I love the fact that Marvel has highlighted an Asian superhero, the culture and all that it can bring to it's diverse universe. I love the fact that actor Tony Leung, arguably my favorite Chinese actor, is involved in this film along with Michelle Yeoh and the talented Awkwafina. However, this admiration I have for Shang-Chi and The Legend Of The Ten Rings falls a bit short after viewing it, despite many reviews to the contrary. In part because in some ways, it feels like just another great crossover Chinese kungfu fantasy film with crossover appeal (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Hero). This is not necessarily a bad thing per se, but it is also easy to forget that it's also supposed to be a Marvel film. In that regards, I feel it falls a bit short in story originality. Much of the story, it's arc, and even the set pieces, in fact feels like a subpar copy and paste of elements of Black Panther. To further exacerbate the point, it feels far too sanitized perhaps with the influence of parent company Disney. All of these points served only to cheapen my experience in what appeared to be a promising start and admittedly in the aftermath of the Marvel cinematic saga trying to redefine itself in the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame.
