Comics and Superhero movies

[theCapraAegagrus]

As I oppose the "M-She-U" moniker, but Phase Bore has ended, I have dubbed the next one... Phase Dive!

On an unrelated note; James Gunn's tweets wreak of pure, unfiltered narcissism. That movie is going to bomb with his direction.

[EvilDuncan]

Not really a comic book movie, but I just saw Dungeons & Dragons last night. A lot of fun! Good characters, good writing. Definitely felt like I was watching a campaign that repeatedly went off the rails, but in a good way! Highly recommend!

[rousselle]

I plan to catch the D&D movie with my kids next week.

[Harvonsgard]

I just watched D&D and I concur with EvilDuncan. In regards to epicness I expected it to be a bit more Lord of the Rings-ish and while I had some pretty good laughs, the humour felt sometimes a bit too marvel-esque. Special effects were top notch.

[rousselle]

Just caught John Wick 4, and it's a satisfying conclusion to the series. One of the fight scenes was sheer brilliance.

[MagikFingerz]

Just caught John Wick 4, and it's a satisfying conclusion to the series. One of the fight scenes was sheer brilliance.

Couldn't agree more. The movie was exactly what I hoped it would be, which is a rare occurrence.

[theCapraAegagrus]

Phenomenal interview (2 parts) between the 3 best directors of the comic book genre:

[theCapraAegagrus]

I'm going opening night, probably for the last time ever.

[Eric Lee]

I just watched D&D and I concur with EvilDuncan. In regards to epicness I expected it to be a bit more Lord of the Rings-ish and while I had some pretty good laughs, the humour felt sometimes a bit too marvel-esque. Special effects were top notch.

Watched it with my family last week. They loved it. They managed to balance the humor with the serious parts well. Those who have played the D&D RPG and familiar with the lore should appreciate how they carried out the fantasy elements and character classes.

I think most of the characters played their classes well. The many skills of the rogue and bard, how the confidence/charisma stat of the sorceror affects the spell casting ability. The fighting prowess of the barbarian. (Pity they didn't show the rage ability. That would have been cool) The Paladin was the best part. All the classic stereotypes of the Paladin were there and also showed the difference a high level character can make in a campaign. Page played Xenk so well. Really loved the walking a straight line over a rock part. Turns out it was improvised by Page.

Also a very nice touch with Themberchaud. Played his size brilliantly by having him rolll and slide all over the place. All in all, it's finally the D&D movie we deserved to get. EvilDuncan said it best that the movie played out like a campaign going off the rails. Hope the success of the movie will lead to sequels.

[Harvonsgard]

Hope the success of the movie will lead to sequels.

- I hope so, too. One of the better movies I watched for a long time. And I watch quite some.

[EvilDuncan]

Saw the new Guardians of the Galaxy last night. Great movie! It felt a little slow in parts of the first 1/2, but it really came together in the end. The 3rd act is just James Gunn at his best. Half way through the film, I was prepared to say it wasn't as good as the 2nd one, but the 3rd act absolutely changed my mind. Overall, it treated all of it's characters very well, and I was happy with where we left them.

Also, the main villain was amazing! I actually found him better than Kang (in Ant-Man), and his motivations were pretty good, as he wasn't just acting evil for the sake of being evil.

[Harvonsgard]

The second Guardians of the Galaxy left me wanting. I'll have to rewatch it but remember that I was not really a fan overall. The new one definitely had it all. Great movie imo.

Downside of the movie was that I had to buy the new Lego ship in hopes that despite not being a great Lego set it'll sell enough so Lego decides to make a bigger version of it like with the prior Guardians ship.

[rousselle]

Taking the family to see GotG3 on Saturday. W00t!

[theCapraAegagrus]

GotG Vol. 2's story was worthless, but the jokes mostly landed. It, and Captain Marvel, are the only 2 Infinity Saga films I intend on never owning. Still thinking about buying steelbooks for Black Panther, and Ant-Man and the Wasp.

I'm getting mixed reviews for Vol. 3 from the groups that I trust, so going to wait for Disney+ on that front. I already know that they butchered Adam Warlock, but hearing great things about The High Evolutionary, and a strong villain is often lacking in Marvel movies.

[rousselle]

I realize that I appear to be in the minority opinion here, but I rather like both GotG vols 1 and 2, and they are both among my favorites in the MCU.

While I realize that, in general, Lindsay Ellis can be a divisive figure when it comes to pop culture analysis, her piece on GotG 2 explains part of why I appreciate vol. 2 as much as I do:

[theCapraAegagrus]

I realize that I appear to be in the minority opinion here, but I rather like both GotG vols 1 and 2, and they are both among my favorites in the MCU.

While I realize that, in general, Lindsay Ellis can be a divisive figure when it comes to pop culture analysis, her piece on GotG 2 explains part of why I appreciate vol. 2 as much as I do:

To put it into the alternate perspective, feelings don't make up for a lack of consequence, for both the individual story itself and the greater narrative of the Infinity Saga. I find it odd that she'd single out the line right before Yondu's death, because it was written and delivered so terribly that it actually prevented me from feeling anything other than annoyance in that moment.

Sorry, but I can't watch this whore's video after the 2nd fake cry. My Cringeometer is overheating. If you wanna give me some Cliff's Notes explanation for her argument(s), I'll read it.

GotG Vol. 2 just lacks any sense of continuity and purpose. Star-Lord is also a Gary Stu in it. His success in defeating Ego is less-believable than Rey defeating Kylo Ren. Most of the tension came across as contrived without considerations.

[GandalfPC]

Well, just wrapped up a Mother’s Day visit, she is getting her hearing aid this Wednesday and admitted to me that she had not yet seen the Black Adam movie because she was waiting for the hearing aid so she could hear it (mind you she had been not hearing me for a year and that was peachy)

Turns out, after my mention that people here were awaiting news of how she enjoyed the movie and my pointing out that I thought the group might think she has a crush on the Rock - she said “of course I do”

We will be watching next weekend, and I shall report on her level of exuberance.

[rousselle]

So, the Rousselle clan took in GotG Vol. 3. I enjoyed it just fine as another episode in the adventures of the Guardians. It's possible my evaluation of it could go up or down upon future re-viewings. However, for now, while I enjoyed spending quality time with these characters again, it did not grab me the way the first two installments did, and the first couple acts of this movie were fine but felt slightly... longer than necessary. There was something off about the pacing.

Highlights: relationships between Quill and Nebula, Quill and New Gamora, Drax and Mantis, Drax and Quill, Groot and everybody, Rocket and everybody, and in particular, Rocket and the High Evil...er, Evol-utionary. That relationship and that resolution were really well done.

All the usual characters were great, although Quill had less development than he'd enjoyed in the first two, and while I really enjoyed spending time with all of them, the stand-out from this episode was absolutely Nebula. I mean, we are outright told that this is all about Rocket, but really, Nebula is the anchor of the team and of the movie. YMMV.

One of my kids absolutely loved it, the other two found it to be just another MCU smoothie. Again, your mileage may vary.

[Harvonsgard]

... it did not grab me the way the first two installments did, ...

Dafuq. 3 is so much better than the second one.

[theCapraAegagrus]

I got my tickets to The Flash for June 15th & 17th.

Preview sales are looking 'meh', but it's probably the #1 movie of all-time that box office doesn't matter for the fans. It may matter to James Gunn, and Ezra Miller, but there's no reason for the audience to care. If it gets good reviews, Muschietti could still direct the already-written sequel (or Justice League) with a new actor, because it will drive post-theater sales and enticement. Otherwise, it's the final film in a dead franchise-universe.

[theCapraAegagrus]

The Flash

If Act III's VFX weren't so wildly inconsistent, I'd probably give it a 4/5. However, that coupled with a long list of nitpicks, and some real head-scratchers makes it realistically a 3.5/5. A lot of what is shown in The Orb is purely stupid nostalgia-bait (apparently selected at random, with idiocy sprinkled in), and the hard ending doesn't make much sense. There's a lot to like, and if not for some shoddy scenes in Act III, I was truly convinced that 2 Ezra Miller were on-screen. I'm still excited to re-watch it tomorrow, but I'm glad that this is pretty much the end of CBMs for me.

[theCapraAegagrus]

The Flash

If Act III's VFX weren't so wildly inconsistent, I'd probably give it a 4/5. However, that coupled with a long list of nitpicks, and some real head-scratchers makes it realistically a 3.5/5. A lot of what is shown in The Orb is purely stupid nostalgia-bait (apparently selected at random, with idiocy sprinkled in), and the hard ending doesn't make much sense. There's a lot to like, and if not for some shoddy scenes in Act III, I was truly convinced that 2 Ezra Miller were on-screen. I'm still excited to re-watch it tomorrow, but I'm glad that this is pretty much the end of CBMs for me.

Having enjoyed it more the 2nd time, and processing mostly everything... I'd give it a little better score of 3.8/5. The scene when Flash first enters the Chronosphere is outstanding.

[guru]

The Flash

If Act III's VFX weren't so wildly inconsistent, I'd probably give it a 4/5. However, that coupled with a long list of nitpicks, and some real head-scratchers makes it realistically a 3.5/5. A lot of what is shown in The Orb is purely stupid nostalgia-bait (apparently selected at random, with idiocy sprinkled in), and the hard ending doesn't make much sense. There's a lot to like, and if not for some shoddy scenes in Act III, I was truly convinced that 2 Ezra Miller were on-screen. I'm still excited to re-watch it tomorrow, but I'm glad that this is pretty much the end of CBMs for me.

Having enjoyed it more the 2nd time, and processing mostly everything... I'd give it a little better score of 3.8/5. The scene when Flash first enters the Chronosphere is outstanding.

Same. Enjoyed it more the 2nd time.

[theCapraAegagrus]

Fury of the Gods is actually a decent movie. The first 30 minutes really captivated me. The VFX and OST were both poor at times. The writing was pretty good for the Shazamily. The idea to go with the Sisters of Atlas was actually clever - and IMO better - than going with Mr. Mind for the sequel. I like stories of consequence rather than just going with convenience. The ending was very mixed; Elicited some emotions with great acting, but I knew it would all be undone. I would really like to see the trilogy finalized, as Sandberg did a relatively good job, it's just too bad that the studio screwed everything up at this point (including the advertisement of this movie, and interfering with the creative outcomes).

[rousselle]

Finally saw The Flash last night. I liked it well enough. The humor mostly worked and had a different, organic feel to it that the MCU hasn't quite managed lately. I like how a certain character used pasta to explain the idea of time travel / multiverse, and as a huge fan of time travel and multiverse stories, it's a far better concept than the tree-branching concept.

Anyway. Liked it. Will likely see again at some point. That said... bring on Mission Impossible: Holy Schnikes!

[theCapraAegagrus]

Finally saw The Flash last night. I liked it well enough. The humor mostly worked and had a different, organic feel to it that the MCU hasn't quite managed lately. I like how a certain character used pasta to explain the idea of time travel / multiverse, and as a huge fan of time travel and multiverse stories, it's a far better concept than the tree-branching concept.

Anyway. Liked it. Will likely see again at some point. That said... bring on Mission Impossible: Holy Schnikes!

I'm tempted to buy it on digital when it comes out Tuesday.

[theCapraAegagrus]

If you're on the fence about seeing Oppenheimer, I would wait for home video. It's simply not cinematic enough for me to recommend a theater viewing. A good movie, but I wouldn't say it's as good as anything Nolan did pre-Dunkirk.

[EvilDuncan]

On the other hand, Barbie is a great theater experience! Saw it last night, and it's genuinely one of the funniest (and best.....and weirdest) movies I've seen in a while. It somehow manages to perfectly walk the line of at times going completely off the rails, while still maintaining strong narrative threads for all major characters. This movie has absolutely no right being this good. 10/10.

[rousselle]

I'm planning to Barbenheimer either this coming weekend or, more likely, the weekend after. I'm planning on the IMAX experience for Oppenheimer, even with Chris's recommendation above in mind, because I simply like the immersive quality of the video and I lovelovelove the sound design of those theaters. I'm told the best order to see them in is Barbie, then Oppenheimer. Yee ha.

[theCapraAegagrus]

I'm planning to Barbenheimer either this coming weekend or, more likely, the weekend after. I'm planning on the IMAX experience for Oppenheimer, even with Chris's recommendation above in mind, because I simply like the immersive quality of the video and I lovelovelove the sound design of those theaters. I'm told the best order to see them in is Barbie, then Oppenheimer. Yee ha.

More for those on the fence. Plain IMAX might be better than EMX for Oppenheimer. While Dolby Atmos is normally 'the best', some of the OST drowned out character dialogue that left me wanting a better mix or audio setup.