The Heart of a Nation — An Anthropoid Review

In 1942, a group of Czechoslovak soldiers carried out Operation Anthropoid, an attempt to assassinate Reinhard Heydrich, upon the orders of the Czechoslovak government in exile. Heydrich, being one of the most powerful men within the Nazi ranks, was also known as the Butcher of Prague—a moniker earned for his merciless reign of discipline in the city of the occupied country. The operation succeeded, after Heydrich was wounded and died in the hospital a few days afterwards. The retaliation from the German forces were severe; entire villages and groups of people massacred for the life of the man behind the Final Solution.

Anthropoid tells the story of the assassination through the eyes of the two key figures behind the operation, Jozef Gabčík (played by Cillian Murphy) and Jan Kubiš (played by Jamie Dornan). Sean Ellis (Metro Manila) wrote and directed, having been wrestling with the subject for twelve years before he’d finally finished the script. The film remained, however, a means for art and entertainment, not intended to portray the events in utmost accuracy. Though the general plot leading up to the assassination prevailed, certain characters and events have been modified to better fit the medium.

Anthropoid is certainly an emotional work. From ts very first scene—that of Jozef and Jan parachuting in the middle of the night amidst a snowy forest outside of Prague—to the very last, the film is unmistakably pregnant with emotion.

I’ll be honest here. As a big history buff myself, I suppose I expected some sort of “accurate” timeline, a real formulated events surrounding the operation. Sean Ellis defied my expectations. He did what many other historical films aimed for but often missed: He focused on the characters’ emotional journey—how they deal with the immense pressure of the order and how they somehow had to find a way to succeed in this near-impossible mission—and he did it in such a way that it didn’t feel overly romanticized.

The conflicts felt all too real; Jozef and Jan facing doubts and divisions in the Czechoslovak resistance movements, maneuvering in a city jammed to the teeth with Nazi officers, and their own personal struggle of having such a weight on their shoulders. All this is wrapped in sepia tones—all browns and faded greys—that push you deeper into the headspace of 1940’s Prague. I can’t tell you enough how accomplished Sean Ellis is in replicating the Prague of old. Ellis, already writing and directing the project, is also his own director of photography; during the twelve years of his process, he’d assembled many pictures of Prague at the time and gave it to his CG team to recreate.

 

Sean Ellis recreated 1940’s Prague through extensive research and CG help.

The results? A beautiful, almost picturesque reincarnation of the city under occupation. Consistent to its initial vision, Anthropoid’s visual spectacle is that of simplicity and grounded landscapes. It was the story of the people setting the events in motion, closer to the ground as they were and not the grander sort of scheme often depicted in various historical adaptations. It was the story of the people indeed, and the cinematography certainly is an important element of the storytelling.

With an angle like that, the cast could make or break the project. Luckily, they found an enormous talent and leader in Cillian Murphy, whose acting chops needn’t be questioned anymore. He’s certainly the star of the show for me. Murphy, whose Jozef juxtaposes quiet determination and pain and conflict throughout the film, hits home every point that his character is meant to portray in the bigger scale of the story—and more.

Jamie Dornan starred alongside as Jan, the other side of the coin. More optimistic and uncertain, more idealistic and desperate than Jozef, Dornan delivered an exceptional performance and drove my sympathy level right up for both his character and Murphy’s.

Cillian Murphy and Jamie Dornan star as Josef and Jan, the Czechoslovak soldiers tasked with Operation Anthropoid.

The relationship between these two men, these two soldiers tasked with what may well be a suicide mission, really is the center of the piece. I found myself being drifted away from my initial thoughts of historical trivia (What year was this mission conceived in? Who gave the order? What’s the impact to the immediate developments of the European theatre?) and into the vast emotional landscape painted beautifully by the actors. Anthropoid is certainly a bleak film, yes, but it wasn’t without its depths and diversity. The humor and levity provided by Dornan’s character and his love interest, Marie (played by Charlotte Le Bon), when contrasted by the more hopeless romance of Murphy’s Jan and Lenka (played by Czech native Anna Geislerová) and the professional burdens of their mission, proved a powerful combination to bring out the full gravity of the events.

Josef (Murphy) and Lenka (Geislerová) on the streets of Prague.

Regarding the music, Guy Farley and Robin Foster’s collaborative feat is relatively unobtrusive. The melodies, quiet and unassuming more often than not, sweep the moments up in the right places without being too distracting from the center of the picture—that is, the actors’ performance. There is probably one particular moment in the film, overshadowed by an earlier one also close to the end, that captured me emotionally and musically poignant. A simple, ethereal, melancholy piano theme that begins in a very simplistic manner and gently gives way to an orchestra of strings accompanied the emotional peak of the whole movie. Now, to give it away here would be a massive spoiler if and when you decide to give the film a watch, but if you want to hear it, a quick search on YouTube with the keywords “The Crypt – Robin Foster” would suffice. Watch the movie before or after listening; the effect of the music and the scene it’s used in made me a sobbing mess until even the credits started rolling.

All in all, Anthropoid is a simplistic yet emotional take on one of the pivotal moments in the history of the Second World War. I recommend you, history buff or not, to find it and watch it at home, preferably at night and during cold weather, buried under blankets with tissues at the ready, and prepare for the emotional deluge you’re about to find yourself immersed in.

A Spider-Fan’s Spider-Man Homecoming Rant

Lifelong Spider-Fan that I am, Civil War’s Spidey appearance easily became one of the movie’s highlight’s for me. Just seeing him quip at the heroes on both sides and showcasing his not-inconsiderable strength is a treat enough, and now we get a new Spider-Man movie? After the ambitious-yet-messy The Amazing Spider-Man 2, the prospect of a(nother) reboot is both salivating and cause to worry.

 

Fortunately, after watching Spider-Man Homecoming, those worries are now long-gone. The tone director Jon Watts went for is a newbie Spidey who still needs to learn a lot about the job, resulting in an occasionally stupid and klutzy hero not unlike Batman: Earth One. It’s frustrating at times, but through this we get to learn along with Spidey about how to be a hero. Most of you will be refreshed in knowing that Uncle Ben isn’t shown dying in this one, saving him from the Thomas and Martha Wayne curse of dying in every reboot.

My biggest worry going in, that the movie would turn into Iron Man and His Amazing Friend, fortunately went unrealized. Tony Stark’s screentime is limited, but he adds to the movie by providing a ‘hurdle’ for Peter to surpass in the journey to become a hero.

The Swingtime Club

The cast is great all-around, with the Midtown High kids lending the movie a very teen-movie feel to the school sequences. Jacob Batalon’s Ned is Ganke in all but name, playing off really well with Tom Holland’s Peter as believeable best friends. Being so used to the jock Flash, Tony Revolori’s ‘cyberbully’ Flash is still an asshole, albeit a different kind. For those familiar with the anime/manga Doraemon, this Flash is less Giant, more Suneo. Still, he’s the guy you’ll love to hate. Zendaya’s Michelle is the movie’s Allison Reynolds, a mysterious loner with a sharp tongue who provides more than a few gags. Laura Harrier’s Liz, while she’s not the most memorable of the bunch, still plays well with the other kids. May is still the loving aunt we all know and love, though she’s much more spirited this time around and has fun interactions with Pete and Ned. Happy Hogan unexpectedly ends up being a potential showstealer in his role as Peter’s ever-exasperated minder.

He’s gotta be good. He’s been a Birdman before

In terms of bad guy quality, Homecoming is one of MCU’s best. Michael Keaton’s Adrian Toomes is far from the one-dimensional disposable MCU villain that we’ve unfortunately seen all too often, and is one of the movie’s highlights. Michael Mando, who some of you might know as Far Cry 3’s Vaas almost steals the show in his limited screentime as another Spider-Rogue, and I hope he’ll be given more to do in the future. Donald Glover is entertaining as hell in his role as another player in the Spider-mythology, especially his one standout scene. And most shocking of all, the Shocker (Bokeem Woodbine as Herman Schultz) is somewhat more competent compared to the punchline he’s been made of in recent comics.

Setting this movie in a high school setting puts emphasis on the duality between Peter Parker and Spider-Man, showing his struggles in juggling between social life, school, and Spidering in a new light. This duality and Peter proving himself to be the hero that he could be is a major, timeless theme that’s true to the core of Spider-Man.

An Amazing Fantasy indeed

Spider-Fans with eagle eyes will have a field day with the amount of easter eggs and homages to classic moments and even some iconic shots of the Wallcrawler from his extensive comics history. While I wouldn’t say that Homecoming is 100% comics-accurate, it honors the spirit of Spider-Man in its sort-of reinvention, like another update on the Spider-myth a la Ultimate Spider-Man, with more than a few influences from classic teen movies and modern superhero movie sensibilities.

While it is by no means a perfect movie with some bits feeling a little draggy and a little anticlimactic though unconventional final act, Spider-Man Homecoming is still an amazing movie that spectacularly heralds the arrival of your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man to the MCU, hopefully being the first in a web of great movies in the future.

One Last Time, Bub-Logan Review

After 17 years, Hugh Jackman’s run on an iconic role finally comes to an end. In the pop culture consciousness, Hugh Jackman as Wolverine is up there with the likes of the original Star Wars trio of Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, and the late, great Carrie Fisher in being so attached to their roles. And what a sendoff to give our favourite grumpy Canadian, too.

The aptly-titled Logan is just that, a deeply personal story about Logan and his struggles coming to terms with what he’s done in the past and dealing with the demons it summoned that plague him even now. Taking place in a not-so-far future where mutantkind is all but eliminated, Logan, now a limo driver reluctantly takes care of a senile Professor X with the help of Caliban. But when a girl with suspiciously similar powers to him, Logan is forced to go on the run with them to evade the forces who mean to do them harm.

Pierce and the Reavers, about to drop the hottest album of 2024

As befitting a last outing, Hugh Jackman gave it his all as Logan. Time hasn’t been kind to this old dog, and he’s more jaded, more cynical, and more world-weary than before, so much so you just can’t help but feel bad for him. Patrick Stewart, regretfully also in his last outing as Professor Xavier, is nothing like the Xavier we’ve grown to know and love throughout the years. This Professor X is senile, a bit loopy, and is more like that cheeky old grandpa who refuses to take his medicine and messes with his caretakers all the time. But still, shades of the old Xavier is there somewhere, buried in regret and a whole lotta meds. The showstealer, and arguably the emotional heart of this movie, though, is newcomer Dafne Keen’s Laura, also known as X-23. Despite not speaking for most of the movie, her expression and movements are all that it takes, not to mention that she clicks right into the dynamic between Xavier and Logan as the ‘child’ of the trio.

The years haven’t been kind

The R-rating of this movie is well-earned. For the first (and sadly last) time, we finally get to see what those claws are capable of doing, in full bloody glory. Slicing up limbs, going through faces and everything in between, it’s all fair game. Which lends well to its intense fight scenes, some of the most brutal and most violent in the X-movies. Despite the abundance of violence, this story is very much an emotional one, ‘family’ being the word of the day. Three people, broken in their own ways, managing to find a way to function together even through the hardest of situations. Logan has equal parts of laughs, tears, and heartwarming moments that all hit really, really well.

I’d warn him about putting someone’s eye out, but I think that’s what he’s going for

Logan isn’t a superhero movie. It’s not about people in spandex trying to save the world. Instead, it’s a story of Logan, as the title implies, and how he embraces his ‘family’, dysfunctional as they are. And in that, a movie that I dare say is the best X-movie is born. Logan is the perfect sendoff for a truly iconic character.

The Magical and The Bat-Justice League Dark Review

DC hasn’t had too much luck with adapting the occult into other media. With the dearly departed Constantine TV series and the long-rumored Justice League Dark/Dark Universe movie still in development hell, there isn’t much success in adapting the more…magical fare onto the screen. Which is why the Justice League Dark animated movie is a pleasant surprise.

Alternate title: Batman and His Magical Bitches

Helmed by Jay Oliva, Justice League Dark is the first outing for DC’s titular team (stretching the word a bit) of mystically-inclined heroes (again, stretching). Consisting of John Constantine, Zatanna, Deadman, Swamp Thing, and Etrigan, alongside Batman as the ‘outsider’, the team must face an ancient evil threatening to destroy both life and afterlife alike.

Say hello to the new Robin

The plot isn’t exactly anything new, but boy, does the cast make it a fun trip. Matt Ryan absolutely steals the show in his return as John Constantine. John is every bit the loveable bastard we’ve grown to love from the show, and his lines are sharp as ever. Jason O’Mara provides the straight man to the rest of the craziness as Batman, Camilla Luddington brings a balance to the team as backwards-talking magician Zatanna, Nicholas Turturro is annoyingly yet endearingly chipper Deadman, Ray Chase plays both man and rhyming demon Jason Blood and Etrigan, and Roger Cross rounds up the main cast as the protector of the Green, Swamp Thing. Jeremy Davies also makes a return as John’s long-suffering friend Ritchie Simpson, and Alfred Molina is Destiny, the main villain of the piece and live-action Skeletor lookalike.

Toldja

Justice League Dark’s strongest suit is its characters. Most of the main cast play very well off of each other, but what surprised me pleasantly was the inclusion of Batman, who I thought would likely be shoved in there for marketing purposes, to turn out pretty good. He wasn’t overused and hogging the spotlight, but conversely he isn’t just /there/ either. He strikes a good balance between being the perspective ‘everyman’ character and the major source of snark and the occasional grunt. John Constantine is easily the best part about this movie, which is exactly what most of us came here for. If this is the direction for John we’re going for in the CW Seed series, then this is going to be fun.

Even seeing his name caused Batman to cut himself shaving

Deadman is an unexpected favorite, playing comic relief for most of the movie, and both Etrigan/Blood and Swamp Thing’s albeit brief appearances, they made a sizable impact in the movie. Especially Etrigan and his mad rhyming skills. It’s a bit of a shame Zatanna’s spotlight seems to dim a bit compared to the other team members, but she still proves interesting in her backwards magic and reining John in.

I’m sure he gets this a lot

What I loved about this movie is that it doesn’t exactly shy away from the dark, the creepy, and the strange. The intro builds the sense of dread well enough, and sets the scene that what they’re facing this time is something else. And one of the more fun set pieces is around the middle, when the thing made of shit comes along. It was wholly unexpected, and to be frank, I loved it. The climax leading up and all the way to the ending was also quite the highlight, and kept me at the edge of my seat along the way.

And now the literal shit has hit the proverbial fan

While I liked most of the movie, I do have several gripes regarding it. One of the major ones is that John doesn’t even so much as gets near a cigarette during the whole thing. Even the NBC series, when he ostensibly can’t be shown smoking, he’s still shown holding a cigarette and in some of the last episodes he’s seen outright smoking. While this may look like a minor thing to some, cigarettes are part of his iconic look, and not even teasing that feels like a bit of a missed opportunity. Black Orchid and Felix Faust were also sort-of wasted in their roles. While Black Orchid had one great exchange with Batman, Felix Faust felt like just another speedbump in our heroes’ journeys.

With all that said, I enjoyed Justice League Dark very much. A fun, solid ride that did what it set out to do, despite several points of contention. But nothing’s perfect, right?

A Strange Trip-Doctor Strange Review

In an increasingly expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Strange chooses to explore an uncharted territory in the mystic side of Marvel’s titanic franchise.

The result from this is an entertaining trip (in more ways than one) into worlds and wonders without end, that might just open an equally infinite amount of doors to potential properties for future exploration.

He couldn’t HANDle this

The clear winning feature of Scott Derrickson’s foray into the MCU is its visuals. From Inception-on-steroids style folding buildings to just pure psychedelic imagery that’d make Steve Ditko himself proud, Strange’s visuals are nothing we’ve ever seen before. This lends itself into its action scenes, giving us fights that are literally off the wall–No, these fights don’t even /need/ walls. If I saw this in IMAX, my head would probably still be spinning as I write this.

With a star-studded cast, almost everyone shines in their own way. Benedict Cumberbatch, no stranger to arrogant and insufferable characters, plays the admittedly clichéd character arc well with a dry wit and a fair bit of magical ineptitude. Tilda Swinton’s Ancient One is a more affable, more ‘human’ take of the traditional old master stereotype, and one more easy to be emotionally invested into. Chiwetel Ejiofor as Karl Mordo is one of the movie’s standouts, turning the traditionally villainous character into the ‘straight man’ in the Strange-Mordo double act and a worthy foil to Strange, while building on his eventual rise of darkness well. Mads Mikkelsen is, to be blunt, sadly an origin story victim in his role as Kaecillius, in another example of Marvel squandering great actors in forgettable villain roles. With a little more development, Kaecillius would’ve been the perfect Anti-Strange but alas, it was not to be. Benedict Wong’s…Wong differs from the tea-serving manservant of Strange in the comics into more of Strange’s take no shit peer im a way, and provides a healthy helping of humor in most of his scenes. Rachel McAdams’ Christine ‘Not-Night Nurse’ Palmer, does well as the muggle caught up in magic and provides a good enough anchor for Strange, but sadly she wasn’t quite memorable enough.

Just a typical tea ceremony in Kamar-Taj

As with most origin stories, Doctor Strange suffers from a case of Originitis, with its almost wholly predictable plot that hits all the beats of your usual Superhero Origin. That’s not to say the script isn’t anything to write home about, though. The movie still manages to distill and simplify the concept of Marvel magic into an almost-science, leaving not many questions as to how it works. The film seems to also take a few cues from Brian K. Vaughan and Marcos Martin’s excellent Doctor Strange: The Oath, with several notable scenes and characters echoing the book. Michael Giacchino’s scoring also works really well for the movie, sounding very much different from past Marvel movies with its use of strings that’s slightly reminiscent to JRPGs or just RPGs in general.

Easter egg hunters will have a field day with this. Just about almost every entity Strange has ever invoked in the comics, with a few notable exceptions, were namedropped in the film, even other cosmic entities. And with some of the secondary characters’ relations to major players in the Marvel universe, one can’t help but wonder how these more famous relatives will figure into the MCU next.

Aperture’s branching out

While the plot is nothing special, by merit of its eye-popping visuals and amazing scoring, Doctor Strange is another very solid addition to the ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe. Or could we be expanding beyond universes?

Great Bat-Time-Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders Review

Holy animated movie, Batman! In Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders, the legendary Batman of the 60’s return, voiced of course by Adam West, accompanied by his (no longer teenaged) ward Burt Ward as Robin and Julie Newmar returning as the feline fatale Catwoman in an animated feature that pays respect both to the classic series and adds a dash of modern love for it.

 

It’s the Bat-Climb. IN SPACE.

 

The initial plot is as straightforward as it gets. The main Bat-Rogues team up, and our Dynamic Duo has to stop them. But in its execution, it both pays homage to the classic moments of the series, BANG, BIFF, ZOTs and all, plus a few references to the show’s legacy and clever behind the scenes nods.

 

The movie’s second half, still closely related to the first is a veritable love letter to the show while taking a few playful jabs at the current state of Batman. It features a slightly ‘edgier’ Batman and a completely hysterical plot to replace every important person in the city with Batmen. Yes, even the bakers and street sweepers. Not to mention a great nod towards Batman’s habit of disappearing on Gordon.

It’s raining (Bat)men!

To top it all off, the movie climaxes in a huge showdown between the show’s many Bat-Villains versus an army of Batmen. There’s even a lone Batman doing the Batusi while all of this happens!

What ever shall we do?

Not just that, the movie provides us with loads and loads of references and nods to other pieces of the Bat-Mythology, like the intro sequence recreating classic Batman comic covers and previous/future Batsuits making a background appearance that will sure get the rise out of any Bat-Fan.

He’s Batman. Of course he prepared.

Return of the Caped Crusaders delivers all it promised to deliver and more, giving us a chance to reexperience the classic TV show and all the while showing love to the source material at the same time. The only thing missing is Batgirl. But aside from that, it’s the Bat-Movie we need and the Bat-Movie we deserved. Until next time, same Bat-Time, same Bat-Channel!

It’s Clobberin’ Time — A Case for Suicide Squad

Okay, let’s start with a list of questions. Why are you reading this article? Those other reviews online don’t satisfy you? Looking for an honest point of view from the eyes of a DC fan? Or are you still weighing whether or not that $4 ticket is going to be worth your time this weekend?

Fret not. It is.

The worldwide premiere of Suicide Squad on August 2, 2016 was met with overwhelming enthusiasm from fans—at least, from where I’m standing. My Twitter feed was overflowing with tweets from the premiere event, and everyone seemed pretty happy about it. Until the critics’ reviews started hitting the Net—then it turned kind of ugly. I personally didn’t want to read any of those, but I couldn’t help but to feel indignant about how a lot of those articles compare Suicide Squad with films that belong with Marvel. Let me say this once and only once: DC is not Marvel. And vice versa. If you’re going to have fun with either without ruining your time with pointless bickering, that’s important to note.

With that aside, if you want to—or even did—pop over to one of those review sites and see the critical reviews, they’re not mistaken. Suicide Squad suffers from “the lack of sufficient plot”, “too many characters all at once”, “talented cast wasted for a hot mess of a story”, and all that. But it’s all from a critic’s point of view.

I can’t stress enough about how these movies weren’t made to please critics. If I’m being completely honest with you all, movie critiquing system these days aren’t totally reliable anyway. I’m not pointing fingers, but I’ve seen a couple titles I personally don’t like—along with many other fans—receive high praises from critics, even though some, if not most, of their problems are along the critical side. I mean, come on, guys. Time to grow the hell up and be your own judge for the things you like.

#SKWAD

If you’ve stopped reading this article and bought a ticket to see Suicide Squad already, good. If you’re still reading this, let me tell you why this movie is such a triumph even for a critical, opinionated, hard-to-please DC fan like me.

First off, the visuals. Movies are a visual media and to me, if the visual elements punch you in the face with its eye-catchiness, it’s worth something. And boy oh boy; how many movies can you name that shamelessly employ comical visual effects with glowing, neon information text mid-scene? (Y’all nerds can probably name five in ten seconds, so don’t answer that.)

It doesn’t stop right there. Compared to the grimdark, almost slate-grayscale palette of Batman v. Superman, the color palette in Suicide Squad is iridescent and daring in contrast. The colors pop beautifully and are a delight to see, especially since I walked out thinking, “Holy shit, that looks right out of a comic book.” Honestly, go pick up an issue of the recent Suicide Squad comics run; you’ll get a sense of what you’re about to see in the movie.

Drain the colooorsss.

The main appeal of a team-up movie is, of course, the characters—their dynamics and how they would interact during such a sticky situation. I mean, who wouldn’t love to see Harley Quinn gracing the screen with her craziness, or Deadshot taking on a horde of creatures with only a couple guns while the rest of ‘em watch? All that is good in itself, but the Suicide Squad doesn’t just consist of bad guys—someone’s gotta be there to control the loose cannons. Colonel Rick Flag is there as Amanda Waller’s reluctant right hand man.

I’m sure it’s been going ‘round the Internet, but Harley Quinn really did steal the show. And it ain’t just because she’s the unofficial poster girl of Suicide Squad—Margot Robbie delivers a stellar performance as the Cupid of Crime and Dr. Harleen Quinzel in the flashbacks. If you have the guts to say that no comic book film can deliver actors with great, if not phenomenal, acting skills—throw them out the window. Viola Davis, Will Smith and Jared Leto gave their absolute all as Amanda Waller, Floyd Lawton aka Deadshot, and the Joker, respectively.

You mean we get to have all these talented people in one movie? Seriously?!

Individual performances aside, the chemistry the cast have as a team really does show on screen. All that crazy regime David Ayer put them through was not in vain.

Academy Award-winning composer Steven Price helms the original score, and though I could tell you that he did a good job on it, the true star of the music department is the soundtrack. As in, the songs you can sing along because they’re such iconic, well-known tunes. I held back my squeals multiple times when the songs start playing because if there’s a definition to a fun soundtrack, this is definitely one of them. Director David Ayer talked about how the soundtrack plays a crucial role to setting the mood of the movie, and he is not mistaken—the music is as fun as the movie itself.

Getcha jammin’ to it.

As all movies, Suicide Squad isn’t without its flaws. I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but I’m a sucker for great plot and I can’t lie—there’s a part of me that longs for a better plotting of the story. Cheeky jokes aside, the glaring thing that makes the movie good is Harley Quinn and Deadshot, and for me, a little more spotlight on the other characters couldn’t hurt. While Diablo and Flag each got a nice emotional segway into their characters, I found myself wanting more. Am I selfish? Yes. Am I just thirsty for more of these characters? Probably.

There is also something that doesn’t quite get me all fired up—maybe it’s the execution, the editing, I don’t know. It’s missing a spark that turns me into a complete rabid fangirl, a 120 in the scale of 100. Right now it’s on 110, but I love it when a movie skyrockets my capability to hype up.

Get crazy hyped. Geddit?

But you know what? At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter. The point of Suicide Squad, from the music to the effects to the promos to the cast’s camaraderie, is to have fun. And fun is what you’re gonna get from watching this movie. Close your ears from all the reviews you’ve read or heard—and yes, including this one—and go buy a ticket. See it for yourself with an open mind. You are your own judge, and if you end up loving it, then you can bet all your expensive Hot Topic merchandises that you are far from being the only one.

The (Not-So) New Mutants-X-Men Apocalypse Review (Non-spoiler)

Fox continues their good run to wash the bad taste of last year’s abysmal (and I’m using this term generously) F4ntastic from our collective minds with X-Men Apocalypse, the third installment in the ‘McAvoy Timeline’ of X-Movies. Taking one of mutantkind’s toughest enemies and bringing back their most iconic X-Men for a new generation, Bryan Singer seems to have found a recipe for success here.

X-Men Apocalypse’s plot, while very straightforward and just a mite bit predictable, does what it needs to do. This movie’s strength lies in the characters and how they play off of one another.

The cast is where this movie shines. McAvoy and Fassbender still continues to shine in their roles as Charles and Erik, of course, but I’m giving the strongest performances here to the new blood and (hopefully) our X-Men moving forward. Scott Summers (Tye Sheridan), Jean Grey (Sophie Turner), and Kurt Wagner (Kodi Smit-McPhee) all show great chemistry together along with the sadly underused Jubilee (Lana Condor) as believeable teenagers being pulled from their daily lives to fight an apocalyptic threat. X-Mainstays Hank McCoy (Nicholas Hoult), Alex Summers (Lucas Till), Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence), and Peter (need to learn not to always say Pietro) Maximoff (Evan Peters) with the returning Moira MacTaggert (Rose Byrne) all turn out great performances. Our surprise guest, who I’ll just refer to ‘X’ for some of you who haven’t seen the more recent trailers, also appeared shortly but quite memorably.

On the bad guy side, we have of course, our Apoecalypse, Oscar Isaac, who does a good job with what he’s given playing card-carrying evil villain En Sabah Nur who thankfully doesn’t look like Ivan Ooze anymore. Despite limited screentime and lines, the other Three Horsemen Storm (Alexandra Shipp), Psylocke (Olivia Munn), and Angel (Ben Hardy) had their moments, though they could’ve posed a bigger threat to our heroes.

While Peter did try to steal the show again this time, it was Nightcrawler that caught my eye the most this time around. This Kurt is much more awkward and he managed to score some of the funniest moments in the movie, and he turns out to be one of the best things about the movie.

Visually, Apocalypse (the movie) is a treat. From the opening credits, we’re treated with a dope-ass opening taking us through history and kudos to the good people working on that because that is one of the best opening credits in an X-Movie so far. Then there’s the creative ways people get killed. Burned to ash, crushed, melted, being psionically compacted, you name it. I was both cringing and fanboying at the creativity of some of these kills most of the time. The final sequence of the movie was also quite a sight to behold, with fights happening every which way and everyone’s powers being shown in full force.

Those of you eagle-eyed fans of the comics and fans of eighties culture in general, you’re also in for a treat. Nods to the comics and snippets of the eighties are strewn about everywhere in the movie. Some classic characters might also make a passing appearance here and there. Fans of the old X-Men vs Street Fighter game might also find something oddly familiar in the movie. Easter egg hunters will have a field day with this one.

Be sure to stay around for the stinger. I have two witnesses who can attest to the fact that I screamed LOUD by the time that ended.

Bottom line, X-Men Apocalypse, while nothing groundbreaking, is all fun, without the time travel and alternate timelines fuss that seems to have a lot of people’s knickers in a twist. All the excitement, none of the confusion.

Superhero Fight Night – Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Semi-Spoiler Review

2016 is truly the Superhero Fight Year. Not even one week after we were graced by Frank Castle and Matt Murdock duking it out in Daredevil’s second season, the first Big Superhero Fight Movie of the year, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is finally upon us.

While lots of snark (including mine) were aimed at the trailers for supposedly giving out too much, as it turns out, it didn’t give away all the plot points. There were some juicy stuff better left out of the trailers that much I admit, but the trailers didn’t ruin it at all when I watched it.

The plot itself boils down to just what you’d expect from a Big Superhero Fight Story. Hero meets hero, disagrees and/or misunderstands each other, fights, bigger villain comes along, forcing them to work together. While the plot is rather basic, the execution if it is where it all matters.

Visually, it’s a very Snyder movie. Cool-ass action shots, slow-mo abuse, but overall, fantastic visuals. The Doomsday fight at the end is a delight to watch, intense from start to finish. That said, the standout action set piece here is a bit toward the end, where Batman takes on an army of goons Arkham games-style. Every beat, every crunch, every broken bone, a fuckawesome fight scene if I’ve ever seen one.

Of course, the title is Batman v Superman and we can’t not have a fight between them, right? The buildup to the fight, all up until the big Son of Krypton vs The Bat of Gotham fight felt pretty nice. They really played up the clashing ideologies and methods, and made it a believeable fight. The fight proper was also quite intense. Definitely not a fight to be disappointed with.

Daredevil ‘WAKE ME UP’ jokes aside, Ben Affleck was good as Batman, though his Bruce Wayne does feel a bit like non-growly voice Batman at times. But he does spend most of the movie in ‘work mode’, so there’s that. Cavill’s Superman feels a little more natural than back in MoS, but most of his scenes with Amy Adams’ Lois really, really turn up the cheese. And I mean, almost cringeworthy scenes of pure cheese. So much cheese I think I saw rats crawling up to the screen right then. Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman didn’t get too much screen time, but what little time she has plays up her civilian persona as an almost Catwoman-like sensual seductress. Her warrior persona is where she shines, though. I could almost hear the theater cheer when she showed up in the final fight, and she’s easily one of the more impressive fighters in the scene. Extra kudos goes to Jeremy Irons’ Alfred for being the witty Alfred that helps Bruce at every turn and isn’t afraid of taking shots at him. This is the Alfred we need.

Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor is easily one of the better parts of the movie. While his Zuckerberg-lite persona did make me doubt at first, the pure crazy bubbling under his playful surface that rears its head at times and eventually surfaces completely is what got me into his character. Not to mention he got the annoying part nailed down. In about 80% of his scenes, I have this burning need to punch him in his smug face. Like a good heel, he’s someone you’ll love to hate.

I’ve taken a few—okay, a lot of jabs at DC for being grimdark as hell in MoS. This time around, the overall tone is still rather dark and serious, but the light still manages to shine through. This time, the heroes really did shine a light of hope on all of us. And hope seems to be bright for a larger DCEU, as potential Justice Leaguers start getting their early appearances in, easily one of the more memorable scenes. The buildup, while very on the nose, it’s a damn sight more organic than what Amazing Spider-Man did, shoving 3-4 villains in one movie. In just one short scene, pretty much the rest of the JL roster got their DCEU debuts and early spotlights.

But that doesn’t mean all is right in DC-land. The wanton destruction is still there, but they actually managed to confine it into a more manageable few blocks, apparently. But hey, can’t have a superhero fight without levelling a few city blocks. And the other matter is that while Superman has improved leaps and bounds (no pun intended) in his collateral damage control, Batman seems to have gone the other way. If I’m to be fair, Keaton’s Batman did it too, but this Batman still has quite a killer streak. Don’t tell me chaingunning a car to blow it up doesn’t kill the passengers. And I’m sure smushing someone with the Batmobile counts as a kill, too. Just nitpickings, though. While it did impact my enjoyment a little bit, it didn’t completely ruin the movie.

All in all, it’s quite a solid movie. While it still has some pacing issues (being a little slow on the beginning to middle, but it really goes toward the end) and thick on the cheese in some parts, it’s a marked improvement from Man of Steel, and Batman v Superman is the movie that revitalized my hope of having a proper DCEU. Looks like Marvel’s been put on notice that there’s a real contender in town. Here’s hoping that competition breeds excellence and both MCU and DCEU will put out more great movies in the future. Whoever wins, we win.

Bring on Suicide Squad!

EDIT: After the second time around, I think I need to retract a few things and add a few more random observations. There’s this one line that Superman says close to the end of the movie that reeks of cynicism, one trait that I will never associate with Superman. Call me a traditionalist, but I’ve always thought of Superman as the pinnacle of humanity’s  potential, the best of what mankind could be, and that he always sees the best of humanity. To me, Superman is the optimist, and Batman the cynic. Speaking of optimism and cynicism, this movie doesn’t seem to know where to go. While the protagonists are leaning more on the cynic side of the scale, the feeling the movie seems to go for at the end is one of hope, and it felt like a little bit of a contradiction. Not a movie-ruiner, but still, something that doesn’t quite sit well with me.

One good thing I took away from the second watch, though, is that while the big fights still destroy a bunch of city blocks, the movie handwaves it by saying the parts of the city that were most affected were abandoned or almost empty after the work day. I know, it’s like that one Megas XLR episode where there’s a sign that literally says “CONVENIENTLY EMPTY BUILDING”, but no bystanders is no bystanders.

How convenient.

As much as I’d like to talk about Zack Snyder using a (probably) misinterpreted sequence from Frank Miller’s legendary The Dark Knight Returns as justification for what people have dubbed ‘killer Batman’, this is neither the time nor place for this. I’ll leave this matter alone and judge the movie on what was presented on screen.

With these in mind, I still haven’t changed my stance on how Batman v Superman is a solid movie. One with several glaring flaws that didn’t sit well with me, but still, a solid one.

The Good, The Funny, and The Butt-Fuck Ugly (A Deadpool Movie Non-Spoiler Review)

It’s surreal. If you told me there would be a proper Deadpool movie that is completely comic-faithful and is actually good, I’d probably laugh your ass out of the room. But it happened, and as of this writing, I’ve watched it three times. I enjoyed every single second of it.

After years of languishing in development hell and flip-flopping announcements, we finally get a Wade Wilson worthy of the big screen. No, the steaming pile of mutant shit that was Barakapool doesn’t count. At its core, Deadpool is a pure fun romp filled wall-to-wall with action and gags at every turn.

We all know the Regeneratin’ Degenerate is one of /the/ hottest character in comics these days, thanks in no small part to his popularity in Internet memes. The movie seems to know and embrace the fact as well, feeling closest to the Daniel Way incarnation of the character, filled to the brim with dick jokes and immature humor.

Not unlike Way’s run in the comics, Tim Miller’s Deadpool sometimes feel like it emphasizes style over substance. While there are flashes of depth and emotion in the movie, it’s overshadowed by the metric fuckton of jokes coming at you relentlessly. Not that I mind. I mean, did buy a ticket to see a Deadpool movie for the heartwrenching drama of a tragic clown using humor to hide his inner pain? Of course not. I came for the jokes, and boy, did I get my money’s worth.

Ryan Reynolds’ Wade Wilson is the clear highlight of the movie. The work he’s put in to get this movie made and the passion he has for the character is second to none, and it shows. Deadpool is endlessly quotable and side-splittingly funny. Morena Baccarin as Vanessa has her funny moments at times, and at least manages to not become the screaming damsel in distress. Ed Skrein’s Ajax is menacing enough as a villain, but it’s pretty obvious that the star of this show is Deadpool. He did have his moments, though. Gina Carano’s Angel Dust is the typical strong, silent, henchman-who-happens-to-be-a-woman, who also has her moments, namely one great extended fight sequence near the end. Stefan Kapicic’s Colossus is the most we’ve seen of any Colossus in the X-Franchise, and certainly the funniest, best-looking, and most Russian. Brianna Hildebrand as Negasonic Teenage Warhead, cool-ass name aside, manages to be a high point in almost every scene she’s in with her inexhaustible snark. Wade’s ‘inner circle’, so to speak, with T.J. Miller as Weasel and Leslie Uggams as Blind Al are the perfect foils for Wade. Their banter and interplay are easily some of the movie’s best moments.

The action is where this movie also shines. While some of the scenes were slightly lessened in impact by the stupid-ass censorship over here, they still manage to look awesome as hell. No PG-13 regular gunplay and bloodless sword fighting here. No, sir. You’ll see limbs chopped off, people turned into mulch, heads kicked around like footballs, bullet holes actually being holes, and a host of other gruesome fates befalling unfortunate mooks. Prepare for balls-to-the-wall action.

Easter eggs, where do I even start? This movie is LOADED with references. Tiny nods that would go over the heads of not-diehard comic fans, pop culture references that will probably show your age if you get it, to silly in-jokes about the movie and its surrounding production, there’s everything. Seriously, blink and you’ll miss it. Even on the third viewing, I still feel like I’m missing something.

As a fan, Deadpool was even more than I expected. From the get-go, their marketing campaign caught my eye and set the tone for the movie to come. It delivered what I expected, and then some. Given who got this movie made, you can even say this is a movie by fans, for the fans. It’s almost all fanservice.

Plot-wise, however, it’s nothing we haven’t seen before. It’s pretty much the almost played-out quest for revenge plot we’ve seen in countless action movies. But show of hands, who here watched it for the plot? Yeah, I thought so. It’s the jokes that put butts in seats, and that’s what kept my butt glued on that seat. Granted, some of these jokes are very topical and might fall flat when viewed 5-10 years later, but let’s just live in the present for now.

Bottom line, Deadpool is fun. If you like fun, watch it.