The Avengers

            Well, it’s finally upon us.  After four years, two great films, two crappy ones and an ok sequel, and a bullshit release overseas before it came to America, the release day of The Avengers is upon us.  So what’s the plot?  Well, Loki, our respective villain from Thor, has come to Earth seeking the Tesseract Cube, intending to open a portal to a distant world which will allow a massive alien army invade and overrun the Earth.  To prevent this from happening, Nick Fury, (Samuel L. Jackson), brings together Iron Man/Tony Stark, (Robert Downy Jr.), Captain America/Steve Rogers, (Chris Evans), the Incredible Hulk/Bruce Banner, (Mark Ruffalo), Thor, (Chris Hemsworth), and SHIELD agents Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, (Scarlett Johansson) and Clint Barton/Hawkeye, (Jeremy Renner) to form The Avengers to prevent this from happening. 

            Now before I go into what makes this film good and bad, I need to get two things out of the way.  One: It’s not as good as or better than The Dark Knight.  The writing, acting, characterization and themes just aren’t as good.  But I wasn’t expecting it to be and that’s not something you should go into this film thinking.  However, I can honestly say that this is easily the best of the Avenger films, and a contender for Marvel’s best comic book film.

            Now, starting with what they got right, they knocked it out of the park!  Mainly, the characters.  Robert Downy Jr. gave what was easily his best performance as Iron Man.  He’s still funny but his stupid antics are gone and what we get instead is a very serious, dramatic performance that’s still able to put in a few laughs every now and then but never to the point of where it dilutes the performance.  We also finally get to see the arc reactor power something besides the Iron Man suite which was incredibly refreshing, (I was having my doubts that we ever would). 

I may have had my doubts about Chris Evans in Captain America: The First Avenger, but here he gives it his all and turns in a very good performance.  While I’m still not convinced that he is Captain America, he played his part incredibly well.  They also address the relationship issue between Thor and Loki and you do feel how badly Thor wants Loki to abandon his evil ways and be his brother again and you wish he would to. 

We also get to see a lot more of Nick Fury and the various S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and they all come out as three dimensional characters.  We see a much more sinister side of the organization and Nick Fury proves to be the kind of overseer of the Avengers that I knew he was going to be.  We also get to see a lot more of Black Widow and learn a bit more about her past which was a good thing in my opinion.  Hawkeye was sadly underused here but whenever he was on screen he was awesome.  Agent Colson also had a much larger role here and we see a side of the character we never did before.   

            They guy who stole the whole show, however, was Bruce Banner/The Hulk.  I mean, good God!  It took them three movies and three different actors, writers and directors but they finally got him right.  Mark Ruffalo was perfect as Banner and you really got the sense that he was constantly trying to keep this monster in check and it’s obvious that many of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents are scared shitless of him.  They also got the look of the Hulk right.  While it was still obvious to me that it was CGI, it was good CGI and there was never a moment where I didn’t think that this thing was real.  The design of it was excellent as well as it actually looked like a giant green version of the actor; something that previous Marvel films failed to do.

            Another thing that really exceeded my expectations was the character interaction.  Now, in all honesty, I went into this film thinking that they were going bicker constantly and act the way The Justice League did in the D.C. Reboot; where they all tried to constantly prove who’s got the biggest junk.  This didn’t happen and thank God for that.  They all acted like adults and any bickering or arguments they had was believable, given their different personalities and situations.  The best interactions easily came from Stark, Banner, and Rodgers who all worked off each other perfectly and I just loved how quickly Banner and Stark became friends.  It was easily the biggest surprise of the film and I am so glad it turned out so well.  Ultimately, they’re all characters that we care about and I am so glad that Joss Whedon did such a great job in writing and directing these people.

            On the technical side of things, the film was also pretty good.  The visual effects were fantastic and I believed almost everything that I saw on screen.  While I think the action scenes could have used some better editing and should have been a bit longer they deliver the good and were a lot of fun to watch, particularity the climax and Thor’s fight with the Hulk.  And like all the other Avenger films, it had a great sense of humor, particularly involving the Hulk in the film’s final act.  Just be ready to bust a gut when you see these parts.

            But this film does have some problems, and I’d be lying if I said that they didn’t distract me.  For starters the first act of the film felt rushed and the main storyline didn’t really amount to much more then Loki and his benefactors are invading the Earth with an army of aliens and it’s up to a dysfunctional team of superheroes to stop them and like the last five has a lot of SSBS in it.  Loki may have been more menacing here but I honestly felt his motivations were better in Thor.  In this film, however, he crosses into one dimensional villain territory which was disappointing.  Chris Hemsworth may have improved as Thor but he still isn’t what I would call “good” in the role.  The explanation on how he got back to Earth was completely half-assed and didn’t amount to much more than “It’s magic bitch.  We don’t have to explain it.”  I also can’t help but wonder where the hell Rhodey was.  I mean, there is an alien invasion going on and Tony doesn’t think to include his best friend in on the matter?  And when it finally started hitting the fan, why didn’t he show up?

            There were also a few action scenes in the first act of the film, mainly the fight between Iron Man and Thor that felt completely useless and could have been cut out of the film all together.  About a third of the sound effects seemed off to me.  For some reason, a lot of gunshots didn’t actually sound like gunshots and explosions didn’t sound like explosions.  It was just odd.  Finally, like all the other Avenger movies, there is a post credit sequel bait scene which is continuing the franchise machine.  I really hate it when movies do that.

            All around, this film was exactly what I was hoping for and more then met my expectations.  Was the main plot flawed?  Yes.  But was it good?  No, it was fantastic.  The special effects were great, the action scenes were thrilling, it had a great sense of humor and the acting and character interaction was fantastic and this is the kind of summer blockbuster that deserves to succeed.  If you like superhero movies, particularly the Avenger films, go see this one.  You will not be disappointed.

All Around

8.75/10

Comic Book Movie Rating

Great

The Avenger Films

            Well as I’m sure we all know, The Avengers is coming out this Friday and people couldn’t be more hyped and once again I decided to give my thoughts on all the films leading up to this as I did last year when Thor and Captain America were being released.  The main problem with that post, however, is that I hadn’t actually watched any of those movies in a while so my head was a little clouded with my preconceptions.  So I decided to re-watch said films and give an updated opinion on them.

But before I get into this I’m going to have to establish a few things.  First is on my ratings and how I’ll be judging comic book movies from now on.  I’ll give my traditional 1-10 rating but I’ll also include another category I’d like to call my Comic Movie Rater.  At the bottom of the barrel will be 90’s Comic Book Movie level, which includes movies like Spawn, Steel and such.  Above that will be Bad, which include films like Batman and Robin and Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer.  Above that will be the Ok category which includes films like X-Men, a Good category that includes films like Hellboy 2: The Golden Army, a Great category that includes films like X-Men: First Class and Spider-Man 2 and another category that I like to call Dark Knight Level.  What the hell is that last one supposed to mean?  Well, essentially it’s a category that is almost exclusively held for Chris Nolan’s comic book films; ones that are able to apply summer blockbuster appeals to said film but have acting, characters and story that are up to par with any Oscar Bait you’ll find.  Needless to say you won’t find any films in this post in that category.

The second is a term I have to establish: Shitty Summer Blockbuster Syndrome, (or SSBS).  What is this you may ask?  Well, it’s a general style and tone that summer blockbusters tend to have which makes it clear that these films are just for fun and not to be taken seriously.  While this can make for some good popcorn fun it ultimately guarantees that the film won’t hold up as well in the long term or be regarded as anything truly great beyond being a money maker.  Generally these kinds of films include scenes that are uber hammy, with acting, writing and a tone that is beyond clichéd trying and whenever they try mount up tension they fail utterly.  They also usually include incredibly hammy villains who try to kill kids and families to show how “evil” they are and usually make a poor attempt at a morality message.

So now that I’ve gotten all of that out of the way let’s begin.  Here are my thoughts on the Avenger films and how well they hold up today.

Iron Man

As I’m sure everyone who is reading this knows, Iron Man was the first of these films and was the one to kick start this whole thing, (and no Korsgaard that does not automatically make it good).  The plot is simple enough.  Billionheir Tony Stark decides use his weapons developing technology to fight evil after being captured by Islamic radicals.  In other words it’s an origin story; one purely made so sequels will follow but is considered the best of these films so far.  So what’s good and what’s bad about it?

Well for starters, you have Robert Downy Jr. and talk about perfect casting.  I mean they could not have gotten a better actor for the part.  He has the voice, the personality, the look, and the cocky attitude and even when the lines are terrible he somehow manages to bring class to it.  Ultimately, it’s one of those picks that everyone will remember even if they don’t remember the film.  The other cast members were also pretty good.  During the first half, Jeff Bridges was really good in his role as the supportive mentor, (unfortunately he ruins this during the second half).  Terrance Howard was also great in his role, and I wish that they brought him back in the second one and Gwyneth Patrow was also great as Pepper Pots.  I also really liked the way they showed him building his suit and how the first model wasn’t the best, (and as any inventor will tell you that is the case with any invention).  The special effects and sound editing were also great and I was able to believe about 70% of what was on screen, (and in this day and age that’s a rarity for me).  Oh! And it had a great sense of humor as well.

Finally, of all of these films, the buildup to the upcoming Avengers film was the best.  It was only their in little bits and pieces, but you better believe that every Marvel fan out their came their pants when they mentioned S.H.I.E.L.D. and saw Nick Fury in an after credits scene.

That said, the film does have its fair share of problems that I can’t look past.  Mainly it contains all of the SSBS stuff I mentioned earlier and I mean all of it.  From the uber hammy scenes to the ill-advised morality message, (although to be fair this one does do it better than most summer blockbusters).  It also contained a number of pop culture references that just piss me off and will probably make the film feel very outdated in a few years.  The villains are also incredibly one dimensional and their motivations don’t go beyond wanting money and power.  The action scenes are too few in number and not particularly well done and I fell that with a superhero film that’s kind of a necessity.  The writing for the supporting characters is also relatively weak and I seriously doubt that if any of them died that anyone would really care outside of the comic fanboys.  And I’m just going to say this because we all know it’s true: it’s a Batman Begins rip-off.  It follows the exact, and I mean the exact, same formula from the character ending up in some foreign nation, to returning to fight crime, to his mentor betraying him, to a triumphant cliffhanger but did an all-around poorer job of it.

So with all of that said, I honestly found that this film hasn’t aged well at all.  The SSBS has only gotten worse with time and just makes the bad things stick out all the more.  I admit that all the positive things are still good, but they aren’t any better than they were when I first saw the film and the bad things have only gotten worse.  But still, I think that this is a good movie and considering all the other bad origin type comic book films that are out there, (Green Lantern, Thor), this is easily on of the better ones and one of the better comic book films on the market.

Verdict

8/10

Comic Book Movie Rating

Great

Unfortunately, it all goes downhill from here.

The Incredible Hulk

            Next on our list is the second Avenger film that happened to come out the same year as Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk. And, quite frankly, the number of good things I to say about this film are limited.  Ok, so what’s the plot?  Well, Dr. Bruce Banner is experimenting with gamma radiation when he is accidentally exposed to it which, in turn, causes him to turn into an enormous green monster known as the Hulk whenever he gets to mad.  This in turn leads General “Thunderbolt” Ross to hunt Bruce as he want to use the Hulk as a weapon and eventually employs Emil Blonsky in the hunt which has unexpected, destructive results. 

            So what’s good about this one?  Well the final fight with The Abomination was fantastic and is what untimely makes the film worth watching and there is something that I find so appealing about the uber nerd rage idea the story uses.  I also liked the way they took designs, styles, and music from the old show and it’s obvious that the film makers were fans of it.  The rest of the film, however, is a bit of a mixed bag. 

            While I wouldn’t necessarily call the acting in this film bad, it left something to be wanted.  The actors really didn’t seem to connect with their roles the way they do in say Iron Man, and you may hate me for saying this but I thought the casting in Ang Lee’s Hulk was a lot better.  All the actors involved with that film really seemed invested in their roles and to me came off as perfect picks.  A lot of the action scenes that didn’t involve the Abominations just didn’t seem right.  Like in one instance where the Hulk throws a car engine at another car and you don’t even see it make contact with said car.  It’s just already a mess.  I mean what the hell?  You also have a lot of the SSBS stuff I’ve mentioned before; the awkward scenes, the hammy villains, and the irritating, stupid sounding dialog.       

            However, none of this is to the point of where the film is unwatchable but it’s probably the most forgettable and is one that if you don’t see you’re not really missing much.  It’s not in the bad category, but considering the fact that it doesn’t look like you’ll need see it in order to get what is going on in The Avengers, I’d give it a pass.

Verdict

6/10

Comic Book Movie Rating

Ok

Iron Man 2

           If The Dark Knight, X2: X-Men United, and Spider-Man 2 are perfect examples on how you do a superhero sequel, Iron Man 2 is an example on how you don’t do one.  To put it simply, this a sequel that seemed to have taken a step back when it should have been taking a step forward.  The storyline follows Tony Stark as he battles a new enemy from his family’s past as well as a blood poisoning problem and the government’s attempts to claim the Iron Man suit.

           So before I start tearing this sequel a new one, what works in it?  The acting, visual effects, and sense of humor are all still good.  The action scenes were a vast improvement over the first one and I really enjoyed the music.  I enjoyed Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko, Sam Rockwell as Hammer and Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, (although they never call her that for some reason).  Don Cheadle wasn’t as good as Terrance Howard as Rhodey but he still does a good job in the role.  Samuel L. Jackson I felt was a bit of a mixed bag in this movie.  On one hand, it seems like he’s playing the same role he has been sense Pulp Fiction.  On the other hand, it’s Samuel L. Jackson playing a hardass leader.  Who better to whip superheroes asses with mental abuse until they do what he says?  He’s just one of those actors who can pull off being intimidating, charismatic, and understanding all at once and I’m curious to see how he’ll be used in the future. 

            Everything else, however, took a nose dive in quality.  For starters the plot had a great concept but poor execution.  The general idea behind it, and the way it was advertised made it seem like they were going to show the darker side of the Starks; lives that were destroyed by their accomplishments and it seemed like we were going to get a real intense hero/villain relationship between Tony and Ivan.  Instead this took a back door to Tony’s antics when he thought he was dying.  Honestly, at least half of the movie was dedicated to him acting like a complete jackass.  While the first one tried to have some kind of morality message, this one just ignores that idea completely, eliminating any attempt at intelligence.  The SSBS was a hell of a lot more noticeable and reached new heights of stupidity with action sequences that felt pointless, even more scenes that just felt really forced, and all kinds of little things like the metal gong sound that you heard whenever metal hit metal just for a comedic effect and is often completely inappropriate for the situation and completely kills any tension the scene may have had.  The ending also felt really rushed and I swear at least a sixth of this film was dedicated just to promoting The Avengers, which pisses me off beyond belief whereas the first film gave us just the right amount.  

           Despite all the bad I have to say, it isn’t a bad movie by any means but it’s one of those sequels that is the definition of “not as good as the first” and like the first one, it’s one that just get worse with repeated viewings.  It also started an annoying trend in the Avenger films, (and my biggest reason for hating this franchise), where they became less about making good movies and telling the best story they could and more about promoting and hyping up future movies and this shows no sign of slowing down, with the upcoming Iron Man 3 is supposedly setting the stage for Avengers 2. 

But again, this isn’t a bad comic book movie, or even a bad movie.  It’s just not as good as the first and one of those sequels that will be, (or already has been), completely forgotten about.

Verdict

7/10

Comic Book Movie Rating

Good

Thor

           If there was a movie in this franchise that didn’t deserve to earn money or be as popular as it was it would be Thor, and, my God, does this one suck.  So what’s the plot?  Well, that’s kind of a difficult question to answer considering that the plot is one of the biggest problems with the film.  The best I can describe it is that Thor is stripped of his powers sent to earth to learn humility after nearly starting a war with the Frost Giants.  And before I turn into the comic book movies’ version of Linkara, let me just get what I like about the movie out of the way.

           For starters, the art direction of this film is fantastic.  Asgard and Jotunheim both looked fantastic as did the sets and costume designs of all the Asgardains.  Anthony Hopkins was great as Odin as was Stellan Skarsgard as Professor Selvig and Idris Elba as Heimdall and Lady Sif and the Warriors Three were all really likeable.  Loki was also well acted during the first act of the movie and his actual motives were surprisingly complex.  I also liked some of the jokes and a few of the one liners brought a smile to my face.

           However, the film fails everywhere else and is something that I could literally rant about for hours.  For starters was the way the movie was advertised was just a complete lie.  The concept, and the way they promoted it, was that Thor is an arrogant warrior who is banished to earth to become one of its champions.  The latter portion of that is a complete lie and I hate it when movies do that.  And for a movie that was promoted as an action fess, the action wasn’t well choreographed or edited together. 

           The next major problem with this film was our lead character of Thor.  Mainly, they needed to pick a better actor for the part.  I liked Chris Hemsworth in Star Trek and Cabin in the Woods, but here it just seemed like they just decided to go with the biggest, best looking blond guy they could find and give him the part.  It’s just one of those acting jobs that you can clearly tell that the guy is playing a role.  You don’t see Thor when this guy acts you just see some dude pretending to be Thor and he really hams up the role and was probably the worst actor out of all the Avenger characters. 

           But then we come to the films biggest problem; the story and how it fails on every, and I mean every, front.  For starters we have the actual reasoning behind Thor’s banishment; his retaliation against the Frost Giants against his father’s orders.  Am I the only one who thinks Thor was in the right on that one?  I mean, they break into Asgard to steal a weapon and Odin knows fully well what will happen if they get that weapon, so why the hell was he so against retaliation.  And when it was fairly obvious that war was going to happen, why the hell would he banish his best fighter?  It makes no sense.  And assuming that Thor was in the wrong, (something that I don’t believe), do you really expect me to believe that he went through all that character development, (little of which we actually see) in 2 days?!  He goes from an arrogant warrior who craves battle to a wiser man who knows what not to do in wartime situations after having a few beers with Professor Selvig and giving Natalie Portman astronomy lessons?  Are you fucking kidding me!?  I mean there is suspending disbelief and then there is just insulting one’s intelligence.  The actual story arc doesn’t work at all either.  In short, it didn’t feel like a two hour movie so much as it did a cartoon three-parter, written around the special effects and set pieces and that is not the way films should go.  It just insults me to think that the screenwriters and executives who green-lit this thought that this would pass for a plot and it’s incredibly obvious that the writing was thrown together just makes something to promote The Avengers.  And you know what really pisses me off about this?  This one is not skippable!  From the way The Avengers looks right now, Loki is the main villain so watching this movie will probably be required to get what is going on with him!

           Ok.  Rant over.  As you can tell, I hate this movie with a passion, and consider it the Avenger films’ low point.  I will say that with repeated viewings the good things have gotten better but the bad things have only gotten worse.  With, The Incredible Hulk, it’s obvious that they were still testing the waters and Iron Man 2 only failed as a sequel and not as a movie but this one just fails to get the important things right; the story and the protagonist.  And if Thor and Loki are going to play as major parts as I think they are then Joss Whedon has one hell of a mess to clean up.

           Luckily as time goes on, I’m finding that fewer and fewer people stand by this film and more share my opinion of it.  I won’t put this film in the Bad category simply because I don’t think it’s bad enough to place with the likes of Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer but it’s one that really skirt that line and remains my least favorite of the Avenger films as well as Marvel films.

Verdict

6/10

Comic Book Movie Rating

OK

(But Just Barely)

Captain America

           After Thor, I had all but given up on the Avenger films and was fully convinced that The Avengers was going to suck.  After all, when you film roster consists of a Batman Begins rip-off, its forgettable sequel, a forgettable Incredible Hulk film, and another with a storyline that episodes of Justice League and Spider-Man, (1990 series), could surpass, it doesn’t inspire much confidence.  But then came along Captain America and, good God, this one was a shock but a pleasant one and may be my personal favorite of the Avenger films.  The story takes place during WWII where Steve Rogers volunteers to become the world’s first super solider after being deemed unfit for military service and in doing so becomes involved with the U.S. Army’s attempts to stop the Nazi leader known as Red Skull from using a mysterious power source to destroy all of his enemies. 

           So what works in this film?  Why do I like it so much?  Well, the story was surprisingly well done, especially concerning the subject matter; the super solider serum, the source or Red Skull’s power and whatnot and to be perfectly honest I went into this fully expecting to hate and be insulted by it the way Thor did.  The story ark also worked incredibly well, making the transition from the origin story to the superhero story seamless in ways that most superhero origin films can’t.  There was also a great self-satire thing they had going on where Captain America was used as an icon to get people to buy war bonds and it matched the mood, time period and setting of the film perfectly.  The connections to the upcoming Avengers film also works surprisingly well as this film acts more like a prequel to the whole thing and manages keeps the connections appropriate. 

But the biggest surprise to me was how likeable and fleshed out the supporting cast was.  You actually care about what happens to them and when some of them die it makes you sad.  You see them all talk to each other and know that they’re friends.  You know that they care about one another and are willing to die for one another in the short amount of screen time some of them have, which is a sense that the other Avenger films seemed to have failed to get.  The part where this is the most apparent is one of the final sequences where all of Captain America’s friends are grieving over his apparent death and attempting to at least find his body.  It’s just an incredibly well acted, well written and well edited scene and is one of the most tear wrenching moments I’ve ever seen in a Marvel film. 

The character of Bucky is a friend of Steve’s that you like, Abraham Erskine is a man whose ideologies you can respect and relate to and Howard Stark is an incredibly entertaining and likeable supporting character and the others were good for their own reasons as well.  Tommy Lee Jones was also great as the no nonsense colonel and Hugo Weaving was fantastic as Red Skull and was probably the best villain the Avenger films have produced yet.

           Unlike all of the other films mentioned here, the action was incredibly well shot and put together and made for some incredibly entertaining action sequences.  I had all but given up on finding good action scenes in the Avenger films so this one was a big breath of fresh air in that department.

There are some things that annoy me about this film, however.  As usually we have the SSBS and cheese ball factors, (and this film can be incredibly cheesy), which can be distracting.  The main difference between this film and the other Avenger films is that this on fully embraces it and is actually able to turn it to its advantage.  But on the other hand, it still is really cheesy and can be distracting if you’re not in the right mindset.  There were also a lot of crappy green screen effects that were so fake that it wasn’t even funny along with the fights whenever he threw his shield or got into a hand to hand fight with regular soldiers.  Their also a few weird plot holes at the end of the film and if you’ve seen the HISHE video of it you probably know all about that.  Like Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans may not have been the best pick for Captain America as I don’t really see Captain America when he acts.  I just see some dude pretending to be Captain America.  While it’s not to the same extent as Chris Hemsworth in Thor, it remains an issue for me.  Finally, it is still Captain America.  You can only take that ridiculous name, concept, and outfit so far but it will still be distracting. 

           All around, however, this is the only one of the Avenger films that I can honestly say that I loved.  The action was great, the story and concept worked better than I ever dared hope and the characters were likeable and fleshed out.  These were things that I had all but given up on in finding in an Avenger film and it is undoubtedly my favorite of the five.

Verdict

7.75/10

Comic Book Movie Rating

Great

           And those are my thoughts on the Avenger movies.  Do I like them?  Well, except for Thor, yes.  The first Iron Man movie, despite being a Batman Begins rip-off, essentially took a B list superhero and brought him into the mainstream in a big way.  The second may not have been a good sequel but it was still a good movie and The Incredible Hulk did have a few things that I found appealing.  Thor I despise and have no idea how people like it, (seriously it has a 77% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.  How the hell is that possible!?), and I loved Captain America from start to finish. 

           But I hate this franchise.  Why you may ask?  Well, I despise their marketing practices.  As I mentioned before, Thor and Iron Man 2 were obviously made just to promote The Avengers and build up to it rather than making a good movie and telling a good story.  It’s just as obvious when you look at Captain America and Iron Man but in those films they actually made great movies out of the situation.  And from what I know about Iron Man 3, this is a practice that they’re going to continue.  It also doesn’t help that the majority of the people who direct these films are either no named film makers like Jon Favreau or brunt out directors like Kenneth Branagh and it just so obvious that the marketers are the ones who dictate how the film goes rather than the actual filmmakers and this again is a practice that they’re going to continue, (they kicked the director out who tried to take charge of Thor 2).  And that’s what pisses me off about the franchise and will probably keep me from ever being any kind of hardcore fanboy.  Now if they were bring in Spider-Man and Wolverine, and then we’ll start talking.

           So what do I expect from The Avengers this weekend?  Well I’m expecting, NAY! DEMANDING!, that this film be better than all of its predecessors that were made to build up to this one.  What I’m not expecting, however, is characterization, writing, acting and plot up to par with The Dark Knight.  I’m just expecting an above average summer blockbuster and hopefully that’s what I’ll get.  My biggest fear is that it will have a plot on par with The Expendables, (liked that movie but let’s be honest.  The plot was bad), and have character interaction on par with Star Trek, (2009), (basically where each character has about seven minutes of dedicated screen time and is quickly forgotten about afterwards), but if Firefly and Serenity proved anything, it’s that Joss Whedon is a much more talented writer then that and cares to much about his characters to allow that to happen.  More on this film will hopefully follow this weekend.  So until next time, this is The Illusive One signing off.

Thor

            As my more dedicated readers know, back in May I did an article dedicated to all the Avenger related films in preparation for the release of the Thor and Captain America films but it took me a while to finally get around to seeing either of these films.  Why did it take me so long?  Well, I always have caution when it comes to films that have commercials showing almost nothing but action sequences and the main character and a love interest kissing.  To me, that's never a good sigh and more often than not, I'm right in this regard.  So I saved my ten bucks and just decided to wait a few months for it to be released on DVD.   So, should I have spent my ten bucks on it in theaters or was I right in waiting for its DVD released?  Well let’s find out.  This is The Illusive One's Review of Thor.

            The film revolves around Thor, (duh), played by relative new comer Chris Hemsworth as he starts what could lead to a war between the gods of Asgard and the Frost Giants of Jotunheim.  To punish him for this, his father Odin, played by Anthony Hopkins, sends him to Earth to learn humility and possibly atone for what he has done.

            On the positive side, I have to say the characters were really interesting, likeable and I wanted to know more about them.  Thor was interesting in the way a lot of arrogant warriors are.  Their ass holes but you can't help but like them.  Others like Loki, the Gate Keeper and Thor's band of warriors were all interesting as well and kept you interested in them.  Granted they weren't that original and didn't really leave much of an impression but they were still good for what they were.  Professor Selvig, played by Stellan Skarsgard was also good in his role but I think he may have been a bit downplayed.  Like he was intended to have a larger role but was cut down for the sake of time.  The other characters were also good for what they were but were relatively forgettable in the grand scheme of things.

            I also felt that the concepts of the Norse Gods were also really cool and creative.  One thing I never understood though is if they were supposed to be aliens.  Anyone have any thoughts on that?  And are they immortal?  It certainly suggests that they are but I'm honestly not sure.  Likewise I really loved the look of the Frost Giants in this film.  They were threatening, demented and looked different from any other rendition of frost giants I had seen before.

            The last good thing I have to mention about this film is that there were a few good one liners that brought a smile to my face.

            However, I would be lying if I said this move didn't have its faults and it had a lot of them.  For starters, the whole thing seemed rushed.  I think Thor spends a total of two days on Earth, yet he goes, (and I use that word very loosely), through all this character development and forms relationships with all these people.  As a result, it seems very forced and, for a lack of better word, unconvincing.  One moment he's this arrogant warrior with a love for battle and a day later he has a lot more value for life.  It just didn't sit well with me and seemed unconvincing and rushed.

            Speaking of which, the plot wasn't very good.  The concept for it was, but the execution wasn't.  As I mentioned it was very rushed and was way too predictable.  Just about everything that happened in this film I saw coming a mile away.  I can think of only one instance where I was surprised in this film but that's it and even those surprises weren't big shocks to me.  I'm not sure if it was the writing, the acting, or the directorial style but they just seemed like underwhelming twists.

            Then we have the action scenes and, my God, these were dull.  Wait, I take that back.  They weren't dull.  They were underwhelming.  At times they seemed very traditional, but even those weren't very well choreographed and seemed to suffer from a lot of editing issues.  Other times, they just sucked.  Take for example, the fight in the town with that...robot thing.  Underwhelming, poorly choreographed, and had a very anticlimactic conclusion.  Hand in hand with the action are the special effects.  I don't want to say they were terrible, but they really could be bad at times.  Whenever I saw Asgard, I was always aware that I was looking at a CGI effect.  Their just didn't seem to be any attempt to make the buildings look real.  The same goes with some of the frost giants.  When they were GCI, moving, or fighting, they looked like crap and almost as if they weren't finished effects.

            Last but not least is the acting and dialog.  There really isn't a whole lot to say about it, other then, it was all really hokey.  And I mean, really hokey.  Granted there are a few good lines every now and then but for the most part, it was just...well hokey and that's all I have to say about it.

            All around, I think the best word to describe this movie is ok.  It's not bad, but it's not great either.  It just stuck me as being rushed and underwhelming.  I certainly enjoyed it but I don't think it's anything special.  It's not as good as the Iron Man films and is more or less on par with The Incredible Hulk but I think it's safe to say that, out of the Avenger films, it's probably the worst.  That doesn’t mean the film is bad or anything but it just seemed like it could have been a lot better.  I would certainly recommend it to other people and, to be perfectly honest, I really want to see a sequel to this film but on its own it just ok.  It's worth anyone's time, but it's just ok.

All Around

6.75/10

            So that's my opinion on Thor and I know a lot of you are probably pissed at me for trying to slaughter a sacred cow, but we all have our own opinions and I'll respect yours as long as you respect mine.  If you don't....well...go fuck yourself because I don't have time for people like you.  So until next time this is The Illusive One sighing off.

On The Avenger Related Films

           As I mentioned in my Superman post, I'm not much of a fan of comics.  Not that there is anything wrong with them, I just never made it a habit of reading them.  In my childhood, no one I knew really read comics as we were all riding bikes, watching cartoons, playing made up games, or playing video games.  Later in my life, when I was old enough to actually appreciate them and read them, comics were dead in the modern world and once again no one I knew read them so I had no drive to read them.  That, however, that doesn’t stop the fact that series created by both Marvel and D.C. Comics were staples in my youth as I watched the animated adaptations of them all the time.  When the film adaptations were released, I always saw them at one point or another and with the film adaptation of Thor due for release later this week, I thought I'd give my thoughts on all the Avenger related films.  This post will contain my thoughts on the films Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Hulk, and The Incredible Hulk.  I won't go into the 1990 film Captain America because I never saw it or any of the TV adaptations because if I do, well be here until August.  So for now, this is The Illusive One's thoughts on the Avenger Related Films.

Hulk

           To start things off, let’s take a look back at Ang Lee's 2003 film, Hulk.  To this day, it's considered to be one of the worst superhero films ever made, (although I'd have to give the crown in this category to Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer).  Now, to start off, I'm going to admit two things.  First, I haven't seen this film in years, so this is just based on my memory of it.  Second, when I first saw this film, I didn't think it was that bad.  Your opinion of me may be lessened by this news but at least some people shared my opinion as it grossed over 200 million so make of that what you will.  It starred Eric Bana as Bruce Banner, Jennifer Connelly as Betty Ross, Sam Elliot as General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, Josh Lucas as Major Glenn Talbot, and Nick Nolte as David Banner, Banner's insane father.  The plot of it revolves around Banner just before and after he has been exposed to the radiation that turns him into the Hulk as he tries to hide it and then uses it to defend himself from Thunderbolt and later against his insane father.

            From what I remember, the casting of this film was perfect.  I always thought Bana was good as Banner, Connelly was good as Betty and Josh Lucas was just a dick as Talbot.  Despite the fact the part was mostly made up for the film, I thought Nolte was delightfully insane as Banner's father.  But I have to say, the best in the cast was Sam Elliot as Thunderbolt who was ruthless but could be sympathetic and was probably the best decision they made for this film.  I also thought some of the action scenes were good, especially when the Hulk threw a tank across a desert or spit a missile at a chopper. 

            On the negative side, however, the film completely departed from the storyline of the original comics.  It made the reason for Banner's transformation genetic, something only awakened by the accident rather than being the cause.  The plot just sucked and the directorial style did likewise.  For one thing, it did that thing where they place multiple camera angles into a single shot similar to the way they did in 24, but it didn't work well in it at all and was just flat out annoying.  While I thought Nick Nolte was great in his part, it, like the rest of the plot elements, made no since and of all the Marvel villains they could have used, they just made this one up, (although I have heard that he is loosely based off an obscure Marvel villain known as the Absorbing Man but it was still a poor choice).   Then you had the Hulk himself who looked like a cartoon and was just too indestructible.  I know that's suppose to be the idea of it, but this film just took it a little too far.  To sum up my negative thoughts for this film in a single sentence; it was an action film that tried to be artsy or an artsy film that tried to be an action movie, (I'm not sure which), and ended up failing at both.

            While the casting was good and some of the action scenes were entertaining, the rest of the movie just sucked.  The plot made no since, the characters likewise, and just couldn't stay true enough to the source material.

All Around

5/10

Iron Man

           What happens when you take a second rate superhero, put in the hands of a second rate director, and fill it up with cast members who aren't at the highest points of the careers?  Well, you get Iron Man and to tell you the truth I thought it was good but overrated film and before you get pissed off at me allow me to explain.  It was released in 2008 and stared Robert Downy Jr. as Tony Stark, Jeff Bridges as Obadiah Stane, Stark's mentor, Terrence Howard as Stark's best friend James “Rhodey” Rhodes, Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Stark's personal secretary, and was directed by Jon Favreau.  The plot of it mainly revolves around Stark as he first constructs the Iron Man suit, his fighting against terrorists, and attempts to get his company back under his control. 

            On the positive side, you have the acting.  Say what you want about Downy Jr., the guy was just perfect for the part.  In this film, he was all at once funny, an asshole, charming, cool, and a genius and you don't see too many characters like him.  Paltrow as Pepper was funny and serious all at once and Terrence Howard was perfect as Rhodey.  Then you have the individual scenes that were just funny as hell such as when he somehow talks people into doing whatever he wants them to.  For example, he manages to charm a reporter to sleep with him, even though she is trying to have a serious conversation.  Another that comes to mind is when he convinces Rhody to drink with him on his private jet and then the flight attendants start pole dancing.  I mean what the hell?!  Not a complaint but still, how did that happen?  There was also a lot of good humor in other parts, particularly revolving around Stark creating the suit and how he messes it up.  It's kind of odd, but it almost felt more like a comedy then a superhero film but it was still great in that department.

            On the negative side, there were very few action scenes in this film which is very surprising for any superhero film, especially one that was one of the highest grossing films of the year and the few action scenes they had were too short and weren’t satisfying at all.  Then you had Jeff Bridges as Stane who's role as a villain was ruined in the promos for this film, (the build up to it suggests it was suppose to be a twist), and to be fair, he wasn't that great of one.  Why?  Well, he was to obvious, he didn't play the part of a villain that well, and monologue to much when he had the hero right where he wanted him.  Biggest villain cliché in history.  Finally, it seemed like it was trying to be the Batman Begins of Iron Man; more focused on establishing the characters and technical aspects of everything, rather than just getting to it.

            All around, I did enjoy this film but thought it was overrated.  The casting was great, the special effect were done well, and was at times hilarious.  Unfortunately it spent too much time building up to the fighting and had very little payoff and Jeff Brides just wasn't that good as a villain.  It was good, but not that good.

All Around

8/10

The Incredible Hulk

           Ah, now this was the film adaptation fans of The Incredible Hulk had been waiting for.   Unfortunately it came out the same year as Iron Man so it’s lived in its shadow.  It starred Edward Norton as Bruce Banner, Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky, Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, and William Hurt as General Thunderbolt.  The plot of this one revolved around Bruce Banner as he tried to find a cure for himself while avoiding Thunderbolt's men and fighting against Blonsky, the specialist they brought in who would eventually become the Abomination.

            On the positive side, this film had everything Ang Lee's Hulk lacked.  The action was good and believable, (as far as the subject matter goes), and the Hulk didn't look like a cartoon in this one.  Granted, it was still obviously CGI but it actually looked like something that could be real, where as the last one just looked like Shrek on steroids or something.  You also had a great antagonist in Blonsky who would later become the Abomination and the final fight between it and the Hulk was just awesome.  It also contained many references to the original series from the 1970s, ranging from the look of Banner's laboratory to the theme song and they were nice little tributes.

            On the negative side, however, this film lacked everything that was good about Ang Lee's Hulk.  Norton was good as Banner but he wasn't great either and the same can be said for the rest of the cast with the exception of Tim Roth.  Most of the actors seemed like they were their just to collect a paycheck and get on with their days and there was very little dialoged throughout the entire film and most of it was spoken blandly without much effort behind it.

            With that said, I thought the action in this film was great, as were the little references to the old series but it suffered from bland acting and little dialoged.  It's not terrible but it certainly could have been a lot better.

All Around

7/10

            Before I move on, I have to mention that the part of Bruce Banner has once again been recast for the upcoming Avengers film.  This time the part is going to Mark Ruffalo, who had apparently been everyone's original choice but the CEO of Marvel at the time wanted Norton for the part so he got it.  Film studio politics.  Don't you just love them?

Iron Man 2

           Last on my little list and, until Saturday, the last of the Avenger related films, is Iron Man 2.  Released last year, so far, it's the only sequel to any of the Avenger related films.  All of the previous cast members returned, with the exception of Terrence Howard, who was replaced by Don Cheadle, (studio politics again I assume) and I found this a bit strange, considering that they casted Howard for the part because they thought he would be good as War Machine in the sequels.  Ironic, isn't it?  Anyway, this film added Mickey Rourke to the cast as the villain Ivan Vanko, a.k.a. Whiplash, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer, Stark's corporate rival, and Scarlet Johansson as Natasha Romanoff, a.k.a. Black Widow.  In it, Stark tries to resist the government's attempts to claim the Iron Man suit, while dealing with a slow but steady poisoning of his body, due to his use of the arc reactor.  To complicate matters further, Ivan Vanko, son of a man who co-designed the original arc reactor shows up with his own arc reactor powered weapons with a vendetta against Stark.

            On the positive side the cast members who returned were all once again great in their parts.  Don Cheadle was good as Rhodey, and the new cast members were great in their parts.  Mickey Rourke was a great villain, Samuel L. Jackson was perfect as Fury, (but can you really think of a part he hasn't been great in?), Scarlett Johansson was great as Black Widow, (although they kind of drifted from the original character's profile), and Sam Rockwell was great as Hammer.  The action in this film was also a lot more satisfying then the action of the first film and the first fight with Whiplash was incredibly entertaining, (although in ways you wouldn't expect).  The humor was also good, mainly revolving around Stark's antics, thinking death was near but wasn't as funny as the first film.

            On the negative side, the action scenes were once again a bit underwhelming.  Even though it was better than the action in the first film, it was still a bit of a letdown, particularly the final fight with Whiplash.  And once again, the humor was good but just wasn't as good as the humor in the first film.  Finally, the ending just felt rushed and I don't know how else to describe it. 

            All around, I have to say this film wasn't really any better or worse than the first.  They improved where they needed to improve but not by a great deal and the humor went a bit downhill but not by much.  Maybe it's because I didn't hear as much praise on this film as I did the first but this one seemed just as good as the first and just as bad. 

All Around

8/10

           So what else can I say about these films?  Well, they're all typical summer blockbusters and not much more.  Each film is good, but they're by no means perfect and I personally prefer the dark tone of other films like the latest Batman films or Watchmen as opposed to these films.  Don't get me wrong.  I still enjoy them but I don't think any of them have a chance of being remembered in the long run.  Thor is due for release this Saturday and I don't think it's going to be much different.  It looks like it will be good but not much more than a popcorn movie.  Then in June, Captain America is being released, and I have no intention of seeing that.  Why you may ask?  Well, Iron Man and Thor may be second rate superheroes but Captain America....I don't know what to say and if you can't figure it out on your own....you have my pity.

           And those are my thoughts on the current Avenger related films.  Some of you may hate me for my opinion on these films but I say each to his own.  I may or may not see Thor later this month, so don't expect a review on it anytime soon.  So until next time, this is the Illusive One-

(Bullet flies past Illusive One's head)

Illusive One: WHOA!  WHAT THE HELL!?  OH CRAP! KORSGAARD!

Korsgaard: HOW DARE YOU GIVE IRON MAN A LESS THAN PERFECT REVIEW!

Illusive One:  SHIT! I GOTTA GO!  LATER!

(Illusive One runs out of building as more bullets are shot at Illusive One)

Korsgaard:  HOLD STILL SO I CAN SHOOT YA!

Illusive One:  YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE!

Korsgaard:  WHO SAID THAT WAS MY INTENTION?!

Illusive One: SHIT!

To be continued..........