Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

 

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is a Marvel action drama that follows Shaun aka Shang-Chi, a young man who has been hiding from his destiny and living a life that is not fulfilling. When he is forced to confront his past with the Ten Rings he has to make the choice to fight for his family or sit on the sidelines.

This was a fun, engaging coming of age story with visually stunning and clean fight choreography. I appreciated the realistic usage of the Mandarin language throughout and thought that the script had great themes around family, friendship, and finding your passion in life.

Simu Liu, who played Shang-Chi did a really great job with leading this cast as a relatively unknown actor. He brought a lot of range to the character, physical prowess and a strong presence. I also thought that he and Awkwafina, who played Katy, had great chemistry. As Katy, she was funny and relatable. Overall I liked the diversity of the cast, they were talented and I appreciated how the writers highlighted the strong female characters. Following the Marvel playbook there were also some expected yet still great choice in a cameos.

In the end I left thinking that Shang-Chi was a fun ride. A well-made, proper Marvel movie that is worth checking out.