Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Expectations:
Not only is Captain America the "First Avenger," but he is also the "Best Avenger"! There is no doubt in my mind that the first Captain America film was the best pre-Avengers Marvel flick, and I was hoping that Captain America: The Winter Soldier could follow that up and become the best of Marvel's "Phase 2" films. Unfortunately, many of the plot details for the film were under wraps, so I wasn't quite certain what to expect. At the same time, it is quite nice that Marvel now has the power to hold in the big secrets of the films. In fact, that power is what made everyone trip over the big twists in Iron Man 3, which may have inflated expectations for The Winter Soldier. Anywho, my expectations were high, because of the greatness that was The First Avenger...

Plot:
The end of mindless superhero films may be fast-approaching, as evident by the BLATANT political themes presented in The Winter Soldier. In case you didn't know, Obama is watching you, and he is going to destroy you because Robert Redford said so! And Rob Red is the man!!! However, on Captain America's (Chris Evans) end, there were just a few too many things going on for him to really be making a political statement. Black Widow's (Scarlett Johanssonn) continual need to be insignificantly significant took up an unnecessary amount of screen time, and, in the end, the film probably should have been titled Captain America: S.H.I.E.L.D. & Friends. The film wasn't a total bust, but I truly believe it had great potential. At one point, the trusting, old-fashioned Captain had a moment where he didn't know who was with/against him. That moment was probably the most intense Marvel moment ever! Unfortunately, in less than five minutes, he figured out who to trust again, which left me disappointed at what could have been. Even with this disappointment, the action was absolutely great, and Cap had no problem with anybody he faced.

Characters:
As a result of the numerous storylines, there were waaaay too many characters for any non-Avengers film. Like I said, Captain America is THE MAN! Why would you want to be distracted by minor characters? The answer to that question can probably be found in the fact that The Avengers: Age of Ultron needed a lead-in, which is quite unfortunate.

Negatives:
Hayley Atwell was absolutely amazing in The First Avenger, but there was no need for her Peggy Carter to show up, ever again. Captain America seemed to be moving forward and accepting the 21st century, eliminating the need to bring his past back into the picture. Additionally, Toby Jones's Dr. Arnim Zola was awkwardly brought back into the picture, although he was a bit more necessary, in the grand scheme of things. Although Robert Redford's Alexander Pierce was quite important to the storyline, he was the one significant character that I did not care for, but hopefully you will like him!

Positives:
My main man Danny Pudi had an extremely short appearance as some sort of computer guy, and I just wanted to be sure to give him a shout out. Without him, Community would no longer be on the air and no one would know what the term "butt-dial" means (look it up... he was the first to say it). New to the Captain America crew, Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson/Falcon was a fun addition to the film, and I truly hope that people reward Mackie with larger roles in the future. Finally (and I never thought I would say this), Cobie Smulders' Maria Hill actually fit in quite well with the rest of the cast. Her short time on screen was quite significant, and she nearly redeemed herself for being the only negative in The Avengers... but not quite.

Conclusion:
Captain America: The Winter Soldier was a great Marvel film, but it could have been so much better. There was just waaaay too much going on, which greatly scattered the focus of the film. Really, Captain America had very little riding on the outcome of the film. Instead, S.H.I.E.L.D. and Black Widow took center stage, which would have been fine, if they didn't already have an entire TV show dedicated to S.H.I.E.L.D. Additionally, if Black Widow could have had her own film, instead of showing up in others over and over and over, neither Iron Man nor Captain America would have had to worry about her. Regardless, I would certainly suggest that you check out The Winter Soldier, especially if you like to keep up with the events of the Marvel universe. You miss this one, and you might as well skip The Avengers: Age of Ultron. I give Captain America: The Winter Soldier 2.99 out of 5 stars.

Thor: The Dark World

 

Expectations:
As "Phase 2" of Disney's never-ending Marvel overload continues, expectations for stand-alone, superhero movies have plummeted, because we know how great it is when all these guys get together. People used to get genuinely ecstatic about each and every superhero film, but, now, people are just waiting around for the next Avengers film. Personally, I have even more excitement for the new X-Men film, but most of my excitement can be attributed to the great mass of superheroes and great actors that will be featured in the film. However, for the moment, let's pretend that The Avengers never happened. What are my expectations for the Thor sequel, now?... Well... they are even lower! I'm sorry, but I didn't care for the first Thor film, and he was easily my least favorite Avenger. So, with that being said, my only motivation to see Thor: The Dark World was to avoid missing something crucial in the Marvel universe. Also, Loki is kinda the man...

Plot:
My least favorite part of this sequel was the insignificance of the bad guys, Malekith and Algrim. Of course, their existence meant the end of the earth, but their motivation and power came off as a bit ambiguous, in my opinion. Basically, it was as if they needed someone to take the evil attention away from Loki, but, in the end, it just fell flat. Aside from that, the plot wasn't too bad. However, two weeks after watching the film, it is kind of hard to remember many details. So, maybe it wasn't so great either. I do remember that I was impressed with the way that Loki's return to Asgard was dealt with, and the ending was much less abrupt, compared to the first Thor film. Additionally, I enjoyed the story surrounding Thor and Jane Foster, played by Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman, a lot more than in the first film. It wasn't quite as forced.

Characters:
Loki is easily Thor's saving grace, and there was no doubt that Tom Hiddleston carried The Dark World farther than any other character. Unfortunately for us, Loki is expected to be absent from the second Avengers, which will make it interesting to see how the development of a bad guy may engulf the second Captain America film, due out in April. Aside from Loki, mediocrity was the name of the Thor character game. Below are a few exceptions...

Negatives:
As I said before, the bad guys, played by Christopher Eccleston and Mr. Echo (I'm not going to try to type out his real name), were pretty much pointless, and I highly doubt that anyone truly enjoyed their presence in the film. Also, Erik Selvig, played by Stellan Skarsgard, continued to become less and less important in the grand scheme of the Thor storyline. To me, this reduction of importance is quite disappointing, as he was one of the few characters that I enjoyed in the first film. My final negative is the big man himself, Thor!, who is the stupidest and most awkward of all the Avengers, yet he manages to be the only thing that ties every super's story together. Regardless, I can't stand him! Seriously, if you took Chris Hemsworth and put him in Troy or Clash of the Titans, you would realize just how ridiculous this character turned out to be.

Positives:
Loki is the man! This film would have been more appropriately titled Loki: The Cooler Brother. I mean, is there any way that we can get Loki in The Avengers 2? I'll let you keep Thor, Joss! Just give me a little Loki. I predict a bright future for Tom Hiddleston, and I can't wait to see what's in store for him. As was the case with the first Thor film, I really enjoyed the character of Heimdall, played by Idris Elba. His wisdom and loyalty is a great accent to the various rebellious characters throughout Asgard, and I really wish he would find his way into an Avengers movie.

Conclusion:
In comparison to its preceding Phase 2 project, Iron Man 3, I would put Thor: The Dark World on exactly the same level. The film was better than Thor's last stand-alone film, just like Iron Man 3 was better than Iron Man 2, featured a lot of hearty laughing moment, just like Iron Man 3, and contributed very little to the overall, Avengers-based storyline (with what we know at this point), just like Iron Man 3. I don't know how everyone else feels, but, after seeing Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World, I am afraid that these Marvel films are going to become a bit too generic. Don't get me wrong... I enjoyed the story, some of the acting, and, of course, I will go back to see Thor 3. However, as the movie wrapped up, I had that same underwhelming feeling that came after Iron Man 3. It was that same feeling you get after you watch any plot-twisting, action-filled, depth-lacking movie on the big screen. You know what I'm talking about! At this point, I just hope that The Avengers: Age of Ultron has something unique and exciting in store for Marvel fans. If not, Phase 2 may turn out to be the highest grossing and least exciting of the infinite future Marvel phases. I give Thor: The Dark World 3.12 out of 5 stars.

Iron Man 3

 

 

 

After a tough, tough week of finals, it's so great to get back to writing on here. Sorry to keep you all waiting, but I will be playing catch up over the next couple of weeks, so check in regularly for new posts!

Expectations:
After the disaster that was Iron Man 2 and the amazingness that was The Avengers, I didn't really know what the heck to expect with Iron Man 3. The first Iron Man film was great, and Robert Downey Jr. is the perfect Tony Stark. However, once you have a bad sequel, you tend to follow that bad sequel with another bad sequel, and I thought Iron Man 3 may just be another bad sequel. From the trailers, I was not at all convinced that The Mandarin, played by Ben Kingsley, was going to be intimidating at all, and I cannot stand Guy Pearce, so the villains did not intrigue me whatsoever. My only confidence was found in Robert Downey Jr., who isn't a bad person to have confidence in.

Plot:
Iron Man 3 brought with it a lot of twists and turns, and that excitement is what keeps people returning to the theater for these type of action shows (along with the millions in marketing and such). Amazingly, the twists in this film were actually pretty well done, particularly the utilization of the previously under-utilized Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow). With a much calmer, less cocky Tony Stark, the door was opened for his relationship with Potts to become more than just an excuse for Iron Man to have a girl. Also, the scene of him going into space ("never to return") in The Avengers really made me care about their relationship, in a dorky "I like comic book films" kind of way. The conflict with the villains did seem a bit insignificant, particularly now that we know Iron Man just has to call his Avengers friends if he really needs help. Nevertheless, the focus of this film was not the conflict with the villains but rather the relationship between Tony Stark and Pepper Potts. A much simpler Iron Man made for a much simpler story, which aided in the twistiness of the twists.

Characters:
For the most part, I either really loved or really disliked the characters in Iron Man 3, so I didn't have a very hard time figuring the positives and negatives...

Negatives:
As I said before, I cannot stand Guy Pearce. I don't really understand why I don't like him, but I don't. Unfortunately for him, my opinion of him did not change after his performance as scientist-turned-baddy, Aldrich Killian. He just wasn't very frightening nor was he cool or clever. The villainous roles were just a big miss for me, with Iron Man 3... and that rhymes. Also, while some people may be fans of Don Cheadle's Rhodes character, but I just don't care for him in that role. Terrence Howard was much better in that role, but, really, War Machine is a boring sidekick, in my opinion. Lastly, I thought the focus that was given to Jon Favreau's Happy Hogan was unnecessary and did nothing but ad to the length of the film.

Positives:
Of course, as expected, Robert Downey Jr. was his amazingly hilarious self, and, if anyone else ever plays Iron Man, they will not do the role justice. He has, single-handedly, taken Iron Man from an average super hero to Marvel's go-to guy, and overcoming Spiderman is not an easy task. Additionally, the huge increase in screen time for Paltrow's Potts really helped both characters become more than they could ever be alone. Even with the greatness that is Iron Man and Robert Downey Jr., my absolute favorite part of this film was Ty Simpkin's Harley Keener, who became Iron Man's little minion and had the same sarcastic attitude as Tony Stark. As a sucker for child actors, I thought he did a really great job in the role, and I can't wait to see him in future films.

Conclusion:
Few things make me happier than to see the theater filled to the brim with butts and excitement. Iron Man 3 will probably have the biggest opening weekend of the summer, if I had to guess, and, as a result the theater was a happening place last Friday night! Actiony, super hero films would not be nearly as good without the enthusiasm of a large crowd, so that definitely improved my Iron Man 3 experience. Also, it did not hurt that the movie was really great. Downey Jr. fit the mold perfectly, yet again, and I hope that he chooses to play Iron Man again in the future. Usually, by the time of the third film of a franchise, I am ready for the towel to be thrown in, but Iron Man is unique. Not only is Downey Jr.'s super hero portrayal great, but, unlike most super heroes, Iron Man brings so many laughs, much of which is attributed to his wit. With the scientific background and the charm of a multi-billionaire, Iron Man is more able to ground himself in reality than most (non-Batman) super heroes. He is able to accomplish this without the "dark"ness of Batman, and that is something that should be recognized. I give Iron Man 3 3.54 out of 5 stars.

Summer Preview: 2013

 

With the release of Iron Man 3 on May 3, the 2013 summer movie season will officially begin, and it is time to get excited, folks! The summer of 2012 was not the most satisfying, so I'm hopeful that we will see a great improvement in 2013. FYI... I categorize the months of May-August as the "summer movie months," disqualifying any films that are released outside of this broad date range. Below, I have listed five categories of film expectations that I have for this summer. All of the lists are in complete random order, so you get to guess which will top each list! Chachingiest Expectations includes films that I expect to make the most money. This list may be completely wrong, as I did zero research on what films are expected to have high grosses. Lowest Expectations includes films that I don't really think will be worth watching, and I may never know whether they are worth it, because I may not even watch. Bombing Expectations includes films that I believe will fail to meet their monetary expectations (like 2012's John Carter or Battlefield). Finally, my High Expectations categories, for both drama and comedy, include films that I expect to be the best of the summer of 2013. Can these films meet my high expectations? Only time will tell. So, grab your 3D glasses, take them to the theater, buy a 2D ticket, and sneak in to the 3D movie, because it's clever! Happy summer, folks!

Chachingiest Expectations
Fast and Furious 6

Monsters University

Despicable Me 2

Iron Man 3

Man of Steel

Lowest Expectations
The Smurfs 2

The Wolverine

White House Down

World War Z

Bombing Expectations
The Lone Ranger

Grown Ups 2

Now You See Me

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

Highest Dramatic Expectations
Elysium

Man of Steel










Star Trek Into Darkness










The Way, Way Back

Highest Comedic Expectations
This Is the End

The Hangover Part III









The Internship

Captain America: The First Avenger

Expectations:
While I have enjoyed watching the pre-Avengers movies, the only one that has impressed me so far is Iron Man, which would have sucked without Robert Downey Jr. Thor was ok but should have been much better. Iron Man 2 just purely sucked. I have not seen the Hulk movie yet, but it just can't be that good. With that being said, I didn't expect much with Captain America. I knew it wouldn't be aweful, but Chris Evans is no Robert Downey Jr. and World War II is no 2011. Once again I must admit to knowing nothing about comic books, making it impossible for me to have accuracy expectations heading in. I also didn't understand why the first Avenger was the last one made. The timing kind of made me think that Captain America was going to suck more than the other pre-Avengers movies, but everyone was going to be forced to watch in anticipation.

Plot:
As most know, the movie is set during World War II, which gives the movie a bit of a classic film feel (except for the CGI). The beginning of the movie was a bit rocky. I personally think they should have waited a bit to bring Red Skull in, but the back story on Steve Rogers (Captain America) was fantastic. Rogers was small in stature but had a huge heart and of course was transformed into Captain America. Somethings went wrong in the process, and Rogers ends up with a role in the war that isn't that of a soldier. I really thought Rogers reacted strangely to this role, considering he is supposed to be a man with such a great heart. But he got back to normal rather quickly. Something that really impressed me with this movie was the final battle and eventually the final scenes. So many super hero movies have a final battle scene that lasts all of two seconds (cough cough THOR!). The film makers really embraced the end of the movie, rather than just focusing on the character build up. I thought the movie was very well arranged and had great balance between story, character, and action.

Characters:
Chris Evans was great in his role as Captain America. His likability really transferred over to the character, which made Captain America what I believe he is supposed to be--a figure that people can look up to. His nemesis, Red Skull, was played by Hugo Weaving who, with the help of a computer generated face, really freaked the crap out of me. I didn't really feel like Red Skull was the enemy of Captain America, but, instead, I felt like he was the enemy of the entire world. Maybe this was reinforced by Captain America's politically correct team, including a black guy, an Asian guy, and even a French guy. It was a bit unusual but good. The inclusion of Howard Stark (Iron Man's dad) was fantastic. From the previews it looked as if he would just make a quick, helpful appearance, but he really had a pretty big role in the movie and fit in quite well. It was not as awkward as the cameos that we are used to seeing.

Best Character: Peggy Carter, played by Hayley Atwell, was fantastic as Captain America's love interest. She had a very big connection to the storyline, which is the one thing that Marvel usually does well. She was very tough and really showed up the guys often.

Worst Character: Bucky Barnes, played by Sebastian Stan, was very useless as Rogers's best friend. It was easy to tell that we were supposed to be connected to him, but I just didn't feel it. He was one of the few unnecessary pieces of the movie.

Conclusion:
Captain America was a great surprise. I can't decide whether I like it better than Iron Man, but it is definitely a close race. The ending was fantastic, as I sat there wondering "How will they get him to 2011?" Will I rush out to buy it, well... no, but I am more excited about The Avengers now. If you haven't heard, the first preview for The Avengers plays after the credits of Captain America, and the movie promises to be amazing. I am extremely hopeful that there will be more Captain America films in the future and cannot wait to see if Marvel can learn from past mistakes and make great movies. I give Captain America 3.001 out of 5 stars and am OFFICIALLY pumped about The Avengers!

Movie News for the Week of July 5, 2011

1. After taking a break from acting to obtain his college degree, Haley Joel Osment will return to the big screen in a Frankenstein-like movie. The movie, entitled Wake the Dead, will bring the story of Frankenstein to the modern world. This will be the first of many upcoming Frankenstein movies.

2. Will Smith is attempting to bring Hurricane Katrina to the big screen in American Can and wants Denzel Washington to play the lead role. Smith was originally supposed to star in his own production, but now he wants Washington.

3. I new idea called Movie Pass was recently introduced at a San Francisco movie theater and has many people talking. For only $50 a month, you can go to the theater as many times as you desire. This sounded amazing when I first heard it, and everyone was talking about it last week. Unfortunately, AMC frowned at the idea, which really hurts its chances of succeeding nationwide. Let's just continue to hope and pray that something comes through because I believe this is a great idea.

4. The second Thor movie has been given a release date for summer 2013. Marvel movies seem to be going nowhere, considering Iron Man 3 is also due out summer 2013.

5. The creator of Sex and the City has revealed one of her desired choices for the rumored prequel. Selena Gomez is now one of the front runners to play Charlotte, if the prequel becomes a reality. Another name that has been tossed around is Blake Lively.

6. Christopher Nolan is set to produce a secret supernatural thriller. Keith Gordon, known mostly for directing TV shows such as House and Dexter, will direct the film, based an an unknown novel. Details are certainly few and far between, due to Nolan's secretive nature.

A Little Something for the Potter Fans:
If Harry Potter were made into South Park character.