Marvel's Magic

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is deserving of every accolade it gets. It's a beautiful film that pays tribute to the martial arts films of the past while also reinventing the genre for a modern audience. Having seen it twice it is visual poetry. Destin Daniel Cretton took what could have been a very cliché heavy film and turned it into a relatable family story. Marvel has an amazing way of taking their obscure characters and shaping them into remarkable figures. Shang-Chi even by the standards of comics is very under the radar. This film is an amazing exploration into culture and dynamic storytelling that is different from any of the Marvel films of the past thirteen years.

The best comparison I can give is that this film is Marvel's ode to Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. The opening fight scene in the Bamboo Forest between Xu Wenwu and Ying Li had a very noticeable ebb and flow. A conflict between masculine power and feminine grace. The most important fight scenes in the film are between Xu Wenwu and Ying Li and Xu Shang-Chi and Yi Nan. The closeness of the camera creates an intimate connection between the characters. The masculine strength that the men bring is redirected by the flowing elegance of the Tai-chi. It isn't brutally violent but poetic in how the women redirect the powerful energy of the men back at them. That the solutions to life cannot be found in pursuing power. The music makes it feel like you are watching a dance. The flowing wind, the blowing leaves and the use of circular imagery all create a sort of dynamic Yin-Yang feel. The opening of the hands is important. It is symbolic of letting go of all the emotions and negative energy. Ying Li marries Xu Wenwu and bucks the traditions of her village for love. She lets go in the literal sense to the connections of her past to create a future for herself. The underlying theme of the entire movie is about letting go and respecting the past while creating your own future.

While audiences may not be knowledgeable about Asian culture Shang-Chi takes a wonderful approach of integrating facets of Chinese culture into the narrative and the characterization. Honoring one's ancestors and familial responsibility are emphasized strongly. It becomes a story about the tension between holding on to something so strongly and letting go to become a better person. For any child of immigrants it becomes an identity crisis. Children of immigrants have an obligation to maintain the culture of their parents and grandparents while defining themselves. Even something as simple as a name takes on a new meaning. Xu Shang-Chi became Shaun as if he is ashamed of who he is. For me, hearing Mandarin in a big budget Hollywood film is significant. For immigrant kids in bilingual households who may be insecure about their language it's a validating experience.

Shang-Chi is an amalgamation of all genres. It's a superhero film, a martial arts film and a drama rolled into one beautiful package. The film has many subtle touches and not so subtle touches that honor martial arts films of the past without becoming overdone or cliched. There are some obvious Hollywood influences such as the bus fight in San Francisco but the scenes set in Asia have more of the classical Kung Fu influence such as the fight on the bamboo scaffolding in Macau. Like any Marvel film there is always a larger villain at play be it man or monster that drives the growth of the main character. Wenwu is a sympathetic character who only wants to reunite his family.

As the movie so succinctly puts it: "You are the sum of all those who came before." Everything about Shang-Chi was put together in such a way to uplift Asian culture especially Chinese culture. Compared to Japan, Chinese culture has not gone beyond the stereotypes and tropes that have dogged it for decades. This movie breaks that ceiling. That Asian culture and by extension Asian people are beautiful and diverse. The screenwriters and producers along with Destin Daniel Cretton did a phenomenal job of reinventing the character for modern audiences that removed itself from the problematic elements of its history. While this film is still an action movie at heart it takes the Marvel formula and reinvents it in a way that honors and respects the culture it comes from.