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Starring:
-Simu Liu
-Awkwafina
-Tony Chiu-Wai Leung
-Michelle Yeoh

Directed by: Destin Daniel Cretton


Saw some responses in the MCU thread and figured there should be a dedicated thread for post-viewing thoughts.

I saw it today in a half-filled theater in the middle of the day on a Friday always good to see movie theaters getting biz.

Really loved this movie!! Was a really fun ride and loved the martial arts aesthetic. The choreography was very much in the Jackie Chan vibe combined with a little crouching tiger look and was incredible to witness.

The humor was well placed and the characters were very likable. One of my favorite "oh your a super-hero" moments in all of the MCU.

Tony Leung was phenomenal as the antagonist and he had a very compelling snd sympathetic arc.

This one, in my mind, blows away Black Widow if we're comparing anyway.

Also, very kid friendly without cheating the martial arts action aspect.

Thoughts?

I have to just heap praise on Tony Leung as Shang Chi's father. I knew when they announced his casting that he was going to elevate the villain role very high. And he did.

Leung delivered a performance that ranks at the top of comic book movie villains. The screenwriters wisely kept him from being a power-hungry, take-over-the-world standard villain. I don't even think he had any kind of nefarious plan. He just wanted the only love of his thousand year life back and to hand the ten rings over to his son. That's it.

Near the end of the film, I was actively hoping that he would survive and simply hand the rings over to his son and then go and live in peace. Maybe even join Ta Lo. His death made me sad.

And every scene Trevor was in was pure gold.

Oh, and the Great Protector is one of the best creations the MCU has put out. It looked fantastic and beautiful.

Holy cow what a great movie! Fight scenes were amazing. Have to think about where I rank it all time with Marvel, but it is a top 10.

FANTASTIC Film! Great pace, solid acting and great story. Awkafina was surprisingly good and funny in the right moments. Awesome cameos as well.

Looking forward to more Shang-Chi.

So much damn fun. Marvel continues to be able to make pretty much anything they want and be pretty dang successful at it. Can't wait to see it again.

Any guesses why Bruce was back to being Bruce instead of being Professor Hulk in the end credits?

Awkafina and Simu had really great chemistry. Awkafina has reallly incredible comedic timing.

His dad was a great and sympathetic villain.

The choreography was stunning and beautiful to watch, especially the fighting technique of the village.

Was not expecting a dragon kanji fight.

Trevor and Morris stole the show and was such a wtf. So happy they brought back Ben Kingsley.

Wong showing up at the bar when their friends didn't believe them. And then the teaser was very nice. Carol seemed a lot more likeable and bodes well for the Marvels. Very curious why Shang touching the ten rings sends a signal (and to who?). Also the karaoke with Wong

I liked it: the acting was good, the fights were great, but it draggggggggggggged in the middle.

This is just a bad take. No chance it was worse than Thor Dark World or Iron Man 2.

rhutton125 said:

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Massive Marvel fan here. And a huge action / martial arts movie buff as well.

I thought this was the worst MCU movie - overall - since Incredible Hulk. And that's a damn shame because the first half of the movie was a blast. The second half was a huge mess.

Need to organize my thoughts for a bit first.

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Whaaaat

While I think the reviews are slightly overblown, I think this is probably the second best origin movie in the MCU behind Iron Man. (Or third if you count Guardians.)

Really dug the production design and music in particular.

I will say it dragged a bit in the middle, but really picked up in the last act.

Bring on Eternals.

Alright I'm back.

IMO the movie takes a turn for much worse when the gang meets Trevor Slattery. Prior to that point it's (relatively) grounded, funny, fun, and somewhat small and personal in scale. The visuals are all great. Tight storytelling for the most part.

After that, however, the movie drags on big time. The lead character goes about 30 minutes without talking much or even getting to express much charm or emotion. There's a suddenly un-foreshadowed army of flying demons. It becomes way less a legend of the ten rings and more about Ta Lo and mystical creatures and whatever else. The confrontation with his dad is cut short so two CGI dragons can fight each other in the sky. Etc.

The part that bothers me most is that I don't understand Shang-Chi as a character any better than I did from the trailer. Actually, less than in the trailer. What is his arc? I guess that he stopped running and decided to face his father but that doesn't really work for me - he ran away like 10 years ago, and had stopped running, and he decides pretty quickly to get to Ta Lo to stop his dad. It's like he goes from fun and jokey, to super serious for about an hour and confronting his past kind of, to fun and charming again. Iron Man 1, Thor 1 and Cap 1 really understood their leads and made sure the audiences did too by the end.

I liked Katy and Xialing enough but Katy's sudden archery skills are stupid and Xialing is kinda just there - she's more interesting before they go on the adventure together, and then... oh yeah I guess she's still a criminal - I guess I never really knew that character at all to begin with! And Katy being invited to the post-credits is laughable. Is Katy going to fight with the Avengers next time? Famous Marvel Comics character Katy?

I think the film and its themes would have been a lot tighter if they'd left out all the demon **** and kept it about father and son. If the turning point is that Shang-Chi killed a man, show us that scene, don't just tell us and move on to CGI sky battle. And I think we needed a lot more explanation for Shang-Chi to steal the rings from his father - and to be riding a dragon in the sky - than we got.



All that said... mad props for casting the Landlord from Kung Fu Hustle as the Ta Lo archery instructor.

YNWA_AG said:

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Anyone have any theories on what the rings were a beacon for

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Mephisto confirmed!

The Debt said:

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Saxsoon said:

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rhutton125 said:

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Massive Marvel fan here. And a huge action / martial arts movie buff as well.

I thought this was the worst MCU movie - overall - since Incredible Hulk. And that's a damn shame because the first half of the movie was a blast. The second half was a huge mess.

Need to organize my thoughts for a bit first.

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Whaaaat

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I've heard people put it in the Captain Marvel strata...

Imagine a film predicated on fighting in a tournament to determine the best, yet because of intersectionality the filmmakers refused to allow the characters to win. The diversity of representation led to a mess.

"Hierarchies are good and natural" - JP

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Yeah, you're gonna have to unpack that for us. No clue what you are talking about in regards to this movie.

GiveEmHellBill said:

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The Debt said:

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Saxsoon said:

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rhutton125 said:

---

Massive Marvel fan here. And a huge action / martial arts movie buff as well.

I thought this was the worst MCU movie - overall - since Incredible Hulk. And that's a damn shame because the first half of the movie was a blast. The second half was a huge mess.

Need to organize my thoughts for a bit first.

---

Whaaaat

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I've heard people put it in the Captain Marvel strata...

Imagine a film predicated on fighting in a tournament to determine the best, yet because of intersectionality the filmmakers refused to allow the characters to win. The diversity of representation led to a mess.

"Hierarchies are good and natural" - JP

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Yeah, you're gonna have to unpack that for us. No clue what you are talking about in regards to this movie.

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Maybe his theater accidentally spliced half of Bloodsport into Shang-Chi.

The Debt said:

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Saxsoon said:

---

rhutton125 said:

---

Massive Marvel fan here. And a huge action / martial arts movie buff as well.

I thought this was the worst MCU movie - overall - since Incredible Hulk. And that's a damn shame because the first half of the movie was a blast. The second half was a huge mess.

Need to organize my thoughts for a bit first.

---

Whaaaat

---

I've heard people put it in the Captain Marvel strata...

Imagine a film predicated on fighting in a tournament to determine the best, yet because of intersectionality the filmmakers refused to allow the characters to win. The diversity of representation led to a mess.

"Hierarchies are good and natural" - JP

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Found the Forum 16 main.

The Debt said:

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Saxsoon said:

---

rhutton125 said:

---

Massive Marvel fan here. And a huge action / martial arts movie buff as well.

I thought this was the worst MCU movie - overall - since Incredible Hulk. And that's a damn shame because the first half of the movie was a blast. The second half was a huge mess.

Need to organize my thoughts for a bit first.

---

Whaaaat

---

I've heard people put it in the Captain Marvel strata...

Imagine a film predicated on fighting in a tournament to determine the best, yet because of intersectionality the filmmakers refused to allow the characters to win. The diversity of representation led to a mess.

"Hierlarchies are good and natural" - JP

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Does he turn into a woman, become way overpowered, and then claim white guys shouldn't watch it?

The Debt said:

---

Saxsoon said:

---

rhutton125 said:

---

Massive Marvel fan here. And a huge action / martial arts movie buff as well.

I thought this was the worst MCU movie - overall - since Incredible Hulk. And that's a damn shame because the first half of the movie was a blast. The second half was a huge mess.

Need to organize my thoughts for a bit first.

---

Whaaaat

---

I've heard people put it in the Captain Marvel strata...

Imagine a film predicated on fighting in a tournament to determine the best, yet because of intersectionality the filmmakers refused to allow the characters to win. The diversity of representation led to a mess.

"Hierarchies are good and natural" - JP

---

Oh no, for once there's a superhero film that respects and celebrates our Asian culture. HOW DARE THEY!

YNWA_AG said:

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Anyone have any theories on what the rings were a beacon for

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My guess is that they were created by - or at least deeply tie-into - the Eternals. Maybe something created by the Eternals to help mankind defend against Deviants? That might explain why none of the Avengers know the source.

The Debt said:

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Saxsoon said:

---

rhutton125 said:

---

Massive Marvel fan here. And a huge action / martial arts movie buff as well.

I thought this was the worst MCU movie - overall - since Incredible Hulk. And that's a damn shame because the first half of the movie was a blast. The second half was a huge mess.

Need to organize my thoughts for a bit first.

---

Whaaaat

---

I've heard people put it in the Captain Marvel strata...

Imagine a film predicated on fighting in a tournament to determine the best, yet because of intersectionality the filmmakers refused to allow the characters to win. The diversity of representation led to a mess.

"Hierarchies are good and natural" - JP

---

Found the snowflake that is intimidated by Asians

Great movie...highly recommended!

Also, regarding the fact that Awkwafina could pick up archery in a day....if my kids can go from missing a target to getting it close to the bullseye in an hour at scout camp, I'm sure she could do the same.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion and I respect it if you didn't like the second half. But I totally disagree with you re: Shang-Chi's arc.

Key themes of the movie are balance and harmony. Shaun has his mother tragically taken away from him when he was young. This profoundly affected him. He wanted to be the soldier his dad trained him to be, but it was never enough. The crux of the movie is the training scene with his aunt, who teaches him to embrace the heart of the dragon (yin/yang) and achieve balance to become whole. He could learn to love his father like his mother did but also be strong and protective. He was internally defending himself from this due to his conditioning and his fears instilled in him by his father.

Really good movie Marvel movie, liked all the characters and believe Shang Chi himself will be a good edition to this new Avenger group (the character AND the actor), buuuttttt....there's some serious overrating going on. It's nowhere near the bottom of the Marvel pack, but it's nowhere near the top either. It definitely dragged in the middle.