Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings (4k Streaming) review

[David Vaughn]

Studio: Marvell / Disney
Release Date: November 30, 2021
Rating: PG-13
Film: 4.5/5

Plot
Marvel Studios' "Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings" stars Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, who must confront the past he thought he left behind when he is drawn into the web of the mysterious Ten Rings organization. The film also stars Tony Leung as Wenwu, Awkwafina as Shang-Chi's friend Katy and Michelle Yeoh as Jiang Nan, as well as Fala Chen, Meng'er Zhang, Florian Munteanu and Ronny Chieng.

My Thoughts
Disney will no longer send out physical copies for review and have switched to purely digital distribution of their movies for review purposes (outside of a few select high profile sites). For this reason, I’ll keep comments on the audio/video to a minimum and just concentrate on the plot of the film.

As a Marvell film, this is one of their top-tier offerings in the MCU. Outside of the Marvell MCU label, this is an outstanding film and can be enjoyed even if you have limited knowledge of the other films. The acting is superb, the story compelling, and the visual effects excellent.

It all stars with the cast, which is damn near perfect. Tony Leung is excellent as the lead and Awkwafinia provides a lot of levity to the onscreen action and generates a lot of laughs. The film opens with some background on the legendary ten rings and it gives the film a very good foundation to build upon. When we finally meet Wenwu, he’s living in San Francisco trying to stay under the radar. When the shit finally hits the fan, we realize he’s a Kungfu master and his best friend Katy is in for a wild ride as his sidekick.

I saw the film in the theaters and really enjoyed it a lot. A second viewing just enhances the experience. Unfortunately, the audio track that I was disappointed with in the theater ports its way into the Atmos stream (I tested via Vudu and Movies Anywhere). Like a lot of Disney titles, the volume level is much too low and it takes a good 10dB boost to allow the LFE channel to have any oomph at all. The video steam is competent, but I expect I’ll be getting the UHD for Christmas and it will be the way I’ll watch the film in the future, unless I’m on a business trip and want to watch it flying from point A to point B.




Conclusion
This is arguably my favorite film from 2021 as it checks all of the entertainment boxes—except for the audio track. Regardless, it’s definitely worth a purchase since its replay value is very high.


Reference Review System:
JVC DLA-RS2000 4K Ultra High-Definition Front Projector
(Calibrated with Portrait Displays CalMAN color calibration software & C6-HDR Meter from Portrait Displays)
Stewart Filmscreen - Firehawk 88” 16x9 Fixed Screen
Trinnov Altitude 16 Audio/Video Processor
ATI AT527NC Powering Bed Channels
ATI AT524NC Powering Atmos Speakers
Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
System Controller: URC MX-990
M&K S-150 THX Ultra (R-C-L Speakers)
M&K SS-150 x4 (Surround Speakers)
Atlantic Technology IC6-OBA x 4 Overhead Speakers
SVS PC-Ultra Cylinder Subwoofer
HSU VTF-15H MK2 Subwoofer
JL Audio Dominion F110 Subwoofer x 2
Mini DSP HD controlling all subwoofers
Audioquest and Monoprice - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
PureAV PF60 Power Conditioner

[Barry]

David, as always I enjoy your reviews, As you know I review this as a movie from the theatre. But now and in the future I will be buying the 4K Disney discs so do you want me to add to your review just with the 4K looks like and sounds like? This just means I’ll be seeing the movie sooner than later. I’m watching Citizen Kane right now in 4K

[David Vaughn]

David, as always I enjoy your reviews, As you know I review this as a movie from the theatre. But now and in the future I will be buying the 4K Disney discs so do you want me to add to your review just with the 4K looks like and sounds like? This just means I’ll be seeing the movie sooner than later. I’m watching Citizen Kane right now in 4K

Barry,

Normally I would have already bought this disc, but my daughter needed something to give me for Xmas, so I have to wait until after Christmas

Feel free to chime in on your thoughts anytime you want!

Best regards,

David

[AVSCraig]

I have the 4K disc in hand and I'm looking forward to watching it! Thanks David. 

[bmoney]

Big favorite in our house. The disc is a small upgrade over the stream. Biggest thing is the audio is a little better. Doesn’t need to be turned up as much 

[AVSCraig]

Watched this last night with a theater full of friends. Really fun movie - everyone loved it. Loved all the call backs / tie ins to previous Marvel movies. Great picture and a good soundtrack. I did have to crank up the volume and subwoofer a bit, but that's not really a problem. The bus scene - HA! 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. I also agree, a great movie.

I saw this in the theater and will get this on blu ray..