directed by Destin Daniel Cretton
written by Dave Callaham, Cretton and Andrew Lanham
There's something sad about not being able to write about a Marvel movie until after most of the world has already seen it and basically tired of it, but this review's been percolating on my mind for a while so it would be a shame not to at least share my thoughts. Also, I'd like to discuss how, more than Spider-Man: No Way Home, this film represents the real way forward for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which is now out on Blu-Ray and Disney+ after a very successful theatrical run, is exactly the kind of movie that Marvel fans needed to kick off Phase 4 in earnest, with the disappointing Black Widow basically just serving as an epilogue to Phase 3.
For those who still don't know, the film tells the story of Shang-Chi, aka Shaun (Simu Liu) a chronic underachiever content to work as a valet in San Francisco and chill with his fellow valet and best bud Katy (Awkwafina). He's happy to live his life this way until the past he's been hiding from catches up to him in the form of the goons of his father, the millennia-old, merciless warlord Wenwu (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai), who attack Shaun to get the pendant around his neck, which was a gift from his late mother Ying Li (Fala Chen). Shaun reveals fighting skills he had long concealed, and then realizing the threat his father poses, he flies to Macau with Katy in tow to warn his estranged sister Xialing (Meng'er Zhang). When he gets to the underground fighting ring she runs, the two siblings (and friend) encounter their father and all hell breaks loose.
To show that the title isn't just some clickbait assertion, I'd like to explain just why I believe that Shang-Chi is way more important than Spider-Man insofar as the MCU is concerned.
Before Chadwick Boseman's tragic death in August of 2020, it seemed very clear from the events of Avengers: Endgame that the Black Panther character was going to be a central character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe moving forward. When the Marvel head honchos made the sentimental and arguably imprudent decision to essentially write T'Challa out of the MCU following Boseman's death, I personally feel it collapsed one of the established pillars of Phase 4. It would, of course, be silly to try to create clones of the "tres amigos" of the Infinity Saga, namely Iron Man, Captain America and Thor, or more expansively (if you include Black Widow, Hulk and Hawkeye), the "big six," but it is clear that Phase 4 would need strong, identifiable characters on which to anchor its next mega-narrative, even if it doesn't turn out to be as massive as that first 23-film saga. Whomever they swap out for T'Challa simply isn't going to cut it; they'll have to develop this new character all over again...and yes, even if that happens to be Shuri.
Which brings me to Shang Chi, a well-developed, relatable character brought to life in his own solo movie which, barring the mid-credits scene, contains only minimal references to the larger MCU. One could say that Shang-Chi's solo movie showcases the kind of storytelling Marvel used to do before they descended into formula, but I think it's more accurate to say that Shang Chi is the Marvel formula done RIGHT. Like 2008's Iron Man and 2018's Black Panther, this film has its hero go on a well-defined journey of self-reflection and discovery, features some pretty awesome action sequences, and leaves us with a character ready to take part in something bigger. As of right now, he's basically good to go.
As a character now primed and prepped for integration into the larger MCU, Shang Chi is now pretty much free to fit into whatever grand narrative Kevin Feige and his architects are setting up for the next ten years or so. There's no danger of any plugs being pulled, or of any character-sharing deals falling through. Unlike Spider-Man, Shang Chi is not a character whose cinematic fate lies in the hands of a different studio.
But here's another reason why Shang Chi is so darned important: the MCU is what it is in the cinematic landscape (which right now, includes being the savior of the theatrical moviegoing experience) because once upon a time, all Kevin Feige and his team had to work with were second-stringers, given that the rights to all of the big guns like Spider-Man, the X-Men and the Fantastic Four were all locked up with other studios (who seriously dropped the ball with these properties thanks to some spectacular mismanagement). Having built their foundation on b-listers, Marvel needs to stay closer to its roots, which is particularly apt here considering that Shang Chi was actually one of the very first characters slated to get his own movie alongside Iron Man, though the market clearly wasn't ready for him at the time.
This brings me to the next point; Feige has stated at least once (and I'm paraphrasing here) that the future of the MCU lies in diversity. The problem, though, is that too often these days, diversity is played up for its own sake, often at the expense of story. For a strong example of meaningless attempts at diversity, take the recent Star Wars trilogy, which had the opportunity to introduce a groundbreaking black lead in Finn, only to relegate him to an eventual token, with the lion's share of storytelling going to white leads Rey and Kylo Ren.
With Black Panther and Shang Chi, Marvel have shown just how serious they are about telling stories with diverse characters that aren't pandering or tokenistic. Eternals, which was supposed to be their biggest diversity showcase may have misfired (and more on that in another post), but Shang Chi was definitely a win for the cause of diversity in storytelling, and Marvel needs to lead with that.
It was always a given that Spider-Man: No Way Home was going to dominate the North American box-office for 2021, but the fact that a c-lister from Marvel came in second is testimony not only to the strength of Marvel's brand, but the quality of the movie.
9/10
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