The Avengers: A Movie Review

There is not enough good things I can say about this film. Anyone that knows me know that I am a DC fan boy. However, my opinion is this... The Avengers will go down in history as the GREATEST comic book film ever made. Here are a few reasons why...

 

THE HULK... THE HULK... THE HULK!!! Aside from the Ed Norton film which was AMAZING in it's own right, and set the precedence for realism for how the Hulk should look, the Hulk in this movie was simply amazing! I remember how when Mark Ruffalo was revealed to be the new Banner, people (including myself) were miffed that this role wasn't reprised by Ed Norton. But recognizing the trend that most of the CG Hulks are modeled after the real actors themselves, I was thoroughly pleased with not only the performance of Ruffalo as Banner, but also the LOOK of the Hulk. With a tiny bit of exaggeration, he ended up being an amazing likeness to the classic Hulk we see in the comics. Seeing him reminded me of Dale Keown's Hulk w/ the exaggerated features and such. 

We also got to see a lot of the Hulks personality as well. He was a pissed off destructive force, but smart enough to understand at the right time, he needed to work together with a team. This was done wonderfully and the Hulk was a major asset to the team, showing you how muscle should be used in a team. There is so much more to the Hulk, but if I say more, then I will be spoiling ish. One thing I will say though, is that from the second we see the green behemoth to the end of the film, he is tearing through EVERYTHING, as the Hulk should be! No sentimental BE-TTY moments with her single tear on his finger. He simply HULK SMASHED!

The chemistry between everyone in this film was wonderful as well. The mix of humor brought to us graciously by Robert Downey Jr aka Tony 'Iron Man' Stark was wonderful. The relationship between Hawkeye and Black Widow that we all know of in the comics was played on brightly as well. Hawkeye honestly is not a character that is given the opportunity to shine very much. Not too many people I know care a lot about Hawkeye, and I think that Whedon and the writers knew that. So even though they didn't capitalize on his background too much, I think they played a very smart move here by making sure that whenever Hawkeye was on the screen, he was doing something really cool. In effect, this would make folks who never cared about the character go... Hmmm. Who is this dude? After this movie, if I didn't know who Hawkeye was, I would be checking him out afterward for sure. I think they were really smart with this. Captain America was shown as the worlds greatest leader in this film, and the character I feel was given another side of which was seen in this film. You need to see it to understand what I'm saying. 

Thor throughout the film was just annoyed with his brother, and it kept a realism and a much different element to the movie in regard to the relationship to Thor and Loki. He still really loves his brother, and will do anything for him, but he never ever once condoned the actions he was taken. Thors growth as a character was plain as day in the movie. It even seems as if the writers wanted us to see that he had grown and learned a lot more since the Thor movie that had come out, and I thought that was nice to see.

I like to call Nick Fury as wonderfully played by Samuel L Jackson, the Great Manipulator. The thing I love about Nick Fury and his role in the film is that he is a friggin GENIUS! The man knew how to fight, he knew how to think, and motivate the Avengers to get their butts in gear, and do what he knew in his heart what they could do. Sam Jackson is not an action star by any means, but give this dude some lines, and that ish does not even matter. I know very few actors that can do this, and Sam is one of them. He made Nick Fury a very cool character. And it does help a lot that the Ultimate Nick Fury was modeled after him, so to see this come alive in film was amazing.

Finally, Joss Whedon... I have been a fan of this guy since Firefly. I didn't really expect him to do much for the film honestly because this wasn't a property that HE created, so I didn't expect him to pull off his usual amazing skills. But BOY was I wrong. After seeing this film, Whedon, and his writing team say a few things to us as comic book fans. 

1. We are sorry for all the crap hollywood had you sit through and waste money on. Here is our gift to you.

2. You are a fan, and so are we...

3. The comic book movie CAN be done like the comics. 

4. There are no more excuses for not putting together quality films just like the comics, since comic books are essentially movies, and TV in printed form.

5. Comic companies (Mainstream or indy) MUST invest in putting together their own studios to create films that stay true to the characters they create. And these must also be willing to cater to indy creators that want to see their properties on film as well. This eliminates the risk of any tampering with those who just want money or who only want to please Hollywood, and not the fans.

This man can do and touch anything he wants from this point forward. He like Christopher Nolan of the wonderful Batman films and his other great films have the ability to touch anything and turn it into GOLD!!! Whedon from this point on has proven to me, and even more so to his hardcore fans that he is an undeniable talent. And I'm going to call this right now... After the Avengers film, the next great TV project he creates will survive for more than 2 seasons. Hollywood now has NO CHOICE but to recognize the talent for what he is. The Rise of Joss Whedon has begun!

Thanks for taking the time to read today! If you want to leave comments, leave them here!

Talk to you guys soon!

Ian W.

The Hunger Games: A Movie Review

Now in this review, I have some very strong opinions about what I saw in this film. I plan on going about this review in two ways. One as a film, and two a personal opinion.

So the Hunger Games in short is a movie about 24 young men and women ages 12-18 that must participate in an arena style competition to the death as punishment for an uprising
that took place by the 12 districts of Panem, against the ruling government of the Capitol. The story has a very unique and interesting premise. Having read the book before
seeing the movie, I went in with alot of expectation as far as sticking close to the story goes, but not so much as i wouldn't call myself a raving fan of the series.

The Katniss character in the movie played by Jennifer Lawerence was very well done. I am a fan of the average beauty of a woman, who when made up becomes strikingly gorgeous. She
shows strength, and beauty which is to be applauded especially for a young actress. The character of Peeta Mellark wasn't as engaging and interesting as I thought he would be.
He was a perfect back up character, but I feel didn't really do much to complement Katniss in the movie as much as he did in the book. I found that as a character at least in
the movie, I didn't really care about him. The brutality of the Hunger Games were shown very prominently in the film. The struggle and fight for survival, along with the dreams
of the main characters played a role, but again were down played and overshadowed by the glory of the games, and I think that was a mistake. The only time in the movie where
those sentiments were expressed was during a conversation in the film with Katniss and Peeta. After that it seemed to be all about the fighting and killing. I feel that there
was so much more that could have been played up more in the film, and in fact extended visually in movie format that would be hard to express in the books. The meaning of the
games to everyone in the districts were a non-issue, it just seemed like they all hoped they didn't get picked. The reaction to the games from the general populace should have
been something that could hae been expanded on, but it was not. This is where the book shined in my opinion.

The movie as a whole I feel was rushed and happened very fast in regard to the story and pacing. A lot of details that helped round out the characters were deleted, and I think didn't help to develop a quality story. Honestly as I watched, I began to really feel that this was simply a movie that was put out to replace the hype of Twilight which will thankfully burn out in
the next few months. The casting and script was really good, and was probably my favorite aspects of the film. Lenny Kravitz as Cinna was awesome, Stanley Tucci as Caesar
Flickerman, Woody Harelson as Haymitch, Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket, and even Donald Sutherland as the evil President Snow were all great and put on amazing performances. However, the look and feel of the film in my opinion were very lack luster. Capitol was a HUGE disappointment to me. The city looked sterile while it's inhabitants looked like left over extras from the Fifth Element. When reading the book, and the description it gave, I envisioned very vibrant colors, flamboyant designs from the clothing, to the people, to the architecture. The environment and the people in it did not complement each other, and was not cohesive at all. Being an artist, it was not appealing, and I felt that the designers of the movie were very lazy in this aspect.

As a movie, and simply considering the craft itself and what it presents itself to be, I give this movie a 7/10.

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Now this second part is purely personal opinion and convictions, and if you do not wish to continue reading here, then that is alright. I appreciate you at least taking a look at my initial review.

The Hunger Games is a story that should have stayed just that... a story.  I remember a time when it was taboo to show a child being murdered on television, or in a movie. And if it did show that, it received and immediate 'R' rating. I think it's amazing how we as humans interpret things in our minds when we read a story; allowing our minds to conjure up images in our imaginations as to how something or someone looks, or how action plays out. I have to say that though as a movie, it was pretty good, from a moral standpoint it was outright disturbing, and inappropriate. What saddens me even more, is that this stuff is going be eaten up by the public and media; thus showing the advancing love of violence no matter where it comes from, and the sad state the world is in now, because we have become so callused to violence.  My mind didn't even come close to projecting the gruesome, and violent images that were being performed by those that either were, or pretended to be children in this film. They acted sadistic, savage, uncontrolled; and to me, for children to act like this is unacceptable no matter what time period, no matter what circumstance.

Children are SUPPOSED to be a reflection of fun and innocence that is forgotten in our adult lives. They are the people we look to, to remind us of what innocence, and curiosity is in the times we live in. They are the balance in our lives when we take life and ourselves too seriously. And when children are being portrayed in a way that is not only overly mature, and perform acts like killing other children, I personally feel that this crosses a line, and is completely unacceptable. I am not in anyway slamming the original author of this book. I understand that it is a fictional story, and a different time period, and even more, that IT'S NOT REAL. But what I am upset about is the fact that the entertainment industry didn't pause and take a look how a movies like this would portray children to be. That is NOT okay... Remember how controversial Lord of the Flies was as a story? And remember how even more controversial it was when it was put to film? Well now with Hunger Games, the Lord of the Flies is now like Spongebob Squarepants in comparison.

I do not like, nor will I ever condone, or try to make acceptable the portrayal of children as violent, brutal, sadistic murderers. And because this is what the entertainment industry has done, I have become very sad and now truly realize the lengths these people will go to make a dollar. And before anyone reading this post decides to try and be snarky or funny, and say "They are teenagers, not children" go ask your local police officer how old you need to be to drink, or get married. Just because it is done, doesn't mean that is HAS to be or that it's acceptable.

So based on all the aforementioned here, I will have to give this movie of 2/10...

Newest Avengers Trailer

I don't even need to say nothin... Just watch...

 

Now tell me what you think cause I just got back full control of my entire body only about 15 minutes ago...

Movie Review: CHRONICLE

So I took some time this weekend to go and see this movie, and I have to say, with a few exceptions, those being the Batman series, this was a real breath of fresh air to me. Now we all know that superheroes and supervillains are nothing new. The origins of such are not new either. But the way they went about the telling of the story, the style the film was shot in, and the development of the characters was really fun. This movie had an excellent mix of everything that makes a movie entertaining. It had drama, it had love, it had comedy, and more importantly it was rife with angst. The moral subplot of the film was done very well. I feel like it took every question in our minds as to what WE would do if we had superpowers, and made them come to fruition in this film. I can't count how many times I said to myself, 'I would TOTALLY do that!'

The main plot of the film focused on one character in particular... Andrew. That recurring theme was, "What's wrong with Andrew?" and by golly this movie told us what's WRONG with Andrew. The character though very cliche in origin was told and built up very well. I feel the approach that was taken made him very appealing. He made a few mistakes but was the quickest to harness and control his power. All of this played into the role he would play as a character. For all comic fans out there who have their favorite villains, this film succeeded in making you have a ton of feelings for the character who later becomes the villain. You understand him, you feel for him, you love him, and you also hate him. That's all I'm gonna say on that, or else I'm gonna end up telling you parts of the film, and I don't want to spoil that for anyone.

Just like any story, the film has a few plot holes in it. The biggest one is the moment after they received their powers. I feel like they simply just decided to forget about it, and move forward. You will figure out what I am talking about when you see this movie for yourself. But it's something that made what could have been an AMAZING story, only a good one. There are many more throughout the film that will admittedly have you scratching your head wondering what ever happened to...? The most amazing thing about the film that I can say is what all huge superhero fans look at, and that is the POWERS! There was not one single time where I didn't feel that I was with those guys each and every step of their journey. The special effects were so amazing, and clean, it's really hard to nitpick at certain things, though it does have very few things you will notice, but they aren't really important. 

All in all, Chronicle was a very well done film, with a cohesive cast that definitely had chemistry and worked well together making the whole movie believable. And for the type of film this was, I think believebility is very important. And for every second I was watching, I thought there were 3 dudes out there somewhere with superpowers. This is a GREAT date movie, because there's not so much bang bang beat em up, and there is just enough drama and romance to keep your girl entertained. And it even passes the muster as a superhero film, as it met all the criteria we see in the comics translated very well onto film. If I have to give this movie a rating, I give it a 4/5. I will be seeing this movie at least one more time and then buying this piece on DVD.

Talk to you guys later,

Ian W.

New eBay artwork & Commission art!

Just wanted to let you guys know that I put up some new artwork on eBay after a few weeks of catching up on commission work that I needed to get done, and after getting done with some pages in my new comic. I have the Wonder Woman piece up as well as Selene from Underworld. These are pictured below. These drawings are going to further help me get the Seven off the ground, and get it done! When I start the crowdfunding campaign for the book, I really want to have most of the costs taken care of, like a colorist most importantly for this book. So below are some of the pieces that are on eBay now. I am also taking art commissions as well on eBay so check those auctions out! Click the eBay auctions link above, or here. Thanks so much for your support guys!

Commission - Jack Skellington

A Jack Skellington commission that I did for someone today. I had sooooo much fun drawing this character, and this was the first time that I have ever drawn this guy. It's cool knowing that I can do a variety of characters and that I know that I can go outside my normal style realm. Anyway, this was sold for $35. If you are interested, send an email or leave a note.