Worth A Read? Superman: Unchained

Back in 2011 DC Comics launched their New 52 out of the events of Flashpoint.  This was basically a re-launch for the entire DC Universe.  They erased decades of lore and alienated long-time readers.  Superman, Flash, and Wonder Woman were some of the main heroes that got quite the overhaul while characters like Green Lantern and Batman weren't so altered, mainly because they were DC's best selling titles.  As a Superman fan I tried giving the New 52 a shot, but couldn't get into it.  Lois and Clark were no longer together, wiping clean a quarter of a century relationship, and taking away a great story point in the Superman mythology.  After reading the first few story arcs I gave up on the Man of Steel.  But it's like I've said for quite some time, when it comes to Superman, it's all about who's writing him.

Scott Snyder, a favorite writer of mine after his wonderful Batman storyline, The Court of Owls, teamed up with legendary artist Jim Lee to bring us Superman: Unchained.  In this 9 part story we see the discovery of a government organization known as "The Machine."  Lead by General Sam Lane, The Machine has been working in secret ever since 1938 (the year Superman was first published) when an alien crash landed on Earth.  But it's not Kal-El of Kryton.  With the New 52 Clark crashed into the corn fields of Kansas much later.  This alien, known as Wraith, also absorbs his strength and abilities from the sun, but has absorbed decades of more UV rays than Superman, making him more powerful.  Soon The Machine and Wraith turn against the Man of Steel and show up at the Fortress of Solitude with high tech weapons and a desire to destroy Superman's clubhouse.  But of course, what great Superman story wouldn't include Lex Luthor, always pulling his own set of strings in the background.

To me, the right comic has to have both good writing and good art.  I've always enjoyed Jim Lee's style, and with Snyder writing I quickly was enthralled in this book.  Snyder's thought boxes are great as Clark thinks during a fight on how to avoid casualties and how to defeat an enemy that seems unbeatable.  Guest starring in this book are the other 2/3's of the Trinity, Batman and Wonder Woman.  They play small roles, but were used perfectly.  Wraith invades the Batcave in hopes of killing Bruce.  And just as he has his hands around his neck Mr. Wayne mutters, "penny for your thoughts" just before Wonder Woman hits Wraith with the giant coin in the Batcave.  It was around this time that I had to stop reading every few pages to geek out.

What Snyder does so well that few writers fail to grasp is that a good Superman story can't be about his external struggle, but the internal one.  Clark's thoughts about what he's thinking while he's fighting, and Luthor dissecting how Superman sees himself, are some of the dialogue highlights in this book.  To me, the weakest part of Unchained is Wraith, while powerful, he isn't has interesting of villain as a Luthor or a Zod.  But he's still a decent character who makes Clark challenge his mission and his strength.

While I still haven't bought into most of the New 52 titles the fact that you can enjoy Superman: Unchained without knowing about all the changes in the DCU helps make it a taster treat.  I'll always be a Superman fan, which is why I'm excited to check out what Geoff Johns and artist John Romita Jr have been working on.

WORTH A READ?:  Definitely 

How Chris Taylor "Conquered" the Star Wars Story

       No more than ten minutes ago did I finish reading a book I've been working on for about a week and a half.  Now, even though I'm a big comic book/graphic novel reader my wife will testify that I rarely pick up an actual book these days.  So what rare gem got me to spend hours reading without fabulous art accompanying it?  A Star Wars book of course.
       Several people I follow on Twitter reommended a book by Chris Taylor titled, How Star Wars Conquered the Universe. I have seen and read dozens of Star Wars documentaries over the years and thought it would not include anything I didn't already know.  But then I realized this book went all the way up to the selling of Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012, as well as details about the making of the Star Wars prequel films.
       It starts off talking about George Lucas's early life, including his struggle to get the first Star Wars film made; which all were things I knew about.  But included in these highlights were minuet details about Lucas.  He was in a car accident in his early life that sidetracked him from a race car career to film.  This led to a declaration to his father that he'd be a millionaire by the time he was 30.
       The main message I took away from this book was the inner struggle and public perception of George Lucas.  He was a visionary who created an empire, but struggled to control it; at least in his mind.  I am honestly now craving to see a biographic film done on George Lucas.  It would work great in the same tone as The Aviator or Jobs.  The final part could be him securing Lucasfilm and the Star Wars legacy before selling to Disney.
       Also included in the book are the various fandoms of Star Wars throughout the world.  From the formation of the 501st, to the R2 Builders, and even Australia making "Jedi" the second most popular religion in the country.  The book highlights the craze that is Star Wars.
       The most interesting chapter to me was #25, How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Prequels.  In this chapter, Taylor went around to various Star Wars fans who either like or hate Episodes I-III. Taylor spoke with one father who doesn't allow any Star Wars in his house unless it's the original trilogy. He even gets mad when his kid's friends talk about The Clone Wars TV series. Taylor interviewed another man who goes so far in defending the prequel films he discusses The Phantom Menace with actor Jake Lloyd, who quit acting after playing Anakin in the film.  Lloyd de-friended the man on Facebook when he realized he had named his son Anakin.
       The chapter also mentions the various order to watch the six films in.  Each order having a different effect/tone, which I have personally done and vouch for.  The most famous order being the "Machete Order."  Also talked about are the many prequel-cuts that fans have made, including actor Topher Grace.  I myself have even edited the three films so that I may try and enjoy them more.  Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith I believe are an improvement, but no matter how much I cut Jar Jar and little Ani out of Episode I there may be no saving it.
       The beginning of the book began with what I thought was a great comparison by writer Andrew Summers and the love/hate relationship the fans have with the franchise.  "Every true Star Wars fan is a Luke Skywalker, looking at his twisted evil father, and somehow seeing good." While every fan boy agrees Star Wars is awesome, we may not all agree on what part of Star Wars we like.
       How Star Wars Conquered the Universe not only tells the tale of George Lucas's journey (I don't have time to cite the comparisons to Anakin Skywalker's journey) but the journey of a multi-billion dollar phenomenon that will last till all life on this world is dead........we'll probably be killed by our own Death Star.

Game of Wars OR Star of Thrones

This week the fourth season of Game of Thrones arrived on DVD and blu-ray.  This show is easily becoming one of my favorite series ever the more it goes on.  It's epic storytelling at its finest.  George R.R. Martin has made a world so rich and detailed that you can't help but get captivated by it.

But for me, everything always comes back to Star Wars.  I've enjoyed George Lucas's epic universe ever since I was a child.  It follows Joseph Campbell's architectural "heroes journey" much like I feel Game of Thrones does.  To that end, and sticking with the original Star Wars movie(Episode IV: A New Hope), I figured out who is who in the galaxy of Westeros.

JON SNOW IS LUKE SKYWALKER

The reluctant hero who must heed his call to action.  Nobody expects much of Ned's bastard, but through trials and heroic acts he quickly rising into a central figure in this universe. Plus they both can be a little whiney at times, and they both eventually fall of feisty redheads who start out wanting to kill them.

 

TYRION LANNISTER IS HAN SOLO

Han Solo was a scoundrel who only cared about himself, but slowly learned to believe in a higher cause.  Tyrion Lannister was a disgruntled man who only cared about his own pleasures.  But throughout the course of the series he has become quite the hero in his own right, rallying troups to fight in an epic battle, and rebelling against an evil king.

 

SANSA STARK IS PRINCESS LEIA

Let's run down the check list.  Sister of the hero: check.  A damsel in distress: check.  Lover of the anit-hero: sort-of.  Sansa Stark started GoT as a weak and naive girl, but through the course of the series has been getting stronger every season.  I feel like season 5 will be her breakout year and perhaps she'll even get revenge for her family's murders.

 

 BRONN IS CHEWBACCA

As Tyrion's right hand and muscle it only seemed proper that Bronn fit the part of Chewbacca.  Bronn would indeed rip someone's arm out of their sockets if he felt he was cheated.  He also owes his current lavish lifestyle to Tyrion and doesn't seem in a rush to leave Tyerion any time soon.

 

EDDARD STARK IS OBI-WAN KENOBI

This comparison is all to obvious.  Eddard and Ob-Wan both have gone through great wars and both came out better men.  They both mentor the hero and help them in their journey.  But most importantly, both of these men die honorably, thus progressing the hero in his journey.

 SAMWELL TARLY IS C-3PO

A man full of knowledge, but no wisdom to use it.  This seems like it fits right into Threepio's wheelhouse.  Sam is kind of a nuisance to everyone, but can be useful if the occasion calls for it.  Plus he's quite loyal to Jon.  Sounds like the golden droid to me.

TYWIN LANNISTER IS GRAND MOFF TARKIN

As the men who seem to run the evil side of things these two characters are both masterminds of strategy.  They never lose their cool and everyone knows not to cross them.  However, their arrogance also leads to their demise.

JAIME LANNISTER IS DARTH VADER

Jaime slayed the mad king and became the most feared man in the kings guard.  Vader slayed Separatist leaders (along with many Jedi) to become the most feared man in the galaxy.  However, underneath each of these characters are good men.  They are both powerful warriors who have befallen tragedy and eventually see the light. 

'Kingsman' is Royally Fun

This weekend millions of movie goers rushed to their local theater to see a popular book adapted into a movie.  And the rest of the people went and saw 50 Shades of Grey.  Kick-Ass and X-Men: First Class director, Matthew Vaughn, has brought another Mark Millar adaptation to the big screen for all of us to enjoy.  In preparation for seeing Kingsman: The Secret Service I made sure to read the original source material, and now part of me wishes I hadn't. 

 Eggsy is a juvenile delinquent whose father was killed when he was just a boy.  When he runs into some trouble with the law he calls an emergency number and Galahad shows up to bail him out.  Played by Colin Firth, Galahad is part of an organization known as Kingsman.  They are a privately funded secret service that saves the world on a daily basis, and Eggsy is offered a chance to be one of them.  Eggsy undergoes harsh training, but he biggest obstacle is helping to stop a billionaire known as Valentine; played by Samuel L. Jackson. Valentine has a plan to cleanse the Earth in order to save it, but doing so means killing billions of people.

Having read the comic book the film was based off of, the differences immediately stood out to me.  In the book, Valentine was a young, white, nerd instead of an older, black, nerd.  Eggsy's dad had nothing to do with Kingsman and Eggsy was actually Galahad's nephew.  Also,  Galahad's journey in the film ends differently.  With all that said, this is fun movie to watch.  It's about a British secret service so the entire film is poking fun at itself in a way, self aware of the James Bond and other spy comparisons.  I think if the film didn't mention these references the entire film would not have worked.

Colin Firth was the perfect choice as Galahad.  As an Oscar winning actor he has a great amount of respect in the film community so he was the right choice for this character, who had to come off as a better version of 007.  It was also refreshing to see Samuel L. Jackson play a character who is not "a bad ass mother f*cker" much like his other stereotypical roles.  Michael Caine and Mark Strong were good supporting cast members, though I felt like Strong was under used given his potential.  This is the first time I've seen Taron Egerton in a film and I'm sure it won't be the last.  He did a good job making Eggsy a likable lead.  Though I wasn't overly impressed with his acting abilities, I look forward to see what else he can do.  I've even heard his name thrown around this week as possibly a candidate for the new Spider-Man.

While Vaughn is not one of my favorite directors I enjoy that all of his films seem so different from each other.  Kingsman: The Secret Service is nothing like X-Men: First Class, which is not like Kick-Ass, which is not like Layer Cake.  If I go see a Martin Scorsese film I know what to expect, but Vaughn always seems to be changing up his style.  This film is similar to Kick-Ass, but with both films being based off Mark Millar comics you can't really blame Vaughn for that.

I think if I walked into this movie without a preconception about what it was supposed to be I might have liked it more.  I may even have to go back and re-watch it again just for perspective purposes.  But either way I still think it's entertaining.  My wife came out of the film saying, "I want to visit London."  I came out of the film saying, "I want to buy a double-breasted suit."

RATING:  B-  

   

Spidey Joins the Avengers in the MCU

Last night I was doing my usual thing, watching some television and casually browsing the internet on my tablet.  After drinking a few beers I came across a piece of news claiming Spider-Man will be in a Marvel Studios movie.  I've heard these claims for years now, but then I saw that this came straight from marvel.com.  I couldn't believe my eyes, and I was way too tipsy to think about the possibilities and hurdles.  But today I'm as sober as Captain Amierca on a Sunday.

Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios have reached a deal that will allow Spider-Man to appear in an MCU film before getting another film in 2017.  The web slinger will still be Sony property, but will be produced by Marvel Studios president, Kevin Feige.  Plans are even in talks to bring Marvel Studio characters into a Spider-Man movie.  Shortly after this announcement Marvel Studios released a statement saying that their film slate for the next four years has been altered.  The next Marvel film we will see after Captain America: Civil War will be the new Spider-Man movie and not Thor: Ragnarok.

I was one of the non-believers who said we would never see this day.  Even though rumors have been swirling for months.  Sony Pictures had high hopes for The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and even though it made money, the film fell quite short of their expectations.  Since then Sony claimed it was still moving forward with its Spider-Man film universe.  A Sinister Six and Venom movie were rumored to be in the works.  But with Sony's financial trouble, along with some e-mail hacks, Marvel must have seen their opportunity to bring ol' web-head back home.  

The problem is going to be integration.  I never saw a mixture of Spider-Man into the MCU because the two studios would fight over every detail.  Spider-Man is a bigger franchise than Captain America,  so would Sony get a bigger cut of the movie profits?  If someone is in trouble, Sony will want Spider-Man to do the daring rescue and not Iron Man.  With Spidey staying under the Sony banner I think these questions will arise.  However, with Feige basically in charge of the production, I  also believe these issues will be taken care of.

The two Marvel Studio films coming out this year will be Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man.  Both of these movies are already done filming and are in post production.  The next film will be Captain America: Civil War, and then a Spider-Man movie is promised.  If Marvel wishes to bring Spidey into the fold before his own solo movie it's a safe bet he'll be joining Cap and Iron Man for Civil War. Which sounds exciting to me because Spider-Man was a big part of the original Civil War comic.  

However, with the third Captain America film almost a year away, plans have to be made in regards to Spider-Man.  Word has it that this will be another reboot for the web slinger.  It won't be Andrew Garfield playing Peter Parker, so casting for that role has to begin soon.  But with such a big story as Civil War I don't believe there will be time for another Spider-Man origin story.  Will Marvel just put Spidey into the mix and worry about the origin in his solo film?  But why do we even need another origin story?  It's been done twice within the last thirteen years.  In the Civil War comic Peter has been Spider-Man for a while.  I think they should just start off there.  I'd much rather see a seasoned Spider-Man than another tale of Peter discovering his powers.    

  As much excitement as this announcement has caused I feel like it has posed over a dozen question about Spider-Man's future, his part in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and whether he'll be in it for the long hall.  Could we see Spider-Man in Avengers: Infinity War Pt. 1?  Or is Sony only trying to use this deal to springboard Spider-Man back to the top of film franchises?  Is Marvel Studios now setting their sites on bringing Fantastic Four or X-Men into the MCU?  I'm sure we'll all have these answers in time.  All I can leave you with is the same phrase I've been saying the last few years; In Feige We Trust.

Jupiter Tries To "Ascend" From Bad Critic Ratings

Have you ever gone to a movie expecting it to be bad?  If you've seen any of the Twilight films I'm sure you have.  This past weekend Jupiter Ascending was released into theaters around the country.  The film was supposed to come out in the summer, but six weeks from its release the film was pulled.  Some say due to bad test screenings.  Warner Bros said it needed more time on special effects.  Last week I watched every day as the critic rating for Jupiter Ascending on Rotten Tomatoes descended further and further into Transformers: Age of Extinction territory.

I went into this film hoping the cast could save it.  Channing Tatum is starting to gain my respect as an actor with films like 22 Jump Street and Foxcatcher.  Eddie Redmayne is in a two-horse race with Michael Keaton for the Best Actor category in this year's Oscars.  And Mila Kunis just had Ashton Kutcher's baby.  I feel like one of these thespians are making the wrong career choices.

  Kunis plays Jupiter, a girl who lives with her Russian family in Chicago and works as a maid.  One day she is abducted by aliens and is told she is the universal equivalent of a reincarnated space queen.  In her will, the queen left her reincarnated-self control of Earth.  But the queen's three children all want the planet for its resources, mainly for dissecting humans to make a liquid that keeps beings young forever.  Along her journey, Jupiter is protected by a spliced-outcast turned bounty hunter; Caine.  Played by Tatum, Caine must protect Jupiter from the royal family, and find a way to save Earth from their galactic greed.

Let me starts off by saying Channing Tatum was the best actor in this film.  Three years ago I would have slapped myself for saying that.  He plays the cool space-hero with some great gadgets.  I want his gravity boots!  This, along with the two other films I mentioned of his, is bringing me closer to believing he may actually be able to play Gambit from the X-Men come 2016.  The real test will be the Cajun accent.

Eddie Redmayne is sadly the worst actor in the film.  He plays a villain who mainly keeps his voice low and monotone, which would have worked if he didn't have fits of rage periodically.  That's not called "playing it cool" that's called "turrets syndrome."  Meanwhile, Mila Kunis did what she always does; she neither disappointed nor impressed me.  

The Wachowski's may not have the best track record after the first Matrix film, but they are definitely one of the best at creating worlds.  Even though I think this film is just a metaphor for how corporate greed will kill us all.  I feel like they've only scratched the surface of this mythology as everything is being explained to the audience at a stop-and-go pace.  We'd get a little bit of back story, and then a little bit of action, and then a little more back story, etc.  

And I will give them credit for the visual effects.  The actions sequences were great, and any film that features my favorite city to look at is good for me.  Certain moments in the film almost made me feel like I was watching a 1980's sci-fi film like The Last Starfighter or Dune, with all the cheesiness included.

But the film suffered too much from bad to mediocre acting, bad pacing, and being about twenty minutes too long.  I think there was plenty of material to be split into at least two films.  This might have given the directing siblings an ability to keep the film more focused and have less dead space.  I don't think the film deserves it's current 22% Rotten Tomatoes score, but it failed to live up to it's potential.  I might even be willing to see a sequel, just to see how far this rabbit hole goes. 

RATING:  C-

My Oscar 'Best Picture' Rankings

Last night I went and saw the film Selma, thus fulfilling a promise I made to myself months ago. Since I was a kid I have watched the Academy Awards.  As a child I saw very few of the pictures nominated, but as I get older I seem to see more and more Oscar movies.  However, every year I only end up seeing about two or three of the films nominated for Best Picture. 

Back in October I made myself a promise; that I would see all the Best Picture nominees by the time the 2015 Academy Awards aired.  So I spent the last few months watching films that were "Oscar bait" and by the time the nominees were announced I had only two films left to see.

In less than three weeks the whose who of Hollywood will gather on the red carpet as we all watch from home.  Being an avid movie watcher my favorite film of 2014, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, did not get nominated for Best Picture.  Some think the Academy is full of old white guys who are out of touch with the common man.  I think the Oscars have a high sense of class that even I don't agree with sometimes.  So, in an tempt to speak for the common man, this is what I thought about the "best pictures" of 2014.

AMERICAN SNIPER

One of the more recent films to come out, Bradley Cooper stars as the greatest American sniper in U.S. history and shows the personal turmoil with separating the character's war life from his personal life.  The film has come over controversy, some saying it glorifies war, but I didn't get that from the film.  I think director Clint Eastwood gives us a gripping tale about a patriotic man and overcoming the tragedies he has seen.

My Nominee Ranking: 5th

BIRDMAN

All the movie critics I listen to can't stop raving about this film.  Now, I will be satisfied if any of the actors, cinematographers, or director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, win an Oscar for their respective category.  I thought this film about a washed-up actor looking for a second chance was very well acted, and I loved the inventive tracking shots continuously throughout the film.  However, as far as entertainment value, I wasn't too engaged by it.  I respect it as the weird, indie, film that it is, but it just isn't my cup of tea.

My Nominee Ranking:  8th

BOYHOOD

This revolutionary film about a child growing up over twelve years started off kind of slow to me.  But as the film progressed you saw not only the boy evolve, but his parents and siblings as well.  Being a boy at one point in my life I could relate to the character and felt like director Richard Linklater nailed the confusing and stupid nuances every male goes through in their early life.  You barely realize that the film is almost three hours long.

My Nominee Ranking:  2nd

THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

Wes Anderson has always been hit and miss with me.  I liked Rushmore and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, but wasn't a fan of The Royal Tenenbaums and The Darjeeling Limited.   This film ,about a young bellhop and the man who changes his life, I believe was one of Anderson's best.  The shining star of the film was Ralph Fiennes in one of his best performances ever.  I found it quirky and engaging.

My Nominee Ranking:  4th

THE IMITATION GAME

 I'm a fan of both Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightly so I was anxious to see how they would do in this WWII film about code breakers.  Cumberbatch is great, but his character isn't too far from those he's played before.  Knightly also did alright, but I've seen her give better performances. Never the less, the film is quite well constructed and entertaining.

My Nominees Ranking:  3rd

SELMA

Being the most recent film of the nominees I've seen, this film is still fresh in my mind.  I think David Oyelowo nails Dr. King. The speeches he gives in the film are very charismatic, much like I'm sure Martin Luther King Jr was.  It's a good film about the civil rights movement and some great supporting performances by Carmen Ejogo as Mrs. King and Tom Wilkinson as President Johnson.

My Nominee Ranking: 6th

THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING 

Critic are raving about Michael Keaton in Birdman and that the Best Actor race is down to him and Eddie Redmayne.  If it was my vote I'd give it to Eddie Redmayne.  He physically pulls off the digression of Stephen Hawking terrifically.  I walked out of this film not only seeing a story about Hawking and his wife and the difficulties they face, but the difficulties many marriages face.

My Nominee Ranking: 7th

WHIPLASH

This film has made me willing to see anything Miles Teller does.  Teller plays a college drummer who is harassed and degraded by his teacher, played by J. K. Simmons.  But the humiliation only makes Teller's character work harder, to the point of physical and emotional harm.  Simmons is a lock for Best Supporting Actor, and though I was a bit disappointed Teller didn't get a Best Actor nomination I was in no way surprised given the competition.  But of the eight films nominated this is the film I walked out just thinking "wow".  I'm just happy it's in the Best Picture category.  I know it will not win, but as they say, it's just an honor to be nominated.

 My Nominee Ranking: 1st