SHANG-CHI
If you haven’t seen Destin Daniel Cretton’s SHANG-CHI (trailer here) yet, I’m making it my personal mission to convince you to right that wrong.. Let’s get the obvious arguments out of the way, upfront: First, it features our first Asian-American Marvel standalone hero. Second, it smashed box-office records in the pandemic era, surpassing $100 million in domestic ticket sales alone. But my love for this film goes much deeper than that. Simu Liu brings to life a lovable and humane hero in SHANG-CHI. The film offers textured characters, grounded and established relationships, and gorgeous set pieces and action sequences that pay homage to Chinese culture. And as a snobby Chinese film-lover, I am especially critical when it comes to the latter. But this film elegantly takes inspiration from Wuxi-inspired Chinese martial arts tradition in a way that is very much justified by the story. Oh and athe rest of the cast of SHANG-CHI? Tony Leung as the complex antagonis—a conflicted husband, failing father and a ruthless leader; Meng’er Zhang as the badass sister who won’t stay in the shadow; Awkwafina as the down-to-earth and loyal best friend; Michelle Yeoh as the wise guardian…every one of them shines through. So grab your friends and family, hit up your local theater and enjoy the ride!
—Mimi Li, Development Assistant
