Lilo & Stitch
As my girlfriend is a giant Disney-phile, this is one of Zoë's favorite movies. For me, it was OK. I dunno. It sort of kept my attention, but it wasn't anything to write home about. I feel like probably everyone else has seen it at this point, so I'm glad I've got it under my belt, but I don't imagine I'll be re-watching it anytime soon -- at least by my own choice.
Zootopia
Speaking of Disney, this was a delightful little film that critics are already hailing as an early Oscar contender. I certainly enjoyed it myself and thought the underlying tale on racial prejudice was interesting. Also the film had Shakira in it. So, you got me right there.
I put this in the same bucket as Lilo & Stitch in that I wouldn't plan on watching it again anytime soon, but I did like it much more.
10 Cloverfield Lane
I... fucking... loved... this movie!
No surprise to Sweeney (or Stan if he ever gets around to it), but if you've read my script and see this film, there are definitely some strong similarities -- despite the fact that this story is far superior to mine. First off, it's a smart, yet incredibly simple story. Girl driving off after leaving her fiancé crashes her car and wakes up trapped in an underground bunker by a crazy-looking John Goodman who says it's the apocalypse outside. Tension and suspense (all things I respond very well to) are high throughout this film as you constantly waiver wanting to trust or not trust Goodman.
Another thing, Goodman is great in his role here as a slightly unbalance conspiracy theorist whack-job who's built a bunker in his backyard. Aside from his intimidating stature, you just never know if he's being compassionate or about to jump into crazy town.
After going through this whole thrilling adventure (that never leaves one location) you arrive at the final act where... well, you'll just see for yourself where this film ends up.
I'm not saying 10 Cloverfield Lane deserves any awards, but I had a damn good time watching. A DAMN GOOD TIME.
Also, despite this being in the same canon as Cloverfield, I didn't see that film before entering into this guy as wasn't lost for a second about what was going on. It can essentially stand on its own as far as I'm concerned. (Just remember that Cloverfield was story about a Godzila-like monster attacking NY, if that helps.)
Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice
Ok... I'm clearly the only one on here that adamantly enjoys comic-superhero movies. I mean, they're the perfect popcorn movies and are completely deserving of that big screen, larger-than-life experience. That said, just because I see the cape crusader across the screen does not give it a free-pass as a great (or even mediocre) film. This guy right here is anything but that.
It was bad. Like, "Holy shit what were they thinking?" bad.
Despite my absolute love for Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns -- famous for establishing one of the most compelling Batman and Superman fight scenes ever -- I did my best to come into this film with an open mind. Free to receive whatever take/adaptation they were going to throw down. Unfortunately, what they threw down was pure garbage.
I honestly don't have time here to dissect all the ways the film failed for me, but I'll touch upon two crucial points.
First, the main villain... Lex Luthor. I can't for the life of me figure our what Lex Luthor wants, nor understand how he goes about trying to get it. I mean, on one level I get the sense he wants power (and sorry for advance if I'm spoiling anything, but I doubt anyone here gives two shits about this film), but give me something more than it. Does he want power to make the world safe? Does he want power to stop future alien invasions? It seems like he just wants power because POWER, but it's a very bland palate to start building a villain around. The industry would refer to this as an "arch" character in that there's very little dimension to their personality. They're evil and that's all there is to it. But, I'll humor the film for a moment. Even if we were to just go off the fact he wants "power" and nothing more, why does he want Batman and Superman to fight -- and, yes, through a very convoluted and elaborate scheme, he pits these two against each other. But, why? They weren't threatening you? Weren't really stopping you, nor aware of any "plans." So why have them fight? WHY?!
Luthor kidnaps Clark Kent's mom and forces Superman to do his will (which is to fight Batman), but he gets Batman to fight Superman because he's been sending him secret cards for months saying, "You let your family die!" (They allude that Robin has died or something... not that we really know that for a fact because no one fucking talks about it, but I assume that's how Luthor is trying to break Wayne's psyche.) And that's suppose to enrage Wayne enough he'll fight Superman? Guess so...
Context: As you've probably seen from the trailers, the whole world is in shock from the destruction and devastation of Metropolis that occurred in Man of Steel. Bruce Wayne took this hard as well and is all jaded and angry with Superman who he believes must be stopped. Ok, got it. But then why is Luthor sending Wayne all these random sociopath letters that are supposedly driving him insane. Let's ignore the fact that Luthor knows who Batman is for a second (even though the movie never touches on that HUGE POINT -- I mean that's fucking game changer right there and they gloss right over it) and just ask, how does this action serve his primary goal? The power thing. Who the fuck knows? I'm pretty sure the filmmakers didn't.
According to ComicVine.com, Luthor is considered one of the smartest men on the planet, perhaps the smartest. Initially, I was excited to see a Superman film where 1) Luthor is no longer running with a real-estate scheme, and 2) Luthor is always 10 steps ahead of everyone else. While we did move past the desire to gobble up spare land (yay!), Luthor is about as dumb as you can get in this film. Despite any classic flaws they may give him with an insatiable appetite for power and a complete hatred for any alien races, I would have loved for him to be not only be orchestrating brilliant plans that has the world wrapped around his fingers, but have him leaving audiences in shock as he surprises us with his deviousness. He does surprise, but only in his stupidity. I mean (SPOILERS) the guy blows up Congress and is instantly caught. Like, he doesn't even try and pin it on Superman or something. Just blatantly does something terrible and is busted. He goes about getting what he wants (power, I assume) in a fucking, mind-numbingly dumb way and that's such a let down.
I've been told from fans of the film that this is actually Lex Luthor, Jr. and not the iconic Luthor I know and anticipated from franchise. I don't have a response for this. Not only does this fail to validate my previous grievances, but just seems like a completely unnecessary choice from a story telling perspective. And that leads me into my second beef...
WHY THE HELL ARE THEY RUSHING THIS STORY?
This movie is pretty much two stories in one. Hell maybe it's three. Hard to say because I was dosing off halfway through. Big point is that I feel like DC/WB are sprinting out of the gate to catch up to Marvel in making their own Justice League movies (which I believe is due next year... Oh, sorry only part muther-fucking one is coming out next year. God...). Why the hell can't they take their time?
Unlike Marvel, DC has this tremendous gift of having complete control over all their intellectual properties -- meaning they can use each and every DC character. Unlike Marvel which is sort of fractured between three different studios (with at least Spider-Man sort of back under Disney's control). When you have access to all of your characters, is there anything wrong slowing building to the Justice League? Apparently WB totally disagrees and wants to jump into the big fights and ensemble pieces right away. Forget a gradual crescendo and allowing audiences to build relationships with several characters over a handful of movies. Just cram it all into one giant shit-storm and let's call it a day.
Say what you will about the Marvel movies (as I'm aware both Stan and Sween aren't keen on them because you guys both lack two eyes and a beating heart), but I find them entertaining and fun. They aren't just fun because shit blows up and people karate chop each other. They're fun because (for me) they offer three quintessential things I think are necessary for superhero films: heart, humor, and spectacle.
Now, it's no question that BvS has got spectacle. Zack Snyder definitely has a gift for aesthetic vision (as seen from 300), but this film completely lacks heart and humor. It's just big muscle men (and a muscle lady) grunting around and acting sad and illogical for nearly three hours.
I'm trying to keep my hopes up for the franchise because I adore Batman and the whole DC universe. The fact the Affleck is writing and directing the stand-alone Batman movie gets me excited (I'm mean if anyone knows story structure, it's the dude behind Good Will Hunting and Argo), but I'm definitely apprehensive for all the other titles despite how "excited" and "cool" the stills and trailers look.
Follow up: Since starting this post a week ago, WB has announce that director Zack Snyder might be on the outs in regards to the future of their Justice League material. Makes sense. BvS had all the ingredients to be a blockbuster juggernaut. Instead is made less than a $1 billion worldwide, and saw nearly a 70% drop in domestic revenue from week 1 to week 2. While every film is expected to earn less and less as their box office run goes on, 70% is definitely on the high side. As if word got out how much of a disappointment this film was.
Still, there are fans out there that wholeheartedly support this film. Defend it to the death. I don't agree with them at all, but I'm glad at least some folks go their money's worth of enjoyment out of this nearly 3 hour grainy-gritty, clobber-fest.
We've still got Suicide Squad coming out later this summer, and I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed that that film will (hopefully) blow me away.
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