When will 'Avengers Fatigue" set in?

James Cameron found himself in the news lately as he expressed his opinion on the Marvel craze happening in Hollywood. 

Cameron spoke of the Marvel films in an interview with Indiewire, saying, 

“I’m hoping we’ll start getting Avenger fatigue here pretty soon. Not that I don’t love the movies. It’s just, ‘come on guys, there are other stories to tell besides hyper-gonadal males without families doing death-defying things for two hours and wrecking cities in the process.’ It’s like, oy!”

He brings up an interesting point and one that I have been pondering for a while now. It's at the point now where you literally know that every couple months the Marvel logo will be displayed on the big screen and another instalment of their insanely ambitious universe is about to begin. 

The cynical answer would be to agree with Cameron. The man is the master of science fiction and he does know what he is talking about. 

What troubles me is that I LOOVVVEE Spiderman: Homecoming. It's a great movie and not just a great superhero movie. I really can not wait for more of those movies.

Guardians of the Galaxy I look at as more of a James Gunn film franchise than a Marvel instalment. I found those movies fun and exciting and very separate from the rest of the universe. Almost like a new Star Wars without being called Star Wars.

Iron Man 3 was another favourite of mine and like with Guardians, I view that film more as a Shane Black movie than a Marvel film.

Sometimes we do get the gems coming from the Marvel universe. However for every Spiderman: Homecoming there's 3 Ant-Man's. Not that Ant-Man was an awful film, but did it really stick with you and say something? I find that my go-to Marvel movie when I talk about generic films.

At this point I'm just ranting and am not sure what I'm thinking. Look at the photo attached to his blog - "The First Ten Years". Are there really a decade MMORREE of these movies. When does it end? Soon we are getting a Wasp movie... James Cameron just got me thinking. Damn-I hate thinking sometimes.....

Chef

Have you seen Chef? Have you even heard of it? If not, I suggest taking 114 minutes out of your day to watch it.

I was surprised just how good this movie was. In short, Chef follows Carl Casper (played by Jon Favreau) as he tries balancing his professional and personal life. I knew nothing about this movie going in, so I will keep the plot and celebrity cameos a secret.

Written, directed and starring Jon Favreau, this movie showcases his best performance to date. I was surprised just how good he can be in a starring role. His character had a lot of depth which made it a joy to watch him on screen.

The most impressive aspect of this film is the script. The screenplay is so good, that it doesn't feel like it was written. Everything these characters said came across very naturally. You forget that you are watching fictional characters and instead, feel like you're watching real people in a documentary. The script is so well realized and is a testament to Favreau's writing abilities.

Working in restaurants for many years, I have a good understanding of the industry. I love the culinary world and I enjoy cooking myself. Having that background, I really could appreciate the level of accuracy that the film took in representing the industry and those who work in restaurants. There was clearly a lot of research prior to making Chef, and it comes across on screen beautifully.

You don't have to be a lover of food to appreciate this movie. With a great father-son relationship, great characters, and a very impressive script, Chef is a movie that I would recommend to all.

Captain America: Civil War **SPOILERS**

I hate when people talk during the movies. It gets under my skin and I think it is extremely rude. For that reason, I am dead silent when my butt is in a theatre seat.

There was a scene in Civil War where Spider-Man was holding Captain America back from retrieving his shield. Spider-Man had both of Cap's arms pinned back by the strength of his webbing. When that was happening, out of no where, I blurted out loud;

"I can't believe what I'm watching right now"

I really meant it. There was a moment where I turned into a 7-year-old. I literally could not believe what I was watching on screen. Ten years ago, the thought of this spectacle would have seemed impossible. Now, in 2016, we have our Marvel Civil War. 

To get one thing out of the way, Civil war isn't an "Avengers" movie. As the title states, this is a Captain America story and a continuation from the Winter Soldier. Despite the fact that this film has tons of characters, the Russo brothers were able to distinguish it as a Captain America piece. The movie is driven through him, and his decisions are what ultimately change the dynamic of the Avengers. 

Let's get Spider-Man out of the way. He's in two scenes (if we aren't counting the end credits scene which I missed out on). In both scenes, he was fantastic and stole the show. I won't proclaim that he is the greatest Spider-Man we've ever seen yet. The sample size isn't big enough for me to do that. So far though, I love Holland's portrayal and I am sure Spider-Man: Homecoming will be great. 

I won't lie, I had no idea who Black Panther was before I saw the movie. Let's be honest - you didn't know much about him either.  To my surprise, Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther was one of my favourite aspects of the film. It was an interesting fold to the story. His father was assassinated, and he was on a mission to take out The Winter Soldier. He was very T-1000 like from Terminator 2. The civil war happening around him was meaningless to him as he was focused on bringing down Bucky. I loved Black Panther, and he was handled incredibly well. Never felt shoe horned in and I can't wait for his solo film.

I have to mention the airport scene. For over 17 minutes, I was never bored. Remarkably, the Russo brothers were able to craft something so perfect for Marvel, that I can't imagine a fight scene being more impressive. There were so many "holy shit" moments that it never got over indulgent. Did anyone expect Ant-Man to steal the show? I certainly didn't. His lines were my favourite and him growing into Giant Man was hilarious.

I will admit though, I never felt the "war" aspect  during the airport scene. Most of the characters were making jokes during the fight - which is fine. Marvel has built a universe in adding humour to their movies. But as amazing as the fight was, I never felt nervous because I knew they weren't actually trying to kill each other. I thought they should have killed War Machine off when he fell from the sky. I think it would have added some weight to the situation, and a reminded to the Avengers as to why they must get along. I guess all he needs now his robot legs.

What did feel like "war" to me, was the final confrontation between Tony, Bucky and Cap. Was it a ridiculous idea for Zeemo to have them fly out to the middle of no where to find other winter soldiers only for Tony to watch a VHS tape and hope that he will get angry? Of course. But that is besides the point. Just like I speculated in my trailer review, this was the best acting that Downey Jr. and Chris Evans have done in their Marvel roles. When Tony finds out that Bucky killed his parents, he was ready to kill. To me, Marvel has never had a more emotional sequence that the finale of Civil War. Seeing Tony react while watching the death of his parents was heartbreaking. You wanted him to seek his revenge, yet you didn't. Your emotions were torn as you understood both sides. It was riveting to watch and is the highlight of the film for me. To hear Tony say to Cap that he doesn't deserve his shield as his father made it was the best line of the movie. So much emotion, after almost a decade of movies, all summed in one line.

I enjoyed Age of Ultron. But the third Captain America movie felt more of a culmination of phase two,  (if not the entire MCU) than Age of Ultron did. It was hilarious at times, while heartbreaking in others. The Russo brothers are the perfect directors to move the MCU forward. No, I am not a Marvel fanboy for enjoying this movie and hating Batman V Superman. I am a fan of good movies, regardless of the studio. I just know when something is good, and when something is not.

Thanks for reading everyone!

What does a weekend marathoning the MCU movies bring out in someone? Click here to find out! 

Spirited Away.

There's a beautiful sequence in Spirited Away when Chihiro and No Face are riding a train. There's no exchange of words, and no fantastical imagery shown. It's quiet, peaceful, and a reflection on the true masterwork that is Spirited Away. Despite all the imagination put to screen, and the variety of characters shown throughout the film, it's this quiet moment that shows the confidence in the storytelling that Miyazaki and the team at Studio Ghibli crafted.

It's easy to think of Spirited Away as the "the Japanese Alice in Wonderland." A young girl goes on an unwanted adventure where a variety of colourful creatures and imagery are flashed on screen. It's an interesting comparison, and I won't argue with someone who sees the two as similar. I just happen to enjoy Spirited Away a little more.

There is something about Spirited Away that draws me in, and oddly enough, I can't really put my finger on the reason why. Of course, the hand drawn style is beautiful; just looking at the film is a treat upon itself. However the characters are not incredibly interesting to me, and I never feel a sense of danger for our main protagonist. Despite that, Spirited Away draws me in and I am locked in for the two-hour run time.

Why is that? What is it about the film that makes me like it so much?

I think it's the little moments that are little stories upon itself. Seeing the water pour over the Stink Spirit is both beautiful and disgusting. Looking into it, you see Miyazaki's attempt to bring up the negative impact of pollution to our natural world.

Chihiro helping Haku remember his name as they are falling from the sky is one of the most heartfelt moments of the film. Was I ever really invested in Haku as a character? Well...no...not really. But when this moment comes in the film, I couldn't help but get emotional. Perhaps I was invested, and I never really knew it.

You just have to sit back, and allow Miyazaki's imagination in. Spirited Away does a lot right, but most of all, it makes you FEEL something. Beautifully paced, quirky as can be, and strange beyond belief, Spirited Away is a sad reminder of how Hollywood lacks originality.  This movie may not be for all, but if you give it a chance, you might find something in it that you weren't expecting. 

A Weekend with the MCU

This week, we have guest blogger Jamie Burton from Board of Dice. Jamie has graciously loaned me his words for a great new post. Show him some love.

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Thought on the MCU so far.

This past weekend I watched (well, re-watched) all of the movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe up to this point in preparation for Captain America Civil War.

Starting from the very beginning with Iron Man, it was refreshing to take a look at how the films have grown since Nick Fury showed up in Tony’s house to tell him about the Avengers initiative.

The first few were super hero-y, to put it in a word. Yes, technically all of them are, but it was Captain America: The First Avenger that really broke that mould. It was a WW2 movie first, and a super hero origin second. It used a lot of tropes of the genre, from the general grittiness of the visual to the marching montages.

And then Avengers came around and really changed everything. Many more qualified people have spent hours analysing and talking about exactly why Avengers is “really that good” so I won’t go into many details. Suffice it to say, the MCU might have technically began with Iron Man, but it really began with The Avengers.

Given that I have just rewatched these films in order in a short period of time, I’d like to give my opinion on the “Best to Worst” as well as a brief line about what I think of the movie. So, without further adieu:

Jamie’s List of MCU Movies, Best to Worst 

1. The Avengers - While subsequent rewatches reveal more problems, this is still my pick for number one. The action is solid, the plot flows nicely and the characters are (mostly) all given their time to shine.

2. Guardians of the Galaxy - It is difficult not to place this one at the top, and only loses out to Avengers due to what that one started. Guardians has an amazing sense of humour, and the five main characters have an insane level of chemistry. The “12 per cent of a plan” scene in particular has what I consider to be the best extended dialogue scene in the MCU.

3. Iron Man 3 - Take Tony Stark, remove him from his OP suit for most of the movie and give him real, genuine problems to deal with. This, plus the humour and fanservice orgasm ending, makes for a great film. It’s a buddy cop film on steroids. And, while it pissed a lot of people off, I enjoyed the hell out of the Mandarin fake out.

4. Captain America: The Winter Soldier - The movie in particular suffers from the biggest “Why not just call in X” of the franchise, but while watching you hardly have a chance to notice. It’s a Bourne-style spy movie with Cap, where you get to see him adjust to a new style of combat and war.

5. Ant-Man - The one that wasn’t supposed to be good. How could it be? It’s such a crazy concept! But it pulled it off, partly by not taking itself seriously. It does have a more super hero-y vibe to it, but at its heart, it’s a heist movie. Doesn’t hurt that it is funny, too. I do wish we could have seen the Edgar Wright version, however.

6. Avengers: Age of Ultron - Hawkeye kills this movie. He was overlooked the first time around, but they made it up to him in spades here. Ultron himself is the best Dr. Doom on the big screen, as well, not that he had much competition. I like the way it was able to introduce side characters into the big picture without things getting too crowded. All in all, it is just a damn good time. Language!

7. Captain America: The First Avenger - Number seven was a toss up between this and the next, but I feel as though Cap is a better movie for many of the reasons stated above.

8. Iron Man - Tony’s first adventure did a lot of things right, and it is hard to find a lot of faults. It isn’t this far down the list for being bad, just that the others I enjoy more after watching them all back to back. That said, it does get mad props for getting all of this going.

9. Thor - There are going to be a few movies on here that I refer to as “half-good” in that half of the movie is good, and Thor is the first to fill that slot. I like Asgard, and the look into that side of things, but Thor on Earth is kind of dull. This one, at least, gave him more reason to be here.

10. Thor 2 - This one, on the other hand, is made worse for every scene that takes place on Earth. What could have been a fun romp through the other realms instead took too much of it’s run time to focus on Jane Foster. The villains weren’t anything special, either. But the parts that do take place in Asgard are fantastic. Heimdall steals the show on this one, but there’s a special place in my heart for Lady Sif and the Warriors Three.

11. Incredible Hulk - This is the defining “half-good” MCU movie, where the line is split at the halfway part of the movie. The opening in Brazil might just be the best Hulk-out in the MCU so far, and the one on the university campus is great too. Too bad the movie slows down after that and never really recovers. The ending fight in Harlem just feels like a chore to watch now.

12. Iron Man 2 - Why Whiplash? This is an example of one character bringing down an entire film. IM2 had a lot of good ideas. Don Cheadle is a better Rhodes, Tony’s drinking while dying is a great plot point. Justin Hammer is cringe, but it makes him a great opposite to Tony. Black Widow’s debut is awesome, and probably the only time you see hr actually being a spy. But the overall feel is brought down by a weak motivated villain (while the villain with better motivations is pushed to the sidelines) and what I’m assuming was a lot of producer interference. IM2 is an Avengers trailer, and while that was the shit before Avengers came out, upon rewatch, I didn’t enjoy it any more. That said, I did enjoy drunk Tony, in the suit, being a total idiot at his birthday party more this time around. At least Iron Man 3 was able to pick up a lot of the slack and deliver a better movie.

There we have it, my complete list as of right now. Some may swap positions before I even hit post, so they aren’t set in stone. The MCU has been a pleasure to watch unfold, and I look forward to what is to come. Civil War opens on Friday (in North America), and I am eagerly awaiting is. Where will it place on the list? Who knows!

The Jungle Book Review

This Jungle Book remake was, oddly enough, a remake I was looking forward to. The 1967 animated classic was a movie I watched all the time as a child, so I was curious how a new creative team would treat the property.

I had no idea what to expect from Disney's latest remake of an old classic. I was optimistic, as their latest remake of Cinderella was fantastic in my opinion. Jon Favreau is a favourite of mine, and I was confident in him being the director of this classic story. Just listening to him talk about the property here, made me excited for the film.

If movies were judged solely on CGI, The Jungle Book would be an unmitigated masterpiece. This entire movie was shot in a soundstage in L.A. Everything you see in the film was made in a computer, and I still can't believe the film's technical achievement. The animals look so real; the most realistic animals I've ever seen. The landscapes, water simulations, weather simulations - everything was so real. The work that hundreds of CG artists accomplished can't be overlooked.

Below are pictures of some of the voice actors sitting next to their CGI counterparts. Look at the realism they were able to accomplish with these animals.

Ben Kingsley as Bagheera

Idris Alba as Shere Khan

Christopher Walken as King Louie

The movie is much more than just amazing CG work. The Jungle Book is a fantastic remake that honours the source material, while adding its own spin on things. The character of Mowgli was played by young actor Neel Sethi. Not only did he give a great performance for a child actor, he gave it while being surrounded by nothing but green screen. As the only real thing on screen, he was able to carry the movie, while adding a sense of charm and curiosity that made the character of Mowgli so endearing.

I don't think they could have picked a better voice cast. Ben Kingsley is perfect as the old and prissy character of Bagheera the panther. His voice added a sense of gravitas that perfectly fit the characteristics of the old, wise panther.

Bill Murray is just as funny as a CGI bear, as he is in real life. While funny, his performance was very heartfelt, which made his relationship with Mowgli so special. I can't see another person as the voice of Baloo, besides Phil Harris in the original classic.

The highlight performances were Idris Alba as the villain Sheer Khan, and Christopher Walken as King Louie. Sheer Khan was frightening and menacing. Alba is so perfect for this character, as you legitimately fear his presence. They gave the character of Sheer Khan much more backstory this time around, which made his motivations much more clear. Alba knocked it out of the park and his performance, combined with the CG work, made for a great villain.

Then there's Christopher Walken. His scenes as King Louie had me smiling the whole time. You could tell that the character model was based off Walken's real face, which made it even more amusing. Walken's voice is so charismatic to begin with, that when you add him singing, as a big monkey, you can't help but smile.

For a fun featurette on the voice cast, click here.

It's hard to believe this, but this is a better film than the 1967 animated movie. Not because of special effects, but because the characters were given much more time to develop. Sheer Khan in the original came across as an old Englishmen, who was mildly annoyed by the presence of the man-cub. In this remake, you understand much more about Sheer Khan, which makes you more invested in the story.

I go to the movie theatre for an experience; an experience that will move me, and wow me. The Jungle Book gave that to me. The story is as sweet and fun as its always been. The spectacle of the incredible CGI work is jaw-dropping at times. The characters are fun, and the adventure is better then its ever been. It's rare for a remake to do this, but this new Jungle Book is the best interpretation that we've ever seen. It was everything a remake should be. A respectful interpretation of the source material, while adding a new spin on things. I have no idea how Andy Serkis' Jungle Book will be, but I can't see it being better than this.

More than just the bare necessities here.

Favourite Indy film

An impossible questions for me to answer is; “what’s your favourite Indiana Jones movie?”

I can’t do it! It’s too difficult for me to narrow down a single reason as to why one of the films is my favourite.

Obviously The Crystal Alien Skull thing is the weakest. Temple of Doom is my least favourite of the originals, as I can’t stand listening to Willie Scott scream. Although the most iconic image of Indy is found in Temple of Doom on the rope bridge, the story doesn't intrigue me. Randomly falling out of a plane on a native village, in order to rescue their religious rocks is not overly interesting to me. I do commend the filmmakers for making something vastly different than Raiders, however it falls a bit short for me. Still a good movie, just not my favourite. 

So awesome

Raiders and The Last Crusade however, are two of the most re-watchable and fun movies ever made. The idea for this blog came last week after I watched The Last Crusade on blu ray. For the first time in my life, I think I have found the answer.

The Last Crusade is my favourite. There. I finally made a choice that I will stick with...until I watch Raiders again.

So why the preference for The Last Crusade? Let's start with the obvious. Sean Connery adds a dimension to the series that was lacking in Raiders. Instantly, the character of Indiana Jones is fresh again as his father is introduced. Their chemistry is fantastic and it's one of the most entertaining relationships I've seen on film. 

James Bond is Indy's dad

I love the locations. Ahhh Venice. Great new location for the film to start in, and they only get better from there.

Some of the best scenes of The Last Crusade include Sallah and Marcus Brody. They were such great characters in Raiders that having them play larger roles in The Last Crusade is fantastic. Seeing Marcus act like a fish out of water when Indy tells the Nazis "he has a two day head start," is one of my favourite scenes. 

The holy grail is literally the holy grail of MacGuffins. Such an interesting artifact that instantly grabs my attention; even more that the Ark of the Covenant. 

The three trials that conclude the film are to me; the most riveting aspect of the saga. Seeing Indiana push his faith by taking that leap, is a level of emotion that Raiders never had. 

When it's all said and done, riding off into the sunset is a finale that you smile at. The ending of Raiders is fantastic; but you don't have that sense of excitement watching a room full of crates. Seeing our four heroes ride off into a beautiful sunset is one of the best endings a film series can have.

Don't get me wrong. Raiders of the Lost Ark is AMAZING! I want to watch it at least twice a year. The Last Crusade however, hits me emotionally where Raiders never did.