Category: Movies

  • Movie Review – Star Trek Beyond

    Movie Review – Star Trek Beyond

    I’ve got a bit of a love/hate relationship with the “Kelvin-verse” Star Trek movies.  I really like the cast, and have come to grips with the fact that, since it’s not a TV show, the movies need to shade a bit more to the action side of things than the more cerebral Trek episodes.  Still,…

  • Movie Review – Ghostbusters (2016)

    Movie Review – Ghostbusters (2016)

    I’m happy to report that I have seen the new Ghostbusters movie and did not, in fact, experience the death of my childhood.  We all enjoyed it quite a bit.  Sure, there’s a few bits that don’t land but that’s true of the original Ghostbusters if you can manage to view it without the rose-tinted glasses…

  • Why Wolverine: Weapon X Makes More Sense Than Old Man Logan

    Why Wolverine: Weapon X Makes More Sense Than Old Man Logan

    For a long time, the rumors were persistent that Hugh Jackman’s final turn as Wolverine would be inspired by the Old Man Logan comics by Mark Millar and Steve McNiven.  It never made a ton of sense to me, unless the only bit of inspiration taken from it was the name (similar to Age of…

  • Movie Review – Captain America: Civil War

    Movie Review – Captain America: Civil War

    note:  some spoilers There’s a huge reason Captain America: Civil War works and Batman v Superman doesn’t, and that’s emotional investment.  I know Zack Snyder and DC/WB wanted to do thing their own way and not ape Marvel’s so far successful approach, but when you are rebooting two legendary characters and making significant changes, you…

  • Movie Review – The Jungle Book

    Movie Review – The Jungle Book

    Live-action versions of their classic animated features is a thing for Disney right now, and the next one is The Jungle Book.  Yeah, I know it’s technically adapted from the Kipling book but make no mistake the classic animated version is the inspiration here.  Thankfully, it’s a really good adaptation. The first thing that stands…

  • Movie Review – Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

    Movie Review – Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

    The elephant in the room, right?  Yes, I saw BvS: DoJ.  I don’t hate it, but there hasn’t been a comic book movie that’s ever elicited a wider range of reactions from me.  For every cool moment or visual, there are long stretches where my only reaction is a sigh or eyeroll or double facepalm.…

  • Stop making Batman v Superman about Marvel versus DC

    Stop making Batman v Superman about Marvel versus DC

    If there’s a thing in comics fandom I hate right now it’s this adversarial tone a lot of the chatter takes on nowadays.  A spirited debate is fun, no doubt, but this isn’t that, it’s just angry people shouting at each other.  It’s there in sports now, video games, even politics.  There are certain groups…

  • Movie Review – Kung Fu Panda 3

    Movie Review – Kung Fu Panda 3

    I previously held up Kung Fu Panda 2 as an example of how a sequel should be done.  I don’t think Kung Fu Panda 3 reaches those same heights but it’s still a fun ride. Kung Fu Panda 3 picks up not long after 2 – Po is living his ideal life as the Dragon Warrior.  He…

  • Should I Read It?  Secret Wars (1984)

    Should I Read It? Secret Wars (1984)

    I know what you are thinking – didn’t we just leave this party?  And the answer to that is…complicated.  I am talking about the original Secret Wars from 1984-1985 today, one of the very first big crossover events at the big publishers.  It debuted 32 years ago, though you can’t tell from the May date…

  • How to Fix the Fantastic Four

    How to Fix the Fantastic Four

    I finally broke down and watched last year’s Fantastic Four debacle. It’s terrible, joyless and soulless in a way no movie with “Fantastic” in the title should be, let alone anything with Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in the DNA.  You can’t blame the actors here – we know every one of them can act.…

  • Lightning Movie Reviews – Ant-Man, Ultron, Minions

    I have some catching up to do, so you get some quick thoughts on some recent flicks. Avengers: Age of Ultron – The first movie was so successful, so it would’ve been difficult to meet expectations here. Ultron definitely was a half-step down but still had some great action and humor. Ultron himself could’ve used…

  • Inside Out and When Marnie Was There

    Inside Out and When Marnie Was There

    I’m late posting this, but I saw both Inside Out and When Marnie Was There with the kids, and boy was THAT an emotional wringer.  But in the best way. Seeing them both that close together makes for an interesting comparison – both movies focus on a girl dealing with the emotions of adolescence. Riley…