extravaganza that, while it loses a bit of pace in places and relies on the element of coincidence (Ben Kingsley's talking ass-pet), holds together as a whole both with its connection to the overarching cinematic universe and its own family storyline with an interesting villain. It's not so much the likeable Shang-Chi, with whom today's younger generation in particular will readily relate to, as his conflicted father that drives the narrative, which is well consolidated especially in the action scenes, each of which moves the story somewhere, and moreover are themselves good and varied – and when the visual brouhaha kicks in, as in the dragon slayer ending, at least the carefully developed family line works. I didn't have high expectations and I'm not jumping with enthusiasm either, but Marvel still keeps the bar high and I find it admirable that they're not afraid to experiment with cultural formulas like this and send an almost purely Asian fantasy to the cinemas, which of course will earn them a cool profit. 75 (09/08/2021)

The most interesting thing about this film is how (well) it connects to the entire universe. Otherwise, it's an thoroughly generic Marvel movie that, while it takes place in a novel setting, is basically nothing special in itself. Decent fight scenes and an air of family drama are definite pluses here, but somehow I'm already feeling a slight fatigue after 25 MCU movies. [65%] (09/02/2021)

Shang-Chi mixes in a mostly artful way the audience-appealing elements typical of the MCU (spectacular battles, action laced with humour, the importance of team/family, etc.) and as an added value offers (in the context of Marvel movies) an unfamiliar Asian setting. The Hollywood-style action is interspersed with fight scenes that are more typical of Asian films, all wrapped up in almost "magical" clashes (like in Doctor Strange), which I really enjoyed. Visiting Ta Lo and seeing all those creatures made me feel like I was watching an Asian version of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. My only major criticism would be the sometimes weaker visual effects (compared to other MCU-movies), like, for instance, the forest maze or the water scenes in general. Of the new characters, Ying Nan, Xu Wenwu and partly Katy won me over the most; the main character was rather bland. It was also nice to see a smaller role for Ben Kingsley (a.k.a. the Mandarin). I didn't even mind that a good part of the plot was a kind of family drama, as in this case the motivations and actions of the characters were understandable and this line didn't interfere with the film’s fantasy-action level. (09/10/2021)

Marvel has gone the route of exploiting Eastern Asian culture and I would not mind if the final product was entertaining or at least interesting to the audience. This movie is neither. I got tired of live-action CGI comic book nonsense a long time ago, and Tony Leung and a few pretty choreographed scenes is not going to change that, unfortunately. (05/08/2022)

This combination of modern Chinese action movie with folk tales works. Disney understands that it’s making movies mainly for the Eastern market and so they honor their view of the world with occasional bow to the West. Shang-Chi’s acting is spot on. Simu Liu is a nice guy, despite the weird trailers, and comes across completely natural when he sings karaoke as well as in battles. Tony Leung steals the whole movie for himself and his "daddy" is another one of those baddies who you side with more than with the main hero. Choreography perfect, action just fantastic. Special effects are a bit shaky in places, but other times breathtaking. Thumbs up. P.S.: At the end, Bruce does more to attract you to watch his further adventures more than Wong. (09/03/2021)