Show is very well done. It is obvious that Amazon has not kept the budgets tight and production thus is very impressive. Acting and writing is very good. I really enjoyed how much show spends time developing minor characters and giving everyone a certain evolution arcs (kinda reminded of another show that did that for 7 seasons and then managed to magnificently screw it all up in 8th). Thus just like in Watchmen, there are not good or bad guys, there are light gray or dark gray guys (whole 50 shades of… damn, nevermind).

Show is not without faults, as usual with streaming shows pacing slumps in the middle, but then explosively picks up. I also didn’t like the ending much. It seemed more like an end of episode and not a certain full stop of season finale.

And if you are not convinced that this show is awesome – I watched all episodes over a weekend, with last 6 of them in one single day. Last time I binge-watched a show like this was first season of Stranger Things.

4.7/5.0

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Joaquin Phoenix though just kills it all with mind-blowing performance. It is a tremendous challenge to try to build on performances of Nicholson and Ledger, but unlike Leto, Phoenix decides not to create a new Joker persona but tread a thin line right in between Nicholson’s slick mobster and Ledger’s psychotic anarchist versions. Thus his Joker is a very successful amalgamation of both characters and it is what makes this movie work on a grand scale. 

I decided to split the difference and call it 3.0/5.0

PS: People applauded, laughed and cheered in the most bloody, gruesome, weird and inappropriate moments in the film. Are they as messed up as Gotham citizens depicted in the film? Or is it just me who finds murders not funny? How f%$&ed up is that?

The post Joker appeared first on Kino-AZ.

Story

Right after the events of “Infinity War”, members of Avengers are trying to figure out the way forward. And while some of them are set on to taking revenge on Thanos, there are those among them who are done fighting and all they want is accept the fate and move on. Unfortunately, this is not as easy as it sounds. Because despite their superpowers after all they are just humans. And living with idea that they could have stopped Thanos takes it’s toll on every single member of the group. So when the chance arises to fight back, they would throw away all deliberations, insecurities and struggles and will do everything they can to get back at Thanos. And doesn’t matter how minuscule that chance is. After all we are in the endgame.

Writing

Thanos can finally rest

Despite not being Marvel fan at all, I admit I was satisfied the way “Infinity War” ended. Film pushed the boundaries of acceptable rules of engagement with this kind of material. I also enjoyed Thanos character very much, as he was not a one-dimensional dummy set to fill the role of obscure villain. So, although I didn’t have any emotional connection to the heroes, I was very much invested in seeing how the filmmakers will resolve the conflicts of first film. This was also fueled by the fact that two MCU films that came out in between this films (“Ant-Man and The Wasp” and “Captain Marvel“) offered no answer at all.

The result is whooping 181 minutes long. “Avengers: Endgame” doesn’t hold back and dives heads on into the film. The emotional state of the heroes after big loss and their struggle to cope with it plays very nice at first, however the film then gets into a slow slump. You would think that “Avengers: Endgame” would have it easier. After all there are not hundred superheroes to concentrate on and give every single one of them adequate screen time. So, there is a chance to instead use the allocated time to explore each of the Avengers members individually. This works well for most of time. We get to know what each of them thinks and how their emotional state has been affected by knowledge that they have failed this miserably. Unfortunately, it means bunch of mopey and quasi-teary moments that eventually start dragging film down.

“Avengers”, or what’s left of them need to assemble for one more time

But when things start happening, script really picks up. There are very bold choices that screenwriters make and film suddenly sets off into a completely fresh territory. In a total twist of events, film suddenly forgets its emotional context and gets to be fun and extremely entertaining. Jokes and situational gags make comeback and they land very straight and spot on. But right when you think “Avengers: Endgame” will be fun, film suddenly makes a turn to re-introduce emotional aspects and in a very predictable tone foreshadows what to expect of the ending.

Huge let down for me was Thanos. Despite the first film, Thanos is completely straight character with no backstory, no motivations and no explanation of his actions. Film spends literally zero time on exploring his character, except maybe a short speech. It’s like filmmakers not even tried to bother with him and just say us “yeah, just watch the first film”. And, in contrast to “Infinity War”, Thanos turns into regular bad guy who just wants to slash and cut.

I am not expecting anything smart of the films like “Avengers: Endgame”, but this film left me with a lot of questions. And I am not talking about borderline idioitic scientific/psychological/theoretic implications of actions of heroes, but just pure logic of and acceptance of rules of engagement set by previous films. Without going into spoilers, it just didn’t make sense how some things were deliberately told to us not to be possible, suddenly becoming acceptable just for the sake of the plot progression and resolution.

Directing

We will spend time crying, instead of fighting

“Avengers: Endgame” pushes the envelope of blockbuster films to the limit, just like “The Avengers” did. Eventual battles are big, bold and just insane in intricacy. Maybe not as crazy and elaborate as “Avengers: Infinity War“, but still close to it. Directors Joe and Anthony Russo did a very good job maintaining watchability of the fights, and overall dynamics of the script.

Unfortunately, Russo Brothers tried to make “Avengers: Endgame” an emotional film. It means that for the huge amount of time people either cry or try not to cry or are just depressed. Which eventually turns this film into another “Return of the King”. I understand the idea to keep the viewers invested, but people came to see CGI superheroes fight CGI monsters and get their answers. And I am sure directors would have achieved same amount of emotionality if they would have cut a good 60 minute chunk of the film or shortened some of the scenes.

Editing is another thing that has suffered in “Avengers: Endgame”. Whereas in “Infinity War” it was fairly easy to track what is where and when, this got really sluggish in “Avengers: Endgame”. There are some scenes that happen in parallel, but cuts between the scenes are very lazily done. As such it feels that we spend more time on emotional scenes than fun scenes. And going up and down, up and down gets really annoying soon. Same thing can be said about last battle. I just hated that they show huge ruckus of fight, but when concentrating on single heroes, they suddenly have time to hug, talk, embrace each other, share feelings and hug even more. It’s like all the fights get suspended immediately.

Downey with his best yet performance as Tony Stark

Acting

I would like to specifically mention Robert Downey Jr. and Mark Ruffalo among the standout performances. Downey, for the first time, feels utterly genuine and completely relatable. There is absolutely no fakeness in his performance. It is really obvious how he goes through every single emotion. Which actually means that he was just faking it all in previous films. Ruffalo again shows his superb acting skills. I am glad that directors once again give him something else to do rather than “Hulk Smash” routine. Among the other performance I did also enjoy Karen Gillan as Nebula, which is given much more to do than her usual self and excels just like in “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle“, and somewhat distant acting of Chris Hemsworth.

Summary

“Avengers: Endgame” is superbly made blockbuster that pushes the boundary of what can be done in action film, while maintaining interesting story and answering most of the questions left from previous film. Unfortunately, film spends too much time on tearjerker moments and emotional context that dilutes the effect.

The post Avengers: Endgame appeared first on Kino-AZ.

Story

Vers has no memories of her past. Instead she gets constant nightmares. They tell her of a weird fight on a distant shores where some alien creature tries to kill her. These dreams, and her inability to shut down her emotions and “think with head instead of heart”, prevents her from becoming ultimate warrior of Kree Empire’s elite Starforce team. Despite this, her mentor Yon-Rogg takes her to next mission. It is a rescue mission involving infiltration of Skrulls, alien race that has been long-time enemies of Kree. But, the mission turns into an ambush. Skrulls capture Vers but she finds an opening and escapes captivity. She crash lands on a planet C-53, with a strange feeling that she has already been to this planet before. And no wonder, because C-53 is actually Earth.

Writing

Let’s just agree that writing in MCU is not the strongest. So, if I would be grading this movie on originality, subtlety, sophistication, common sense, rationale, and character evolution, I would give this film 0 stars. Instead, MCU films (especially, later ones) are famous for witty dialogues, funny one-liners, exciting action sequences and character interactions. And while MCU films like “Ant-Man and the Wasp” and “Black Panther” excel in this, I can’t say the same for “Captain Marvel”. Vers is written to be serious, with a twist for humor, but that absolutely doesn’t fit her nature. One-

And we will fist-fight! Because it is awesome!

liners and jokes she delivers feel very out-of-character for a person who is struggling to find who she is. Yes, there are some funny moments, but none of them involve the wittiness and playfulness of Vers and are 100% situational and rely on nostalgia (Blockbuster! RadioShack! AltaVista! Pagers! Yay!).

Action sequences have me at a crossroad. Some of them felt redundant (especially, in the first part of the film) and some of them felt that they were included only for the sake of making film more action-oriented and had very little to do with actual plotline (especially, towards the end). Not to spoil anything, Vers learns something about her past (so cliche, by the way) and it all seems to makes sense at first. However, now thinking back, some actions that she and other characters have done before that revelation, now meant absolutely nothing. And character interaction, which mainly consists of Nick Fury saying something and Vers replying with some supposedly funny jibe, gets old very quick.

Worst part? We all know how it ends. There is absolutely no need to watch this film. Not because it is bad or good it offers nothing new that would be so groundbreaking or revolutionary to the plotline. But, you will say, so does “Captain America“, how about it then? Well, the role of Captain America in the Avengers might have been known, but the way the film ended made absolute sense and actually tied up a lot of lose ends. Also, now we have two Captains?

Captain Marvel is here!

Directing

Taking into account that directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck had almost no experience in action films, they both did a very respectable job with “Captain Marvel”. Film’s action sequences are well streamlined and hence, it doesn’t lag behind other MCU films. In fact, it actually is better than some sluggishly paced films like first two “Thor” films. Directors manage to actually thread in some emotional exposition sequences with no sacrifice to overall pace. But despite all, there are some nitpicking moments. Editing is just pure torture. As in all MCU films “Captain Marvel” is not devout of bringing characters with superhuman abilities and/or uber-technological weapons to mere fist-fights and then cuts between shots every three frames. Cinematography is all hindered by constant camera jumps and close-ups of CGI goodness.

Yes, she is wearing Nine Inch Nails t-shirt

Acting

I like Brie Larson. I really do. She is an amazing character actor, with very strong emotional output. And even in “Kong: Skull Island” with heavy action scenes, she managed to deliver sincere performance. However, she just doesn’t fit as Captain Marvel. Or the version of the character that I see on the screen. Yes, she is totally delivering the emotional aspect of the character. She manages to be raw, strong, powerful and emotional. She is a very straight face character. What she fails though when film tries to portray her from comedic and action point of view.

Samuel L. Jackson is a national treasure. He delivers everything in a famous to him manner, but it just never gets old. Casting and actual performance of Ben Mendelsohn was quite surprising. He usually plays ridiculously one-dimensional villains, like in “Ready Player One” or “Dark Knight Rises“. In “Captain Marvel” he finally gets his chance to shine, albeit being behind heavy makeup.

Summary

Despite all the flaws with the writing, film is entertaining and engaging. It turns out to be not as bad as half of MCU films, but it is not better than the other half. It doesn’t bring anything new to overall storyline and because of this, honestly, is absolutely and utterly redundant.

The post Captain Marvel appeared first on Kino-AZ.

Story

Thirty years ago, Janet van Dyne sacrificed herself by jumping into quantum realm to stop nuclear bomb. For all these years her husband, Dr. Pym, has believed she died. But after Scott Lang returns from quantum realm in first film, Dr. Pym realizes that there might be a possibility that his wife is still alive and stuck in quantum realm. So, with help of his daughter, Hope van Dyne, he tries to create a device that will help him find Janet. Unfortunately, this device attracts attention of several individuals, namely a criminal Sonny and mysterious creature “Ghost”, who is in constant “phase shift” and can pass through walls. They could have asked for help of Scott Lang, but he is unfortunately indisposed, due to his involvement with Captain America. And more than that, he is preoccupied with having quality time with his daughter. But even if he could help them, this work might be too much for Ant-Man. Maybe it is time for Hope to don her superhero costume and become Wasp!

Writing

What strikes out from the opening of the film is tonal shift in the narrative. For the first time in MCU history we have a pure comedy on our hands. Action scenes is complimentary, just there to spice things up. And though some elements of the story do get dark towards the end, film still manages to stay on the lighter side. In that sense, “Ant-Man and the Wasp” might remind you of “Deadpool” just without any shenanigans.

Ant-Man (Rudd) and the Wasp (Lilly)

And there is a lot to laugh at. For a certain amount of time, film explores slapstick comedy to a very good results. Back-and-forth jabs between Lang/Ant-Man and Dr. Pym have more sarcasm to it than the original film and is very funny to watch. Then of course, Lang/Ant-Man’s man-child is offset by always serious Hope/Wasp. And to draw comparison with “Deadpool” again, Lang uses same technique of questioning film logic by borderline breaking the fourth wall. Lang’s friend Luis is back as a comic relief and he is even funnier than first film. I liked how writers incorporated his fast talking and highly stylized retelling of events and it was truly the highlight of the film. Overall, I think the comedy was very well written.

Which is what saves “Ant-Man and the Wasp” because the plot itself is ridiculous even by Marvel standards. And I am not talking about the scientific part of it. Film throws at us bunch of smart “sciency” words in fast succession, trying to mask and present everything as something plausible, hoping audience is stupid enough not to question the story. And questions I have. A lot actually. So many that the question whether Pym’s wife would be still alive in the “quantum realm” for thirty years is the least dubious one.

One thing I’d like to compliment is the bad guys. I can’t call them villains, because technically they are not traditional villains. And big applause to writers for trying something new (maybe not very successfully, but still) and not shoving a standard, cliché villain in our face. Writers at least tried to make them multi-dimensional. They have desires, motivations, conscience and doubts. They are not there to make good guys stand out, there are there to make film stand out.

It’s hard to run away from pursuit when you are tiny. Or is it?

Directing

Peyton Reed returns to direct “Ant-Man and the Wasp” and this time he has reins from the start. This makes “Ant-Man and the Wasp” feel much better than first film, which had that weird hybrid taste to it. Overall, Reed delivers a very enjoyable product. He manages to shoot both comedy and action scenes with equal enthusiasm. Taking into account the constant shift in the sizes of the heroes and extensive CGI that have been used, I just have to commend him for delivering a film that is not lost under its own weight. This specifically is seen in the restaurant scene. And most importantly, film flows very naturally and never feels like dragging.

But there are, of course, some problems. While “Ant-Man and the Wasp” is very watchable film, this is maybe the least cinematic of any MCU films. There are no heavily decorated, color graded beauty shots. Cinematography is there just to tell the story, nothing more, nothing less. But, maybe that is what is needed? Why complicate a light film with over-the-top sunsets, experimental framing and weird editing?

Ghost (John-Kamen) trying to steal the tech

Acting

I am not a big fan of Paul Rudd, but in “Ant-Man and the Wasp” he truly shines. He is a wonder to watch, no matter of the scene he is in. His comedy and jokes never feel fake. Evangeline Lilly plays her role with determination and brute force to show that she is not a damsel in distress, but, on contrary, is there to actually fight. Michael Pena returns as Luis and he steals all the scenes he is in. I also enjoyed Laurence Fishburne as Bill Foster. However, I was not really happy with Hannah John-Kamen, who plays Ghost. I don’t think she was able to show the tragic side of the character she played. Not sure if it’s her fault or director’s choice. Also film underutilized Walton Goggins, who basically gets same treatment as in “Tomb Raider“.

Summary

“Ant-Man and the Wasp” works really well, because tone of the film is firstly a comedy and then action. By using talented cast, film gives us a lot to laugh at and forces us to suspend our doubts against dubious plot.

The post Ant-Man and the Wasp appeared first on Kino-AZ.

Story

Ex-mercenary turned mutant Wade Wilson, aka Deadpool has been busy. Very busy actually. Hunting various domestic and international criminals, executing their entourage in the most extensive way and making his targets regret they were born. That’s just what he does. But then he saves young mutant Russell, who calls himself Firefist. To his surprise he then realizes that a man has traveled from future to kill Russell. This man has a robotic arm (“just like Winter Soldier”) and calls himself Cable. Why he wants to kill Russell, he doesn’t tell, but Deadpool decides that he will not let Cable kill Russell at any cost. But for that he needs to assemble a superhero group called X-Force!

Deadpool (Reynolds) is rolling his eyes

Writing

This film is a total steroid sequel. Everything that we loved in the first film are not only taken up one notch, but been dialed all the way to 11. Film is non-stop flow of comedy and laughs, action and overall insanity. You forget time when watching it, there is just so much happening and so fast. On top of that, there are a lot of unexpected twists, turns and sudden plot changes through the whole film. Also using self-reflection and self-parody film pushes the boundary of the film perception to the limit.

But there is also some drawback to the comedy. There are several very dramatic scenes, that we shouldn’t be laughing at. And recovering from laughter hangover into these scenes was sometimes difficult. The dramatic effect thus sometimes was lost. The amount of self-reflection and parody actually pushes “Deadpool 2” into a different genre. In fact, there is so much overall slapstick that it reminded me of “Airplane!” and “Naked Gun” at times. It is not a bad thing at all, but when first film was trying to stay a little serious, “Deadpool 2” doesn’t give a rat’s ass about it.

Deadpool (Reynolds) tries to dodge bullets from Cable (Brolin)

What sets “Deadpool 2” apart from most of the films of this genre is actually deep story and evolution of the heroes. Writers give us a respectable villain, in the eyes of Cable, introduces new characters like Domino and Firefist, and develops old ones like Colossus. On top of this, film gives Deadpool a new motivation, new reason to evolve, move forward.

Directing

David Leitch, director of “John Wick” and “Atomic Blonde“, proves once again how amazingly good he is at making high-octane action films. I was a little worried after “Atomic Blonde”, but Leitch has a great comeback. He delivers his signature choreographed action sets in “Deadpool 2”. There is a very interesting slow-motion montage in the beginning of the film, that is purely insane. Chase sequence will totally blow your mind. Leitch even excels in the direction of CGI on CGI fight, making it believable and watchable.

What Leitch also does good is that he is able to keep this all the madness coherent. With constant one-liners and jabs from Deadpool character threatening to bring total chaos to the film, he is able to deliver a good story and keep us on track of what is happening. He also shows that he can handle dramatic scenes, though as I mentioned earlier, sometimes they get very diluted by the fits of laughter preceding these scenes.

Domino (Beetz) uses her superpower – luck

Acting

Ryan Reynolds is ballsier and crazier than first film. Despite that most of the time he spends behind the mask, he makes Deadpool a believable and relatable character. And though his moral choices are extremely weird and at times borderline wrong, audience connects with the character purely through Reynolds’ performance. Josh Brolin delivers Cable who is basically a human version of Terminator, literally in everything. And I know people will hate me, but he is much better Cable than he is Thanos. Supporting cast has a new addition of Zazie Beetz as lucky Domino. She totally smokes her role and I think will become a fan favorite. Special credit goes to Julian Dennison who plays young mutant Russell. His character is basically everything that Deadpool isn’t and Dennison plays him with a specific charm. Also, be on a watch-out for multiple cameos.

Summary

“Deadpool 2” delivers everything that fans of original movie were hoping to see and more. It has a lot of comedy, solid action sequences and even dramatic scenes that will make you forget the time and just enjoy the show.

The post Deadpool 2 appeared first on Kino-AZ.

Story

Thanos, who appeared in multiple end-credit scenes since first “Avengers”, boards Asgardian ship carrying refugees from Asgard (right from the end of Thor: Ragnarok). He is after so-called infinity stones – stones said to be created with a Bing Bang and carrying enormous power. There are total six of them, and the being that possesses all six stones will have unimaginable power over all Universe. Thanos would like to be that guy. He has already obtained Power Stone and now he is after Space Stone. No one on the ship, including Thor, Loki and Hulk are able to stop Thanos and he relentlessly acquires the Space Stone. Now his vision is set to other stones. Two of them are on Earth, first one with Vision and second with Dr.Strange. One more stone is in possession of Collector. The whereabouts of last stone is unknown. But that will all hardly stop Thanos. Except maybe the Avengers?

Thanos (Brolin) ready to use his power

Writing

I have to give credit where it’s due: Marvel took all the complaints from previous films and tried to address them. Villain problem has long been a big issue for MCU. In “Avengers: Infinity War” Thanos is unlike any other bad guys of MCU. He is this big gargantuan steamroller coming down to destroy everything on his path. He is strong and he is shown adequately as such. We never doubt his power, nor are we fed irrationality with regard to it. And though his ultimate goal to obtain all the stones is borderline ridiculous, at least he is not a one-dimensional character. He has a proper backstory and enough drama involved. Mind, that doesn’t make him well written, but at least he has more motivation and there is also a hint (very thin) of the emotional aspect of the character. Something that “Black Panther” also did achieve.

Also, unlike recent MCU films, “Avengers: Infinity War” is relatively fun to watch. Introduction of more comical “Guardians of the Galaxy” heroes and addition of light-themed Spider-Man opens up an avenue for writers to stitch in comedy elements into the story. By having random heroes grouped up also offers viewers a lot of situational comedy. Especially during first half of the movie there is a healthy number of laughs. Eventually things had to get more serious and towards the end this comedy is gradually phased out with much serious tones.

Which brings us to the problem of over-population of the film with the Marvel heroes. There are just a lot of them. And some of them are naturally given more screen time than others. For good or bad, writers tried to space out and give everyone something to do, but still there was a number of characters that a) had to be included because they are supposed to be there b) characters who literally bring nothing to the table, yet still are given much to do and c) characters that could have been essential but had limited screen time due to plot progression. Regardless, fan favorites do get the majority of the screen time, and fans will be happy.

Starlord (Pratt), Iron Man (Downey Jr.) and Drax (Bautista) trying to come up with plan

Last of course, and my biggest issue with the writing, is that writers had to artificially put some high-power characters into artificial blocks. These blocks at times make very little sense and you feel they are there just to make sure Avengers don’t suddenly get an upper hand in the battles. Or even destroy Thanos five minutes into movie. Writers also tried to cut corners introducing never before seen abilities and skills to the characters. Like with Iron Man’s suit. It seems with every movie Tony Stark adds something more and more ridiculous. I wouldn’t have been surprised if he suddenly would turn into Optimus Prime.

Again, to give due credit, the fun and entertainment push all this ridiculousness to background and we are able to suspend our disbelief. Then, of course, there is an ending, which will be much discussed. I found it certainly is an appropriate ending for the film. Not spoiling anything, I would have been really pissed about the film if they did something else. It opens some new areas for the coming sequel. BUT, however controversial the ending might have been, I know exactly how the sequel will end. And it just spoils the next film.

Get a good look at Avengers, it is last time before battle you can actually understand who is who and where

Directing

Big applause for Anthony and Joe Russo for delivering a film that is not only fun to watch, but also stays on track despite all the freaking superheroes cramped into one film. Film is 149 minutes long, but you will never have a chance to yawn. It is full with adrenaline inducing action sequences which are carefully balanced with slow, emotional scenes. Directors understand that film is supposed to be entertaining, not just a bland CGI punchfest. Editing was nicely done, managing to stay on track despite multiple locale changes. My other concern was kid-friendly PG rating, but film pushes it so much that it easily could have been R-rated.

Despite all these good stuff, Russo brother also couldn’t escape what the others before them failed at. In the climactic scene the whole battle turns into one giant Transformer fight. You can’t see who punches whom and how and why. Literally just pick bits and pieces and connect the dots.

Dr. Strange (Cumberbatch) and Iron Man (Downey Jr.) try to resist

Acting

With regard to Avengers or affiliated heroes, there is nothing new or worth mentioning in comparison to previous films. Everyone basically plays same characters, maybe with just slight modifications. Out of all horde of actors Benedict Cumberbatch, whose Dr.Strange is way more funnier than his standalone movie. Even though this is more because of the situations he is encountering. Also, Mark Ruffalo had to finally show his acting skills, not just be a guy who doesn’t want to turn into green monster. There is also one really good cameo, I will not spoil.

Josh Brolin play Thanos and despite being all CGI, we can see his craft through masterfully done motion tracking. He is able to show Thanos both as superstrong entity, but also encompass the emotional backstory and still remain believable in all the mess.

Summary

Even for a person who is not a Marvel fanboy, “Avengers: Infinity War” is a very enjoyable film. Writers and directors manage to squeeze in incredible number of superheroes into one film and give them more or less adequate screen time. Film has a lot of comedy elements and tries to have fun with weird hero pairings. Pacing is nice, with explosive action sequences and slow emotional moments. Overall, film delivers, and despite a lot of minor flaws and lazy writing, it still remains entertaining all the way till the end.

The post Avengers: Infinity War appeared first on Kino-AZ.

Story

We pick off after the events of Captain America: Civil War (I think. Can’t be sure. I honestly lost track). After the untimely death of his father, Prince T’Challa now travels back home, Wakanda to officially become a King. And as a King of Wakanda, he must become greatest warrior and savior of Wakanda – Black Panther.

It’s not an easy task altogether. T’Challa is ready for this. He has been raised to take this responsibility. While he doubts whether he will be a good king for Wakanda, so do others. Soon T’Challa realizes there are forces who would like to lay claim to Wakanda throne and with that to assume the control of super-material called “vibranium.”

Writing

There are a lot of cliches in the story. From basic “we used to date, but we are totally cool now” and “how can I become like my father” all the way to “you get to choose what kind of king you would be” and a bit of “let’s all go to war now”. Main story arc is full of these annoying lines, which upset the overall plot.

The main story is heavily built on social injustice towards people of African descent. And while this story arc is fresh, interesting and engaging, it doesn’t affect much our main hero. I didn’t see the struggle that affected Black Panther directly. His main story arc, which for any comic film, should take him to a “bottom of the pit”, never really gets him there (emotionally at least). His biggest challenge is losing his throne and his Black Panther powers. In the end you have a limited transformation of character, almost no evolution of powers, linear flow of the arc. In that sense two main antagonists Erik Stevens and Klaue seem to be the most interesting characters in the film. And honestly demise of one of them was really unnecessary and, in my opinion, pointless.

What is weird that both hero and his nemesis share extremist opinions on the subject. One of them says “start the war”, other one says “don’t touch anything”. None of offers anything in the middle. It is not your regular Batman-Joker setup of “I will kill people – I will stop you”. And while this setup is also a valid, it is very confusing when in the end (trying to not spoil anything) the transformation takes our hero to realize something he knew he had to do from the beginning.

Direction

The pacing is very fast, but director did good job identifying and underlining emotional moments. There is good amount of witty one-liners from supporting cast. The coronation scene is very vivid and powerful. What I had problems with were the action scenes. I am not sure if it was director inexperience or just cinematic style Ryan Coogler decided to go for, but it felt more rugged, Transformer kind of action at times. Specifically during first part of the film. The action in the second half was opposite – well-organized and choreographed. At least you know who is hitting and who is injured.

What I did like a lot is that Wakanda is probably the best “fake” country ever designed and filmed in MCU, DCU or whatever other universe there is. It is not a collection of cliche elements copy-pasted from other cities, but a defined country that looks and feels real. It is well hidden from the rest of the world (so that no one knows what treasure Wakandians possess). Thus Wakanda acts as a third-world country. And the whole facade of poverty-ridden tribal society is contrasted by the riches and opulence of the hidden inner city. I appreciate that production designers decided to use a much richer image than a “soviet-war-torn Sokovia” in Avengers or “New-York-crazy Metropolis” in Man of Steel, and gave more of a unique and comprehensive design to Wakanda.

Acting

As I mentioned, I liked supporting cast more than the main. But that is hardly actor’s fault. Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther/King T’Challa is very believable. He manages to stay on track  between becoming a “pessimistic” superhero or “boring” ruler of the country. His Black Panther feels powerful and brave. His King T’Challa feels determined and smart. Michael B. Jordan totally kicks ass as Erik Stevens and I actually wanted to see more of him to badass stuff. Andy Serkis as Klaue is just crazy. I really enjoyed performance by Danai Gurira as General Okoye. She is strong and very outspoken character. And though her role requires her to be a quiet adviser, she actually takes a role of a sidekick. This is something new. Usually this roles is reserved for hero’s friend or hero’s love interest (in this case Nakia played by Lupita Nyong’o).

Summary

I enjoyed the film a lot. Compared to other recent comic book films from Marvel and DC, this film stands out fresh, strong and entertaining. I would like to see more of Black Panther. It was surprise to me that Black Panther is actually a very complex hero, not some weird guy in a weird uniform jumping around scratching others. Because that was the feeling I got from Captain America. Unfortunately he will be part of new Avengers and hence will totally be dissolved in that unholy mess of random heroes and utter stupidity. What a shame.

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Writing

Film stars magnificent Gal Gadot as titular Wonder Woman. Well, in the beginning she is just a regular girl having regular name Diana, growing up on your regular island in the middle of somewhere, being raised by Amazons (not your regular shopping website kind), etc. This girl meets a boy, she saves the boy and decides she needs to save the world. From Ares. Yes, the Greek god of war. See, because that is why Zeus (yes, that Zeus) put the Amazons in that island, so they can protect mankind from Ares. So Diana (not yet Wonder Woman) sets off on her mission to bring Ares down and with that end World War I.

Well, we know WWI didn’t just stop. And then there was WWII. And multiple endless war conflicts after, not to name any of them specifically. So you see the whole problem with this setup. Oh, and we know Diana is present in Dawn of Justice (already established as Wonder Woman). So why exactly we need to care about her mission to end the WWI if we know she will surely fail it? The whole ending is spoiled already!

I like the epic mythical background some of this kind of movies use. But here is a big problem in bringing up Greek gods Zeus, Ares, and what not, is that now you are adding this whole god/theology storyline into Batman/Superman line-up. Really? Does this make sense? Now, I will admit, I have no clue whatsoever about history of Wonder Woman in the comic books. What is her original origin story I can’t tell you. The reason DC even created DCU back in the days was to revamp old heroes and introduce new plotlines. And to compete with Avengers. But DC Cinematic Universe was created (just several years ago) by premise of making these storylines more realistic. The whole premise of Man of Steel was realism. Making Clark Kent be a real person with real struggles in our real world. And now you decide to bring Zeus and Ares mythology in whole this mess?!

Directing

I will have to give credit to director Patty Jenkins. She handles the whole film as a veteran director. And for the sake of it, you can’t even tell that her last feature film was Monster in 2003. Can you believe it? 14 (!) years passed before she was able to put another film into a theater. The actions scenes are by far the best of all DCU films I have seen so far. Pacing is natural. Visuals are good. There is some comedy elements inserted, that don’t make much sense, but given overall feel it is ok. What else can you ask from the director?

Acting

Which brings us to acting. I mentioned Gal Gadot as magnificent earlier and that’s not only for her looks. She single-handedly carries the whole movie. And none of the supporting cast is able to get even close to her. Chris Pine and the rest of male cast feel impotent next to her. Was that by design? Or did that just occurred from Gadot’s performance? You be the judge. And if you jump to conclusion regarding feminism and all, let me just add. The supporting female cast was even worse than male. And we are talking about heavyweights Robin Wright and Connie Nielsen.

Ass-kicking

This is where the film gets a little weird. There are multiple instances of entertaining action-packed sequences. And specifically No-Man-Land (get it, No “Man” Land?) scene was intense and fun to watch. I liked the slo-mo feature in Wonder Woman more than any other Zack Snyder involved DCU film. Because it felt natural and maybe not that slow. Some sequences had no logic into it, like how the hell bow and arrow equipped Amazons were able to defeat a German warship. Or how suddenly whole army can’t stop a group of three people from sabotaging their mission.

And here is where I realize I am making a big mistake because I am comparing Wonder Woman to other DCU films, not to other action movies. Yes, this movie is awesome by all DCU standards. But compared to classic 80-90’s Schwarzenegger, Stallone, hell, even more modern action flicks including Neeson, Statham and Reeves, this movie is mediocre at best.

Summary

Superb performance by Gal Gadot and director Patty Jenkins, still not able to eliminate all the plot holes characteristic to DCU films.

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8 years later from the events of “The Dark Knight” Gotham City is a peaceful place. All the criminals have been captured by Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman). Batman is in exile for killing Harvey Dent. But so is Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale), who prefers complete seclusion in the endless amount of bedrooms of his manor. He is rusted, broken, and in visible pain. His loyal butler Alfred (Michael Caine) is trying to get him back to world, but to no avail. But only one person can – Selena Kyle (Anne Hathaway), a thief nicknamed Cat. She breaks into Bruce’s “uncrackable” safe and steals his mother’s jewels. However Bruce notices that was not the only thing Selena stole – she also took a sample of his fingerprints. Puzzled as why she needs them Bruce starts his investigation, which leads to someone called Bane (Tom Hardy), who lives underground in sewer tunnels and is planning an anarchistic takeover of the world with his army of loyal soldiers. And he wears a mask too.

All this unfolds with steady direction of Christopher Nolan. He gives us a different picture than previous films. Whereas “Dark Knight” was dark and gloomy, “Rises” is bright and even gloomier. The sun is up, but the atmosphere is not happy. Its as dark as it might be. Whats interesting is that every secondary character (and there’s a LOT of them) gets a distinguished screen time. As a matter of fact the amount of time devoted to secondary characters leaves Batman way in the shadow. Sometimes it feels good, sometimes not so much. Nolan spends a big portion of the film time with no presence of Batman at all. Which gives an opportunity to look into Bruce Wayne character more deeply. Bale is finally able to show real emotions that passes thru mind of secretive billionaire.

Tom Hardy as Bane,  spends the whole film behind mask, which makes his voice unbearably difficult to understand. In return his mannerisms speak for himself. His emotionless face gives a different edge to emotional Joker (Heath Ledger) from previous film. He is menacing, a real power and brain match for Batman. And he is going to give Batman some challenge. Bane is a complete terrorist – he just want one thing – watch everything burn.

Anne Hathaway delivers an interesting portrayal of Catwoman, although not as effective as Michelle Pfeifer in “Batman Returns”, she is good in her own way. She is sexy, seductive, and cunning. Michael Caine as Alfred, finally gets a chance to tell his mind and in doing so turns into most sympathetic character in the film.

Overall films lacks crazy action sequences from previous film, but offers complicated and elaborate ones instead, filled with crazy visuals and cinematography unlike any other movie. Final confrontation and the ending fits the best. Nolan finds a perfect way to end the trilogy. Yes, it could have been better. But I was completely satisfied with how film turned out to be.

8/10

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