Movie Poster

You are a product of all who came before you, the legacy of your family. You are your mother. And whether you like it or not, you are also your father.

Previous Marvel film reviews:

• Black Widow
• Black Panther
• Venom
• The Punisher (2004)

# Review

Shang-Chi is one of the more underrated Marvel characters so I was surprised that they’re making a full feature film focused on Shang-Chi’s backstory. The film features Simu Liu as Shaun, the titular character. He’s surrounded by a supporting cast of famous Asian actors and actresses such as Awkwafina, who plays Shaun’s best friend, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, who plays Shaun’s father and Michelle Yeoh, who plays Shaun’s aunt.

The film is a modern homage to old school kung fu movies, filled with beautifully orchestrated fighting sequences and traditional plot themes, such as the relationship between father and son. My favourite scene has to be the fight scene between Fala Chen’s Yang Li and Leung’s Xu Wenwu; the choreography and cinematography are extremely tasteful and that scene is perhaps one of the best fight scenes to have come out of cinema in the past decade. The film even featured kung fu film legend Wah Yeun.

Superficially, the film did not have much to offer. The plot is very predictable and the writing is mediocre. The acting is also all over the place; I found Awkwafina’s lines to be a bit bland while Tony Leung stole the show as a conflicting antagonist/father. I also did not like the costume design at all; the Ten Rings organization members look like they got their costumes straight from Spirit Halloween. The film did have many interesting themes and I enjoyed the sense of humour. Overall the film felt very safe, probably to appease the international audience.

# Conclusion

A traditional and sentimental homage to Kung Fu movies.

# Overall rating: 7.5

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