tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633480297352890314.post4034496780615535585..comments2024-03-28T22:30:49.378-11:00Comments on Kinemalogue: The legendary weapons of ChinaHunter Allenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10925220178171355473noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633480297352890314.post-21671419384103412142021-09-26T19:29:54.541-11:002021-09-26T19:29:54.541-11:00The Avengers, comics-wise, hasn't really done ...The Avengers, comics-wise, hasn't really done a lot for me since Busiek and Perez were on it. Everything after that is a strong shift towards DC (and ultimately disenchantment with the genre in that medium), though recently I've caught up with Tom King's Vision, which is pretty strong despite some questionable bits like the anti-robot racism allegory that comes on a little strong in an old, creaky Marvel universe where half the population is a mutant, a magician, or a robot. But once it gets past that, it's kinda great. (It's one of the precursors to WandaVision, too, but I like it *so much* better.)<br /><br />I've been reluctant to do any Teen Titans motion picture stuff because, oddly, I've never even read a Titans comic. Not even the Judas Contract! But I've heard good things about the Go! movie and understand it's kind of off-the-wall and meta-in-a-good-way. It's on HBOMax so I really have no excuse not to at least watch it.<br /><br />As for Shang-Chi, I dunno. I think they reconceived Xialing before shooting (or, perhaps, reshot stuff, but I suppose we'll see). I'm glad you liked it (and, hey, I did *like* it), but the best thing about it for me has been that it finally kicked me in the pants to start catching up on all the actual Chinese cinema I've been meaning to watch for years. Just watched Legend of the Demon Cat from 2019, and, boy, if I was going to watch just one Chinese movie that got released in America in 2019, I should've made it that and not The Wandering Earth. (Wait, I checked, I did watch two. Well, it's better than Long Day's Journey Into Bi Gan's Tedious Egomania too.)<br /><br />Finances depending, I may pick up that Shaw Bros. set that Arrow's releasing in December. Wish it had Super Infra Man, but I still have my DVD.Hunter Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10925220178171355473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633480297352890314.post-56450997298422200662021-09-26T14:34:41.951-11:002021-09-26T14:34:41.951-11:00Granted I'm incredibly far behind with Marvel ...Granted I'm incredibly far behind with Marvel movies (I made it to Civil War so I could watch Black Widow and then have only seen GotG 2 and Ragnarok beyond that), but I thought this was easily my favorite Marvel movie trailed only by Black Widow and then the Thor flicks. I remain thoroughly unimpressed with the majority of the films which I guess can probably be tied back to never being an Avengers and related heroes fan. I love Hong Kong fantasy flicks, super heroes, and Shaw Brothers stuff, so this was nearly perfect for me. All of the actors nailed their roles and there wasn't anyone I felt just did not work or annoyed the heck out of me. Which was a nice change. I understand why you have reservations about the third act, but I definitely enjoyed it. My one big issue is one you mention as well: Xialing really needed a lot more story or none at all. She felt so wasted as a character. I also feel like she left a lot of her scenes on the cutting room floor. It'll be interesting to see what deleted scenes end up being released and how many of them involve her.<br /><br />*cue Bernie voice* "I am once again asking you to watch Teen Titans Go! To the movies." I mean, it has only been what... 5 or 6 years now?Diana of Syracusehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00423177649215656966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633480297352890314.post-81283757314313875382021-09-24T16:17:29.851-11:002021-09-24T16:17:29.851-11:00Now that I think about it, it kind of reminds me o...Now that I think about it, it kind of reminds me of Ant-Man, in that the obvious, tearjerking melodramatic conclusion (being separated from his daughter for years during his few minutes in the quantum realm) didn't happen because Avengers: Endgame wanted that beat instead, where it's somewhat lost in the ongoing global apocalypse. I can't tell what they would want Shang-Chi's mom for though,maybe to motivate Xialing later. Ok, at this point I sound like one of those insufferable clickbait fan theory articles, so I'll stop.Hunter Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10925220178171355473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633480297352890314.post-78591619481945945892021-09-24T16:13:42.396-11:002021-09-24T16:13:42.396-11:00Spoiiiillers... Oh yeah, Leung's arguably bett...Spoiiiillers... Oh yeah, Leung's arguably better than the material should allow, especially once the plot's run out of stuff for him to actually do. (The movie surprised me, not entirely in a good way, that he didn't turn out to be at least partially right. You'd think they'd have at least had a ghostly visual, something like that, to underscore the dramatic irony. I feel like I've seen that somewhere else, though.)<br /><br />I do like the basic dynamic a lot, though, even if I wish they'd either cut Xialing out or made her more integral. 95% sure that at some point she turned on Shang-Chi in an earlier draft of the screenplay in a bid for her sexist dad's approval. Like, I'd bet money, because she does not do *anything* once they arrive in Ta Lo, and they stretch out Shang's... light side training,I guess? (I don't suppose they'd have given her the rings, as they want their new Avenger to be a suitably big deal, though as the new Mandarin,it would've make more sense if she received them, or took them. Sets her up as an actual sequel villain, too, rather than the kinder, gentler, future-is-female face of unspecified crime and corruption where you know that's still her function, but it's kind of hard to see how they come to blows.)Hunter Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10925220178171355473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633480297352890314.post-19369351233841633822021-09-23T17:08:25.678-11:002021-09-23T17:08:25.678-11:00What I found interesting about this film was that ...What I found interesting about this film was that that found that every single moment that the villain was on the screen, I was entirely engaged, and almost every other moment that he wasn't on the screen, I was wishing he was there. Overall, I found myself feeling a lot of sympathy for him, although I suppose that might have a lot to do with my own circumstances. Still, even if not for my issues, Leung is the strongest part of the film. <br /><br />I found that the movie didn't quite fit the typical Marvel mold, where a selfish person of great power answers the call to adventure, learns the value of others and becomes a hero. In this case, Shang-Chi was never some kind of mighty dick. Instead, the film has more of an Hong Kong flavour. Sure, it's all choreographed fight scenes and special effects, but the bones of the movie are a family drama. Neilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01779344248590368867noreply@blogger.com