The Avengers

The Avengers – 142min – PG13

I am glad I was alive when they final got an epic superhero movie franchise right. I am not a fan boy of the comics. I was aware of them but I never followed them. I can say that these movies have made me a fan. We have spent a long time waiting for this film and I was nervous that they would follow the path of previous hero series. I saw this movie twice on Saturday. I like to see movies twice so once I can get lost in the story and the second time I can really examine the film. Honestly I would like to see it again because the second time I was just as involved with the story as the first viewing. Needles to say I am giving this marvelous movie a green light.

I usually talk about the plot in high level but I am going to forgo that and say this movie is about 130 min of high action. I can’t really talk about the plot without giving anything away so I will save most of the conversation for my spoiler section. I will say that the Avengers are composed of Captain America (Chris Evans), Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson). They are under the guidance of Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson). All of them did an outstanding job, I have absolutely no negative comments about the cast in any way, and they personified the characters in every aspect.
Hero films in the past have been victims of the studio machine. Once they have a story idea they mold and stretch it into something to fit everyone’s palate and thereby ensuring that no one likes it. Perhaps they try and write the story to get as much as they can get out of the toys and games that go along with a big budget picture. These theories have failed in the past and I am glad to see that this is an example of a movie franchise that can keep focus on the source material.

I am also pleased with the fact they balanced its humor and action well. They had a great feel for smart and witty without going to low brow levels. In the past I think that people who make comic book films feel that it’s going to pander to kids so they write for what they feel the 12 to 14 year old demographic will like. The writing in this film brings the humor level higher and is still understandable to that age range without talking down to them.

The second time around I did see some specific camera shots that seemed out of place for the pace of the surrounding scenes and there was a use of reflections in this film that was prevalent throughout the movie. I am really going to have to go again to catch more and to focus in on more of the setting than the action.

The big question is where do they go from here? How do they top this film? Joss Whedon is an exceptional storyteller and filmmaker. I know that he can do a long story arc well but even I don’t see how they can continue at this level. I will enjoy watching him try.

Spoiler Warning!!! Only Members of S.H.I.E.L.D are authorized to Click her to see spoilers!!!

Ok first off The Hulk smack down is Hi-larious. I laughed so hard at that scene that I missed Hulk's line: “Puny God”. A second viewing was needed and I almost did not hear it because of the roars of laughter. I think that having the Hulk retain some of the facial structure of Mark Ruffalo was excellently done to bring a sense of connection in the conversion.

Agent Coulson dies and it was for a very good reason. There needed to be the one event that brings everyone together, they needed that catalyst moment and Phil’s death was what was needed.
I know that Joss gets hell from fans because he seems to kill of the people we come to know and love, but as a writer you have to be able to raise the stakes and the best way to do that is to kill off the ones we have made a connection to. We can’t kill off the heroes because that ends the story (unless you are a DC character) but we have to know that the dangerous battle is dangerous and the only way to do that is to have a death of one of the supporting cast. Besides this one was Kevin Feige’s Idea. (See the I09 article for more details.)

The movie starts off with high action and does not stop until they are eating Shawarma. If you left before the very end of the movie shame on you, they always seem to have a tidbit at the end. They also introduced a glimpse of the next bad guy, Thanos. Good bad guy .I see epic battles coming.
What do you think DC needs to do to compete with the new standard Marvel has set?

ASTD Training Conference

I am at a conference for work and I will be unable to post this week, I will be posting again next week

The Cabin in the Woods

The Cabin in the Woods – 95Min – R

There is a formula to horror movies and this movie is not going to deviate from that formula, or is it? This movie is unapologetically dripping with the entire playlist of horror movie clichés. It was co-written by Joss Whedon which means that not everything is as obvious as you might believe. It's a new take on tired material, but it’s still not fresh enough to pull the “camp” out of this campy trip to the cabin. I enjoyed many parts of this film and I really liked the new perspective but not enough to give it more than a yellow light.

Roommates Dana (Kristen Connolly) and Jules (Anna Hutchison) are planning a getaway weekend to a cabin. They are going to be joined by Curt (Chris Hemsworth), Holden (Jesse Williams) and Marty (Fran Kranz). They drive up to the cabin and along the way they get a menacing warning from Mordecai (Tim De Zam), a gas station attendant that tells them they should take care up there. They arrive and start to enjoy themselves when the cellar opens up and they find a book that has a phrase that when spoken awakens the previous owners who were cannibals and are now zombies. Much mayhem ensues.

Drew Goddard directed this film and with Joss Whedon as a co-writer it has everything you need to be an excellent television show. I know it’s a movie, but the timing of the laugh lines is paced in such a way that it felt like they were relieving the tension almost too often for a film but just right for a TV Show. Please understand that I think the writing is awesome and the talent of the filmmaker shows through as it’s a very well made film. I expect more from this writing team than recycled ideas from television shows they have worked on in the past.

I have struggled with writing this review because I so desperately want to love this movie. When your favorite creative team gets together you want to have more than just average experience. Maybe the fault is mine? I see them as creative gods and really they are just like us. When many of the projects you work on are held in such high regard when you do just a good movie it pales in comparison to the body of work.

Spoiler Warning!!!! These Spoilers will overrun you with a warehouse full of nightmares!!!!! Click on this link to see the spoilers!!!!!!

The fact that this movie was all about the people who manage the sacrifices was a great take on the tired and over-used horror movie formula. It was hard for me to figure out what was really going on and I think that was done to keep me engaged. It was a good mix of the main story of the teens in the woods, and the intertwining of what was really going on. They presented more and more information as the events unfolded.

Love, love, love the speaker phone bit. That scene was excellent, I rarely laugh out loud at movies at most they get a grin, but this had me. The betting pool was great I can see people who work in an environment like that would need to have some fun. Making out with a stuffed wolf head…Allow me to quote a Geico commercial. “eeeew, seriously, that is so gross.”

The biggest problem I think I had was the fact the main feel of this film was an amalgam of Angel, Buffy, Dollhouse, and Lost. I could see this movie fitting into a season of any of these shows. It’s the end of the world…..again. They need to come up with a new thing to write about.

Amy Acker is awesome. Love her skill at characterization. It is also nice to see Bradley Whitford again. Brian White is someone I am going to have to seek out and watch his other films. His differences in characters from Good Deeds to this film are different enough that I want to see what other films he has done.

What movie have you really wanted to love but was disappointed by in the end because it was good but not as awesome as you expected?

PieKast

I apologize, I am going to have to delay the review I had schedule for today. I have been working on getting the Podcast up and running and its taken up my free time.  

I am happy to announce that ITunes has approved our podcast and will be adding it to the ITunes store in a few days. Here is the first episode and I will be posting the next one soon. I will post the missing review Wedensday at 10:00.

Until then Please enjoy the first episode of the PieKast.

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