Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Part of the reason I wanted to have a blog was so I could go nuts when I have moments like these. Usually, it’s long after the thing I’m excited about has faded from relevancy (I don’t go to the movies too often) but not this time. Just to be clear, I spoil just about everything below. I didn’t expect much when I went to see the second Captain America movie. I was one of the few who didn’t really care for the first one (I actually preferred Thor). They did a lot more with him in the Avengers, but even then he just wasn’t as interesting as the other characters. So believe me when I say I am surprised, not only to say it is great, but is also my favorite Marvel movie next to the Avengers. It topped Thor, the Hulk movies, even Iron Man. And in comparison to…
Zombies and Frozen
I watched two things this weekend, one with my family, the other one without. The first was Frozen, the second was the Walking Dead finale. I’ll let you figure out which was which. I’m going to talk about the Walking Dead first, because there are spoilers for Frozen embedded deep in this post and I’d be more worried if someone read those than any spoilers for the Walking Dead. The finale was…frustrating. It was great the way Darryl rejoined the group and Rick and Michonne slaughtered the Claimed folks. Rick has always been a character that was an extreme badass of the best kind…the type that doesn’t have to constantly prove it. The best moments in the series were when he shot that guy in the bar (Nebraska man…), killed Shane, and last night when he ripped that guy’s throat out with his teeth. Because in the Walking Dead, people…
Godzilla Trailer
I am cautiously optimistic about this. Bryan Cranston is a great actor, though I’m worried this will be WB just plugging him into a major franchise for the star power, wasting his talent in a blah character with weak writing. That’s really what Need for Speed looks like it’s doing with Aaron Paul. There’s a big aspect of the trailer that I want to discuss. There’s a very clear sense of drama. This doesn’t look like Pacific Rim, in tone or visuals. There doesn’t look like a lot of fun. Not that giant monster cagematch kinda fun anyway. I know people who’ve really criticized Superman and Star Trek for being too dark, too edgy, with too much destruction porn. While I didn’t love the movies, I don’t think those elements were the fatal blows. Here though, I can’t help but worry they’re going to make this really, really serious. Of…
Star Wars
Cracked has a pretty great post (because there are two people in the world, those that like Star Wars and those that like Star Trek, and I’m the former) about why Star Wars is better that Star Trek. What I didn’t realize until I read it, and I have to kinda apologize for this, is that J.J. Abrams did essentially make the Star Trek movies into Star Wars. That’ probably why I was alright with them and so confused by the plethora of hatred that was directed toward them. Before I dive into this, they definitely have their problems. The first one was ridiculously forgettable (I know Vulcan gets blown the fuck up and there’s the whole time thing, but that’s all I got) and Khan’s “surprise” visit annoyed me as much as everyone else, but they were fun. I like the whole time displacement that has given them a reason…
Man Of Steel
Just about every writer I read has had an issue with this movie. They picked it apart for its emphasis on action, lacking the qualities that make Superman, its gritty nature, etc. I really, really wanted to love this movie and be like hah but that just wasn’t meant to be. The movie isn’t terrible, it’s just alright. The action was well done, but has the same problem I’ve always had with Superman, a whole lot of teasing with no payoff. Sure, a whole hell of a lot of buildings got destroyed, but everyone else just walked it off. They didn’t even breathe heavy. When everyone comes out of going through multiples buildings, having a train dropped on them, exploded, etc. and they don’t get scratched at all, it removes the climax of the combat. The only reason anyone stopped hitting each other was seemingly because they got bored or…