I haven’t quite finished reviewing all the older Marvel films yet, although I did finish watching them, so that’s half a victory. But having seen Infinity War, I’m not sure I can hold back my thoughts and feelings, so it’s review time! [Spoiler-free]
RELEASED: April 26th 2017 DIRECTED BY: The Russo Brothers WRITTEN BY: Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely PRODUCED BY: Kevin Feige STARRING: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Tom Holland, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chris Pratt, Don Cheadle, Zoe Saldana, Scarlett Johansson, Anthony Mackie, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany, Chadwick Boseman, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Peter Dinklage, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Benecio del Toro, Tom Hiddleston, Karen Gillen, Idris Elba, Benedict Wong, Sebastian Stan, Gwyneth Paltrow, Danai Gurira, Winston Duke, Letitia Wainwright, William Hurt & Josh Brolin
Wow, just wow.
Back in 2012, the world watched in awe as Joss Whedon assembled the six Avengers. In 2016, the Russo Brothers brought together twelve heroes to throw down over the Sokovia Accords, and it was even more exciting. Two years on, and the Russo Brothers now have nineteen heroes under their command (and that’s not even including the various other side-characters like Wong, Okoye and so on) and would you believe, they’ve somehow managed to pull it off again. But this time, it’s even better.
After his various lackeys fail to claim the Infinity Stones in Avengers Assemble and Guardians of the Galaxy, Thanos leads his children on a cosmic rampage towards Earth to finally complete his spiritual journey to gain ultimate power. With the Avengers shattered after the events of Captain America: Civil War, what hope do the remaining heroes have against this threat of unspeakable proportions, even with the help of Star-Lord and his Guardians of the Galaxy?
This post was originally published on 14/07/2017, but has been moved back to fit in with my MCU review series.
Continuing to bring back some of my old reviews here, today looks at Sony’s third attempt at making the perfect movie Spider-Man, this time in collaboration with Marvel Studios; it’s Spider-Man: Homecoming.
RELEASED: 7th July 2016 DIRECTED BY: Jon Watts WRITTEN BY: John Francis Daley, Christopher Ford, Jonathan Goldstein, Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers & Jon Watts PRODUCED BY: Kevin Feige & Amy Pascal STARRING: Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Jon Favreau, Marisa Tomei, Jacob Batalon, Laura Harrier, Zendaya, Tony Revolori, Logan Marshall-Green, Bokeem Woodbine, Michael Chernus, Donald Glover & Robert Downey Jr.
The main problem with Spider-Man: Homecoming is that the casual viewer may falsely believe that Sony was wholly responsible for making this film, what with their company names being plastered all over the opening and closing credits. Which, frankly, is a shame, because this film was made by Marvel Studios, and financed by Sony; and it would truly be a terrible thing if Sony got the credit for what is, to date, one of Marvel Studios’ best films.
In terms of story, the film is surprising on several levels. Firstly, it’s generally understood that the more writers you pump into a film, the messier it gets. That, paired with the fact that the whole storyline is seemingly stuffed into the above trailer, could give cause for concern. But I can assure you that you don’t need to worry about either of those factors.
This post was originally published on my other site, NewToComics.com, but has been moved back to fit in with my MCU review series – if you’re a fan of (or want to be a fan of) comic-books, check it out!
Is this my new favourite film? It may just be.
RELEASED: 6th May 2016 DIRECTED BY: Anthony & Joe Russo WRITTEN BY: Christopher Marcus & Stephen McFeely PRODUCED BY: Kevin Feige MUSIC BY: Henry Jackman STARRING: Chris Evans, Robert Downey, Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Renner, Chadwick Boseman, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Rudd, Emily VanCamp, Tom Holland, Martin Freeman, Frank Grillo, Daniel Brühl and William Hurt
It’s been ten years since the MCU began with Iron Man. In those nine years, super-hero films have become a more common occurrence than ever before. Each film is released to varying success; for many, myself included, BvS was a low point, whilst other films, like The Avengers hit a high.
And then there’s Captain America: Civil War. By the time Civil War had been out for fifteen hours here in the United Kingdom, I’d already seen it twice. That alone should tell you where I stand on the film.
But here’s a little more detail anyway:
After the devastating battles of The Avengers, The Winter Soldier, Age of Ultron and the opening scenes of this very film, the governments of the world have had enough. The Sokovia Accords are passed; they decree that the Avengers must answer to the United Nations; they will be regulated, and can only go into action when the U.N. says so.
Steve Rogers, obviously sceptical of government oversight after the events of The Winter Soldier, opposes the new law. Meanwhile, Tony Stark, who feels guilt over creating Ultron, backs it. Things are further complicated when Steve’s best friend, Bucky, is implicated in the death of King T’Chakka of Wakanda. Refusing to sign the Sokovia Accords, but desperate to prove his friends innocence, Steve must work outside the law to do what he thinks is right.
We’ve reached the end of ‘Phase One’ in our Marvel Movie marathon, with the film that changed the game forever in terms of superhero movies, and finally saw, as the title will tell you, the Avengers Assemble.
RELEASED: 4th May 2012 DIRECTED BY: Joss Whedon WRITTEN BY: Zak Penn & Joss Whedon PRODUCED BY: Kevin Feige MUSIC BY: Alan Silvestri STARRING: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Stellan Skarsgård, Cobie Smulders, Clark Gregg & Samuel L. Jackson
While we all look back on Avengers Assemble (or just The Avengers if you’re outside of Britain) fondly, the truth is, the film does have some flaws. It’s got a bit of awkward pacing at times, especially during the central act, and sometimes certain characters, dialogue or props seem to be there just to force the plot along, rather than naturally fitting in to the story.
However, much of that can be forgiven due to the extraordinary feat the film pulled off in, well, assembling the Avengers.
RELEASED: May 7th 2010 DIRECTED BY: Jon Favreau WRITTEN BY: Justin Theroux PRODUCED BY: Kevin Feige MUSIC BY: John Debney STARRING: Robert Downey Jr., Gwenyth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Jon Favreau, Scarlett Johansson, Sam Rockwell, Mickey Rourke & Samuel L. Jackson
After Tony Stark reveals his costumed identity to the world at the end of Iron Man, his fame and popularity has increased exponentially, as he effectively ends war in the middle east and continues to prove he’s a different type of superhero than anything you’ve ever seen by taking his showboating to new extremes. However, his very presence invites challenge, as rival engineer Ivan Vanko sets out to destroy the Stark legacy for a long-forgotten family feud, and fellow weapons designer Justin Hammer vies for Stark’s weapons contracts and fame. Meanwhile, Rhodey and the government make a move on Stark’s cache of ‘weapons’, while Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. try to mould Stark into something that more resembles Avengers material, as Stark comes to terms with the fact that his arc reactor is killing him.
RELEASED: May 2nd 2008 DIRECTED BY: Jon Favreau WRITTEN BY: Mark Fergus, Hawk Otsby, Art Marcum & Matt Holloway PRODUCED BY: Avi Arad & Kevin Feige MUSIC BY: Ramin Djawadi STARRING: Robert Downey Jr., Gwenyth Paltrow, Terrence Howard, Jon Favreau, Shaun Toub, Clark Gregg & Jeff Bridges
Looking back at the first film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you can see a big change between this and later films like The First Avenger and what came after. While films like The First Avenger, Guardians of the Galaxy and Thor: Ragnarok would fully embrace their comic-book roots, Iron Man was still taking steps to truly establish the superhero genre as its own thing seperate from general science-fiction. As such, it feels more real and serious, not unlike films like The Dark Knight (and to a lesser degree, the leather-bound X-Men). And while there are those signature Tony Stark quips being thrown out every now and then, the film is much more somber, and unlike the films that would follow, pretty dark.
I think this is particularly interesting, as in later years, audiences would complain that the MCU lacked stakes and that everything was too jovial. But if you go back to the beginning, you find a film about a war profiteer who kills terrorists after being held hostage and tortured for the beginning of the film’s run-time.
