The Political Metaphor of "Shang Qi"

[Shuixiang Xiansi] You must know that the movie "Shang Qi" has many adaptations of the original, which can be said to be the one in the same series that has the biggest gap with the original. Although the appearance of Wenwu corresponds to the Manchu man in the original comics, but since ancient times, the setting of the war and Genghis Khan is considered a movie original. In addition, Shang Qi in the original book never ran away from home to avoid the assassination mission, and lived as a normal person after living in a hidden name in San Francisco. Instead, he rebelled during an assassination mission and immediately turned against his father. In the original book, the Manchus sent killers one after another, but Guo really was determined to wipe out the son after the mutiny, but the Wenwu in the movie obviously took care of his son secretly and always expected his son to return home. The younger sister Xia Ling runs underground boxing competitions in Macau, and even the mother is a Chinese from Da Luo Xianjing, all of which belong to the original movie. Of course, the wonderful encounter between Wenwu and Yingli is not in the original book, let alone Tony Leung's affectionate screen image.

Since the film has changed so much, I can't help but ask the producers what special intentions. Of course, there have been many comments in the market pointing out that the movie "Shang Qi" tried to avoid "humiliating China", so the Manchurians would change their name to "Cenwu", and the location of the Wenwu base was also evasive and vague. However, if even the words "8964" can appear, then the speculation to please China will be self-defeating. What's more, the role of Lord Man has long been on the stage in "Iron Man III", so changing the name to "Wenwu" is more like creating a new role.

Even before the word "8964" became popular, the movie "Shang Qi" was already suspected of "humiliating China". The main reason was that the character of Wen Wu was adapted from the original Manchu character, and the character of Manchu was taken from the notorious western movie The fictional character Dr. Fu Manchu. Therefore, no matter how he changed his face, no matter how popular Tony Leung was, in a country whose heart is as fragile as glass, the movie cannot escape the original sin. Everyone knows what Fu Manzhou is mapping. I believe that there is no doubt about what the civil and military forces that have shaken the world for more than a thousand years can symbolize.

Well, the most important part of teaching me is to learn English. Wenwu stated that he deliberately let his son go out to learn English, and he kept track of where his children were at any time. I really don't know how good English is needed to conquer the city for the civil and military, so I don't hesitate to sacrifice ten years of training and the opportunity to drive my son. Ten years later, he managed to take back his son, and proudly announced to his subordinates: "My son is home." What kind of son is worth the painstaking efforts of Wenwu Rutai?

The only Chinese-speaking area that is clearly highlighted in the whole film is Macau, where the younger sister Xia Ling runs the underground kingdom. Is the underground gambling industry and Macau purely a coincidence? I don't think so. And if Xia Ling, who is separated, symbolizes Macau, what can the brother Shangqi, who is also separated, symbolize? Thinking along this clue, the attitudes of Xia Ling and Shang Qi when facing their father can be interesting.

By the way, the image of Shang Qi in the original comics is taken from Bruce Lee.

The last big mystery is the symbol of mother Yingli. Yingli overcomes the strength with softness, subdues the arrogance of Wenwu, and captures the heart of Wenwu, teaching Wenwu willing to give up the desire to conquer. Yingli belongs to a fairyland in the Taoist tradition of Daluo Shi, and all kinds of fantastic creatures in the Daluo fairyland are the ancient mythical beasts recorded in the "Shan Hai Jing", and there are even dragons in them. Ying Li helps Shang Qi to awaken the "Shenlong Heart", which is used to defeat Wenwu. Who is the holy mother who teaches civil and military affairs, respects, obeys, and loves madly? Will it symbolize the other side of myself that Wenwu once had but lost? The ideal self is willing to let go of the desire for conquest and incarnate as a loving father. That is the redemption of the civil and military soul.

As the screenwriter relishes , because they wanted the film to avoid the discriminatory outdated settings in the original book, the production team had to re-create everything in a wild way, resulting in such a unique style of Marvel movies. Audiences like me who grew up with an oriental background must easily see that the movie is a mix of martial arts films, kung fu films, gangster films and other familiar elements. To be honest, even if I had followed up the same series of movies by Marvel, if there was no king in the middle and the end, I would have almost forgotten that "Shang Qi" is a Marvel movie.

Under the unpretentiousness, I admire that the adapted "Shang Qi" leaves so many intriguing metaphors, which teach people to see the joy of being different and different. Such a screenwriting technique reminds me of another movie "The Fantastic Drifting of Young Pi". The superficial interpretation seems to have a deeper interpretation, with endless aftertastes.