SeriousJest

This film is what I expected: more silly than funny, but charismatically acted. The early scenes involving boot camp were surprisingly not so bad, but the movie enters eye-rolling territory shortly after that.

I'm surprised it took this many writers to produce such a mediocre story and script. There are so many aspects of real military life that are genuinely funny and could be written into a good comedic script. Instead, audiences way too often get flicks like this one, full of ridiculous situations in whatever reductive version of the military that writers who never actually served just cavalierly made up.

According to IMDB's trivia page for this film (my source for most factual assertions herein), Liu tweeted in December 2018 about asking Marvel for the role of Shang-Chi. He later retweeted that original tweet on July 20, 2019, thanking them. Cretton said that a lot of contenders were considered for the lead role, but the perfect package was in Liu. "He has the athletic abilities, but he's also a terrific actor, showed fantastic chemistry with Awkwafina, is fluent in English and Mandarin and is comfortable shifting between Western and Eastern cultures." I couldn't agree more. This movie really depended on all of those qualities, as well as his charisma and passion, and Liu has all of that and more. He has a bright future in Hollywood.

Renowned Hong Kong film actor Leung was also a perfect choice to pair opposite Liu. While Leung was Cretton's first instinct when thinking about who to cast as Xu Wenwu, Cretton thought that there was "no way we'll ever get him." Fortunately, Leung was thrilled to join the film, as he is a huge fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). When Marvel Studios contacted Leung, they gave him full authority to invent his own background for this iteration of his character. He sought to give the character more depth and credibility: "I tried to explore the reasons that could have led him to become who he is. He's a man with history, who craves to be loved. He is a sociopath, a narcissist and a bigot, but he is also human and has a family." Leung displayed strength, class, leadership, tenacity, an intimidating presence, intense inner turmoil, and a surprising emotional vulnerability beneath his cold exterior. Cretton stated that he and Leung had discussed whether Wenwu (named after the Chinese dual concept of wen (civil administration) and wu (martial administration)) had the ability to love, and "Tony emphatically said yes." Leung saw his character as a man who genuinely loves his family but doesn't know how to show it.

This movie is visually beautiful, featuring captivating sets, rich colors, and stylish costumes. The final film features over 1,700 visual effects shots. The village in Ta Lo (which is actually a region with cities, despite the featured "monkish" village) was especially stunning, including the fantastic creatures roaming around.

The action sequences are all elite. The bus fight, in particular, is epic.

This movie is also important for cultural reasons. It is Marvel Studios' first superhero film with an Asian leading protagonist. The first English line isn't spoken until about 10 minutes into the movie, and there is a particularly inspiring conversation regarding the importance of given names in Chinese culture.

Cretton, for whom Marvel films were never a goal until he heard that Shang-Chi was entering the MCU, was intent on accurately representing the richness of Asian culture. In an interview with CinemaBlend, Cretton stated that, for him, "one of the biggest parts of this production was having all of these voices on set to say, 'That food is not what he would have on the table, that music is not correct. If Wenwu is really from this area, he wouldn't have that on the wall.'" Shang-Chi's father in the comics was a character named Fu Manchu, "an obviously problematic deeply stereotypical character," according to Cretton. So, the character was rebuilt from the ground up for this film.

Xialing was originally going to have a red streak hair extension, but it was dropped a month into filming, at Meng'er Zhang's request, after she read a Teen Vogue article covering how frequently rebellious Asian women in popular media are given such an accessory.

This movie is a great example that films don't need to be whitewashed to be successful. It made $94.4 million in the US box office, shattering the box office records for the 4-day Labor Day weekend by beating Halloween (2007)'s $30.5 million record.

This is a visually beautiful movie. The cinematography, with its rich color palettes, is not only stunning to the eye, but it's used to compliment the telling of the story, as well. According to the IMDB trivia page for this film, "A large number of the shots are framed with perfect or near-perfect symmetry. Some scenes are shot from more than one angle yet the symmetry remains. This is, no doubt, an allusion to Poirot's obsessive need for balance in all things."

The score and soundtrack also significantly added to my enjoyment of this movie. I'm not very into musicals, but this film's music was great, and the musical scenes were actually part of its story, rather than a fourth-wall-breaking cutaway.

The choreography was an excellent fusion of classic dance with modern, more sexually explicit overtones. It had my mouth open, while I wondered if my great grandparents moved like that.

The cast delivered elite performances, bringing out their characters' unique personalities and idiosyncrasies. This is critical for a good whodunit, as the audience needs to feel strongly about different characters in order to be invested in the final reveal.

In that vein, two of the most important roles were that of Linnet Ridgeway and Louise Bourget, played by Gal Gadot and Rose Leslie, respectively. Each had to provide the Girlfriend Experience, be alluring and sexy, exhibit passionate strength, give off a dangerous vibe, and also counter that with vulnerability, making the audience want to help them while distrusting them. Together, their chemistry had to consist of both an intense sisterly love and the catty competitiveness of mortal enemies. Of course, they nailed it.

It was also nice to see Letitia Wright and Russell Brand get the opportunity to show a little range in this production. Wright usually plays the intelligent and cunning little sister or daughter role, like she did as Shuri in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or as Nish in Black Mirror; in this film, she retained those qualities, but also played up her sexy side as a desperately desired romantic partner. Brand, who usually plays a goofball, is convincing as perhaps the least eccentric character in this movie.

As, Poirot, Branagh toed a fine line between charismatic intelligence and eccentric arrogance. Sometimes he came across as way too aggressive in his interrogations, which detracted from his character's image as a calculated intellectual assassin. While I normally wouldn't blame that choice on the actor, he's also the director, so he probably had some say in it. I guess he must believe that if you keep yelling accusations, the subject of your interrogation will just confess.

The costumes in this film were also exquisite, from the elegant and stylish suits and gowns worn by the actors, to the Tiffany & Co-designed jewelry (including a replica of the Tiffany Yellow Diamond). Even Poirot's moustache was badass; I'll be talking to my barber about whether I might be able to pull something similar off.

Unfortunately, the story itself did not deliver enough substance to keep up with all of this movie's other great qualities. According to IMDB, "Many of the characters are combinations or alterations of characters from the novel, to make for a smaller cast and a less confusing plot." While the plot itself wasn't confusing, there were significant elements of this film in which I felt it tried to do too much.