Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

“The issues that lurk beneath the surface of Shang-Chi leave me wondering when a necessary reckoning will happen.”

Title: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
Director: Destin Daniel Cretton 👨🏻🇺🇸
Writers: Screenplay by Dave Callaham 👨🏻🇺🇸, Destin Daniel Cretton 👨🏻🇺🇸, and Andrew Lanham 👨🏼🇺🇸

Reviewed by Mimi 👩🏻🇺🇸

Technical: 3.75/5

The all-encompassing Marvel Cinematic Universe welcomes its first Asian superhero film with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Director Destin Daniel Cretton, who was born in Hawaii to a Japanese American mother and white father, took on the challenge of re-envisioning an American comic book series conceived in the 1970s with Orientalist roots and a protagonist modeled off of Bruce Lee. This contemporary spin consciously leans into a global sensibility, from its embrace of bilingualism to its casting of established and up-and-coming stars from Asia and across the diaspora.

In terms of action, Shang-Chi does not disappoint, featuring an exciting range of fight sequences that draws on fantastical wuxia wire work as well as Jackie Chan-style slapstick acrobatics. The movie’s weakest moments stem from its obligation to maintain the continuity of the MCU, most notably in the contrived effort to explain away the racist caricature of the story’s villain formerly known as the Mandarin. Thank goodness for the venerable Hong Kong actor Tony Leung, who brings much-needed depth and star power to his portrayal of Wenwu that he nearly (if not totally) eclipses the titular hero, a sentient set of abs played by Simu Liu (Kim’s Convenience). Though Liu makes a valiant effort in his blockbuster debut, his acting comes off as stiff and underwhelming, especially when compared to that of his veteran co-stars. But even at a slightly bloated runtime spilling over two hours, Shang-Chi entertains with high-caliber cinematography and editing, slick visual effects, and an upbeat soundtrack.

Gender: 3/5
Does it pass the Bechdel Test? YES

The power struggle between father and son dominates the narrative. Here, the dead mother trope serves as the catalyst that drives the family apart, but also forces their collision after years of estrangement. While the character of Li (Fala Chen) is disappointingly one-dimensional, she does face off with Wenwu in one of the coolest—and most romantic—martial arts scenes in the film.

The latter half of the movie devotes more time to the women of Shang-Chi’s family, including his sister Xialing (Meng'er Zhang) and their aunt Ying Nan (Michelle Yeoh). Possessing a similar commanding presence as seen in Crazy Rich Asians (2018), though with significantly more warmth, Yeoh assumes her role as a compassionate matriarchal figure and foil to the cruel patriarchy that Wenwu represents. While their father all but neglected Xialing in his narrow-minded mission to mold her brother into a stone cold assassin, Ying Nan encourages her niece to fulfill her own potential, affirming, “We train as equals here.” The ending teases the possibility of Xialing getting more development in the future, but for the most part The Legend of the Ten Rings remains Shang-Chi and Wenwu’s story.

Race: 4.75/5

Leung famously has said that he’s turned down movie offers from the United States and Europe because he found the characters too “restrictive” for an actor like himself, preferring to work in Asia. How lucky for us that he finally found an English-speaking role that gives him the space to showcase his talent. With great nuance and conviction, his rendering of Wenwu provides the emotional core of the Shang-Chi, transforming a villainous character into a tragic one.

In big picture terms, Cretton does an impressive job of blending alternative history and fantasy with contemporary elements. The opening zooms from pseudo-ancient lore about a warlord in China who gains immortality and god-like powers from ten rings to a magical bamboo forest, before arriving at present-day Chinatown in San Francisco. These motifs might have appeared Othering in another director’s hands, but it helps that Shang-Chi reimagines them through a globalized lens. Different characters represent different aspects of the Chinese diaspora, such as the multigenerational family of Shang-Chi’s American-born friend Katy (Awkwafina), and their toggling between languages feels realistic.

That said, Shang-Chi conveniently circumvents the trap of authenticity. Much of the story concerns Wenwu’s fixation on a mystical village known as Ta Lo, where Shang-Chi’s mother originally hails from. There’s a delightful thread on all the Chinese mythological creatures that the animals in Ta Lo are based on. Although the world-building of Ta Lo is not nearly as extensive or innovative as that of Wakanda in Black Panther (2018), I couldn’t help noticing how different cultural fantasies about ancestral homelands essentially boil down to hermetic places untouched by colonialism and capitalism. Where Black Panther consciously makes this connection, Shang-Chi lacks the same level of self-awareness.

A related critique can be raised about the casting of Awkwafina, who continues to be called out for appropriating Black culture and using a “blaccent” in her past performances. And although the film features standard orchestra music scored by Joel P West, it’s interesting that Shang-Chi’s soundtrack album—which has been praised for its curation by an Asian American artist collective—skews heavily toward hip hop and R&B. While Captain Marvel (2019) uses ‘90s hits to evoke nostalgia for the setting’s time period, and Thor: Ragnarok (2017) cranks up the machismo with classic rock, the music cues in Shang-Chi seemingly operate as shorthand for everything modern and cool. The decision feels curious given that plenty of notable artists of Asian descent are making a name for themselves in pop and rock. The troubling relationship between Asian artists and Black art has been covered by other writers, including Mediaversity contributor Monique Jones, and is perhaps a larger conversation for another time. But in a film being celebrated as a representational win for Asians, those issues lurking beneath the surface leave me wondering when this necessary reckoning will happen.

Mediaversity Grade: B 3.83/5

The true triumph of Shang-Chi is undoubtedly Tony Leung, who finally gets to flex his acting chops in Hollywood. If you’re a longtime fan like I am, or even if you’re discovering him for the first time, his performance alone is worth the price of admission. Beyond that, there’s still much to enjoy. As entertainment intended to appeal to a broad audience, Shang-Chi satisfies and hopefully helps to continue opening doors for a more inclusive MCU.

Like Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings? Try these other films featuring certified badass Michelle Yeoh.

Grade: BLiSeptember 20, 2021