In recent years we have seen Asian-American stories like Crazy Rich Asians, The Farewell, and Minari become breakout hits, while a South Korean film, Parasite, has won Tinseltown's biggest prize, the best picture Oscar. With its predominantly East Asian cast, story inspired by Chinese folklore, and martial arts action sequences, Shang-Chi is the latest sign that Hollywood is starting to listen to calls for more Asian representation on screen.
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However, it is clear he cannot be truly free from it, when some men track him down in search of a pendant given to him by his late mother – and from there, a battle to overcome his father begins.
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When the film catches up with him, Shang-Chi is working as a valet driver in the US, and going by the name of Shaun, in an attempt to assimilate and escape his family's powerful legacy. This is where the story of Wenwu's son, the eponymous Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) begins. Newfound love and subsequent fatherhood then encourage him to leave that megalomaniacal life behind – only for old enemies to push him back towards the rings, rejuvenating his power-obsessed past self.
As well as smashing the record for a Labor Day weekend opening, it is a fantastic return at a time when cinemas are still recovering from the pandemic.ĭirected by Asian-American filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton, Shang-Chi begins many centuries ago as a Chinese warlord named Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung), also known as The Mandarin, comes into possession of 10 magical rings that give him immense power for nearly a thousand years. Certainly, the signs so far are good: over the weekend, Shang-Chi did even better in its opening three days at the North American box office than predicted and collected $71.4 million. Now Marvel will be hoping to leave behind a similar cultural footprint with its first Asian superhero film, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten rings. "Black Panther was huge because there have been stereotypes in Hollywood that black films couldn't sell internationally", says Dr Nancy Wang Yuen, sociologist and author of Reel Inequality: Hollywood actors and racism. For many young children and adults, it was the first time they felt truly represented on screen. There was a clear point made of casting actors of African heritage such as Zimbabwean-American Danai Gurira and Kenyan-Mexican Lupita Nyong'o. Here was a global blockbuster that celebrated the intricacies of a traditional African culture (albeit an imaginary one) from the characters' names to their outfits and rituals.
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But its impact was about more than money and awards – with a predominantly black cast and crew, led by star Chadwick Boseman and director Ryan Coogler, it sent a message to Hollywood that there was a huge thirst for black stories that was still not being properly catered for. When, in 2018, Black Panther hit cinemas, it grossed $1bn worldwide and brought Marvel Studios its first ever Oscars.
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