Well, it's been another week. And you know what that means with Hollywood....more superheroes, remakes, sequels and WTF's. On with the show.
Never Say Die - Well, it's only been 29 years now since we were graced with the masterpiece that is The Goonies. So, naturally, that means that it's time for a sequel right? Apparently Steven Spielberg and Richard Donner do. It seems as if this has been greenlit. Normally I'd be crying about them ruining my childhood yet again, but I'm over that. If it's not good, I'll just go back to watching the original. They can't take that away. Looks like Spielberg has come up with a story, and if he and Richard Donner are involved (and possibly some of the original cast), then sign me up. I'll give it chance.
Flash Aaah-aaaaaaaaaahh - In the realm of remakes, Flash Gordon is rocketing his way back into our lives. Even as culty as the 1980 movie was, I think that this reboot sounds like a fine idea to me. In the next few years we've got all sorts of other action sci-fi movies pew-pewing their way into the multiplex, with Star Wars, Star Trek, and even the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy. It's just too bad Freddie Mercury is no longer around to give us another kick-ass theme song.
Ch ch ch ch, ah ah ah ah - Speaking of remakes following trends, the hockey-mask wearing, machete wielding killer is coming back....on the small screen. This comes on the heels of other horror icons recently making their way to television with shows like "Hannibal" and "The Bates Motel". And like these other shows it seems it may have a focus on the beginnings of the character. There was a Friday the 13th show already back in the 80's that I'm sure no one really remembers. It really had nothing to do with Jason Voorhies anyway. This new series will not only deal with Jason, it will also bring back the famous Camp Crystal Lake locale. I'm personally all for this, if done right. I love the 80's and I love horror. Put those together and it's even better. So let's get Jason back to his roots (none of this Manhattan or space crap) and let camper body count begin.
Meanwhile at the Hall of Justice - The week of entertainment news just wouldn't be complete without some sort of Marvel or DC announcements. This week DC pulls in that coveted spot. It was announced earlier this week that on top of Superman vs. Batman movie including Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, they have now officially cast Ray Fisher as Victor Stone/Cyborg. This looks to be his first role in a motion picture, but he does come from live theatre experience. If they cast anymore people in this film they may as well change the name of the movie to The Justice League, right? But wait, that's where today's news comes in. It was just announced that Zack Snyder has signed on to follow-up his second Superman movie with exactly that. The roles of Wonder Woman and Cyborg will be smaller parts in the Superman/Batman movie, which will lead into his Justice League movie. I'm personally excited for this. It's been a long time coming. There were definitely a lot of naysayers out there about Man of Steel, but I thought it was really good movie....so I'll just agree to disagree with the Man of Steel haters and hope that Snyder can do "justice" to these next couple of films.
Well, I think that does it for the week. Now, on to face another Monday. Have a fantastic week.
Until next time.......camp counselors beware!
Weekend to 10 at the box office:
1 - The Other Woman (new release) $24.7M
2 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier $16M
3 - Heaven is for Real $13.8M
4 - Rio 2 $13.7M
5 - Brick Mansions (new release) $9.6M
6 - Transcendence $4.1M
7 - The Quiet Ones (new release) $4M
8 - Bears $3.6M
9- Divergent $3.6M
10 - A Haunted House 2 $3.1M
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Sunday, April 20, 2014
A Week of Entertainment - Issue 6
Happy Easter! Hope you all had an Easter as good as mine. And for you non-religious folk, I hope you just had a happy weekend in general. Now onto the news.
In the beginning...- So, there has been a new trend in movies lately (superhero movies in particular), that seems to have really gotten kicked off with The Dark Knight. That is the whole bit on releasing the first few minutes of a film. This week saw two such releases. One of these is from Days of Future Past. It is labeled as "opening fight scene", so not sure if it is the very beginning of said film. The other is the first three minutes of Joss Whedon's film In Your Eyes (which you can see over at EW.com). The question is, is this a good new trend. I guess my personal opinion is that if the material is good, then yes. Trailers now seem to be giving away the whole plot of movies lately. In the case of In Your Eyes, the first three minutes were intriguing enough with the setup for me to want to see the film. I didn't need key scenes from the rest of the movie spoiling things in a trailer. Mind you, a well put together trailer can do wonders still. They just really need to stop giving away the whole plot.
Speaking of trailers, and X-Men, the final trailer has been released this week. Up until now I have only been mildly enthusiastic about this movie. Between that opening fight scene and this new trailer, however, I must say my excitement level has gone up a couple of notches.
Future endeavors?- One final bit of X-Men news and I'll move on. It is well known that Marvel/Disney has not really wanted to combine efforts with Fox and Sony with superhero movies. That is fair enough, because they are trying to get rights back to their properties. But, could something be brewing between Fox and Sony? Sony has announced that they will have a mid-credit sequence in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 of the X-Men. Not quite worth getting too worked up over yet because it is apparently just a scene from the new X-Men movie and has no cross-over implications at all. However, this collaboration does indicate that the two studios are communicating with each other positively. One can only hope that maybe we'll see Spider-Man show up in Fantastic Four or X-Men in the future, or vice versa. One can dream of said cross-over anyway.
2 Fast 2 Furious- In body double news, the show must go on with Fast and Furious 7. Universal officially announced that Paul Walker's brothers, Caleb and Cody, will be filling in for any of his unfinished scenes. Paul had gotten most of his dramatic scenes filmed already, so they won't have to fill in for a lot. I realize that for Universal, this is mostly, if not completely, about not losing money by having to scrap the movie for rewrites and reshoots. But, I do like that they will not be just CGIing him into these remaining scenes, and also Paul's brothers get to honor his memory in a unique way, which also means that this decision was family approved.
Disappearing act- Have to give a mention to one trailer that was released this week. That is for Gone Girl, starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike. Just had to mention it because it looks like a good new thriller, and I'm just a huge fan of the director David Fincher. Everything he does, if not great, is at least very interesting.
And that ain't no bull- In the realm of completely bizarre news, we have the release of the documentary The Final Member. This film is about two men who are both vying to be the first human to have their "member" be the first human penis in the Iclandic Phallological Museum. While you are wrapping your head around that little tidbit, I'll get onto the actual bizarre part of this story. Drafthouse films is the production company for this film, and if you pre-order the movie here, you get a little souvenir along with it. That would be a wax-sealed glass jar containing an actual bull penis. So, I guess it is a little bit of bull after all.
Well, that's it for tonight. Have a pleasant week.
Until next time.....remember to always grab the bull by the horns.
Weekend top 10 at the box office:
1 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier $26.6M
2 - Rio 2 $22.5M
3 - Heaven is for Real (new release) $21.5M
4 - Transcendence (new release) $11.2M
5 - A Haunted House 2 (new release) $9.1M
6 - Draft Day $5.9M
7 - Divergent $5.8M
8 - Oculus $5.2M
9 - Noah $5.0M
10 - God's Not Dead $4.8M
In the beginning...- So, there has been a new trend in movies lately (superhero movies in particular), that seems to have really gotten kicked off with The Dark Knight. That is the whole bit on releasing the first few minutes of a film. This week saw two such releases. One of these is from Days of Future Past. It is labeled as "opening fight scene", so not sure if it is the very beginning of said film. The other is the first three minutes of Joss Whedon's film In Your Eyes (which you can see over at EW.com). The question is, is this a good new trend. I guess my personal opinion is that if the material is good, then yes. Trailers now seem to be giving away the whole plot of movies lately. In the case of In Your Eyes, the first three minutes were intriguing enough with the setup for me to want to see the film. I didn't need key scenes from the rest of the movie spoiling things in a trailer. Mind you, a well put together trailer can do wonders still. They just really need to stop giving away the whole plot.
Speaking of trailers, and X-Men, the final trailer has been released this week. Up until now I have only been mildly enthusiastic about this movie. Between that opening fight scene and this new trailer, however, I must say my excitement level has gone up a couple of notches.
Future endeavors?- One final bit of X-Men news and I'll move on. It is well known that Marvel/Disney has not really wanted to combine efforts with Fox and Sony with superhero movies. That is fair enough, because they are trying to get rights back to their properties. But, could something be brewing between Fox and Sony? Sony has announced that they will have a mid-credit sequence in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 of the X-Men. Not quite worth getting too worked up over yet because it is apparently just a scene from the new X-Men movie and has no cross-over implications at all. However, this collaboration does indicate that the two studios are communicating with each other positively. One can only hope that maybe we'll see Spider-Man show up in Fantastic Four or X-Men in the future, or vice versa. One can dream of said cross-over anyway.
2 Fast 2 Furious- In body double news, the show must go on with Fast and Furious 7. Universal officially announced that Paul Walker's brothers, Caleb and Cody, will be filling in for any of his unfinished scenes. Paul had gotten most of his dramatic scenes filmed already, so they won't have to fill in for a lot. I realize that for Universal, this is mostly, if not completely, about not losing money by having to scrap the movie for rewrites and reshoots. But, I do like that they will not be just CGIing him into these remaining scenes, and also Paul's brothers get to honor his memory in a unique way, which also means that this decision was family approved.
Disappearing act- Have to give a mention to one trailer that was released this week. That is for Gone Girl, starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike. Just had to mention it because it looks like a good new thriller, and I'm just a huge fan of the director David Fincher. Everything he does, if not great, is at least very interesting.
And that ain't no bull- In the realm of completely bizarre news, we have the release of the documentary The Final Member. This film is about two men who are both vying to be the first human to have their "member" be the first human penis in the Iclandic Phallological Museum. While you are wrapping your head around that little tidbit, I'll get onto the actual bizarre part of this story. Drafthouse films is the production company for this film, and if you pre-order the movie here, you get a little souvenir along with it. That would be a wax-sealed glass jar containing an actual bull penis. So, I guess it is a little bit of bull after all.
Well, that's it for tonight. Have a pleasant week.
Until next time.....remember to always grab the bull by the horns.
Weekend top 10 at the box office:
1 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier $26.6M
2 - Rio 2 $22.5M
3 - Heaven is for Real (new release) $21.5M
4 - Transcendence (new release) $11.2M
5 - A Haunted House 2 (new release) $9.1M
6 - Draft Day $5.9M
7 - Divergent $5.8M
8 - Oculus $5.2M
9 - Noah $5.0M
10 - God's Not Dead $4.8M
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Movie Review: The Raid 2
The Raid 2 is the follow-up to the brutal and amazing 2011 film, The Raid. Gareth Evans, who wrote and directed both films, proves that The Raid was not just a fluke. He takes all the amazing action of the first movie and ups the ante. This new film makes you feel every punch, kick, and hammer gouge.
The Raid 2 story begins just hours after the events of the first film. Rama (Iko Uwais) is taken aside and given a new assignment of infiltrating even deeper into criminal underworld of Indonesia. He goes undercover into a prison to get close to a mob lords son, Uco (Arifin Putra, Macabre). It was supposed to be a short stint, but after two years, the two of them get out and go to work for Uco's father. From there, Rama tries to find out who in the police force has been corrupted by the mob, while Uco starts up an all out war between the different clans because he doesn't like the way his father runs things and would like to take over. Then all hell breaks loose.
The story seemed pretty basic, but it served it's purpose. It was a little slow with the setup in the first 15-20 minutes though. If you're going to a movie like this it's most definitely not for the story, but we'll get back to that. The acting worked for me as well. I mean, let's face it, between all the action sequences, there's not much time to act anyway. But seriously, I think Iko does a fine job, and is so quick and amazing in the action scenes, that I'm sure it's only a matter of time before Hollywood gets their grubby little hands on him and underutilizes his talents. Until then, however, Gareth Evans is already working on The Raid 3. Color me excited.
Not much else to say about all that. Now on to the meat and potatoes of the film.....the action. This is where the both the actors and the director shine. Iko moves lightning quick when he fights and Gareth comes up with spectacular choreography. It also looks great because the actors are actually hitting each other on screen. They somehow manage to pull their punches so there are no serious real life injuries, but still make it look like it hurts.
I will have to admit, I was a bit leery for the first half of the film. There were a few fight scenes where the action was still as great as the rest of the film, but the camera was moving around so fast you couldn't tell who was who. You still get to see some crushing blows, but the camera zips by way too quick. Have faith though, gentle viewer, because the second half of the film pays off in spades. That is when it goes cartoon crazy (and the camera slows down). In the second half you almost forget there is a plot, because it is just fight after fight, non-stop. And, as if, Gareth Evans hasn't proven himself enough with the fight choreography, he orchestrates a car chase that makes the chase in Captain America 2 look like the bumper cars at a fair.
The one thing that never made sense was, if these are mobs, where are the guns. But that thought goes right out the window when you realize that would mean you wouldn't get to see Rama single-handedly take out the entire mob by beating the ever loving crap out of them. You also wouldn't get the insanely strange three henchmen of on of the mob bosses. There's a girl wielding dual hammers, a man with an aluminum bat, and finally one last man with dual curved knives. Imagine what you could do with those weapons, and I'm sure it won't come close to the carnage they came up with for this film. And unlike with the quick camera work in the beginning, you see every bloody hammer gouge and baseball splat.
I'm sure I've said enough for you to make a decision whether you want to see this or not. This movie is not for the squeamish. You will cringe at more than a few of the hits. But if you enjoy a bloody good time (emphasis on bloody) with amazing martial arts choreography, then you've come to the right place. Like I said before, the acting and story are fine and the action in the first half is pretty good. The second half, however, forgives any flaws that the beginning had and bumps this up a notch or two to a must-see.
Rating: ********-- (8 out of 10)
Memorable quote:
Baseball Bat Man: Bring back the ball.
Sunday, April 13, 2014
A Week of Entertainment - Issue 5
We'll just get the depressing stuff done first.
RIP Rooney - Last Sunday we lost someone who's been entertaining us for nearly a century. Mickey Rooney passed away at the age of 93. And he kept going til the last, still making movies. I'll always remember him for some of the children's movie roles I grew up seeing and hearing him in, such as Tod in The Fox and the Hound and Lampie in Pete's Dragon. And then of course who can forget the awkwardly racist Chinese landlord in Breakfast at Tiffany's. He had kept decades of people entertained on the big screen and small. RIP Mickey Rooney, hope you get your eternal Summer Holiday.
RIP Warrior - First off, I have to say I haven't watched professional wrestling in years. But, like every other young boy of the 80's, I grew up watching the stuff back when it was still the WWF. The Ultimate Warrior passed away this past Monday. I didn't follow him as much as some of the other wrestlers, but I had a college roommate who was his ultimate fan. Sad to see another one of the originals go, and at such a young age of 54.
Maximum Carnage - So, comic book movie news is getting to be old hat by now. I'm a fanboy, so I still love most of the movies, but the news front can be a little annoying. However, the viral site for the new Spider-Man series has reference to Kasady, who would become Carnage. This is more speculation than news, but a Carnage movie done right and rated a hard R would be amazing. A Venom movie has already been confirmed, so Sony, make it happen.
Replacement - Following on the heels of Letterman's retirement news last week, they have already found a replacement for him when he leaves. That man is Stephen Colbert, who got his start on the comedy news show The Daily Show. He then went on to do his own satirical new show, The Colbert Report. This move intrigues me because of the contrast between the two men and their respective shows. Will Colbert bring his political satire to late night network television, or will he change his tune a little to fit the mold of the late show program? I think he's a funny man and would like to see him bring a good balance between the two to give us something that sticks out from the two Jimmy shows. We'll see soon who becomes the new reigning king of late night talk shows.
That is all for this week. It is funny, I've found since doing this weekly blog, that most "entertainment news" you find out there is all the same. Comic movies, reboots, sequels, and casting rumors. If there's something of real interest that I may have missed (this is just a hobby on top of my full time job after all), let me know.
Until next time....I swear I saw a dragon!
Weekend Top 10 at the box office:
1 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier $41.4M
2 - Rio 2 (new release) $39M
3 - Oculus (new release) $12M
4 - Draft Day (new release) $9.8M
5 - Divergent $7.5M
6 - Noah $7.5M
7 - God's Not Dead $5.5M
8 - The Grand Budapest Hotel $4.1M
9 - Muppets Most Wanted $2.2M
10 - Mr. Peabody & Sherman $1.8M
RIP Rooney - Last Sunday we lost someone who's been entertaining us for nearly a century. Mickey Rooney passed away at the age of 93. And he kept going til the last, still making movies. I'll always remember him for some of the children's movie roles I grew up seeing and hearing him in, such as Tod in The Fox and the Hound and Lampie in Pete's Dragon. And then of course who can forget the awkwardly racist Chinese landlord in Breakfast at Tiffany's. He had kept decades of people entertained on the big screen and small. RIP Mickey Rooney, hope you get your eternal Summer Holiday.
RIP Warrior - First off, I have to say I haven't watched professional wrestling in years. But, like every other young boy of the 80's, I grew up watching the stuff back when it was still the WWF. The Ultimate Warrior passed away this past Monday. I didn't follow him as much as some of the other wrestlers, but I had a college roommate who was his ultimate fan. Sad to see another one of the originals go, and at such a young age of 54.
Maximum Carnage - So, comic book movie news is getting to be old hat by now. I'm a fanboy, so I still love most of the movies, but the news front can be a little annoying. However, the viral site for the new Spider-Man series has reference to Kasady, who would become Carnage. This is more speculation than news, but a Carnage movie done right and rated a hard R would be amazing. A Venom movie has already been confirmed, so Sony, make it happen.
Replacement - Following on the heels of Letterman's retirement news last week, they have already found a replacement for him when he leaves. That man is Stephen Colbert, who got his start on the comedy news show The Daily Show. He then went on to do his own satirical new show, The Colbert Report. This move intrigues me because of the contrast between the two men and their respective shows. Will Colbert bring his political satire to late night network television, or will he change his tune a little to fit the mold of the late show program? I think he's a funny man and would like to see him bring a good balance between the two to give us something that sticks out from the two Jimmy shows. We'll see soon who becomes the new reigning king of late night talk shows.
That is all for this week. It is funny, I've found since doing this weekly blog, that most "entertainment news" you find out there is all the same. Comic movies, reboots, sequels, and casting rumors. If there's something of real interest that I may have missed (this is just a hobby on top of my full time job after all), let me know.
Until next time....I swear I saw a dragon!
Weekend Top 10 at the box office:
1 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier $41.4M
2 - Rio 2 (new release) $39M
3 - Oculus (new release) $12M
4 - Draft Day (new release) $9.8M
5 - Divergent $7.5M
6 - Noah $7.5M
7 - God's Not Dead $5.5M
8 - The Grand Budapest Hotel $4.1M
9 - Muppets Most Wanted $2.2M
10 - Mr. Peabody & Sherman $1.8M
Sunday, April 6, 2014
A Week of Entertainment - Issue 4
First things first, let's start off with a little title that opened up this weekend called Captain America: The Winter Soldier. It had the highest ever April opening with $96.2 million.....because it's awesome!! Now, on to the week that was.
Le Wolv - I usually don't really care much for a lot of the big celebrities. There are a few though, that I sometimes see do things and get the impression that they are a halfway decent person. Hugh Jackman is one of those. (If anyone has proof that he does suck, keep it to yourself...I like the guy). Being a big celebrity that can poke fun at yourself is a good way to get me to think you're alright. And that is exactly what Jackman does in this video. I think this video is great. This is also the guy who came to the tiny town of Iowa Falls, IA for the reopening of an old theatre, the Metropolitan Opera House, last year, that my sister-in-law manages. He had a double screening of The Wolverine and Prisoners. Keep it up Jackman, you're a real class act.
Ride into the Danger Drone - Always with the remakes and reboots and sequels to 80's hits. Now it looks like Maverick is flying into the future with a new Top Gun sequel. Not a lot of details, but as of now it will deal with pilots versus drones. Does anyone else here think that Tom Cruise may BE the drone? I mean does he even age at all? Well, I guess this could give Goose something to do. Haven't seen him much since his ER days. Maybe then he can go on to do Gotcha! 2 or something. Or am I the only one who even saw the first one?
April Fool's - Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 is happening. That's gotta be an April Fool's joke right? Wait, but I saw the announcement on April 2.......nooooooooo!!
Stepping Down - Last, but certainly not least, another king of late night is finally stepping down to give way to the younger generation. Earlier this week, David Letterman announced his retirement. I admit I haven't watched him in years, but back when I was growing up I always preferred him over Jay Leno. The last of the previous generation is now going away. I think they've left the late night in fairly capable hands with the new generation of Jimmys. One of which used one of Letterman's signature bits to talk about the retirement here.
Any other entertainment news worth mentioning? Let me know?
Until next time......here is this week's Top 10 (box office):
1 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier (new release) $96.2M
2 - Noah $17M
3 - Divergent $13M
4 - God's Not Dead $7.7M
5 - The Grand Budapest Hotel $6.3M
6 - Muppets Most Wanted $6.3M
7 - Mr. Peabody & Shermon $5.3M
8 - Sabotage $1.9M
9 - Need For Speed $1.8M
10 - Non-Stop $1.8M
Le Wolv - I usually don't really care much for a lot of the big celebrities. There are a few though, that I sometimes see do things and get the impression that they are a halfway decent person. Hugh Jackman is one of those. (If anyone has proof that he does suck, keep it to yourself...I like the guy). Being a big celebrity that can poke fun at yourself is a good way to get me to think you're alright. And that is exactly what Jackman does in this video. I think this video is great. This is also the guy who came to the tiny town of Iowa Falls, IA for the reopening of an old theatre, the Metropolitan Opera House, last year, that my sister-in-law manages. He had a double screening of The Wolverine and Prisoners. Keep it up Jackman, you're a real class act.
Ride into the Danger Drone - Always with the remakes and reboots and sequels to 80's hits. Now it looks like Maverick is flying into the future with a new Top Gun sequel. Not a lot of details, but as of now it will deal with pilots versus drones. Does anyone else here think that Tom Cruise may BE the drone? I mean does he even age at all? Well, I guess this could give Goose something to do. Haven't seen him much since his ER days. Maybe then he can go on to do Gotcha! 2 or something. Or am I the only one who even saw the first one?
April Fool's - Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 is happening. That's gotta be an April Fool's joke right? Wait, but I saw the announcement on April 2.......nooooooooo!!
Stepping Down - Last, but certainly not least, another king of late night is finally stepping down to give way to the younger generation. Earlier this week, David Letterman announced his retirement. I admit I haven't watched him in years, but back when I was growing up I always preferred him over Jay Leno. The last of the previous generation is now going away. I think they've left the late night in fairly capable hands with the new generation of Jimmys. One of which used one of Letterman's signature bits to talk about the retirement here.
Any other entertainment news worth mentioning? Let me know?
Until next time......here is this week's Top 10 (box office):
1 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier (new release) $96.2M
2 - Noah $17M
3 - Divergent $13M
4 - God's Not Dead $7.7M
5 - The Grand Budapest Hotel $6.3M
6 - Muppets Most Wanted $6.3M
7 - Mr. Peabody & Shermon $5.3M
8 - Sabotage $1.9M
9 - Need For Speed $1.8M
10 - Non-Stop $1.8M
Movie Review: Captain America: Winter Soldier
I think Marvel has been doing an amazing job with the universe they are building. Even the lesser movies in the series are still fun to watch. Each respective director they have chosen have done well with the material they're given. They've also done a great job with casting. Robert Downey Jr. was a no-brainer as Tony Stark. Then out of left field came Chris Evans as Captain America. I thought he nailed the part in the first movie, and he has only gotten better since then.
In Winter Soldier, Captain America (Chris Evans, Fantastic Four) has been around in the current time for a while now after having been frozen for the last 70 years. He came from a time where loyalty, honor, and truth all meant something. Now he's been thrust into a jaded, cynical world where you don't know who you can trust. That is exactly what he is trying to figure out through this film. Someone has infiltrated SHIELD and he doesn't know who he can trust anymore. I can't go into any more than that without hitting spoilers. To top things off, he also runs into a trained soviet killer with a metal arm, simply named the Winter Soldier, who seems to be just as fast an tough as he is.
CA:WS has the feel of an old 70's political thriller. And it even throws in Robert Redford (All the President's Men) as Alexander Pierce. The story at it's core is pretty grounded and intriguing, with a few of those fanciful outlandish comic book plot points thrown into the mix quite well. If you are one who finds political thrillers a little on the dry side, don't worry, there are some amazing action scenes.....and plenty of them. They managed to mix this great story with almost non-stop action.
If you've been following the Marvel universe, then you will be familiar with a lot of the actors and the characters they play. We of course have Samuel L. Jackson (Snakes on a Plane) returning as Nick Fury (and if you like him, that's good, because his role keeps expanding with each film). Then there is Scarlett Johansson (Don Jon) as Black Widow (always sexy and kick-ass). There is some new blood as well, and they hold their own quite well against the seasoned pros of the series. Already mentioned is Robert Redford as Pierce. It almost seems like this role was written specifically for him, he fit it so perfectly. The newcomer that you will all want to see more of after this movie is Anthony Mackie (Pain & Gain) as Falcon. He basically is Captain America's new sidekick in this movie and the chemistry between those two actors is amazing. They play off of each other like they've been doing this for years.
The Marvel movies have all done a great job of tying in with each other, but also working as stand-alone films. This balance is one of the many things I love about these movies. And it's another thing that CA:WS does very well. It helps to see the other movies to get small references, but you can see it alone and still get 100% enjoyment out of it. I know I'm a little biased for comic movies, but I've tried, and I really can't find anything at all to criticize this movie about. The rest of the comic movies this year have their work cut out for them....and, in my opinion, the rest of the movies in general.
As a side note, there was a passing mention of Dr. Strange's name. Exciting. And for all my fellow Iowans, Iowa City gets a small shout out. Bottom line, though, go see this movie.....right now. You will not regret it.
Rating: ********** (10 out of 10)
Memorable Quote:
Black Widow: Would you like to play a game?
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