The Film Corner

[Buster's Uncle]

Shazam

Dollar theater, low expectations. 

This thing is actually pretty darn good.  Best DC movie IMO.

This is surprising - the trailer struck me strongly as Big with the comedian in a muscle suit.  Maybe they did really well at ripping off Big?...

[Unorthodox]

There's a certain element of that for sure. 

It might be that Sandberg just paced it much like he does his horror movies, so I felt immediately at home and comfortable with the film in that sense.  Nothing really jumps out as fantastic about it, and it's certainly an origin paint by numbers, but it was solidly done and I like the levity in the DC world. 

[Buster's Uncle]

Maybe I just have trouble respecting something that so obviously exists mostly only to compete with MARVEL'S Captain Marvel movie.  It was released less than a month later...

[Unorthodox]

Hm.  Not Captain Marvel.  (though there is a sequence/running gag of them trying to come up with a name, they really should have put in a reference to Captain Marvel somehow.  Even a 'do you want to be sued?' joke) 

Captain Marvel had very little humor in it, and was trying to be Serious Marvel.  In a lot of ways it felt like Captain Marvel was trying to be Wonder Woman, actually. 

Where Ant Man and Guardians shoot for comical Marvel. 

I'd say Shazam falls somewhere in between akin to Thor Ragnarok. 

But it's like I've been telling my kids, who are now Marvel fanboys.  If DC can nail the tone, they really have a better stable of heroes to bring to the screen, just by the fact the general public is already primed.  Many haven't heard of half these marvel folks before, but a properly done Justice League, even if it's just copying the MCU formula, would make BANK. 

Seriuosly, James Gunn doing Guardians of the Suicide Squad has serious potential even as a complete ripoff. 

[Buster's Uncle]

Oh, Suicide Squad had everything going for it but a coherent/competent plot - the character and humor moments were often very good.  Gunn has all the toys already in place he needs for an excellent comic book sort of movie, provided he shows up with a decent script.

Did anyone say Captain Marvel during Shazam?

[E_T]

There's a certain element of that for sure. 

It might be that Sandberg just paced it much like he does his horror movies, so I felt immediately at home and comfortable with the film in that sense.  Nothing really jumps out as fantastic about it, and it's certainly an origin paint by numbers, but it was solidly done and I like the levity in the DC world.

I was planing to likely not ever see this, but now...

[Unorthodox]

Did anyone say Captain Marvel during Shazam?

No.    Though they should have.  There might have been a quick scanning of it in a headline somewhere that I missed, but I doubt it. 

[Lorizael]

Saw Shazam. Enjoyed it. But had a lot of trouble with the central conceit of how Billy ends up with his foster family.

[Buster's Uncle]

Thor: Ragnarok was okay - MOST of the jokes failed a little, in my book, and the movie doesn't really work w/o you laughed at the jokes - also, no surround-sound.  In the theater, I imagine you could feel the Hulk's punches a little.  So none of the blow-you-away sequences w/ Led Zeppelin playing blew me away.  I was burdened with a knowledge of the comics, too - knew how they were doing various characters wrong; the Executioner was miscast, for example - he had a story arc right there in the script that didn't quite work at all with an actor whose presence didn't scream dangerous, bad, man in every frame.

It was way too long by about one third.  I'd cut the whole middle hour of the movie out completely, Jeff Goldblum and Sakaar gone, introduce Valkyrie and Hulk some other way, and keep it in Asgard, which parts were more interesting.  Set up all those civilian Asgardians with a few lines so they're not anonymous in the crowd scenes fleeing, edit everything ruthlessly to tighten the pace - and maybe then it's a good movie.  It did have some charm.

[Unorthodox]

Thor: Ragnarok was okay - MOST of the jokes failed a little, in my book, and the movie doesn't really work w/o you laughed at the jokes - also, no surround-sound.

Yeah, if you did not like the jokes, it's a bad movie.  And frankly, while I enjoyed them the first time, they have not held up well on repeated viewings, which makes me wonder how much crowd psychology played into it.  I first saw it in a theater full of teenagers who found it hilarious.  I'm much more knowledgeable on the horror side of crowd psychology, but humor makes sense it would have a similar impact.   It's still easily the best of the Thor movies, and I do think Thor works better as a comedy, but it's gone from wow that was great on initial impression to 'eh' big loud stupid movie with a few cool action scenes. 

Ironically, the Ant Man movies seem to grow on me with repeated viewings.  Ant Man and his daughter/family is possibly the best relationship in all of the MCU.  They could have written the step dad as a villain so easily, but the way they all make it work for that girl is just awesome.   

In the theater, I imagine you could feel the Hulk's punches a little.  So none of the blow-you-away sequences w/ Led Zeppelin playing blew me away.  I was burdened with a knowledge of the comics, too - knew how they were doing various characters wrong; the Executioner was miscast, for example - he had a story arc right there in the script that didn't quite work at all with an actor whose presence didn't scream dangerous, bad, man in every frame.

Disagree here.  You really can't judge the MCU on the comics at this point.  The executioner had a decent arc as written from the guy just wanting the fame to just trying to save his own ass to finally stepping up. 

It was way too long by about one third.  I'd cut the whole middle hour of the movie out completely, Jeff Goldblum and Sakaar gone, introduce Valkyrie and Hulk some other way, and keep it in Asgard, which parts were more interesting.  Set up all those civilian Asgardians with a few lines so they're not anonymous in the crowd scenes fleeing, edit everything ruthlessly to tighten the pace - and maybe then it's a good movie.  It did have some charm.

Nope and nope.  You HAVE to do the fight to make the movie work.  Everything else is getting us TO the fight.  There's a reason it was marketed as a Hulk/Thor showdown with very little of the actual plot revealed in marketing.  It's one of the Vs comics sandwiched in that middle act.  The licensing difficulties with Hulk made this the closest thing we can get to planet Hulk, and has some character progression for Hulk that becomes important no matter how much I disagree with it. 

[Buster's Uncle]

So DO the fight.  Throw Thor into the outer wilds of Asgard, do all the same plot points, but with hostile low-tech barbarians.  15 minutes of no-fat, no Jeff, spare me an hour of running around comedy Corescant not advancing the plot making jokes that weren't funny and didn't advance the plot.  Fill a few of the other minutes freed up setting up those civilians to give all their appearances later running and being rescued STAKES.  Use some of the CGI money freed up making Surtur at the end IMPRESSIVE.  -It should have been.

So you think a smarmy guy's redemption arc is as interesting as a dangerous brute's?  Tsk.  I'm a sucker for redemption narratives, and claim some slight authority that my way's better.  The fact that I'd seen it done more effectively in a comic -Skurge's end scene w/ M-16s was lifted whole from Walt Simonson's Thor run, if none of the setup/rest of Skurge's arc- does not negate that the same story works better with a different performance.  I've acted professionally; I claim more than slight authority on a performance interpreting a script, for better or worse.  A sleezy fellow is redeemed by acts of selfless honesty.  The noble application of violence saving others redeems a bad man given to evil violence.  Symmetry.

---

I just saw Captain America: The First Avenger - and it was a more solidly-made movie.  Mind you, that wasn't Cap.  Cap might flop his first ill-conceived overseas USO show for real soldiers, BUT - CAP would never leave the stage defeated, no more than he gives up in a fist-fight.  CAP would have, oh, lifted something ludicrously heavy and dropped it through the stage to get their attention, then given the most rousing speech they'd ever heard about how great American freedom is, and how punching Hitler was what to do about it.  Cap is pure win and charisma, not a shy buff Canadian who can't hang later when Robert Downey Jr.'s talking.  -But leave it if I can't recast the lead...

-I'd also have beefed up the first meeting the Skull, had the fight w/o the army uniform covering Cap's USO costume, and ended the main action of the movie with turning up alive in camp with Bucky and ALL of the Howling Commandos, avec Sgt. Fury, now Col. Fury's dad.  Screw setting up Avengers.  They could have done the cosmic cube setup for some future Skull story then, or saved it for a later prequel, and either way, kept Cap in his natural habitat punching Nazis for maybe ten movies.  Avengers had to re-introduce him anyway, and didn't need a second of it, except promotionally.  Make the movie you're making better, instead, and don't make the same mistake the Wonder Woman show did - it was never as good again, set in the present w/o Nazi-punching.

-I'm supposed to see Winter Soldier, soon, too, but we didn't set a date yet.

[Unorthodox]

So DO the fight.  Throw Thor into the outer wilds of Asgard, do all the same plot points, but with hostile low-tech barbarians.  15 minutes of no-fat, no Jeff, spare me an hour of running around comedy Corescant not advancing the plot making jokes that weren't funny and didn't advance the plot.  Fill a few of the other minutes freed up setting up those civilians to give all their appearances later running and being rescued STAKES.  Use some of the CGI money freed up making Surtur at the end IMPRESSIVE.  -It should have been.

Go watch the animated Thor vs Hulk, where Loki tricks Hela into separating Bruce from Hulk and Hulk goes ape[poop].  Yeah, we get to the fight...but we lose a lot of what's going on with the Hulk, and that is IMPORTANT to the MCU.  The fact Hulk has found a life for himself.  Been allowed to feel other things, make friends.  Found a voice on Sakaar.  While we groan at Jeff, a LOT of people LOVE him, so mass market win there. 

I don't think we get any of that if we're on Asgard.  No way Thor didn't know Hulk was on Asgard the whole time.  No way Hulk's found a life.  Again, Sakaar isn't about THOR.  It's about HULK.  The specifically mentioned through several interviews, they wanted to add to Hulks story, but couldn't make a HULK movie, so jammed that into here.  You can't do that on Asgard.  So, yes, you might lose a bit of Asgard and Thor, but we gain a bunch on Hulk, which again is IMPORTANT to the MCU going forward.  Arguably, the only important parts from Ragnarok are Hulk's changes, and Asgard's destruction.  Literally nothing else matters. 

So you think a smarmy guy's redemption arc is as interesting as a dangerous brute's?  Tsk.  I'm a sucker for redemption narratives, and claim some slight authority that my way's better.  The fact that I'd seen it done more effectively in a comic -Skurge's end scene w/ M-16s was lifted whole from Walt Simonson's Thor run, if none of the setup/rest of Skurge's arc- does not negate that the same story works better with a different performance.  I've acted professionally; I claim more than slight authority on a performance interpreting a script, for better or worse.  A sleezy fellow is redeemed by acts of selfless honesty.  The noble application of violence saving others redeems a bad man given to evil violence.  Symmetry.

I don't think Dangerous brute works here no.  Again, we're going for comedy.  Loki picking the guy who's using the Bifrost to collect STUFF to impress girls is an immediate comedic commentary on what Asgard's become under Loki.  Big dangerous brute doesn't have the same commentary as that can perfectly sum up Heimdall in the MCU (yes, that is a scathing but true representation of how they screwed that up) and you HAVE to contrast him.   

I just saw Captain America: The First Avenger - and it was a more solidly-made movie.  Mind you, that wasn't Cap.  Cap might flop his first ill-conceived overseas USO show for real soldiers, BUT - CAP would never leave the stage defeated, no more than he gives up in a fist-fight.  CAP would have, oh, lifted something ludicrously heavy and dropped it through the stage to get their attention, then given the most rousing speech they'd ever heard about how great American freedom is, and how punching Hitler was what to do about it.  Cap is pure win and charisma, not a shy buff Canadian who can't hang later when Robert Downey Jr.'s talking.  -But leave it if I can't recast the lead...

-I'd also have beefed up the first meeting the Skull, had the fight w/o the army uniform covering Cap's USO costume, and ended the main action of the movie with turning up alive in camp with Bucky and ALL of the Howling Commandos, avec Sgt. Fury, now Col. Fury's dad.  Screw setting up Avengers.  They could have done the cosmic cube setup for some future Skull story then, or saved it for a later prequel, and either way, kept Cap in his natural habitat punching Nazis for maybe ten movies.  Avengers had to re-introduce him anyway, and didn't need a second of it, except promotionally.  Make the movie you're making better, instead, and don't make the same mistake the Wonder Woman show did - it was never as good again, set in the present w/o Nazi-punching.

-I'm supposed to see Winter Soldier, soon, too, but we didn't set a date yet.

I really have a hard time with all the Captain America's.  I recognize that Winter Soldier and Civil War probably do the most plot work for the Avengers of anything not labeled Avengers, but I'm not on the Evans train, myself. 

[Buster's Uncle]

Make the movie you're making better, instead

M informs me that Evans is pretty, but I don't think he's even handsome enough.

[Unorthodox]

Pet Sematary

This is bad.  This is real bad. 

It's pretty damning the promos do a better job of designing the sour earth than the movie itself.

Church (the cat) looks more like he's seeking cuddles than menacing people. 

If there is a saving grace, it's the kid.  Lithgow and the kid are the only 2 casting decisions that pan out, really.  Both nail their characters. 

(click to show/hide)

There's a scene where they digitally alter the poor girl's face.  She is absolutely rocking the holy hell out of creepy girl, and it actually detracts from the performance, WTF.

US

...I'm a Jordan Peele fan. 

This doesn't quite match Get Out, and the trailers don't really do it justice, but there's some mixed acting in this one.  The male leads seem to careen all over the place, but there's damn good performance by the female lead.

Decent story and pacing, though as with Get Out, you kinda know what's coming if you've seen the inspirations. 

[E_T]

The thing is, will he be able to do it a 3rd time?