7.3 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Shang-Chi must confront the past he thought he left behind when he is drawn into the web of the mysterious Ten Rings organization.
Starring: Simu Liu, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Awkwafina, Ben Kingsley, Meng'er ZhangAdventure | 100% |
Action | 99% |
Comic book | 96% |
Fantasy | 82% |
Martial arts | 7% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Digital copy
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Disney's march towards making sure every Marvel character headlines a movie (and turns millions in profits) continues with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. The title character finds his origins in the 1973 debut comic and makes the transition to the big screen in 2021 as the latest MCU entry (at least the latest to land on Blu-ray; the MCU keeps a-chuggin' with Eternals already in theaters). And, it's a good one. The film shows command of the entertainment medium, offering a robust hybrid of intimate characterization and superbly developed action. While there's nothing necessarily "new" in the movie in terms of how it goes about its business, it at least builds a fully enjoyable film that should satisfy both hardcore MCU vets who have seen every film multiple times or relative newcomers seeking an escape into a high grade movie experience.
Disney's 1080p transfer for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings looks very good. The digitally sourced production shines on Blu-ray. It's clean and efficient and well capable of revealing fine point detail with ease. Intricate clarity to clothes and faces impress while various San Francisco interiors and exteriors reveal superb definition even at distance. The picture holds to excellent textural output throughout. Colors delight with bold output and neutral contrast. Color temperature likewise holds center, looking neither warm nor cool. The image reveals plenty of vivid natural greens, well saturated clothes, and healthy skin tones. Black levels are impressively deep and whites are crisp. The image shows very little source noise and certainly no compression related issues. This is might not stand apart from other blockbusters on Blu-ray of a recent vintage and digital origins, but this is every bit the 1080p transfer it should be. No complaints here.
Disney releases Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings to Blu-ray with a DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 lossless soundtrack (the UHD features Dolby Atmos). Unfortunately, the track is fairly typical of a Disney MCU film. It's never wanting for aggressive surround mix integration and clarity, but it lacks volume at reference level and it certainly lacks low-end depth where greater power, such as when Xu Wenwu wields the Ring powers in combat at film's start, should define the experience. Every action scene fails to even get up to par. A severe car accident at the 4:30 mark offers very little dynamic depth or intensity, and the extended fight scene to follow suffers a similar fate. Again, surround and immersive content is fine (if not hushed) but the track needs far more push and oomph. Perhaps nowhere is the lack so obvious as the bus fight sequence in chapter four. It's a shame, because there is obviously a very rich and should-be rewarding sound design at play here; Disney just chooses to render it largely null and void by its home video engineering decisions. Even beyond action the track just can't muster much serious power or volume; a karaoke scene around the 14-minute mark just sounds fully flat and disinterested in creating a living, breathing atmosphere. Dialogue is clear and center focused, so there's that. At least essential clarity is fine and with the volume cranked up a bit some core essentials will play well enough, but expect another flat and listless listen from Disney.
Disney's Blu-ray release of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings includes a commentary, deleted scenes, a gag reel, and a pair of
featurettes. A DVD copy of the film and a Movies Anywhere digital copy voucher are included with purchase.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is likely to get lost in the shuffle at some point in the future when it's not the featured new release in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, buried under the avalanche of various Iron Man and Captain America and Avengers films, which is a shame not just because there's a lot to like here but because the film is wonderfully emblematic of everything that makes the MCU so good. Disney's Bu-ray delivers tip-top video, typically neutered audio, and a decent collection of bonus content. Recommended.
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