Snow White and the Huntsman

 Snow White and the Huntsman

Directed by Rupert Sanders
Written by Evan Daugherty, John Lee Hancock, Hossein Amini
Featuring Kristen Stewart, Charlize Theron, Chris Hemsworth, Sam Claffin, Ian McShane, Bob Hoskins, Toby Jones

The Legend...Redux...Again

Snow White's whole Evil Witch-poisoned-apple-seven-dwarfs tale has been brought to live action and animation on several occasions, so breathing life into a long-told tale isn't something new. It's all about how you approach it. If the creative team can come at the story in a unique angle, either emphasizing an aspect of the story that usually is glossed over, or omitting story points, or re-imagining everything altogether - than it's a worthwhile shot to take. 2012 has brought two financially backed Snow White movies: Mirror Mirror, released in March and concentrating on the more family-friendly elements of the tale, and now Snow White and the Huntsman, a story with complexity and grittiness that emphasizes said grit over the bright colored, good natured Mirror Mirror. Both movies have their own purpose for existing, and both fulfill their style and tone exceptionally well.

Snow White and the Huntsman is something weird and unique, yet familiar. There's the thing with a young damsel who has run away and is very valuable to the Big Bad who will stop at nothing to procure her, and the handsome, lethal man who reluctantly protects her. And there's a bit about destiny, because all Hollywood tentpole flicks have to have something dealing with destiny. But the beautiful thing is that while watching the movie, it doesn't feel like you're experiencing something you know inside and out, that deadly apple and true love's kiss and all that yadda yadda, because of the way this story is presented to us makes everything so fresh and engaging, like I was experiencing everything for the very first time. This is Snow White encompassing a whole new world of vibrant colors, unique creatures, a deadly forest, an impenetrable castle, seven dwarfs of valor, a mystical deer that was very Aslan-ish, and the best presentation of the evil Queen ever realized, I think. The movie deserves points for that alone - making a old tale seem new again, but let's get to the finer points:

The Case for the Queen and the Curse of K-Stewart

Charlize Theron dominates every frame of Snow White and the Huntsman when she's onscreen because of her brilliant, disturbed, and downright batshit crazy performance as Queen Ravenna. This is the first time I have ever encountered a Snow White tale where the Queen is better developed than our main protagonist; Hell, she's the best developed, complicated character in there. And, mind you, very frakkin' threatening. Ravenna is mathematical in how she executes her plans, but when things start getting personal and she becomes unhinged, Theron adjusts her performance accordingly and becomes a tall, mystical, scary bitch who will stop at nothing to get her beauty. The Queen's backstory is revealed through quick flashbacks, and never once does her agenda feel lacking in substance or one dimensional. She's not the Big Bad just because the story needed her to be, and that right there is one of the major successes of the film. And the fact Charlize Theron is mesmerizing as the Queen, that helps quite a lot, too.

But because of how splendidly detailed the Evil Queen is, and the manner in how Snow White is handled, there is an unfortunate outcome: by the finale, I felt more inclined to have the Queen victorious and continue her world-destroying reign of the kingdom, cos Snow White just ain't cuttin' it.

First, I want to give the slightest of positives. In the first hour or so, Snow White is an interesting character, and I didn't quite mind Kristen Stewart's portrayal of her at all, and she was actually sorta pretty. Downside of the compliment: I realize, in retrospect, that for that first hour, Snow really didn't talk for 80% of it and instead starred open mouthed at some wondrous sight she beheld. Eventually there comes a time where Stewart is called upon to act, and she unfortunately fails to make any impression. This is particularly hurtful during a sequence when she gives what is typically a rousing speech to her compatriots to gallop into battle, but thankless to her delivery of said speech, there's very little rousing going on. If I was one of those sword-wielding blokes, there's no way I would think, Sure, I'll (possibly) lay down my life to help you defeat the Evil Queen and save the land because we have you to lead us into glorious battle! Nah, I'd just go back to my hut and play with stick figures whilst reciting the earliest version of The Empire Strikes Back in un-recorded history.

I by no means entered the movie hoping Stewart would fail; I hoped the opposite, in fact. She gets ripped on for her work in the Twilight movies, and she deserves every ounce of that criticism, but here was a venue for her to shine, to shake off the shackles of that vampire saga and prove her girth. Eh, not so much. Stewart didn't destroy the movie, not by a long shot - thanks in large part to Theron's amazing Ravenna - but the negativity towards her character definitely impacted the film overall.

Furthermore, there's a problem inherent in Snow White as a character, and, to a degree, extends to the rest of the film. The villain of the movie - the script, specifically character development. Like I wrote above, Snow spends a good portion of the first hour just looking concerned or in awe over some pretty sight, not really being a character. At one point, Snow is reunited with a long-lost friend from her younger years, and their reunion is nothing short of lame. A name drop and another name drop - and a short dialogue between them, that encompasses all of it. Considering how useful this character is, it'd be best just to drop him. And that's the downfall of the script overall: there's just enough character, um, stuff, to make the movie work, but just. I still think there should have been more.

The world of Snow White and the Huntsman is fully realized. It's a living, breathing, gorgeous, painted world - the same just can't be said for the characters that inhabit that world.

Also, the last twenty minutes could have used a lot more in the script department. I love a good battle as much as the next fan of action/adventure movies, but the, shall we say 'epilogue', deserves to be just as satisfying as the sword-and-blood melee. It doesn't quite reach that. Basically, the film could have benefited from (probably) not cutting so many scenes and leaving 'em on the editing floor. Could have made quite a difference.

And thus far I haven't mentioned Chris Hemsworth. That's not a negative thing. He's awesome. Worth price of admission alone. Love that man. Would not be disagreeable to a Huntsman spin-off. Hemsworth continues to shine with each role I see him in. Moving on...

Oh! And the dwarfs - now this was a odd thing if ever I saw one. Instead of simply hiring little people to fill the dwarf quota, they used actors of notoriety (e.g., Toby Jones, Ian McShane, Nick Frost, Ray Winstone) and through the magic of CG, shrunk them down to size to make absolutely 100% believable dwarfs. It's really quite amazing, and I'm not entirely sure how they managed to pull that off. For all intents and purposes, those gang of actors are now officially only four foot tall - splendid CG work. But more than that, the creative team got them right this time, or at least what I consider to be right. No longer are they bumbling idiots who steal and good love-struck by Snow and want to make her feel better, they are a band of men (and from the sounds of it the last of their kind) who want to restore honor to their names, and in the name of honor and the promise of Snow's reign - that's why they help the gal. The dwarfs worked, and it's amazing to look at 'em.

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

So all this hum-dum has been made about how damn beautiful the film looks. Well, it does, and all that hum-dum is well deserved. The castle is expansive and looming. The (Forbidden) Forest is brought to life in a Tim Burton-esque fashion, where every shadow is a threat, and every object can come to sinister life. It's really quite cool. And when Snow, the Huntsman and the seven dwarfs come across a lush, green land full of unique creatures and colors - it's a rainbow painting come to life. It can be a hand held shot, a steady cam, a wide, a medium, or a close up - the movie never relents to become anything less than beautiful to look at. Even when the dwarfs are walking through the sewer. Fun times. And my God, next to New Zealand, wherever Snow White was shot, that's where I want to go. The location shooting is just so damn gorgeous. Director Rupert Sanders has visualized a gritty world of mud and smoke when all is dark and lost, and when Snow and the dwarfs come across the Aslanian figure, the colors seem to be bursting from the frame. Just for the sake of commenting on it, Huntsman is visually leaps and bounds superior to Mirror Mirror.

James Newton Howard nearly redeems himself for lazy work in Green Lantern and The Hunger Games with one hell of a fine tune for the film. Beautiful, battle-ready, quirky - all the necessary components. The CG is, as expected from a multi-million dollar film, absolutely splendid. I think there was only one or two shots where the CG wasn't living up to its money, otherwise, this is definitely solid work. Basically, everything on the technical side of things - directing, editing, lighting, music, special effects, wardrobe, etc. - is marvelous.

Snow White's Win

In the end, Snow White and the Huntsman was enjoyable from beginning to end. This tired tale feels brand new, and thanks to the amazing imagery and a cold, calculated performance by Theron, it's a world well worth seeing. There are some quibbles, specifically with character work and a rushed third act, but that doesn't wreck any of the fun and beauty of the production. Mirror Mirror was wildly successful in its comedic self-referential tone, and Huntsman works quite well by fully embracing its dark and realistic style. It's just a shame K-Stewart was cast, otherwise this would be a near super win. 7.5/10

Battleship

Battleship

Directed by Peter Berg
Written by Jon & Erich Hoeber
Featuring Taylor Kistch, Liam Neeson, Rhianna, Alexander Skarsgard, Brooklyn Decker, Gregory D. Gadson. 131 mins., PG-13

Plot: When an alien invasion force threatens all of planet earth, only one battleship float betweens the salvation of mankind and its extermination – until the sequel, when it gets re-threatened.

Introduction

The trailers, those wonderful trailers. There’s circumstances where a well-cut together trailer can make even the most boring of movies sound utterly engaging, like you have to see it this blood second. Right off the bat, I’m thinking off the Doubt. And then there are trailers of flicks that look so ridiculously bad and unappealing, that a project you were once marginally intrigued by has suddenly become one of those Avoid At All cost releases. That’s pretty much Battleship. Now, the premise of military versus aliens ain’t something new, but I liked this take of it – the war at sea, the Navy being the first and only line of defense before shit gets really real. Sounded interesting, but the trailers made it look freakishly bland (freakish, because it’s an action movie, and action flicks at least should come across a tad ‘woah’) and I was slowly beginning to have a aversion to star Taylor Kitsch, who sadly didn’t wow me all that much with John Carter months earlier. Long sad story short, I was wrong. Battleship is all kinds of fun. It’s not clever and surprising like Mr. Whedon’s Avengers, but damn if it isn’t entertaining as hell, and shoots through the screen as a confidant action flick fully giddy at its premise and explosions.

Making Something Out of Nothing

There’s character development in Battleship. Go figure. That, my friends, is something I was not expecting. Alex Hopper (Kitsch) is a troublemaker, a dude who likes to spring into action without a thought of the consequences or much less a plan. That makes him irresistible to the ladies, but a huge pain in the ass for his brother Stone (Skarsgard) who tries his best to clean up Alex’s messes. Finally, enough is enough, and Stone forces Alex to enlist in the Navy, and even that level of orders and ‘yes, sir’’s don’t seem to make a dent in his skull. Enter the alien war. Nearly no one else is bothered with much work on character, but that’s all fine and dandy, because the writers have their hands full with Alex. One thing leads to another, and he’s thrown into the chair of command, and it’s growing up time. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is just one of the reasons why I was quite impressed by this action film – because they bothered. Does the progression of Alex’s arc feel completely organic from start to finish? Not entirely, but they do a marvelous job at providing points for Alex to grow and mature, and for his new-found maturity and sense of purpose to shine, and that makes the scenes when horribly-rendered CG aliens aren’t crashing about watchable and, perhaps, much more interesting.

Another fun aspect of the Alex character and his arc is his continued rivalry with a Japanese captain, Nagata. The interaction between these two men are truly some of the film's highlights; they work off each other very well, both snarky and stubborn and pushed to their limits - if the flick was just Alex and Nagata firing off insults at each other and trying to run a ship, that'd possibly be one of the most entertaining movies of the summer. 

As far as the other characters, they are hardly worth mentioning. We have Rhianna of all people playing a strong but scared shipmate, and Brroklyn Decker as Alex’s girlfriend Samantha, who is forced into the narrative in a rather embarrassingly convoluted manner. Sam spends her time with a Army veteran Mick (Gadson), who involve themselves in the race to stop the aliens before they can screw the earth over even harder. Their scenes together – sigh – not the best, but they do rub in the tone of Battleship: the movie knows precisely what it is and what it’s aiming for, and doesn’t cater to anything else but that. Battleship is fun, and furthermore, Battleship is a movie. It doesn’t take itself seriously, and it doesn’t want the audience to, either. Take this humorous exchange: “We can still buy the earth one more day”, says Mick, ready to drive into a kamakazie mission to, well, give the earth one more day, while Mr. Stuttering Scientist Dude rightly comments, “Who talks like that?” The Transformers movies take themselves seriously while having a good time – Battleship is the less straight-faced version of that franchise.

Sunk Your Battleship, Motherfrakker!

For this type of movie, what matters most to the general audience is one thing: being blown away by the action scenes. And holy frak, director Peter Berg delivers. When the aliens first pop their mechanical hides out of the water and engage the ships, that is some real devastation they bring (the aliens, not the Navy), and the loss of life is (surprisingly) felt and very real and emotional. At night, a game of cat-and-mouse is tense in that edge-of-your-seat kind of way, and a sunrise kill-or-be-killed is gorgeous to watch. This action delivers, and if the presence of Liam Neeson ain’t enough to persuade you to seek out Battleship (although, really, he ought to, that man is amazing), hopefully your interest in pretty damn thrilling action scenes will be enticing enough.

If there’s one overbearing negative that prevents a person from really falling in love with the insane action beats and briskful narrative, it’s the presentation of the aliens. One word: lame. Eh, second word: disappointing. In regards to J. J. Abrams, a lot of his creatures are designed a bit too similar to make each one unique enough, and thus hinders that jaw-dropping ‘woah’ moment. Here, the alien designs are just lazy. When the masks do come off and the aliens can be seen in their full glory, I get what they’re trying to go with – the physical similarities between us and them, and the differences – but their armor makes me feel like this is a ‘Don’t Sue Us!’ iteration of Halo and the aliens’ actual appearance gives me Bad Aquaman Villain vibes. So the aliens and Rhianna – those I could do a mecha-change-up to a otherwise fun film.

Bite the Bullet

Yes, worth seeing. A greater understanding of the human race will not be revealed to you during the running time of Battleship, but you get to see some beautiful alien and naval destruction as the earth is on the brink of annihilation. And Liam Neeson. And there’s actual character work in the movie, making it a tiny step above the typical summer blockbuster. Point is, if you’re willing to suspend every ounce of disbelief and just sit back and dig the tone Battleship is going for, this will be two hours very well spent. 8.0/10

The Watcher: Closing the 2011-2012 TV Season (Part 1)

Hello! And welcome to the first fresh post on the blog in over a month! Before I venture into the land of cinema and tackle them with a fresh perspective [more on this at a later time], let's take a gander at a few of the shows I followed during the 2011-2012 television season. In case anyone hasn't been following the blog, I've been a tad overcome with TV shows - alright, ya got me, it's more like an addiction. So for this edition of The Watcher, which won't have too much to talk about in the coming weeks with the exception of True Blood and the return of Awkward., let's review some full season shows!

The Big Bang Theory

Sheldon (left) and Kripke (right) play basketball to win the office of a retired coworker in 517 "The Rothman Disintegration"

I want to love The Big Bang Theory. More specifically, I want to love each and every one of its jokes, and each and every one of its episodes. But the unfortunate, sad truth is - it manages to make me laugh not that often. In its early years (seasons 1-3), nearly each episode had some sort of gut-busting joke of sheer brilliance, where each episode was something splendid and hilarious. Season 4, things started to waver - which is entirely understandable. Plenty of shows sort of lose their way in their fourth season, it seems to be the 'do-or-die' year for many a series. So that season was rather rubbish, with very few laughs or interesting plots. And this brings us to season 5, boasting 24 episodes where only, say, four or five are truly worth watching. 

Interestingly, my favorite episodes of season 5 seem to deal primarily with Leonard, and the episodes I detest usually focus on the really-needs-to-grow-up Howard Walowitz and his sexually ambiguous friend Raj, two roles that function more as easy objects to make fun of instead of appearing as real, dimensional characters; they're the butt of jokes, not the thing stories are made of. And the once brilliantly comical Jim Parsons can't even seem to breathe life into Sheldon anymore, a character that is more and more losing his touch. That said, Sheldon's interactions with newly christened official 'girlfriend' Amy usually are seasonal highlights. When Sheldon and Amy are together, that's comedy gold - Amy's willingness to experience life and its many physical offerings, and by contrast, Sheldon who has no desire from the relationship outside of the meeting of two genius minds. But it's Leonard and his horrible luck with women and decision to forgo all premeditation and just take a chance with an old flame that make his character the more engaging of the year.

In regards to Howard and his relationship with Bernadette, here's hoping that the two of them together will help propel Howard into the neighborhood of becoming a character instead of comic fodder. Still, Howard is leaps and bounds a superior role in every way to Raj, who has less of a presence this year than ever before. I understand that the writers can't allow the characters to change too much or do something too extreme for the sake of plot generating and the necessity of jokes, but Raj being Raj has overstayed his welcome - time to evolve, dude, or get off the show.

The series has already been renewed through the ends of its seventh season (must be nice to have that sense of comfortability few shows seldom know), so I sincerely hope the writers can craft some funnier episodes with loads more character development. Amongst the season's highlights, "The Russian Rocket Reaction" [505], "The Good Guy Fluctuation" [507], "The Ornithophobia Diffusion" [509], "The Recombination Hypothesis" [513], and "The Rothman Disintegration" [517]. If the show can find it's groove again, The Big Bang Theory will be marvelous in its sixth season. Until then, I'm cautiously optimistic. Also, surprisingly, the series works best when watched in quick succession, with no week hiatus - makes the bad episodes less bad and the good episodes really shine. Overall Season 5 Grade: C

Community

Jeff and Britta infiltrate Greendale to bring an end to Chang's imperialism in 321 "The First Chang Dynasty"

When I discovered Community, I devoured it (season two review here). The series was witty in its dialogue, smart in its story and structure, hilarious in its quick jokes, jabs, and characters, geeky fun in all its cultural references and homages [e.g., Inspector Spacetime], and complex in every single one of its characters. Frankly, there's nothing quite like Community, and that holds especially true in its third season. Sure, in the last two years each of the characters were put in weird situations and soap opera storylines here and there, but this year pushes everyone in diverse, dark directions - Abed's personality goes into some dark places, going so far as to form his very own Dark Timeline; Chang establishes an evil empire at Greendale, holding the dean captive for over a month (!); Annie must come to a realization of her actions and feelings; Troy and Abed's friendship is tested by animosity; while Troy is being pushed towards a destiny he's refused since the first season finale. All the characters - save probably Pierce, although he does have a arc-friendly story near the season end - experience some kind of change, including Jeff. And all of this is happening, surrounded by "event" conceits. A mega blanket/pillow fort, a Law & Order homage, a Ocean's Eleven super heist, a Doctor Who homage, a anime rendition of Community and a 8-bit iteration of the gang battling the evil Gus Frig [look it up], and a Good Will Hunting storybeat turned upside down. Creator Dan Harmon and the rest of the writers are maniacal, hilarious geniuses.

Not every episode is a rousing success, unfortunately, but every episode honors character, and that's something rare in this breed of comedy television. And the most important thing of all, each episode is absolutely worth watching. There's not one atrocious, mind-numbingly bad bit in this batch. There's not a lot to say that extends beyond "OMG! OMG! Love love love brilliant funny love love haha!" But here I go: as a Doctor Who fan, every instance of Inspector Spacetime was a warm welcome. Analyzing Abed's personality dominates quite a few episodes in the backhalf of the season, which were very enlightening and entertaining - and helped Annie come to a realization of her own concerning Jeff. There seemed to be a heavy emphasis on real life vs. movies/television this year - Abed's part in documenting crazy Greendale shenanigans, or Abed's escapism in the Dreamatorium affecting how he perceives the world and acts in it. Reality is further tested in 319 "Curriculum Unavailable", where the study group is presented with the notion that all their experiences in the last two years have been a result of their psychosis. Community continues to be funny, dark, complex, and daring, and I love it for that. Season highlights include "Remedial Chaos Theory" [304], "Foosball and Nocturnal Vandalism" [309], "Virtual Systems Analysis" [316], "Basic Lupine Urology" [317], and "The First Chang Dynasty" [321]. But really, every episode is great fun. Overall Season 3 Grade: B+

Fringe

Peter learns more about the mysterious Observers from September in 414 "The End of All Things"

CAUTION: I'm writing this with the assumption you've seen all of season 4. Continue. Unlike many others I know, I was quite in love with Fringe's third year. I was all for the Peter/Olivia relationship, and more than that, I absolutely love the switching back between worlds, the whole Olivia switch-a-roo, and the fallout of the first eight episodes affecting where the rest of the year went. And with the cliffhanger finale last year ended with, season four had a lot to live up to. Ultimately, Fringe didn't live up to those expectations, and it all boils down to this - those 22 episodes were not spent wisely, and there was a frustrating lack of explanations for things that deserved good explanations. First, Peter's reappearance in this new timeline demanded a better explanation than what was lazily given, as is where he was during the period of time between season 3 and 4, and how he was able to crossover. Secondly, the resurrection of a certain villain from season 1 is riveting and intense, but a indestructibility is visualized halfway across the season, making him a frightening endeavor to face, yet in the penultimate episode, the villain is dispensed with rather easily. Perhaps I missed some important plot-point, but how did getting tossed into some electrical thingy have the desired dying effect that getting shot through the throat did not achieve? Third, Olivia and her arc - now I'm happy things went the way they did with Peter and Olivia, but how the writers got there, that's where I have a problem. It's her Cortexiphan abilities that enabled her to channel the Other Olivia's memories? And, speaking of the other timeline, that whole subplot of last year with Fauxlivia and Peter's son Henry is now null and void with the evisceration of that timeline?

In the end, I feel, with 22 episodes, much more could have been done than what was presented to us. There felt like an alarming amount of filler, so much so that when we arrived to the two-parter finale, I was freaked out a little - there was still so much unexplained that how could two hours possibly do it justice? Amazingly, prophecies were fulfilled and the endgame reached, leaving the tale open for the fifth and final season. Having Lincoln included in the mix in this new timeline was refreshing, it added a new dynamic to the team that was greatly needed. It's a shame that around the halfway mark, Lincoln's importance in events began to dwiddle exponentially. And this brings us to the ultimate flaw of season 4: there just is not enough. Not enough Lincoln, not enough explanations, not enough smart usage of episodes, and not enough difference [this is a brand spankin' new timeline, yet by episode 15, it felt like a simple amalgamation of the prior two].

But there was a lot done right. John Noble continues to impress over and over as Walter Bishop, a man tormented by the atrocities he's committed in the past, and a desire to remedy that in the here and now, and a man with absolutely no social skills, providing some of the best comedy bits of the year. Lincoln is, as mentioned, a season highpoint as well. Learning a tiny bit more about the Observers than previously was also very interesting. Above all, even though the year was advertised as Peter's year, I was most impressed with Olivia Dunham and her arc - at least, hers was the most engaging. With Peter, they had this tremendous opportunity to explore new things - after all, this is a man in a whole new world - but he quickly fell back into the mix of things. Olivia was a brand new person for a dozen episodes, with a different emotional state, different memories and trajectories and relationships, and the Olivia that emerged after her memories began to resurface was a stronger, more confidant Olivia than we have ever seen on Fringe. Actually, here's another nice way to summarize the fourth year of Fringe: tremendously successful on the character front, sadly lacking on the plot and forward momentum.

Season highlights include "Neither Here Nor There" [401], "Enemy of My Enemy" [409], "Welcome to Westfield" [412], "The End of All Things" [414], "Letters of Transit" [419], "Brave New World" [421/422]. As it has been confirmed that next year's fifth season will be its last, the Fringe team appear to be facing off against the enigmatic Observers (as referenced in the superb future episode 419), and I can't think of a better way to send the series off in the sunset. The series will be greatly missed, but I will always be thankful with how exceptionally brilliant Fringe has been year after year. Overall Season 4 Grade: B

Justified

Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) refuses to lend a hand in 313 "Slaughterhouse"

Coming out of a critically acclaimed second season, Justified had a lot to live up to. Being one of the few who weren't nearly as consumed by the Bennett storyline of season two, I was eagerly looking forward to where the characters were heading for year three. Boyd seemed to not know what the fuck he was doing but gave the impression that he did to anyone who would listen, Raylan talked a lot about getting out of Harlem but really didn't want to, and one chilling baddie was introduced to stir things up in Harlem while a businessman stands at the sidelines to see how things turn out and when to butt in. Well, by the end of season three, Boyd still doesn't seem to know what the hell he's doing. He has succeeded in having a fantastic relationship with Ava Crowder, murdered a friend who betrayed him, and has a crew of wacky, off-kilter folk who have their own agendas. By 313 "Slaughterhouse", Boyd doesn't really seem any better or worse off than where we left him in the season two premiere. Raylan gets a lot of shit thrown at him - Winona leaves him (which is mighty sad, taking me crush for Natalie Zea into consideration), and the Big Bad in Town once again targets him for termination.

Here's some random, general thoughts on season three: Dickie Bennett can leave the series at any time, he has overstayed his welcome for me. Every scene with Wynn Duffy is golden. Need a example? Look at the season finale, and tell me if there's ever been a better yelling of "Jesus Christ!" ever filmed. In the category of bad guys, Quarles (Neal McDonough) is magnificent, and that's saying something huge, because I initially was not looking forward to this character. But his brilliant introduction in the premiere set the tone - Quarles is a threat, a maniac, a crazy dude with a pistol in his sleeve and one hell of a rage issue. Every second with that man was intense, and how it culminates in the finale is surprisingly completely satisfying. In fact, how this year plays out is very much satisfying. McDonough, though, just creeped me out. Reminded me of Heath Ledger's The Joker, honestly. It's there. Overall, the season was firing on all cylinders. The only huge problem I have with the series is how each episode barely scratches the 40 minute mark. I'm used to shows on FX lasting in the (minimum) 44 minute range, and with a lot more content thrown in. Thing is, I love Justified, but at only 13 episodes, 40 minutes a piece, it's simply not hugely fulfilling. I want more, damnit. So if they can increase the runtime by just two more minutes, that would make me a happy camper. So, in conclusion, Quarles was amazing. Frightening to the core, magnificently played by McDonough. Raylan's situations were constantly interesting and humorous [e.g., "You shot me. I can't believe you shot me." "Neither can I."]. Storylines more often than not were engaging and unique. Characters weren't used the best they could be, but were fine overall. And Boyd - my god, give that character some direction, and give Walton Goggins something juicy to work with. And give me season four, like, nowish. Overall Season 3 Grade: B

New Girl

Jess (Zooey Deschanel) and the gang celebrate their last day as a group in 124 'See Ya"

A huge surprise, frankly. It's difficult for me to really get into a comedy show [see: my harsh words concerning Big Bang Theory], but somehow, as if through magic, FOX's freshman show New Girl seemed to hit all the right notes. Even during that period of time nearly all new shows undergo - the finding of its 'voice' and understanding its characters - the series featured a multitude of laughs. In fact, there hasn't been one outrageously bad, facepalm-worthy episode of New Girl to date. The strength is in the diverse characters, and the tremendously talented cast - and, of course let's not forget to give kudos to these guys, the writers. Jake Johnson has shot up the list of Favorite Comedy Actors with this series; this man is never not funny. His real talent is yelling unrelated words in succession and yet finding meaning in them. Max Greenfield has proven himself a master of taking unrelated things and forming a new word, or combining words, or just saying jibberish. Johnson and Greenfield are masters of improv, and although each actor brings their A-game to the series, I can honestly say that I tune in each week with a emphasis on seeing those two be ridiculous more than any of the other core characters. Out of all the actors, the one I was the least keen on was its star, Zooey Deschanel. Sure, she's pretty and occasionally funny, but that dork element to engrained in her character style could sustain my interest for so long. Luckily, the writers know when best to use it, and how to make Jess something more than just, well, a dork.

The first eight episodes is the obvious period of adjustment and creative understanding of the show, and by around episode thirteen, the series hit comedy gold. Near perfect runs all around, leading to a fun (albeit rushed) season finale. New Girl also has the distinction of being one of my few Destination Programming that I refuse to miss. That's a testament to how damn well the show is. I'm not going to spend a lot of time regaling you all with my affection towards New Girl, so I'll summarize: one of the finest first seasons of a show I have ever seen, with each episode offering the laughs without fail, and a diverse, hilarious cast that works tremendously well. It's a series with heart and intelligence and yet also boasts the balls to be super crazy. Season highlights: every episode. Overall Season 1 Grade: A

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Tune in next week, as I review two freshman shows Once Upon a Time and Revenge, and give my thoughts on returning favorites Supernatural, The Vampire Diaries, and The Walking Dead.

Movie Prowlin: 2012 Edition, Vol. 1

2012 has sucked. Like, a lot. This time last year, I had hit 80 movies, thanks in large part by trying my hands at OMENS and catching up with 2010 releases. This year, I'm not quite sure what it is. Obviously, as you can tell below, my TV addiction is at an all-time high, by far overshadowing the amount of movies I watch. Keep in mind, I intend to remedy this immediately. I will become so consumed with movie watching it will be insane! Mind boggling! Or something or rather like that! Especially with summer coming up, and my aversion to heat and affection to everything air conditioned, pretty sure I'll be spending a good portion of my days on the couch watching me some cinema. I also realize I've sucked at reviewing pretty much anything I've seen - also to be rectified.

My thanks to anyone who still keeps up with the blog. Life's been crazy. But thanks to this new redesign and renewed enthusiasm, things are going to get better.

Movies Watched in 2012: 01 January 2012 - 31 March 2012

01. The Art of Getting By
02. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
03. Young Adult
04. Moneyball
05. A Good Old Fashioned Orgy
06. Rise of the Planet of the Apes
07. Colombiana
08. The Ides of March
09. Haywire
10. Cowboys & Aliens
11. Footloose (2011)
12. Boy Wonder
13. Paranormal Activity 3
14. Tucker & Dale vs. Evil
15. Real Steel
16. Drive
17. The Grey
18. The Three Musketeers [2011]
19. Friends With Kids
20. Chronicle
21. Killer Elite
22. The Rum Diary
23. Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
24. Justice League: Doom
25. Kiss the Girls
26. Flash Gordon
27. Hugo
28. The Big Year
29. Take Shelter
30. Beginners
31. The Vow
32. Safe House
33. The Artist
34. John Carter
35. Immortals
36. The Adventures of Tintin
37. Pink Panther 2
38. 21 Jump Street

TV Seasons Watched in 2012: 01 January 2012 - 31 March 2012

01. Smallville: Season 10
02. Coupling: Series 1
03. Coupling: Series 2
04. Coupling: Series 3
05. Coupling: Series 4
06. How I Met Your Mother: Season 1
07. How I Met Your Mother: Season 2
08. How I Met Your Mother: Season 3
09. How I Met Your Mother: Season 4
10. How I Met Your Mother: Season 5
11. How I Met Your Mother: Season 6
12. Greek: Chapter 3
13. Greek: Chapter 4
14. Greek: Chapter 5
15. Greek: Chapter 6
16. Sons of Anarchy: Season 2

Good and Bad of 2011: Television

This has been one stellar year for television programming, absolutely stellar. There honestly has not been a better time this last decade to be a TV addict, as I have shamefully become. As a result, my movie watching has suffered. My bad, ladies and gents, my bad indeed.

AWARD FOR MOST ‘HOLY SHIT!’ MOMENTS

Often, when a show hits its fourth season, the Idea Well starts to dry up, and the series just isn't as memorable as it used to be when everything was fresh and creative and original and bloody amazing. Surprisingly, this was not the case with Breaking Bad, a series that entered its fourth year in 2011 and delivered one solid episode after another. More than that, Breaking Bad gave us the most holy freaking shit! and did that shit really just happen?! moments of the year. The writers constantly pushed the envelope, delivering episodes that defied expectations, that went places no other show had gone before, and sprung on us a finale that was methodically paced and then smacking us in the face with one hell of a conclusion to an ongoing storyline. More than that, the last three episodes of the season is perhaps the most magnificent examples of excellent, nearly flawless television writing of all time. It will be difficult to trump what happened here.

ENDING WITH A WHIMPER: Rescue Me

Tommy Gavin is a character very much like Vic Mackey, in that I feel you can’t stop him, he doesn’t have an ending point outside of the very finality of death (at least in the real world). So how would Denis Leary and Peter Tolan, the creators of Rescue Me, conclude this seven season series? I knew there was no way Vic was going to die in The Shield, it would have been tremendously unsuiting, and the same can be said for Tommy Gavin, because his death would be nothing less than a cop out, a lazy move. What we have instead is actually a pretty decent series finale, but it’s not everything it could have been. To its credit, “Ashes” has some pretty clear ties to the pilot, and closes out several storylines in a nice, neat bow. But there's something immensely unsatisfying about this series ender. Be that as it may, Tommy ends as a new father, with a new direction in life, and sober. So happy endings, all around. Minus the big death. Just should have been more impactful - more meaningful.

BEST NEW SHOW OF 2011: New Girl

Not a show I was expecting to fall in love with, but hell, it grabbed me pretty much instantaneously. Zoey Deschannel is one of those comedian actresses you either really love or really hate, with very little in between. Luckily, she uses her charm brilliantly here, being the absolute perfect Jess. Her flatmates Jake Johnson, Lamorne Morris, and Max Greenfield are also just as brilliant. Johnson and Greenfield steal the spotlight from Deschannel at pretty much every chance, and are absolute highlights. 20 episodes in, the show is (understandably) still finding its footing, but on the occasions where everything comes together, its comedy is unmatched on TV today. Jake Johnson's Nick just spouting off random phrases is comedy gold, Deschannel has harnessed Jess' awkwardness, and Greenfield has proven himself a shameless, fearless comedy actor. Marvelous show, here.

SCI-FI FAIL: Torchwood: Miracle Day

Don't get me wrong. I love Torchwood. Will continue to love Torchwood to the end of my days. That said, Torchwood has been absolutely dreadful for a good portion of its fourth series run, the 10-episode Miracle Day that ran on STARZ during the summer. This is one of those circumstances where a pretty cool idea - that death stops for everyone everywhere - is dreadfully executed and nearly ruins the entire show. With the exception of, say, three episodes, the rest of the batch are abysmal. Just ridiculous padding until the conclusion comes about. Characters are annoying, subplots are so completely stupid and worthless, and at times I was wondering if showrunner Russell T. Davies had suffered some severe brain trauma which resulted in his poorest series of a show to date. The whole middle area of Miracle Day is crap. But the beginning and end? Damn good writing and acting. Oh, there's still loads of problems in both the good and bad, but not nearly as detrimental to the enjoyment factor. Major drop of the ball, but mind, I'll still be there for whenever a fifth series of Torchwood hits the airwaves.

OUTRAGE OF THE YEAR: Smallville

What a overall FANTASTIC season, only to be brought down by this ridiculous and highly disappointing finale. The Smallville finale gives credence to the 'an ending can ruin your enjoyment of the whole' argument. Ten seasons, most 22 episodes a piece, of Clark Kent fighting bad guy after bad guy and loads of soap operaness, us fans clung to the notion this would all be good in the end, because Mr. Tom Welling will grace the Superman suit and take up the mantle of the Man of Steel. It would happen, it would be extraordinary, and it would be one hell of an event. Now, Smallville has a limited budget, so I kept my expectations at a minimum. Besides, the finale was more of a delight for me because of the return of a one Michael Rosenbaum, who over seven seasons delivered what I consider to be the definitive portrayal of Lex Luthor - nemesis to Superman. But I wanted Tom Welling in the Superman suit. Just give me that, and everything would be great. You could have Superman farting on Apokolips and whatever asinine conclusion to the show you want, as long as we get to see the Superman suit. Nope. What we get is some CGI mess of bullshit. It's been nearly a year since the finale, and this cop out still rubs me wrong. I hate this, I hate this, I hate this. Poor move, guys. I don't know why he wasn't shown in his full glory - this moment that we've been waiting for over 100 episodes - but nothing can be done about it now. Season 10: GREAT year, HORRIBLE ending.

GONE TOO SOON: Skins [U.S.]

Maybe it's because I'm still a kid, really. Maybe it's because I'm a sucker for relationship drama and messed up characters. But I liked MTV's Skins. It wasn't even remotely as risque as every imaginable news outlet made it out to be, and was - honest to blog - the best show MTV had on its roster [which doesn't sound like much, I know, but it's a compliment]. The writing may not have been stellar, and the performances not jaw-dropping amazing, but Skins presented a raw, clever look into the lives of these teenagers, and it was damn good. It's unfortunate a show like this gets canned but One Tree Hill can run on for nearly a decade. The show is currently streaming on Netflix - give it a try.

NOTEWORTHY EPISODES OF 2011

• "Crawl Space", Breaking Bad, season 4, episode 11
• "Day of the Moon", Doctor Who, series 6, episode 02
• "Remedial Chaos Theory", Community, season 3, episode 04
• "Box Cutter", Breaking Bad, season 4, episode 01
• "Let's Kill Hitler", Doctor Who, series 6, episode 08
• "Bloodline", Fringe, season 3, episode 18
• "Eura; Everyone", Skins, season 1, episode 10

______________________________

And that concludes 2011! My thanks to everyone who came to the Geek to read up on closing the book on 2011 and lookin' forward to the future. See y'all next year.

Good and Bad of 2011: Movies - Vol. 5

Welcome to Day 5 of 6, the last of the movie chronicling. I've given accolades, I've listed my favorite ten flicks of 2011, and now it's time to discuss the really shitty productions of last year, the ones I don't have a place for, and the flicks I'm really looking forward to in the coming months.

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The SHAMEful Side of 2011

Green Lantern

This movie has not aged well. Just the other day, Green Lantern began airing on HBO, and I decided to sit back, relax, and take it all in. After all, my original review was critical but forgiving, having found myself enjoying the narrative despite it's miscast of Hal Jordan and poor handling. Now, I look at nearly every frame of this movie, and I see what could be improved, what should be changed, etc. Hell, the whole damn movie needs to be retooled, starting from the ground up: the screenplay is absolutely, faceplam-worthy horrible. I don't want to get into specifics, because I'll be writing all day, but what I'm just going to say is that characterization is non-existent, or at best thinly drawn. Additionally, Ryan Reynolds is not Hal Jordan. The story is weak and unspectacular. The special effects needs lots of tweaking, although I will give the creators credit for trying something new. Basically everything about this movie needs help in one way or another, and it's unfortunate that Green Lantern was thrown into theaters in this state, effectively destroying its ability to leave a good impression on audiences and, for that matter, franchise possibilities. Oh well. I hope this isn't the last we get of Green Lantern, but if that's the case, something major needs to happen with the next one to pull people in, because that's what it's going to take to make people interested after this. [Review Here]

Shark Night 3D

1999, Mall of America, at the age of 9, I sat in a movie theater and was scared as hell by the Mako sharks of Renny Harlin's Deep Blue Sea. I was terrified, but oddly enough, that cemented my long brewing fascination and love for sharks. By that age I was already a Creature Feature Connoisseur [e.g., Carnosaur, Crocodile, Alligator, Octopus, etc.), so I devoured those nifty animals-on-the-loose flicks that showed on Sci-Fi Channel often. I'm saying this so you understand that I had semi-high hope for Shark Night 3D. Every inch of me felt that this was going to be a disaster, absolute horrible rubbish, but I also foolishly clung on hope that in this day of age with big special effects and decent 3D in gory horror flicks, that this might be a fun adventure. I was wrong. It took many days for the hatred I felt for the people involved in this 'movie' to alleviate - it's still there, sorta - but I can now come to terms with how much money I wasted for the 3D glasses, and how much money was wasted by the studio bringing this piece of shit to the big screen. This wasn't the return of Creature Features as I had really wanted, this was the extinction of hope that there was any chance of good animal/creature-on-the-loose coming out anytime soon. Fuck you, Shark Night. [Review Here]

Hangover Part II

Entertain me. That's all I wanted. The Hangover didn't wow me back in 2009 like it seemed to most all the kids my age. It had a few chuckle-worthy moments, but not a movie worth all the applause and accolades. So here we have Hangover Part II, which had a lot of pre-buzz because, obviously, the success of the first one. I saw it, expecting to be entertained, like I said at the beginning. I was not entertained. Not even a little. I did not chuckle. I found no humor in this comedy. Now, as for the complaints about sameness, yes, this movie is highly guilty of that. What I expected was the same premise, that these dudes don't remember what the hell happened last night. Okay, we got that. But after that bit, I expected the movie to deviate, defy expectations, go crazy routes that would be laugh-out-loud funny. Instead, the humor was right on track for sixth graders, and the film's content really does feel like a regurgitation of scenes and even dialogue from the first. Bring some damn intelligence to the equation, guys. Because this doesn't work. [Review Here]

Sucker Punch

My roommate can confirm: I was soooooo looking forward to Sucker Punch. Just look at the trailer! What an amazing trailer! And Vanessa Hudgens, Vanessa Hudgens is going to be in the movie! And dragons! There are dragons! And...big...samurai...bad guy thingies... Whatever, point is, I was curious how everything was going to be connected, and I was highly looking forward to the fight scenes. I love me some fight scenes, especially sci-fi/fantasy fight scenes. And then that thing happens where you see the movie you've been looking forward to, and it disappoints you to no end. Nothing mattered here. The fights - well, they're all happening in her head, everything pretty much was happening in her head as a method of escape from reality. Nothing mattered. So why should we care? There wasn't a real emotional stake in the whole damn thing, not even when the other girls got involved. Hell, Zack Snyder even made action scenes seem boring and far too long. Action scenes! That should be an impossibility, guys and gals. What Sucker Punch is, is an mess. One, big, sloppy, enormous mess. [Review Here]

I Am Number Four

Alfred Gough and Miles Miller, writers of this wonderful teen superhero epic, took everything bad they did during their tenure writing a young Superman in The WB's Smallville, and put it on the big screen for all the world to see. Every nanosecond of I Am Number Four is a message to aspiring writers: "this is NOT how you write a superhero movie, let alone something resembling a movie." I don't want to waste another second on this piece of garbage, other than to say: big pile of stupid soulless, mindless shit.

Your Highness

Look at that adorable face. Right there, on that frame, James Franco is enjoying himself far more than I did at any one second of Your Highness. I was looking for a clever satire on the fantasy genre. Instead, what I got was a stoner sword & sorcery pile of shit that relies on tired jokes and gags and boasts not one ounce of originality or, more importantly, funny. I roll my eyes in your general direction.

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And the In-Betweeners

Super 8

I so desperately wanted to fall madly in love with Super 8. J. J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg were gearing up to unleash a movie that was made directly for me, it seemed. First and foremost, you always get my vote if there's a monster in your movie, always. Secondly, J. J. Abrams, I love that man, and I love lens flares. Third, J. J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg, both men I have tremendous respect for and love their work. Fourthlyish, children as protagonists, striking the vibe of E.T. and The Goonies, but this time with some sort of alien problem. I so completely support this idea and love it, and it was executed just fine. But why, then, do I just not feel anything towards Super 8? It's gorgeous to look at, the score - as I have already mentioned - is amazing, and the young actors are tremendous, each and every one of them. But there's some sort of emotional disconnect that forces me not to fall in love with the movie as I expected. Even now, months past, and multiple rewatches later, I can't articulate what doesn't quite do it for me. There's just not enough of the emotion, there's not enough of the human element, I feel, at least not enough for me to connect and be wrapped up in their story. And beyond the children, I also have some rather sizable disappointment in the presentation of the creature, which echoes the monster from Cloverfield far too close for comfort, and whenever the beast is onscreen, save for one scene, he's nearly indistinguishable against the darkness. I want to love Super 8, it just seems to be missing something, that big, vital ingredient... [Review Here]

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Not good enough. Simple as that. Rooney Mara wasn't the girl with the dragon tattoo, she was the girl trying desperately to be the girl with the dragon tattoo. The screenplay was just fine, it actually improved and clarified elements of the story that left me puzzled/lost in the Swedish film, so I was thankful for that. Daniel Craig was fine, but just fine. David Fincher brought his Fincherness, but that was that. There is nothing remarkable about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and if this Fincher version was the first (or only) I had seen, I would be very underwhelmed. With Noomi Rapace in the role, there was an inherent badassery and mystery to the character of Lisbeth Salander. You just had to look at her and you knew everything you needed to know - that she could kick your ass, that she was independent and a bit of a loner, that she was skilled in many ways, etc. Rapace was Lisbeth. And for me, the success or failure of this Fincher version depended squarely on the shoulders of Rooney, and that didn't work out quite as they planned. It was a fine effort, but like I said, just not good enough.

Midnight in Paris

Yeah, yeah, go ahead and disagree. This has been on enough ‘best of’ lists to know that I’m in a very, very small minority. Nothing about the flick resonated with me. Sure, there were some funny bits of dialogue, because Woody is, as we all know, gifted with that sort of thing. But the actual content, looking at the movie as a whole, just didn't dig it. I felt that Scoop was a far stronger effort [yes, yes, go ahead and block me, I get it]. None of the characters were defined all that well, not even protagonist Owen Wilson. The supporting characters were given the bare minimum of pretty much anything. And maybe I'm just thick, but I didn't get it until near the third act that Wilson was, I believe, transported in time to this era of artists. I assumed he was hanging around a bunch of blokes who liked to play dress up. Whatever this movie is, I get that it has struck a positive cord for some people, but for me, the entire time, I kept waiting for the answer to my question, 'What's the point?'

Water for Elephants

When Christoph Waltz was not onscreen, I did not care. I didn't care for the 'romance' between Reese and Robert. It wasn't important, and it wasn't believable. I did not care for the elephant. I did not care for the story. I did not care, period. And for what Water for Elephants strives to be, that isn't a good thing.

Red State

Last year, Red State was on my list of Most Anticipated films, and when it finally was released via Video On Demand back in September, I pounced on the chance to watch it. Ultimately, after all that wait, maybe I had too high hopes, because as the credits rolled, I didn't feel much of anything. I had plenty of sporadic thoughts, but not enough to form a coherent opinion. So here I am, several months after the fact, and I still don't have a complete review, don't fully know what to say. What it boils down to is that I think Smith wrote a damn good script. Like, really, really good. There's still flaws: Cooper, primarily, and the general feeling that there should be more, more to the story, more to the characters, more everything. As for what we have onscreen, the performances, the cinematography, editing, etc., it feels hollow. I love me some Michael Parks and all, but it feels like he's just recycling a Hannibal character, not giving the audience something new and spine-tingling. Smith has the camera always in motion, because it's that type of movie, alright, I can deal, no problem there. But the whole enterprise feels hollow, and I don't know why. From everything Smith says, he is clearly passionate about the project, obsessively so, it's just bizarre that it doesn't translate. One of the year's true oddities.

Cowboys & Aliens

I so, so wanted Cowboys & Aliens to be a runaway success, to be something extraordinary where I could turn to my non-geeky friends and say, 'look at this super awesome fun action flick where there's cowboys...fighting aliens!' I've given this movie a lot of thought, and I've come to the conclusion that Jon Favreau was faced with a no-win scenario, really. Every consumer was entering the movie with a different want. It would be bloody difficult to please. And trying to find that right balance, that right match shifting between cowboy and alien flick, man, it must have been tough for the guy. I get that. The western element of the movie is spot on. They adhere to it perfectly. Where the movie falters, though, is the aliens. Furthermore, the reason they've set up camp. It was one of those explanations where I just thought, seriously? This is why? There needed to be more aliens onscreen, there needed to be a bigger threat, and there needed to be this sense of jeopardy, that lives were at stake. I got none of that. Sure, characters died, but nothing felt legit. Now, I enjoyed Cowboys & Aliens, and there is the framework of a movie that could have been truly excellent. I don't know what they needed to improve it - make it grittier? Emphasize the aliens? Make Daniel Craig's character more interesting? Make it longer? Make it more epic? More personal? What? Suffice to say, the flick needed a few more drafts to find that right tone and direction, and then it would have been brilliant. As it stands, it's a fun two hours, but it's not a product that's worth the man power and millions of dinero put behind it. Sorry, Craig and Favreau, you gave it your all.

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2012: Must See

Wrath of the Titans

Do I expect it to be good? No, I learned my lesson from Clash of the Titans. That said, I do expect to be entertained, or, at the very least, be in awe at the beautifully rendered CG giants that ravish the lands. I am, first and foremost, a monster movie fan before I am anything else, so that chance to see monsters brought to life on the big screen in this day 'n age - it's too wonderful of an opportunity to pass up. Succeed or fail like the first, doesn't matter. Monsters are back, Liam Neeson is Zeus,

The Avengers

Analyzing publicity photos, screenshots, writer/director/actor quotes, and dissecting trailer after trailer, and I still don't know exactly how I feel about The Avengers. It could go either way. What I really want to know about at this point of the game is character development and story, which we haven't got a real crystal clear picture of yet. But right now, I'm going to say that it doesn't matter. I Believe in Joss Whedon, through thick and thin, and I believe he will deliver us a good Avengers movie. So my ass is there.

Prometheus

Do you know what it's about? I sure as hell don't. Origin of the universe, you say? That's interesting. Noomi Rapace, it says? Sci-Fi? Big budget sci-fi? There!

The Amazing Spider-Man

Cannot wait. With each new bit of information and/or footage, this looks to be the Spider-Man movie I've always wanted. So very much excited. And look at how badass that suit is, man!

The Dark Knight Rises

There is nothing I look forward to more than this. Not even if I was getting married this year.

Dredd

I loved me some Stallone Dredd, now it's time for the spectacular Karl Urban to knock my socks off with his no-doubt spectacular portrayal of the character.

Skyfall

I was never a huge James Bond fan until Daniel Craig took over the role with Casino Royale. It was about as perfect of a James Bond movie as I could ever want. And then Quantum of Solace destroyed all the good will Casino Royale acquired, and now I'm back to being hesitant about Bond and just not caring all that much. Still, that said, I want to see where the story goes, I want to see Daniel Craig as Bond, and I want to see if they can redeem themselves for one hell of an abysmal second outing. I don't know if Sam Mendes is the man for the job, or if Javier Bardem is going to be a good foil

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Over the last couple of days, I came up with a brilliant way of not doing homework: throwing in the two extended edition discs of each of the Lord of the Rings movies, watching them in their entirety, and then going back and listening to the writers/director commentary. Translation: time well spent, homework successfully postponed. But by watching those movies again, I was reminded how much I love the Tolkien universe, and I am beyond static that I have the opportunity to theatrically jump back into that world of hobbits and wizards and elves. The Hobbit clearly is bridging this wonderful style of being both familiar and quite, quite different from the Holy Trilogy, and that, too, makes me excited. Basically, there's nothing about the movie I'm not excited for. I don't even mind the wait another year for the second part, just means I get more Tolkien.

Django Unchained

I'll follow Quentin Tarantino to the ends of the earth and back [actually, I would quite like to see a Tarantino movie about that; be nifty, wouldn't it?], so naturally, I'm quite psyched by this latest outing. The casting has me a bit...hesitant [Leonardo DiCaprio and Jamie Fox in a Tarantino movie? Weird], but hell, it could have the worst word of mouth in the universe and I'd still see it.

Riddick

So many people hate 2004's The Chronicles of Riddick, and has been a subject of discussion many a time during my tenure at my old movie store, but no matter the hateration from my fellow movie buds, I love it without compromise. Ergo, naturally, once this third Riddick outing was announced, simply called Riddick, I became a squealing fanboy doing a jiggy dance of happiness. Frankly, the dance was pretty good. The '04 film ended on a super interesting note, and although the premise of this second sequel sounds phenomenal - Riddick left for dead on a shitty planet, mercenaries from all over the galaxy come to claim his head - I can't help but be a little sad that Riddick as king or whatever won't be explored all that thoroughly. Whatever. Until I see a trailer, I'll withhold any complaints. As of right now, I've waited long enough for another Riddick movie, and this film better the hell come out this year damnit! Screw the bloody Fast & Furious franchise and just concentrate all your power on popping out more of these, and the world will be a better place. [TBD]

Good and Bad of 2011: Movies - Vol. 4

And my favorite movie of 2011 is....

X-Men: First Class

I'm going to write this post differently from my impassioned and lengthy declaration of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World's sheer brilliance and status as both my favorite and the absolute best of 2010, and instead have a bit of fun with the presentation. Obviously X-Men: First Class isn't the crystal clear best motion picture of 2011, but why shouldn't it be? It's one hell of a marvelous, pretty much perfect film [unless you're one of those folks who balk at the incongruities in the films continuity; I like to look at this flick as its own entity]

And finally, before I move any further, I wish to give credit to Ruth's passionate Top 40 Reasons I Love X-Men: First Class, which echoes my thoughts and feelings quite eerily well and served as an inspiration with what follows. I hope this post does hers justice. My list won't be as detailed, but instead will be numbered to 20, because...well, I don't really have a huge reason behind it.

Finally, finally, I just want to say: before X-Men: First Class, I can't honestly say I gave a bloody damn about any of these characters minus Wolverine. I didn't care all that much about the overarching theme of the franchise of prejudice/mutations, or the opposing sides of the argument. These were action movies, nothing more. Jane Goodman and Matthew Vaughn presented audiences with a movie that wasn't about flare, action scenes, or a being a vehicle for money grabbing studios. This film made me care, because everyone involved cared. X-Men: First Class is the beginning of a battle of the minds, the splintering of a brotherly friendship, and the formation of two powerful groups. This is quality filmmaking and storytelling. This is why this movie stands - excuse the following - above the rest of class.

1. Erik/Charles relationship. The most telling moment in the X-Men trilogy, the most significant and powerful moment, was after Xavier's demise at the hands of Phoenix in X-Men: The Last Stand, as Magneto defends Xavier even in death: "Charles Xavier did more for mutants than you will ever know. My single greatest regret is that he had to die for our dream to live." Now we get to see the birth of that friendship, that bond that defines the whole damn set of movies. To me, you can throw away Cyclopes, Storm, Jean, Wolervine, Rogue, the whole group and just concentrate on these two, and you would have a very fulfilling, riveting series. They're the Anakin/Obi-Wan of mutants - their choices decide the fate of the whole world, basically. Here in First Class, that relationship is brought to life beautifully. They instantly respect one another - who they are, what they represent, what they hold dear and believe in, etc. Every scene with those two is charged and powerful. Regrettably, for a movie so jam-packed with story and character beats that needed to be addressed, there just doesn't seem to be enough Charles/Erik scenes. Sad face.

2. Raven/Charles/Erik relationship. Leave it to this flick to give more dimension to Mystique than the entire trilogy. Turns out Mystique/Raven was best buds with Charles (even though there is no hint to support this in the Trilogy, though there isn't any evidence to negate it, either), living together in a brother/sister capacity (in a fashion), using their powers under the radar just enough. Raven uses her ability nearly every waking minute of the day, and Charles uses his to pick up the ladies. And then Erik comes along, and tells Raven point blank that she doesn't need to hide who she is, that she's beautiful, that when she's, shall we say, Jennifer Lawrence, she's not completely 'her'. She believes in Erik's belief - mankind won't accept them, they can't, and makes her choice in the end, with Xavier's blessing. This whole dynamic is wonderfully played. It's this layer of complexity that I appreciate out of the screenplay.

3. Cameo! ....... sorry, did I spoil it for anyone?

4. This scene. Mentioned it the other day, but my Lords of Kobol, how is there not a more touching scene in 2011? [oh, right, nearly the entirety of this movie]. Erik is a walking vessel of anger and rage, and in this scene, this one, simple, beautiful scene, Charles enters Erik's mind and releases a memory Erik had long forgotten, giving the man of pain one wonderful moment of serenity. Why does a movie have to be a political thriller, or Holocaust drama, or just some big snazzy drama drama to be recognized for their powerful strengths? This is an action/superhero movie, and this is just one small example of why, with this new breed of post-Dark Knight productions [minus Green Lantern], these movies have a complexity unmatched before, and deserve to be recognized for their outstanding achievements.

"There's so much more to you than you know, not just pain and anger. There's good in you too, and you can harness all that. You have a power that no one can match, not even me."

5. In the Trilogy, the costumes were black. Just black. Meant to go with the realism. I can dig that. Here we are with First Class, and we've gone black and yellow....and I am really, really groovin' on that design train. It's perfectly, simply retro, but also kickass effective. They're also nice transitional suits, beginning with these and eventually forming into what we know from the Singer productions [assuming we are to believe in the continuity of all these X-flicks].

6. Jane Goldman and Matthew Vaughn's screenplay. If Christopher & Jonathan Nolan's names aren't attached to a reimagining or some other big property that deserves nothing but the best, I expect Jane and Matthew to be a part of it at least, and if none of these folks are, I already expect it to be doomed. After Kick-Ass and now this, Jane and Matthew have proven themselves amazing writers. They have a true talent in regards to characterization, specifically the ability to bring a lot in something not expansive. In just a few quick lines of dialogue (and the help of Fassbender), Erik is established fully and deeply. In Kick-Ass, the action and reaction of the characters made them three dimensional people instead of plot puppet pals. They added heart, drama, tension, action, politics, and heartbreak all in one two hour movie.

7. Erik is the cause of Xavier's wheelchair-boundness. I'm unfamiliar if this ties into the comics, but I found this turn of events to be marvelous and ingenious. I wasn't too fond of how everything seemed to be thrown into one movie, this included, but if they had to do it, this was the way. Have Erik's bullheadedness, his descent into Magneto, be the crippling of Charles Xavier. Beautiful, really.

8. Normally I find period movies to not be all that fascinating, even ones from the 1960's. Leave it to the X-Men team to turn my displeasure into pure entertainment delight. As if this flick needed to become any more epic in scope, the first X-Men leap into battle to stop potential nuclear war! How much awesomer and high-stakes can you get? There's the James Bond-y element that many people take note of, specifically how Fassbender seems to channel his inner Sean Connery/Daniel Craig (for realz) by playing Magneto: 00M. And plus, you get period clothing! As for the pic I chose above, the subtleties of why I chose it for costume design may not have be apparent. It's a deep, complex reason, no doubt.

9. James McAvoy as Charles Xavier. Originally, I didn't see it, didn't like it, etc. Patrick Stewart is Charles Xavier, yo, simple as 'dat! Well, then I saw the flick, and McAvoy sold me. Yeah, he's the young Xavier all right. Completely and utterly sold. I LOVED that he was a bit of a ladies man, using his telekinetic abilities to hit on the women. I LOVED how he was so enthusiastic and firmly believed in everything he was saying and doing. And I LOVED how McAvoy made this character very much his own, but with just enough to make you believe in him, that yes, the bald Patrick Stewart comes of this.

10. Henry Jackman's appropriate and rousing score compliments the action-y vibe of the flick when need be, and gives us chilling bits with 'Frankenstein's Monster'. Definitely one of the Greats of 2011.

11. This Guy. Glenn Morshower, known primarily to me as Agent Pierce from several seasons of 24, or to the general public, the guy who dies a lot but keeps coming back in the Michael Bay Transformers franchise. He's had roles in at least a half dozen major Hollywood productions and countless TV shows. Seeing this man always brightens my day.










12. Fast-paced editing. The movie starts and then - holy crap! It's the end already?! By the films insane final 20 minutes came to a close, I was ready for another outing. This is one spectacular film, firing at all cylinders, how could I not want another dose? Director Vaughn never allows us to be bored (or at least a good amount of people; lots seemed to have been less than invested in the story, or are nitpicking at its inaccuracies). It's always a balancing act for directors to juggle the characters, the drama, and the action - Vaughn makes it look easy. Bastard. Love you!


13. To Blow Up or Not Blow Up? Next to the crumbling building scene in Transformers: Dark of the Moon, I don't think I've been more - to use the tired phrase - at the edge of my seat than here. Magneto and Charles russlin' it out on the sand, a bazillion missiles ready to blow Americans and Soviets into nothingness. This is the power struggle of the whole series, personified in one hell of an amazing scene of physical violence and visual gorgeousness.

14. Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique. A hard role to pull off, perhaps more than Fassbender and McAvoy had to - after all, this was a character who was known only for her sex appeal in the Trilogy, and now she's being given depth! Lawrence had to bring heart and soul to Raven, to make her choices understandable, and her arc in the Singer/Ratner films more meaningful. Beyond all odds, she does it.

15. X-Training. Usually the area in most 'coming-of' superhero films that are least enjoyable, and could easily be cut. Here, I wouldn't slice a frame. Every second of the training exercises is hilarious and, sorry to go general here, awesome. From Banshee gaining his 'wings', Beast getting his run on, Erik pushing himself further, the Summers boy harnessing his flamey-thing, and Raven understanding how her fear limits who she is. Character building and fun - another testament to Goldman and Vaughn.

16. The Baconator. Man, can this guy pull of Evil Bastard. Loved it. Still the essence of cool.

17. In the Trilogy, Magneto was often just your regular everyday villain, but here, in First Class, he's a living, breathing character with his own ideology and attitude. He was pissed on by a pre-mutated Sebastian Shaw, hardened by the environment he grew up in, treated like shit, pushed into using his abilities for the gain of another, and all around been given a really unfortunate life. In the finale, Erik/Magneto stands at the beach, addressing his fellow mutants, and summarizes his stance well enough here, "Open your blinders, my brothers and sisters. The real enemy is out there - Americans, Soviets, humans. United in their fear of the unknown." Sorta sounds like Batman Begins, dunnit? "People always fear what they don't understand." Nice, Vaugh/Goldman, nice.

18. I relish when characters begin to push boundaries and cross lines. Erik leaps into action without a plan, and allows his anger to overcome reason, pinning Emma Frost to the metal bedpost in one of the film's most riveting scenes. And I recognize that this whole post may sound like one Michael Fassbender love letter - and rightly so - but that dead look in his eyes as he begins to break Emma's crystal exterior, it's frightening. A complete turnaround of that look of serenity Charles released earlier in the narrative. This is one of the many glimpses of Erik's rage, of that beast inside him, a furnace that refuses to be extinguished, and it's terrifying. Here I can see why people fear Magneto, I can get a picture of the complicated, pissed man under the helmet. Want to find an interesting, compelling character in 2011? Erik/Magneto is that character. In the next flick, say Second Class, the movie should focus solely on Erik and Charles and their friendship, and see how Erik's revenge has either given him peace or brought him further down.

19. When it comes to superhero movies, so many things are imperative to make a fine production, from script to actors, but perhaps one of the most important element that must be strong is the director. After all, a director brings his own 'style' to the mix. The 1989/1992 Burton Batman movies are very much Burton through and through, same with the Schumacher movies and the Nolan movies - visually, you can just tell. I'm not to a point where I can tell Vaughn's style off a quick three-second clip or anything like that, but watching his movies, there is a distinct look, and Vaughn brings his very cool look/style to the X-Men franchise marvelously. Let's take Brett Ratner's X-Men: The Last Stand, Gavin Hood's X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and Vaughn's First Class and put them next to each other, and each director's style is pretty damn obvious. I can't put into words Vaughn's style - it needs to be seen and enjoyed. He's a unique talent, and news of his return to the X-Men franchise with the sequel gives me hope for the next installment that would otherwise not be there. Vaughn owns the screen.

20. I'm going to make this coin disappear. Yeah, you are. [What a friggin' intense scene; also, more major kudos to Matthew Vaughn for excellent directing here]

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So, yeah, not a normal choice by any means, but isn't it fun to not play safe? The good of 2011 has officially been handled and done with, now what's in store for the bad? Any guesses? Thoughts on my top 10? Leave your thoughts below!