Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (September 3rd, 2021)

[nexus]

Finally got a chance to watch this over the weekend since I'm not doing theatrical.
Good, solid Marvel movie. Really liked how they translated the rings into the MCU. I think those will level up the character quite a bit from the comics. I thought Simu Liu did a nice job. His acting was a tad flat in some scenes, but I think that's partly due to still trying to figure out the character. Awkwafina was a smart choice because she was able to inject a nice balance of humor. Tony Leung was very good. Michelle Yeoh is an absolute treasure. Loved the fantasy/mystical elements and creature designs. Fight scenes were of course outstanding. The 3rd act did devolve into CGI overkill to a degree, but audiences have come to expect that level of action. 7.75/10. I'd probably rank it around #8 or #9 or so among Marvel movies. Looking forward to seeing more.

 

[ZE_501]

I just finished Shang Chi. In my opinion, more so than any other MCU entry, this is squarely a children's movie aimed at pre-teens. It feels more Disney than anything I've yet seen from the MCU, and overall I felt the effects and cinematography were wildly uneven.

Admittedly, I enjoyed the light, tongue-in-cheek humour in the very last scenes but if this is the direction it all goes from here, I'll be getting off at the next stop so to speak.

 

[Dave_W]

Saw it last night...3.6 Roentgen.

 

[ironwez20]

Lol jeez did we all wait for this to drop on Disney plus. Seems like everyone is now watching Shang chi

 

[matticus]

So the end credits have Wong/Banner/Cap Marvel analyzing the rings, saying they are giving off some signal. BTW there was some comic run that featured this. "They’re known as the Makluans, conquerors who seek to spread through governments to gather information before taking over."

https://www.thegamer.com/shang-chi-...-beacon-space-dragons-fin-fang-foom-makluans/
Might deal with that in Shang-Chi 2/Eternals 2/Black Knight.

 

[Bleah]

So the end credits have Wong/Banner/Cap Marvel analyzing the rings, saying they are giving off some signal.

I thought it was signaling to Galactus's **** saying his C rings are available again and it's time to **** this place up.

Sigh... I can't get the picture of Akwafina's flabbergasted open mouth face in the last act. Every time the scene shows her, she has that dumbfounded look.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Lol jeez did we all wait for this to drop on Disney plus.

Yes.

Such a below-average movie for something that was touted as "revolutionary" and "Asian Star Wars"

No likey.

 

[Dave_W]

So the end credits have Wong/Banner/Cap Marvel analyzing the rings, saying they are giving off some signal. BTW there was some comic run that featured this. "They’re known as the Makluans, conquerors who seek to spread through governments to gather information before taking over."

https://www.thegamer.com/shang-chi-...-beacon-space-dragons-fin-fang-foom-makluans/
Might deal with that in Shang-Chi 2/Eternals 2/Black Knight.

That was out of the blue. What happened to smart Hulk, or what ever he was called. At least it showed his arm healing.

 

[matticus]

That was out of the blue. What happened to smart Hulk, or what ever he was called. At least it showed his arm healing.

He said in Endgame that the stones released gamma radiation so perhaps he is able to regenerate his arm, just took awhile. Looks like Hulk peaced out, just Banner to Smart Hulk. Not sure if you seen the She Hulk trailer but both are in it as well.

 

[Dave_W]

I saw the She-Hulk trailer first which is what threw me when I saw Banner in Shaun-Chi.

 

[e30ernest]

Lol jeez did we all wait for this to drop on Disney plus. Seems like everyone is now watching Shang chi

Looks to be the case. With theaters still closed here mostly due to Covid, this was my only chance to see this film.

I don't know about this. I thought it was ok, but I also thought it wasn't for me. So yeah I didn't enjoy this as much. It's probably in the bottom of my MCU list and not something I'd watch again.

 

[Otomofan]

Tony Leung was very good.

I've been making my way through my Wong Kar Wai bluray box set and I re-watched ChungKing Express (1994) over the weekend.

I never realized what an absolute dreamboat Tony Leung was (is?)

He must have slayed mad poon, dawg.

 

[Khev]

Tony Leung is a legend. I've been a fan since 1990's Bullet in the Head.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Have you seen the Legend of Lewd Dong?

 

[Sassafras]

Lol jeez did we all wait for this to drop on Disney plus. Seems like everyone is now watching Shang chi

Well, I did. And glad. Don't know what some critics were gushing over; IMO it was alright. Liked the attempts to incorporate Asian mythology which I don't know much about. Felt more geared to teenagers. *Shrug*

 

[ZE_501]

Don't know what some critics were gushing over;

Their cheques.

 

[Victοr]

I saw it, finally. It was enjoyable enough. Nothing that stood out, the Dweller was ruined, as is usual with most villains. Tony Leung absolutely stole the show and mogged the MC. The pandering was silly though. I especially rolled my eyes at the "I always bet on Asian" bit. It's like a 6/10 capeflick.

 

[matticus]

I saw it, finally. It was enjoyable enough. Nothing that stood out, the Dweller was ruined, as is usual with most villains. Tony Leung absolutely stole the show and mogged the MC. The pandering was silly though. I especially rolled my eyes at the "I always bet on Asian" bit. It's like a 6/10 capeflick.

F this movie. Don't be racist, but we like to point out and joke that our race is different.

The tree sequence and just the rings in general were just too oddball to me.

 

[Victοr]

F this movie. Don't be racist, but we like to point out and joke that our race is different.

The tree sequence and just the rings in general were just too oddball to me.

Eh, I'm not surprised, I just don't see how the average consoooomer can't see the hypocrisy. Everything in EuroMyth has to be multicultural and share [current day] sensibilities, but the Asian(-American) & African(-American) power-fantasies get to be monocultures that are explicit about their identity. Why didn't the Magical Village have some other, non-Chinese Asians at least? Whatever, I shrugged that off but the "I always bet on Asian" line was just too much. The "always bet on black" joke kinda works because it's a reference to the roulette and its two colours and it makes thematic sense. This one was just weird. "I only bet on ze finezt of PVRE HVWHITE BAVARIAN STOCK" would be a line from Red Skull, but whatever.

I didn't have a problem with the out-there concepts, but I do think it was a copout not expanding on the lore and leaving that for a cliffhanger. I didn't care for the Wuxia elements but I suppose it appealed to the group it was trying to reach. Wenwu carried the flick in any case.

 

[e30ernest]

Eh, I'm not surprised, I just don't see how the average consoooomer can't see the hypocrisy. Everything in EuroMyth has to be multicultural and share [current day] sensibilities, but the Asian(-American) & African(-American) power-fantasies get to be monocultures that are explicit about their identity. Why didn't the Magical Village have some other, non-Chinese Asians at least? Whatever, I shrugged that off but the "I always bet on Asian" line was just too much. The "always bet on black" joke kinda works because it's a reference to the roulette and its two colours and it makes thematic sense. This one was just weird. "I only bet on ze finezt of PVRE HVWHITE BAVARIAN STOCK" would be a line from Red Skull, but whatever.

I didn't have a problem with the out-there concepts, but I do think it was a copout not expanding on the lore and leaving that for a cliffhanger. I didn't care for the Wuxia elements but I suppose it appealed to the group it was trying to reach. Wenwu carried the flick in any case.

Funny, as an Asian, I never really noticed any of those.

The reason the film did not work for me was because I wanted to see a more sinister Mandarin. I was also not that impressed with the acting here (Mandarin excluded). The whole thing looked like a mish-mash of ideas as well. Lastly, the ending tried too hard and yet failed to impress.