An immortal crime lord, flying dragon guardians, soul-sucking demons from another dimension, and a henchman with a penchant for electro-sword appendages; these all appear prominently in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, but so too do complicated familial relationships and a strong emphasis on cultural heritage, and the film works primarily thanks to the latter group.
Shang-Chi tells the story of its titular hero played by Simu Liu in a star-making performance. Shang-Chi and his sister, Xialing (Meng’er Zhang) were raised by their father, Wenwu (Tony Leung), the 1000-year-old leader of international crime syndicate the Ten Rings, and his mother, Ying Li (Fala Chen), a member of an ancient village guarding a sealed door to a world-ending threat. After Li’s tragic death, Shang-Chi leaves his father and his quest for vengeance behind and settles down to a comfortable life in San Francisco. However, when Wenwu’s forces find Shang-Chi and his best friend, Katy (Awkwafina), Shang-Chi is forced to reckon with his past, reunite with the estranged Xialing, and stop his father from destroying not only the world, but also the family he once thought lost.
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