Avengers: Infinity War – 2018

Score: 10/10

I mean, seriously, I don’t even know where to start. It’s mind-blowing, it’s amazing, it’s perfect, it’s by far the best movie of 2018. Avengers: Infinity War is exactly what I expected it to be, a rollercoaster of emotion and a powerful example of what a carefully constructed multiverse can offer when it fully comes into force. It’s a brilliant movie and it offers you emotion after emotion. You can’t watch this without getting hyped and you will not feel the minutes going by. It’s long at 149 minutes but my God I wanted more, I wanted much more… I have praised Marvel movies in the past but this one is simply the icing on the cake. It’s a perfect movie from start to finish and you cannot afford to miss it!

The story is amazing. All of the little clues and post credits scenes from previous movies have paid off. It has heart, it is powerful, it has emotion, amazing music, one liners, everything that you could want from a superhero movie. You are engaged from the very first second and everything has an air of grandiose stakes. The world is coming to an end and the heroes that we grew up with are trying to save it. Amazing!

The characters are the ones we love and they are all showing us their best. I mean there is really no point talking about it more. It’s a stellar cast, like, all the huge names are here, they all pour their hearts on screen, they click, it’s simply amazing and it’s the coronation of the MCU and the previous 18 movies. Amazing and it will be long, but I have to praise Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Benedict Cumberbatch, Don Cheadle, Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Tom Hiddleston, Idris Elba, Peter Dinklage, Pom Klementieff, Karen Gillan, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Gwyneth Paltrow, Benicio del Toro, Josh Brolin, Chris Pratt and Samuel L. Jackson for their performances. I mean seriously, look at this list of names… Marvel, OMG!!!!

Thanos! Like I can’t believe that in a movie like this, where you have ALL the heroes, my favorite character was the bad guy. I mean honestly, Josh Brolin’s performance is brilliant and every single act of the villain makes sense. He is correct in everything that he says, he evolves, he has emotion, he is all powerful, like, it’s simply the best villain I have ever seen in any superhero movie until now. I actually rooted for him towards the end and I wanted him to win, and considering that he was going against some of my favorite superheroes off all time, I am truly impressed that the movie made me feel this way. Thanos rules! Thanos forever! 🙂

This is how you do an ensemble cast movie. I mean we have here everyone from the Marvel universe, and by everyone I truly mean everyone. You get all the big superheroes in one movie, superheroes that each got their own movies before this, superheroes that all have sideline stories, love interests, agenda’s, everything comes together. And yet, like magic, everything fits. Every actor gets some share of the spotlight without making the movie feel weird and too complex. The action flows and you get to recognize each hero’s trademarks. This is an amazing feat and anyone planning to do movies with multiple protagonists should learn from this one. Marvel, there are no words to describe how great you are!

In conclusion, Avengers: Infinity War is THE MOVIE. For superhero fans, for movie fans, for anybody. If you live on this planet, you have to watch this film. And if you want the experience to be complete, before you watch this, take all the movies that have previously appeared in the MCU and watch them. You will understand everything that is going on and you will be amazed at the details and hidden meanings that fill up this universe. This one will remain in history as one of the best, if not the best, superhero movies of all time. I can’t wait for the sequel on May 3 2019 and I can only hope it will be as good as this one… I would say I want it to be better but frankly at this point I can’t see how that would be possible… So surprise me Marvel, if anyone can do it, you can…

Justice League – 2017

Score: 6/10

Damn it DC, damn it! Just when I thought you have turned a corner with Wonder Woman, you go on and do this. Justice League was the big movie that DC waited for in order to challenge Marvel’s Avengers, but it is nothing of the sorts. In fact, it has the lowest box office score out of every movie in the DCEU. I know, I know, it might sound shocking, but I fully expected this. If DC doesn’t want to learn from Marvel and stop doing the same mistakes over and over again, they can’t expect different results in the future.

The story is weak, because as usual, they decided to introduce characters in the actual ensemble movie instead of before, in stand-alone installations. So in the beginning, we get characters being introduced, the team being assembled and stuff like that. Which yes, can be nice, but, as in Suicide Squad, it creates useless filler, it introduces a lot of secondary useless characters and, in the end, it makes the viewer tired and bored by the time the real action starts. If we would have gotten only the second hour I think I would have been happier.

The characters are good, nicely created and developed, and well casted. They are the heroes that we grew up with and we can rediscover them here. It is a nice array of personalities that come together, and they gel and work, so for the future, I could really see them do very well with a better script. Nevertheless, the performances from Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Jeremy Irons, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen and J. K. Simmons are worth it.

The special effects are ok… Just ok unfortunately, because this movie is again too dark. It is starting to become a pattern in the DCEU and it makes me so sad. It is dark, gritty, nothing pops on screen compared to Marvel movies. Yes, they want to set a different overall tone, but that doesn’t mean everything has to be in those grey tones that make the effects seem very weak. It is a shame but unfortunately I don’t see DC changing this despite Wonder Woman proving what nice visuals and color can bring.

It’s too dark! And I am not talking now about the visuals. The entire movie is filled with tension, everybody is saying their lines like the end of the world is coming in the next minute. And while yes, I get it, the end of the world is actually coming, I want some humor and lightheartedness from my superhero movies. I want comedy, I want jokes, I want to watch the movie relaxed, not stressed out with only darkness and sad story after sad story. Seriously DC, Batman can actually smile from time to time, I know, it’s crazy, but it can work!

Unfortunately, I want to stress this again, DC is learning nothing. Stop using your good stories and your iconic villains like this. Don’t rush it. Marvel is crushing it right now, and you want the same, yes, but be patient. Start slowly, make a Wonder Woman movie, make a Batman standalone movie with Affleck, make a Flash movie, an Aquaman movie, and only after these characters are established do something like this. Otherwise your multiverse will never reach the level of Marvel. I get it, it is very hard to be patient, but if DC doesn’t understand this, I am sad to say that I really fear that we might miss on a lot of great comic book stories in the future.

In conclusion, Justice League is not what it could have been. But since I am a huge fan of superhero movies and even one that is not amazing still makes me giggle inside, I can’t be too hard on it. So yes, I will tell you to see this movie. You will find a lot of really enjoyable parts and you will rediscover some of your favorite heroes from the comic books. Unfortunately, this could have been so much better, and I am at the point of wishing for Marvel to simply buy DC so I can get amazing movies with the heroes that I grew up with. Do better DC, do better! For fucks sake, do better!

Suicide Squad – 2016

Score: 7/10

I know I am going to piss a lot of people here, but I actually enjoyed watching Suicide Squad while also accepting that it has a lot of problems. It is not a very good movie, it could have been much better, but at the same time, I have no idea why, it didn’t piss me off as much as I would expect a film with so many flaws to do. And this is why I am giving it a 7 and I truly recommend any superhero fan to see this one.

The story is the weakest part of the movie. It is convoluted, it tries to achieve too much and in the end it doesn’t manage to stand out. The formula of bad guys coming together to do good is almost a cliché in today’s movies, and it shows. There are too many characters introduced and as a result, you don’t get to spend enough time with either of them in order to become truly invested into the outcome of the film.

The characters are interesting, they manage to capture the comics reasonably well. The only problem here is that we have too many characters in one movie and we are introduced to every single one of them. We get too many origin stories together so they kind of dilute and don’t manage to have the impact they should. Nevertheless, the casting choices are interesting and you will see great performances from Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Jay Hernandez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ike Barinholtz, Scott Eastwood and Cara Delevingne.

The visuals are still too dark DC, they are still too dark, and the effects are lacking in many parts. This movie unfortunately doesn’t pop on screen, as many of the scenes have terrible lighting effects that make it very hard to identify things that happen in detail. Unfortunately, the villains are also weird and they swing from being overpowered to being ridiculously easy to beat. This is terrible because it means that we don’t have any tension worth speaking of. The stakes seem low although they try to be high, and overall, the final battle seems like a street scrap instead of a war for the future of the entire universe…

Marvel is better than DC when it comes to movies, by now we all know that, but this movie managed to at least try to come close to the atmosphere of their rivals. It has a little bit of humor, not nearly enough, but after the dark suicidal tones of previous DC movies, we are happy for anything we can get. DC managed to follow this with the positive and amazing Wonder Woman, so I can honestly say that I truly believe that this film was the turning point for DC, the moment when they understood that superhero movies today have to be funny and relaxing in order to be successful…

In conclusion, Suicide Squad is not at the level of Marvel movies, but if you compare it with the disaster that was Batman vs Superman or the blurry shitty shaky cam garbage that was Man of Steel, than it is a masterpiece. Anyway, it is a movie that is worth seeing, as you will enjoy some moments for sure. It has action, it has a little bit of comedy (which is a shocker for DC), and, most importantly, it has Margot Robbie. Please let us have the sequels to this be R rated, please give us a naked Harley Quinn and it will be an automatic 10 out of 10.

Doctor Strange – 2016

Score: 9/10

This is a Marvel movie that was hyped and that managed to deliver and then some. It is a different take, it expands the universe and it offers us something new, fresh and unexpected. It has humor, it has an eye popping cast and great visuals, a satisfying end, I mean, there isn’t one person that I know that disliked this movie and that says it all. A bold choice by Marvel and one that I hope will be repeated as soon as possible.

The story is strong. It is an origin story, so it does have some of the flaws associated with something like that, but nevertheless it manages to introduce all the characters in a satisfying way and it moves with the appropriate pace in order to not bore us out. There are no dead moments and everything falls in place beautifully. Scott Derrickson directs this in a way that keeps in line with the comics and manages to make Strange feel very relatable.

The characters are Marvel through and through. It is a universe we know and love that just got a little bit of an extra. There is a whole new dimension here and it manages to fascinate the viewers and make them want more. As always, the casting in this franchise is done to perfection, so I can’t say anything bad about the great performances from Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Michael Stuhlbarg, Benjamin Bratt, Scott Adkins, Mads Mikkelsen and Tilda Swinton.

The visuals, oh my God the visuals, they are different from anything previous in the Marvel universe, but different in a good way. It is an explosion of color and the perspective is always shifting, it is beautiful to look at. Especially the last scene, the big confrontation between our hero and the main villain, that is something we have never seen before and I can truly say it was one of the most refreshing scenes of 2016. Oh, and did I tell you about the lighting? Nah, you have to see it for yourselves in order to understand its grandiose appeal.

The Marvel multiverse will use Doctor Strange in the future to reset itself, I am sure of this, and although I think it would be a little bit of a cheap trick, I can’t wait for it to happen. The character is funny, his powers have not even been explored properly yet and I really hope to see much more of him in future instalments of the franchise. It is a welcome departure from all the typical superheroes we have seen until now and one that fortunately caught on very well with longtime fans.

In conclusion, Doctor Strange is a movie that you must see if you like superheroes or if you are a fan of Marvel, or even if you abhor these types of films. Yes, even if you do not usually like this type of movies, I am telling you to watch this one, because it is different, it is unique, it will make you wonder and overall, it will offer you an unforgettable experience. And oh, did I tell you that I would give anything, and I mean anything to have a cape like that…?

Thor: Ragnarok – 2017

Score: 10/10

Marvel, oh Marvel you so funny… Another great hit from this company that seems to be capable of no wrong. Thor: Ragnarok is one of the best movies of 2017 and one of the best superhero movies of all time. You will enjoy the great action scenes, slick special effects that satisfy all tastes and also joke after joke that will make you simply adore every single character and identify with them and be emerged in their stories.

Speaking of stories, the movie manages to offer a credible one. Everything seems to happen naturally, everything is explained and the screenwriter isn’t afraid to go back to previous installments and to use footage from them while also answering some burning questions about certain characters fates. It is a great example of how to tell a story in a superhero movie and you will watch its 130 minutes without ever getting bored. There is not filler here and it is definitely the best Thor movie in the trilogy.

The characters are amazing, we love them already but here they are even more endearing and fun. This is pure joy to watch, every single one of them has character traits that helps us identify with them and they make us laugh and become invested. It is a perfect movie in terms of casting and I have to praise the impressive performances from Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum, Tessa Thompson, Karl Urban, Mark Ruffalo and Anthony Hopkins.

The special effects are another strong point of the movie. They are not over the top and they manage to integrate nicely into the action, providing flow and pacing to the interactions of the characters. The world created here is believable and it is a joy to behold, especially considering the brightness of this one compared to the previous two Thor movies. This film is amazing to look at, plain and simple.

The comedy here is at a level never seen before in a Marvel movie. Nothing is taken too seriously and the whole film feels like a gift. Taika Waititi knows how to make you laugh and relax and at the same time bring up so many powerful themes. The effects that this movie will have on the franchise and on other superhero movies that will come after it will be huge, because people will start expecting this type of madness. And to me, this is a very good thing, because when you have this high quality of humor in your blockbusters, it can only elevate them and make them more appealing to audiences.

In conclusion, Thor: Ragnarok is an amazing movie that every single one of you should see right now if they haven’t already. You will laugh out loud a million times, you will rejoice in one of the most well thought-out stories in a superhero movie and you will want to see it again as soon as it is over. A great movie to see alone, with friends, with your children, I mean seriously, you can’t go wrong with this one. And it makes me shiver with anticipation for Infinity Wars and I can’t help but ask myself what are they going to do next?! Oh, and of course, almost forgot, I also have to ask myself, what are you the God of again? 🙂

Deadpool – 2016

Score: 10/10

Amazing, simply amazing, an utter joy to watch it again and again. Trust me, you will laugh with the same passion even after seeing this a million times, it is that good. The jokes are amazing, not politically correct which is so rare these days that you have to simply rejoice in it. It is full of meta references, it has a strong and relatable plot, good characters and amazing action scenes. It simply clicks, it is out there exactly how much it should be, what can I say, it is one of the best superhero movies I have ever seen and it is a perfect adaptation of the source material, finally doing this character justice.

The story is, when analyzed to its bare bones, an origin story, but it is filled with interesting and engaging scenes and so it doesn’t have that air of filler that those types of movies usually have. It is powerful, delivered in a rapid rhythm that makes it appealing and it manages to follow the comic books very well. It is one of those movies that almost has no faults and your overall feeling after watching it will be that of pure joy…

The characters are well crafted and interesting. Of course the best of them is Ryan Reynolds’s Deadpool, who manages to encapsulate perfectly the spirit of the modern superhero. Reynolds seems like he was born to play this role and it is a joy to see him here. He is brass, funny, passionate about what he does and so damn inventive with those swear words. The supporting cast does a nice job also, making this movie an amazing one from start to finish. You are invested, you relate with the characters and you feel their pain and joy. Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, T.J. Miller, Gina Carano and Leslie Uggams all deserve praise for the way they complete Reynolds and their chemistry is widely felt by the audiences.

The action, effects and music are at the high level required to help the movie reach its target audience. Everything seems in tune with the personality of this amazing hero and everything complements his amazing personality very well. Tim Miller does a great job as a director and I have to also praise the screenwriter, because most of the jokes are on point, they are relatable, they work perfectly in this universe.

The 4^th wall breaks are sublime, adding an impressive layer of depth to the film and making the main character even more endearing. You feel involved in the movie, you feel a part of the action and you feel like the characters are trying to do their best in order to impress you. It is a nice and unique feeling and it makes the whole experience seem cathartic in a certain way, you feel like Deadpool makes up for a lot of faults that you can find in other films, faults that are so well exploited here to generate fun…

In conclusion, Deadpool is one movie that you can’t afford to miss. It is an amazing roller-coaster experience that you never get tired of and I can honestly say it is one of, if not the best superhero movies I have ever seen. It is definitely the funniest one out there and I could never in my wildest dreams imagined that it was possible to laugh so much in a movie like this. Deadpool set a trend in the industry and with its second part coming out this year we can only hope that it is here to stay…

Logan – 2017

Score: 9,5 / 10

Now this is how you do a superhero movie. One of the best films I ever saw and definitely one of the best superhero movies ever made, Logan manages to offer you a perfect blend of emotion and action, making you marvel at the beautifully choreographed fights and at the same time feel emotion for every single character. It is the best movie in the X-Men series and a perfect send-off for one of the most loved characters in the franchise.

The story is powerful, visceral and full of symbolism. You see many of your beloved characters at their most vulnerable moments, and that is a nice change of pace from the usual Marvel shenanigans. The transitions from scene to scene are done naturally and they help the overall message of the film. It is a complete transformation for our heroes and you have satisfying ends for all of them.

Speaking of the characters, they are amazingly done. It is one of the best parts of the movie, and every single actor manages to do a great job and appear to the public as believable and relatable. We have an amazing cast here, and I have to single out so many actors, because they all do great work. We get astonishing performances from the likes of Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Boyd Holbrook and Stephen Merchant, with special praise for Dafne Keen who, at just 12 years old, has identified herself already as a true star of the next generation.

I can’t talk about Logan without praising the special effects and the CGI. They are not in your face and manage to complement the story perfectly. Another special mention has to be given to the fight scenes. We have waited for years for Wolverine to do this, and finally, in his farewell movie, we get to see the beast unleashed and at its gruesome best. And the little girl, the X-23 has some of the most amazing actions scenes I have ever saw put to film. She is a truly worthy successor for Wolverine and I can’t wait for future movies featuring her awesomeness.

At 137 minutes, the movie seems a tad too long, and I wouldn’t have minded to not see a couple of scenes in there. This would have been a definite 10 out of 10 if it wasn’t for this and also for the total air of despair of its final act. Hugh Jackman as Wolverine was an amazing fit and knowing that this was his last movie playing the role made everything even more emotional for me, a little bit too much. I know that was meant to be the idea, but still, for me personally, it was too much and it made me unable to fully rejoice in the experience.

In conclusion, Logan is a movie that everybody should see, at least once. It is a visceral and powerful drama that shows you a character we all love at its most vulnerable. An amazing tale of power, belief and resistance. Couple this dramatic story with great cinematography, amazing acting and excellent effects and you have the recipe for a true classic, one that will be for sure a standard for future comic book movies. A simply amazing experience which I can’t recommend enough. This X has become a true legend…

Power Rangers – 2017

Score: 1,5/10

It’s so hard today to screw up so bad in making a superhero movie, and I am amazed about how much this one actually sucks. I didn’t have high hopes going into it, because I really don’t think that these characters can appeal to modern audiences, but I still expected more. Power Rangers is a bad movie all together, with flaws in almost all of its aspects. It tried to be a reboot of a franchise that was once very appreciated, but unfortunately it managed to be the final nail in its coffin. Although no decision has been taken yet, after the critical and commercial failure of this movie I highly doubt we will see the rangers on the big screen anytime soon.

The story is muddled, convoluted and badly written. It is an origin movie yes, but we spend so much of the movie on the origin story that it leaves little room for anything else. It’s like an endless foreplay with no foreseeable climax, and that sucks. It is unacceptable that we have to wait almost two thirds of the movie before we even see the power rangers in action, and I am pretty sure that the audiences did not sign up for a butt load of teenage drama replacing the superhero stuff.

Power Rangers is trying to be funny so hard, and yet it fails at almost every single joke. We need humor in our movies today, especially in superhero movies, but we need good humor and not rehashed jokes that we’ve seen a million time before. The film fail in creating any atmosphere at all, trying to be both funny and serious at the same time and disappoints monumentally at doing either of those things…

The cinematography was for me very bland and filled with useless details. The CGI is not up to par for a superhero movie in 2017 and some of the effects actually made me laugh because of how bad they were. You don’t feel the awe of a blockbuster and that would have been fine if instead we would have gotten the fun and relaxing feel of its predecessors, but alas, that is also missing. So we end up with a movie that tries very hard to be a lot of things and to please a lot of different audiences, but that unfortunately fails miserably at everything. Oh, and I also have to mention the fucking shaky cam, that as a rule, should be banned from any movie. When will the hipster directors in Hollywood understand that the human eye does not shake, not ever, it doesn’t fucking shake, so stop it, it’s not more realistic, it’s just stupid and it makes people hate your films!

The cast is poorly chosen in my mind, especially the rangers. They are all little known actors and unfortunately the have no chemistry and make you simply not care about the main heroes of the movie. If you want people invested in your characters, choose better next time Saban. The well-known names do better however, and performances from Bill Hader, Bryan Cranston and Elizabeth Banks provide a little bit of relief for the beleaguered movie.

In conclusion, Power Rangers is by far the worst superhero movie of 2017 and one I wouldn’t recommend to anybody. The fans of the series should not ruin their childhoods by watching this, and for everybody else, there are enough other actually good superhero movies to choose from. A bad movie in which the only amazing thing is the product placement, actually the most ridiculous I ever saw in my entire life. So let’s all just skip this one and instead go to a Krispy Kreme…

 

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – 2017

Score: 8/10

The Guardians series is the most funny of the Marvel Universe and you go into volume 2 expecting that. And yes, you receive it in droves, as this movie tries to go even farther than its predecessor in the humor department. You are laughing all the way, and it is relaxing to see a movie of such magnitude not taking itself to serious. It makes the viewing experience more enjoyable and its success is what prompted Marvel to include more humor in Thor: Ragnarok and I guess in every single entrance of the multiverse which will follow. We like our superhero movies to be lighthearted and funny and this will not change.

The action is interesting, the special effects are amazing, and the characters are developed even further than in the first one. You learn a lot of backstory that helps define each character and you start to discover the red line of their past that makes them act the way they do. The cast is stellar, and when you have Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Sylvester Stallone and Kurt Russell all in one movie, nothing can go wrong. Every single actor delivers an amazing performance and you can see they had so much fun doing this film, which gives it an extra layer of likeability. Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer is simply amazing, and almost steals the movie with his rough humor and absurd lines. You find yourself laughing out loud in the theater and enjoying every second of it.

The story is good, a little bit convoluted in points, but streamlined quite well in the final act. The CGI is good, the grand action scenes offer enough awe to justify them, and all in all the conflict manages to keep you involved until the end. Also, speaking of action scenes, Yondu’s arrow massacre is one of the best action scenes I have ever seen in a movie, making you laugh and leaving you speechless at the same time. The action in the movie is superb and right up there with what Marvel has offered us across the years.

The movie is a little bit too long at 136 minutes and its 4 post credits scenes are starting to push the limit a little bit, especially since one of them is another useless cameo from Stan Lee. 2 post credits scenes are ok, but going past that for me is just fanboying for the sake of fanboying and nothing more. The music is good, a nice selection of songs, although I feel that they are not as fresh as the ones from the first movie.

And this brings me to my only criticism of the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, that it is far too similar in my mind with the first one. It simply does not have the same wow factor and you kind of feel like you have already been there and done that. This takes away a little bit from the overall enjoyment, although it did not have an effect on the box office results, with Vol. 2 earning more than the original. I just hope that for volume 3, which is slated for a 2020 release, Marvel will change the formula a little bit and shake things up.

In conclusion, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is a very good movie, which I recommend to any comic book fan. A great installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and a worthy successor to the first Guardians movie. Oh, and the smaller dumber Groot is by far the best plant I ever saw in a movie. 😛