Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Shang-Chi mischt auf meist geschickte Weise die für MCU-Filme typischen, publikumswirksamen Elemente (spektakuläre Schlachten, mit Humor gespickte Action, die Bedeutung von Team/Familie usw.) und bietet als Mehrwert (im Kontext der Marvel-Filme) ein unabgedroschenes asiatisches Setting. Hollywood-Action wechselt sich ab mit Kampfszenen, die eher für asiatische Filme typisch sind, verpackt in fast "magische" Kämpfe (siehe Doctor Strange), was ich wirklich genossen habe. Als ich Ta Lo besuchte, hatte ich beim Anblick all dieser Kreaturen das Gefühl, eine asiatische Version von Phantastische Tierwesen vor mir zu haben. Einziger großer Kritikpunkt wären die im Vergleich zu anderen MCU-Filmen manchmal schwächeren Effekte - siehe das Waldlabyrinth oder die Wasserszenen im Allgemeinen. Von den neuen Figuren haben mich Ying Nan, Xu Wenwu und teilweise Katy am meisten überzeugt, die Hauptfigur war eher fade. Ich habe mich auch über eine kleine Rolle für Ben "Mandarin" Kingsley gefreut. Es hat mich auch nicht gestört, dass ein Großteil der Handlung eine Art Familiendrama war, denn in diesem Fall waren die Beweggründe und Handlungen der Figuren nachvollziehbar, und diese Linie störte das Fantasy-Action-Niveau des Films nicht. (10.09.2021)

Marvel hat sich auf den Weg gemacht, die östliche Kultur auszubeuten, und ich hätte nichts dagegen, wenn das Endergebnis unterhaltsam oder zumindest interessant für das Publikum wäre. Es ist keines von beiden. Die sich bewegenden digitalen Ausmalbilder haben mich schon lange gelangweilt, Tony Leung und ein paar schöne Choreografien ohne irgendeinen zusätzlichen Gehalt werden daran leider nicht viel ändern. (08.05.2022)

The low-key Shang-Chi is actually the son of the leader of the world's largest criminal organization. And even though he's been hiding from his daddy for ten years, he must now return to the world he's been running from for so long. But the family reunion won't be entirely joyful, and beings not of our world will have a say in it. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings surprises with its fast pace, likeable hero and great action in its first half. Unfortunately, the closer the film gets to its conclusion, the more it relies on visual effects and it becomes clear that director Destin Daniel Cretton may have bitten off a bit too big a bite. Overall, this is a fine Marvel film peppered with Chinese mythology that offers exactly what you expect when you buy tickets to see it. (02.09.2021)

An enjoyable Marvel origin story that turned out better than we all expected. I’m a lover of Asia and I was quite looking forward to Shang-Chi because who wouldn't be tempted to see the Marvel version of an Ip Man, right? In part, Marvel succeeded, even if the film is split into two halves, where the first one is significantly better. The protagonist is the unknown Simu Liu and he is surprisingly proficient and likeable enough for the viewer to root for him. the scene on the bus is the clear highlight of the film (greetings to Nobody), and the action scene with the Ninjas was awesome – that physical and high contact kung-Fu action was handled very well by Marvel and even though it's not completely realistic, it's spectacular and gripping enough for me to forgive it. The second half slows down the pace considerably (Shang-Chi runs out of breath for about half an hour). Fortunately, the finale is nicely spectacular, it's rendered in a fantasy style, China's second most popular genre after martial arts, so for me a perfectly logical explanation for why to split the film into two different genres, and the spectacular battle of the two dragons was absolutely killer (I can't remember a bigger fantasy barrage since GoT or Lord of the Rings). I also lie the awesome soundtrack, every single track is already on my playlist. The film has a few flaws, though, for example Awkwafina, who is quite unbearable for me, the humour, which downright missed me – I really don't know what was supposed to be funny here – and the villain, who although had a clear motive, didn't really show much in the end. Visually, it feels a bit like Marvel in the early days, but you can turn a blind eye to that. I'm glad Marvel stuck with Wu Xiu. Overall, decent, definitely better than Black Widow, but I'm not buying into a second screening. Story 3/5, Action 4/5, Humor 1/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 4/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Suspense 3/5, Emotion 2/5, Actors 3/5. 7.5/10. (06.09.2021)

The more/longer is it just a fantasy kung fu fairy tale rather than a Marvel movie, the better it is. What works throughout is the dynamics and likeability of the Leung/Awkwafina duo, the solid action choreography by Marvel standards (a sort of "post-Western wu-sia"), and, wonder of wonders, even a charismatic villain with understandable motivations. In the second half, things get a bit sketchy, because the writers don't know what to do with Awkwafina's character, and so she's turned into "Mulan Sue" out of nowhere, and the sister, who would work as a supporting character, is unjustifiably shoved into the foreground, where the creators have nothing for her. Also, the humour that has worked up to that point is killed by the overuse of a joke with an unnamed (non)actor and his sidekick. All the Marvel moments (characters, references, events) are incorporated, but they are kind of broken over both knees (except for the successful first meeting scene). It is then crowned with a downward trend of CGI kaiju shenanigans during the final act, which is a great shame, because it takes away from the solid choreography. What keeps the final act afloat, on the other hand, is the likeability of the new characters and the passable personal/emotional level. Still one of the best Marvel movies to take on an original character and introduce them to the world. (19.10.2021)