An Ode To Nathan Rabin

It occurred so suddenly as to leave me in shock. On the night of April 29, 2015, Nathan Rabin's Twitter bio said it as plainly as could be: "Former Dissolve writer". This was no mix-up, no social media snafu, one of my favorite film critics on the interwebs would no longer be a part of the website The Dissolve. I'm sorrowful that Rabin will no longer be a part of that particular website, but I'm confident he'll find work elsewhere. A man with his kind of talent is bound to wind up somewhere that's beneficial to his talents eventually. That kind of talent was, truth be told, influential in me becoming a film critic. For me in the past and the present, reading Rabins work was an eye-opening experience that was influential in making me want to pursue a career in film writing.


I'll never forget, years upon years ago, stumbling upon one of his Year of Flops entries and being mesmerized by this kind of writing. This wasn't someone looking to cynically take down lower quality features in an effort to boost ones own ego, but rather, a man looking meticulously into each frame of such "treasures" as The Oogieloves and Battlefield: Earth and attempting to find what went wrong. Why didn't this resonate? Was there something truly great lurking beneath the surface?

The way Rabin wrote these essays in a manner that managed to be both insightful and witty captivated me to no end, and that wasn't even the only content he created back on The AV Club! Among his many contributions to that website, those classic Simpsons reviews were always great at getting at the core of why that show is so truly beloved, as well as getting across the individual qualities of each episode that made them, as he'd always put it, a good one.

When Rabin, along with other immensely talented AV Clubbers like Tasha Robinson, moved on over to The Dissolve, his knack for analyzing features with less than stellar reputations was brought over to a new feature entitled Forgotbusters. It didn't matter if Rabin was looking at Woody Allen as a neurotic ant, or looking at John Travolta and Tim Allen on motorcycles; the combination of exceptional prose and humor was more than in tact, and his countless other features and reviews on this website just cemented him as a remarkable voice in the world of film criticism.

But even after all this incredible work, I freely admit my favorite pieces of Rabins work may be his Year/World of Flops pieces. Does nostalgia help it become the victor among this authors work? Most certainly. To this day, I can still remember the giddy feeling of euphoria I felt when reading pieces on the likes of Tiptoes, and really, who can't help but smile when a memory like that crosses ones mind? I know that, wherever Rabin winds up in this world, he'll continue to inspire movie lovers, young and old, with that same sense of glee and passion for years to come.

To paraphrase my favorite song from Inside Llewyn Davis:

Fare Thee Well

Nathan

Fare Thee Well

So, Just How Big Is The Avengers: Age Of Ultron Gonna Be This Weekend?

Here it is, the big one. What's likely to become the biggest opening weekend of 2015 is about to arrive, and I'm sure you can guess that The Avengers: Age of Ultron will be responsible for that mammoth haul. The question is though, how much can it make? Well, let's take a look at that question in this weeks edition of Box Office Predictions!



It's interesting to look at the financial progress of sequels to blockbusters that do huge business. Typically, those that get over $275 million have a tendency to have their immediate successor make less. Exceptions to this rule certainly exist (Pirates of The Caribbean and Transformers both had first entries that made over $300 million, and their sequels managed to make more at the box office), but for the most part, that's how it rolls for high grossing films. Just look at how Attack of The Clones dipped 25% from The Phantom Menace, or how Chamber of Secrets dipped a whopping 16.5% from Sorcerer's Stone.

It's almost a certainty that The Avengers: Age of Ultron will have a smaller overall gross than The Avengers, though considering that only two movies in history have ever made more than that 2012 Joss Whedon movie, it's not exactly a shocker to hear that AoU is likely to make less. Still, this sequel has a good shot at surpassing its predecessors opening weekend, though similarly, the first films opening weekend (the biggest of all-time, with $207 million collected in its first three days) is so formidable it truly wouldn't be disappointing in the slightest if it came up short.

Marvel has done one helluva job at trying to make that outcome of it falling short of the first film on opening weekend doesn't occur by putting together a massive marketing campaign. A memorable teaser trailer back in October 2014 set up both a darker mood and the films primary villain, Ultron, whose been a major player in all the promotional materials. The theatrical trailer, released in March 2015, kept the stakes of the story high while also adding in moments of humor, an element that audiences truly responded to in the first Avengers.

It helps of course that the first Avengers as beloved by audiences, and films like Iron Man 3 and Captain America: The Winter Soldier have kept the characters prominent in pop culture with well recieved and financially lucrative spin-offs. Reviews aren't anywhere near as glowing for Age of Ultron as last time, but they're still solid enough and aren't even remotely bad enough to deter viewers. All that in mind, it seems likely that The Avengers: Age of Ultron takes a cue from another sequel to a beloved 2012 smash hit, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, and increase slightly over the first movies opening weekend.

With all that being said, it'll be interesting to see how the movie plays over the weekend, especially since unlike, say, the Twilight movies, these Marvel Cinematic Universe films aren't particularly frontloaded and make up a large share of their opening weekend on Saturday and Sunday. This one should have no trouble becoming the biggest MCU movie at late night screenings by a huge margin (I'm thinking it makes $22 million from those showings alone), and then winding up with an opening weekend slightly higher than the original, maybe about 6% to a $220 million opening.

With Age of Ultron coming out, holdovers at the box office are likely gonna take a tumble, especially the only other big action tentpole in the marketplace, Furious 7, which should lose 55% for this frame. Movies that occupy a different genre than Age of Ultron (like dramas like Ex Machina or romantic movies like The Age of Adeline) should have better dips, though even they won't be impervious to Ultron's reign.

Below, you can see my opening weekend and final gross predictions for The Avengers: Age of Ultron and my projections for this weekends Top 5.

The Avengers: Age of Ultron
Opening Weekend: $220 million
Total Gross: $580 million

1) The Avengers: Age of Ultron: $220 million
2) Furious 7: $8 million
3) Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2: $7.5 million
4) The Age of Adeline: $7 million
5) Home: $4.7 million

How Did Guardians Of The Galaxy Blow Past All Expectations?

PHASE TWO

Miracles

"Ah, what the hell, I don't got that long a lifespan anyway."

Unlike all the other entries in this Make Mine Marvel series, I've already reviewed Guardians of The Galaxy on this website, so I decided to change things up a bit for this particular essay and take an in-depth look at how Guardians of The Galaxy became such a huge hit last summer. Prior to last August, nobody knew what a Groot was, how Gamora and Nebula were related or that raccoon's had a compulsion for metallic limbs, but by God, they do know.

Breaking numerous box office records last August with it's long run at the American box office, Guardians of The Galaxy made more money than any X-Men movie domestically and also surpassed the grosses of half of the Spider-Man features as well as two of the three Iron Man films. Looking at that kind of success, one has to wonder how these Guardians were able to zoom to the top of the Marvel A-list. The answer is quite simple actually; the movie provided a fun time and something moviegoers didn't see everyday.

Looking over the summers of 2014 and 2013, there was a note of pessimism in summer blockbusters. Sometimes that lead to thoughtful high quality adventures like Godzilla and Dawn of The Planet of The Apes, but it also led to a number of features that put being "dark" and "gritty" over actual storytelling. Over these two summers, the Autobots acted more violent than the Decepticons, Superman killed a guy and the crew of U.S.S. Enterprise were consumed by rage and vengeance. Something more light-hearted like Pacific Rim was the very definition of an anomaly.

And then here comes Guardians of The Galaxy, sauntering in with its unusual visuals and an emphasis placed on humor. James Gunn and Nicole Perlmans screenplay gives these characters numerous one-liners, but they also give very heightened characters like a talking tree depth. Just look at how Rocket Raccoon is depicted in the story; he's a tortured soul who distances himself from the world and others. Seeing him connect with his fellow Guardians is nothing short of triumphant to watch, and showcases how making characters that viewers can invest in is important in any kind of film.

This kind of character development may seem simple, but it's staggering how many movies forget to have this kind of personality put into its characters. Guardians doesn't just do this sort of character centered writing for one of member of its group, it gives all its members interesting themes and quandaries to grapple with. The way each individual scenario plays out, not to mention how each of these characters bounce off each other, is a primary reason why the film works so well.

Another notable reason for why Guardians of The Galaxy likely worked so well for audiences was its optimistic nature, which depicted a story lovable scoundrels coming together to help people. Star-Lord and his comrades don't just flip a switch and becomes good guys, they still retain notable aspects of their roguish personalities, but they also realize that looking out solely for oneself may not be the best way to live. The more upbeat arc for these characters is matched by a bright color scheme that makes the world of Guardians so damn inviting from a visual perspective.

Putting good storytelling first, as well as creating a well executed optimistic atmosphere, were likely some of the elements that helped Guardians of The Galaxy become so incredibly popular, and it's nice to see moviegoing audiences respond to these sort of elements that been prevalent in the world of cinema since it was created over a century ago.  I'm sure those making the very first movies could never have imagined a gun toting talking raccoon, but then again, maybe that was a central character in a movie Eadweard Muybridge never got around to making.

The Trailer For Irrational Man Brings Woody Allen And Joaquin Phoenix Together

Seeing Midnight In Paris back in 2011 is easily one of my favorite theatrical experiences ever. I had never seen a Woody Allen movie before, so witnessing the writer/directors work in the context of that endlessly charming 2011 movie was quite an adventure. That sort of memory isn't the only reason I'm excited for Allens next movie, Irrational Man; this new feature also pairs up two of my favorite actors, Joaquin Phoenix and Emma Stone! A trailer for this film has been unveiled, and you can watch it below!

The way this trailer feels structured makes it seem like they're keeping major elements of the plot under wraps, but what I see here does feel quite promising. Some nice bits of imagery here (who would you expect less from cinematographer Darius Khondji?) and the fact that voice overs from both Phoenix and Stone are present here gives me hope that the use of that cinematic tactic will allow for the duo to really come alive from a characterization perspective. My excitement for this one remains quite high!

Extract Review (Classic Write-Up)

Extract, Extract, Read All About It!

Once I finished watching Extract, I was left with this peculiar sense of unfulfillment. It's not that this 2009 Mike Judge feature was particularly bad or something, it's just that, by the end, very little of notable value had really happened. The characters weren't that notable, the laughs weren't too hearty and the plot didn't feel particularly exceptional. In fact, the story, in its execution, struck me as fodder for an episode of a sitcom in its seventh season than a major motion picture.

Thanks to his immense success in the film industry though the cult status his various movies have achieved, Judge assembles some pretty talented actors here, including Jason Bateman as the lead, Joel, the owner of an extract company whose feeling like his life (namely his marriage to Suzie, whose played by Kristen Wiig) are subpar. Bateman has found a lot of success in comedy playing schlubs who think they're more morally right than they truly are, most notably in his turn as George Bluth on Arrested Development.

That would make it seem like Joel would be a character right up Batemans alley, but there's really no reason given as to why I should root for this guy or even find him interesting to watch. His faults are only compounded once, after plot turns that reap negative consequences for Joel occur, he gets more agitated towards everyone in his life, primarily Suzie. If some of the antics here were delivered in a manner that generated laughs or pathos, they'd be more tolerable, but as it stands, Joel as a character drags the film down considerably.

Mila Kunis, playing Cindy, a woman who uses her cunning wit and attractiveness to steal various objects, doesn't exactly fare any better in the plot, with her primarily serving as a way to drum up conflict for Joel (as one might imagine, he fancies Cindy and wants to cheat on Suzie for her) and then get him laid. That specific plot point doesn't drum up anything at all plotwise; after the two spend the night together, Cindy isn't even seen again, leaving her storyline abruptly concluded.

The rest of the supporting cast have a lot more success in creating a noteworthy presence within the movie, including J.K. Simmons, Kristen Wiig and namely Ben Affleck, playing a kind of character I've never seen him play before, that of a dim-witted but trying to be "helpful" friend. Affleck makes the casualness of his character so natural, the various lines he rattles off can't help but be funny. He's one of the few parts of Extract that I really found to have any sort of effort to it, with the rest of this film not being bad, but just sort of punctual in a forgettable sort of manner.

Behold! The Awesomeness of Captain America: The Winter Soldier!

PHASE TWO

Miracles

"The price of freedom is high....and it's a price I'm willing to pay."

Continuing the saga of the three individual Avengers with ongoing franchises after the release of The Avengers was a daunting task, but it's interesting to see how each of the post-Battle of New York continuations went in a unique direction with their respective superheroes. Iron Man 3 went deeper into the existentialism of its titular character, while Thor: The Dark World took time to look at how a massive event like the one that brought The Avengers together would affect Thor and Loki as brothers.

And then there was Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which took everyone by surprise and delivered a film quite unlike both the first Captain America movie and The Avengers. Taking cues from 70's political thrillers, this entry in Steve Rogers epic saga simultaneously tosses Caps world upside down while also keeping the sort of "gung-ho"spirit that made the character so engaging in the first place. This isn't a story of him being a brooding, gritty anti-hero, but rather, a tale of how Steve sticking to his principles affects those around him like Black Widow and The Winter Soldier.

Interestingly, even though this one carries over more Avengers character than any other Phase Two film (aside from the Avengers sequel Age of Ultron of course) this one works extremely well as a standalone adventure, one which just so happens to feature previously established identities like Black Widow and Nick Fury. Both of those characters are played by Scarlett Johansson and Samuel L. Jackson, respectivly, again, and good God, does Johansson shine in her turn as Black Widow here. She and Chris Evans apparently have a real life friendship that makes the duo have a warm, friendly dynamic that's endlessly entertaining, especially since their different approaches to super heroics (he's upright and moral, she does whatever it takes to get the mission done) makes for interesting dialogue exchanges.

The two have to take on HYDRA, which as resurfaced with the help of Alexander Pierce (Robert Redford). I never ever would have thought five years ago that Redford would wind up being the bad guy in a Captain America movie, but by God, he shows up here and actually does excellently playing a foe who believes he's really a savior for the world with his advanced weaponry. It helps that he plays off Samuel L. Jackson well, making their respect for one and another at the start of the picture feel real, which of course, makes the events that transpire afterwards all the more emotionally brutal.

It's fascinating to look at The Winter Soldier in the MCU pantheon in terms of action, since this one relies on more smaller scale action sequences than past features. That's no complaint though; variety is the spice of life as they say, and the scenes of combat found in this particular movie are incredibly well done. They're shot in an engaging manner, and certain environments they take place in (like a small elevator in one of the films standout moments) are cleverly chosen.

I'm particularly partial to how well done Steve Rogers hand-to-hand fighting is; just look at a single take done at the start of the motion picture where he infiltrates an enemy boat and takes out several foes with his shield bouncing off the walls and his immensely coordinated kicks and punches. He moves like a true warrior, making it believable that this guy is not only a super soldier but also serves a specific purpose within the modern day world he finds himself occasionally being uncomfortable in.

His discomfort with 2014 America can help be offset by his new chums, including Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) AKA The Falcon, a charming character that gets to be at the center of one of the movies best scenes, where he and Steve Rogers discuss the woes of coming home from military duty. There's an exceedingly large amount of pain in how they both connect over the idea of being unable to sleep in a bed after sleeping on rocks and other terrain as soldiers, and it helps demonstrate the hardship these two (and courageous real life soldiers as well) face when coming as home, as well as efficiently setting up the duo as immediate pals.

The friendship between Sam and Steve is part of a central theme within Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which is how valuable the connection between other people is. Under normal circumstances, maybe Black Widow and Captain America wouldn't be so friendly, but the immensely important events that get the plot of The Winter Soldier going not only allow these two to be comrades in battle, but also allow them to see each other as more than just a man wearing a flag or just a spy. The idea of our connection to those we care about being crucial can be found in the titular character, whose a brainwashed version of Steve's WWII buddy Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan).

Steve Rogers notes before they go into the movies epic finale he won't kill Bucky, and he lives up to that promise when, after an extraordinary amount of fighting between the two, Steve allows his former ally the chance to kill him. As Captain America lies there, in immense pain, and Bucky stands above him, contemplating if he should take this opportunity to finish Cap off, Steve then repeats an axiom Bucky once told him all those centuries ago: "I'm with ya until the end of the line." Their bond from decades back still resonates with Bucky, despite his brainwashing, and demonstrates Captain America: The Winter Soldiers primary thoughtful thesis.

You may have noticed I dubbed this Phase of the MCU with the word Miracle. It's a reference to the post-credits scene found in this film, where Baron Wolfgang van Strucker dubs this modern era "the age of miracles", but it also works with themes like the ones present in this 2014 effort from The Russo Brothers. It's a miracle Steve Rogers was given the chance to become Captain America, it's a miracle he survived in the ice so long, but even the tiniest things, like the friendships he makes with Natasha, Sam and Bucky, can also be seen as miracles. The smallest moments we have with the ones we care about can be looked back on years later as what they truly are: miracles.

It may be corny to some, but I love the song by Sarah McLachlan Ordinary Miracle, which seems to pair wonderfully with Captain America: The Winter Soldier. It may seem odd saying that McLachlans vocals are a perfect accompaniment to Steve Rogers knocking out several HYDRA soldiers with his awesome shield, but the ideas found in the lyrics of that song match perfectly with the themes present in this film. This movie may have some stunning action, but it also uses Steve's unusual situation of being 70 years out of time to create emotional resonance like few other MCU movies have been able to concoct. The sequence where Steve visits an elderly Peggy alone shows the miracle of well crafted cinematic personalities and human connection.

Why Is Thor: The Dark World Such A Marvel Misfit?

PHASE TWO

Miracles

"This is so unlike you brother! So clandestine!"

Phase Two of the Marvel Cinematic Universe won't be complete until Ant-Man goes on his epic first adventure in July. Even with that mind, it feels like Thor: The Dark World is likely to become the lowest grossing movie in this phase of the MCU domestically (Ant-Man has a good shot at going lower, but it has summer weekdays that Thor 2 didn't have to boost its grosses). Thanks to this, it's been deemed one of the lowly entries of the entire MCU, to the point where Entertainment Weekly dubbed it the "Batman & Robin" of this franchise last year.

First off, nobody, and I mean nobody, should be dropping off comparisons to Batman & Robin lightly, and secondly, I find it hard to see how Thor: The Dark World is some kind of travesty in the filmography of the MCU. Is it a weaker entry than, say, The Avengers or Iron Man 3? Hell yeah, for reasons I'll go in-depth into shortly, but it's also a film that's got a lot of resourcefulness in depicting it's mystical spectacle, and Tom Hiddleston remains a most capable villain.

Oh hey, I mentioned the word villain, so why don't I take this opportunity to discuss the main antagonist of Thor: The Dark World, a fellow named Malekith played by Christopher Eccleston. I remember when Mads Mikkelsen was in talks for this role, but turned it down so he could play the titular role in Hannibal, which, at the time, I thought was a dumb move. "Who would turn down the role of a Marvel villain just to play the lead in an NBC drama" I pondered, which, in hindsight, feels like pure idiocy. Hannibal is an incredible and visually stunning program, while Malekith has all the depth of a puddle.

What's particularly peculiar is his primary flaw as a character, which doesn't stem from poor dialogue or his motivation being muddled. Actually, his motivation as a character is nonexistent! That's his main problem as the films main foe; the film doesn't even really try to set up why he's big, bad and threatening beyond "He wants the Aether!". Couldn't he have cool powers or an interesting design at least? Alas, the audience is not given even that, and Malekith winds up becoming not just one of the most poorly developed villains in the MCU, but one of the most forgettable characters in this series of films.

Honestly though, aside from that misfire of a baddie, Thor: The Dark World isn't just a colorful diversion, but a very well polished voyage into fantasy. The world of Asgard is such a compelling one from both a storytelling and visual (the design of the city receives a smart upgrade that retains the overall structure of the entity from the first movie, but adds more detail and heightens the brightness significantly) level that it's hard to resist more time being spent here.

I only wish we actually got to spend the majority of the story here, as the parts on Earth feel a bit lackluster when compared to the portions of the storyline spent in more fanciful lands. Call me crazy, but given the choice between spending time with Stellan Skarsgard's forced nudity laced antics and an Asgardian prison riot, I'm going for the latter every time. That prison, by the way, contains Loki, whose being imprisoned for his actions from his past two adventures (namely his antics in The Avengers). Tom Hiddleston comes back to play the character here and reminds us all why his portrayal of the trickster god has developed such an immense following all over the world.

In this particular Thor adventure, Loki is given some really effective scenes of gravitas when dealing with the relationship with his adoptive mother, Frigga (Rene Russo), but he truly excels in scenes of a lighter tone. Take the scene where Thor breaks him out of his cell so that he can help him save the world (business as usual for the God of Thunder); once freed from his containment, Loki doesn't sulk or rattle on about ancient prophecies, he bounds around in excitement. He's like a kid hopped up on sugar from the state fair talking at 80 mph about all the cool rides he went on, full of vibrant life and elation. In this exchange with Thor, Hiddleston gives the whole movie a new kind of energy that he brings to every one of his scenes afterwards.

It helps, of course, that Chris Hemsworth makes for a worthy fellow for Hiddleston to bounce off of. I like how authentic their brotherly bond feels, with their dynamic being chock full of equal parts quarreling and affection, a sort of attitude that still exists between the duo even after Loki has done things like unleash lizard aliens on Earth. The rest of Thor's Asgardians chums (namely Sif and Heimdall) don't get any more screentime once Thor, Loki and Jane Foster (still played by Natalie Portman) escape Asgard to confront Malekith, but extraordinary actors like Idris Elba make moments spent with them uber memorable.

As you can likely tell, Thor: The Dark World is far from the bottom of the MCU barrel (though its clumsy post-credits scene, involving a romantic sequence with Jane and Thor, is certainly one of the worst of its kind). The script does have notable flaws though, specifically in how it presents the origin of Malekith's conflict with the universe twice, not to mention how a surplus of characters leave some personalities, namely Asgardian residents like The Warrior Three, with very little to do. But to the writings credit, there are some nice subtle bits too, namely in how Odin's refusal to take away Thor's hammer at the end takes on a different meaning once you know the climax's twist. And of course, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Hemsworth and inspired action sequences (the finale with Thor and Malekith traveling through portals is the very definition of fun) keep the movie more than afloat, as well as make me feel its poor reputation with many is quite unwarranted.

Iron Man 3 Is Not A Film That Likes To Play Things Safe

PHASE TWO

Miracles

"Is that all you've got? A cheap trick and a cheesy one-liner?"
"Sweetheart, that could be the name of my autobiography!"

The Avengers wasn't just greeted with decent box office when it debuted in May 2012, no no, it pretty much crushed all its box office competitors and seized any box office record in its path. Becoming the (currently) third biggest movie of all-time domestically and worldwide, the world was clamoring for more adventures with these Marvel-ous superheroes, and they got their wish when Iron Man 3 debuted the following summer.

However, this newest Iron Man venture wouldn't just be an Avengers offshoot, rather it would continue the themes of the first Iron Man while essentially ignoring the events of Iron Man 2 (aside from Rhodey continuing to don the War Machine armor he gained in the previous Tony Stark solo outing). Such themes primarily revolve around the idea of demons, which Tony had to pay for in his first film when he realized the weapons his company made hurt innocent lives. A surprisingly mature story route is taken in Iron Man 3 where this thesis is brought up again, with Tony's superhero career not wiping away all of his past mistakes, but rather, his Iron Man persona helps the poor decisions of bygone years resurface in menacing ways.

Looking over it all as a whole, that may be one of the best aspects of Iron Man 3; it's concrete focus on that specific element of Tony Starks disposition helps create a clear plotline, a distinct inversion of Iron Man 2, where the entire story got bogged down by the presence of far too many unsatisfying and underdeveloped characters. That's obviously not an issue here, especially since Tony's struggles through the film are handled quite well, particularly his bouts with PTSD. These aren't just delivered as some melodramatic plot convenience, but as an interesting extension of his experience with the Avengers.

It not only works as a potent way to create conflict within the characters, but also as a way to remind the world that Tony, underneath those advanced iron suits, is just a human being, He's always dealt with problems relating to the amount of control he has over the people and objects he cares about, and the idea of aliens and gods existing throws his entire perception of control out of whack. That's why he develops PTSD, as well as an overt attachment to his iron suits (which he begins to treat like they're real people).

Even better than Tony's development as a character here is Pepper Potts, who debuted as a interesting personality in the first Iron Man but found herself being wasted during Iron Man 2. Here, here role in the overall story is one that, when it was first introduced in the movie, ruffled my feathers; she's supposed to be a damsel-in-distress, being held captive by villain and ex-admirer Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce). Instead of her simply being rescued by Tony in the end though, she gets a hysterical sequence where she just goes to town on Killian, pummeling her captor and getting some sweet, sweet vengeance, twisting the damsel in distress trope right on it's head.

The way Tony and Pepper progress during the picture are great examples of how screenwriters Drew Pearce and Shane Black (the latter directs this movie) don't take the easy path with this film in regards to plot turns. Instead of just ramping up the spectacle, new routes are taken with the characters and the situations they face. Just look at how much time Tony Stark spends outside of the Iron Man suit; with just an arsenal of tools from Home Depot and some Christmas ornaments, he's able to knock out villainous henchmans with ease. That's the sort of creativity that's uber fun to watch, as well serving as an example of the kind of ingenuity Iron Man 3 is in no short supply of.

Now, this spirit of going against conventions didn't always result in across the board praise, particularly when it came to how this movie handled its primary foe: The Mandarin. The character had been a long-time staple in the comics as one of Iron Mans biggest adversaries, and advertisements for Iron Man 3 depicted a new version of the character played by Ben Kingsley that would hopefully avoid the racial leanings of the figure in the comics. Happily though, the movie goes for a fun and unique direction by revealing Kingsley's character to be just an actor, Trevor Slattery, that Killian (whose the real Mandarin) used to create a character that Killian could pin his evildoings on.

Believe it or not, I love this plot turn, namely because A) we still get a Mandarin in the movie, in the form of Aldrich Killian and B) Kingsley as Trevor Slattery is absolutely hilarious. Trevor is just a normal guy, totally out of his depth amongst these fire breathing terrorists and dudes in an armored suits. Seeing him drunkenly cheering on his favorite soccer team whilst juxtaposed against Tony Stark trying to save the world is a delightful sight to witness, and makes this new take on the long standing comic book entity an extremely interesting one. One other nice touch with the character is that his earlier videos of Trevor in his Mandarin persona take on another layer once you know who this guy is.

I do, however, have problems, with the ending of the movie, specifically Tony Stark getting the shrapnel out of his chest. It's a nice moment, and I like the final lines of his monologue as he chucks his arc reactor out to sea and drives off (with Dummy! Hooray!) to adventures yet not known. But it feels pretty rushed since the arc reactor is such a crucial part of Tony as a character. You wanna get rid of it, fine, totally fine, but ya gotta set it up better than that. This should be a moment of tremendous consequence and importance, not something brushed off in a voiceover.

It's an unusual poor storytelling detour that stands in sharp contrast to the rest of Iron Man 3, which manages to be an extremely fun and well written adventure that takes Tony Stark to extremely interesting places character wise. Putting him out of his element just makes Tony all the more compelling, especially when paired with Don Cheadle (who really shines here with his dynamic with Robert Downey Jr.), a humorous Ben Kingsley and some dazzling action. 

While We're Young Review

Hip To Be Square

Ben Stiller has built an entire career on playing the casual everyman, the kind of guy who thrives on routine and doesn't want irregularities or anomalies interrupting his existence. There are certainly exceptions in his vast filmography (namely in his character Derek Zoolander and his Anchorman cameo where delivers the immortal line "Buenos noches bitches!"), but that kind of calm yet easily flustered persona has dominated his work in recent years. It's the kind of role he reprises in While We're Young, though this particular feature allows for a bit more depth to be applied to this archetype.

For Josh (Ben Stiller) and Cornelia (Naomi Watts), married life isn't bad per se, but rather just more pedestrian. Early sequences depicting them going through their everyday routine, justifying to themselves and each other why they can't do exciting things (namely go on exotic vacations), do a fine job of establishing the pervasive atmosphere of monotony that consumes the duos lives. A simple exchange over the wattage of a light-bulb that keeps Josh awake at night accomplishes more at conveying the duos discomfort with the state of their lives than if they had gone the traditional route and had the couple engaging in loud, confrontation arguments.

That kind of choice that avoids the basic storytelling routes is really nice to see in Noah Baumbachs script (he also directs), and it continues once Jamie (Adam Driver) and Darby (Amanda Seyfried) enter the picture. These two are a much younger couple who are driven by spontaneity, pop culture and embracing the unexpected, which captivates Cornelia and (primarily) Josh. The four characters have a warm rapport that makes scenes with the simplest structure (such as Jamie and Josh having a meal on the town) interesting.

Unfortunately, the story soon feels the desire to drum up some conflict, which isn't bad inherently, but the way While We're young creates friction is by centering the focus solely on Josh and his jealousy of Jamie. Prior to this skirmish, the joy of the film has been its larger focus, which has allowed for more development of characters like Jamie and Cornelia. All of a sudden, we the audience are stuck with Josh and his inner quandaries, and aside from a subtle moment involving him witnessing his friends and family being enthralled by Jamie's documentary, his storyline just didn't beguile me.

On the other hand, Cornelias various antics in the movie are actually the best part of the movie, and if the plot had to shift focus to solely one character at one point, why couldn't it be her?  Her and Darby partaking in a hip-hop class makes for a quite amusing sequence (especially when she shows off her newfound dancing moves to Josh later on to his bewilderment), and her desire to not have children leads to some interesting interactions with other characters. If only Josh's conflict that takes up the majority of the feature was half as compelling as Cornelia's adventures, While We're Young could have been a more enthralling cohesive whole.

The Magnificence Of The Avengers Stems From Its Energetic Joy

PHASE ONE

Discovery

"The Avengers. That's what we call ourselves. Earth's mightiest heroes type thing."

There's a lot of different emotions that can be expressed through the storytelling medium of summer blockbusters, but perhaps the most pivotal is that emotion of wonder. It can certainly be felt during any kind of film (I know I felt it during recent dramatic masterpieces like Boyhood and Her), but the way summer blockbusters call up that emotion is quite notable. It's that feeling that creeps up your shoulder, as the visuals on that enormous movie theater screen seem to be a gateway to the kind of unbelievable images you've only dreamed of. The perfect example of this kind of phenomenon is that incredible moment in Jurassic Park where Alan Grant and Ellie Satler see the titular theme parks dinos for the first time.


The sequence is so perfectly paced, from the initial shock Alan feels upon seeing the beasts for the first time, to the John William score that plays as the brontosaurus eats the leaves off a tree. The swelling emotion takes a hold of the audience, and one hopes a scene of such tremendous beauty never lets go. In that moment, no matter if you watch the film in 1993 or 2015, you know this is something astonishing, something you won't ever forget. In 2012, Marvel Studios released a film that had an immense amount of scenes that captured that same sense of euphoria that countless summer blockbusters (like the aforementioned Jurassic Park, Jaws, Pirates of The Caribbean: Curse of The Black Pearl and the original Star Wars trilogy) had brought to moviegoers.

This time though, a movie brought that sort of emotional resonance with a Hulk.

Prior to the release of The Avengers, skepticism greeted the idea that a feature could successfully juggle a large number of characters while retaining a coherent story. But writer and director Joss Whedon seems to have just cracked his knuckles and said "Let's do this" in response to such claims, as he's crafted a  film that has the kind of rewatchability most movies can only dream of. It's got action, charm, inventiveness, laughs and an air tight script that doesn't waste a single scene in it's 144 minute running time.

Actually, the pacing of The Avengers is something I'm still stunned by three years later. Whedon has to reintroduce each of these six superheroes, set up why they're compelling personalities, what they can bring to the table as far as a team of super powered beings goes and make sure they each leave an impression on the audience. It's a tall order that could have resulted in a cluttered mess akin to The Amazing Spider-Man 2, but each of the characters entrances are handled magnificently and economically.

Take the introduction of The Hulk for example. We see Bruce Banner (now played by Mark Ruffalo) hiding out, isolated from much of the world, when Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson, whose character has been set up in the film prior to this, in a cleverly handled hand-to-hand combat sequence) meets up with him to try and get him onboard to help save the world. Whedon masterfully gets across the two distinct personalities in a subtle manner; the way Black Widow lures Bruce away from a heavily populated city (that way, in case he becomes The Hulk, he won't hurt anybody) shows off her cunning, while Banner's hand gestures and twitches during the characters exchanges demonstrate his nervous, constantly paranoid personality. It's a scene that not only delivers some memorable lines ("What does Fury want me to do? Swallow it?"), but gets across the intricacies of the personalities of these two primary characters.

Tony Stark gets a similarly successful introduction that reveals a great cinematic truth: Joss Whedons snappy dialogue and Robert Downey Jr.'s quippy delivery are a match made in heaven. In this scene alone, his interactions with Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) are mined for numerous utterances that make me chuckle just thinking about them ("Uh, his first name is Agent"). Besides adding some gags to the movie, these bits of humor help show the sharp contrast between Tony and his teammates like the stalwart Captain America. Whedon may enjoy, hell, he may love, writing these hilarious quips, but they're not just there for the sake of being there, they serve a notable purpose within the confines of the plot and the characters, which makes them all the more enjoyable.

Once the gang gets assembled, the enemy these heroes must face unveils himself to the world. The antagonist in question is Loki, who returns from Thor to cause more havoc on Midgard. Tom Hiddleston returns in the role and is obviously having a blast being the enemy this group of heroes must come together to vanquish, with segments of the film where he revels in the control his cruelty inspires (namely when he jabs a tool of some sort into a mans eye at a fancy gala, to the tune of fancy sounding instrumental music) being notably excellent in conveying his innermost desires.

If The Avengers are going to come together to stop this nefarious foe, they'll have to overcome their own individual differences, and it's through these conflicts that each separate member of the cast begins to have their own storyline and arc to grapple with. Giving all six members a distinctive plotline to handle is a tall order, but smartly, Whedon's script ensures that each characters arc can have consequences on the other members of the cast. For instance, Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) is brainwashed to be Loki's minion early on in the film, which not only gives him motivation to go after Loki once he escapes the Asgardians control, but his actions while in his brainwashed state (like blowing up an engine on the Hellicarrier) manage to affect each member of the group.

That's kind of the incredible aspect of this movie as a whole from a script perspective; each of the plotlines that the characters tackle work as their own entities, but they manage to bounce off of and enhance the other storylines occurring within the film. Notice how Thor and Hulk, each dealing with separate issues, manage to have a fight scene on the Hellicarrier that intertwines their internal conflicts, while later scenes with the duo during the Battle of New York manage to provide resolution to their quarrels, as well as provide some of the films best moments of humor.

Actually, now that I've brought him up, let's take a look at this movies interpretation of The Hulk. Mired in early controversy when Mark Ruffalo stepped in to replace Edward Norton in the role, he's actually one of the best elements of this motion picture, which is truly saying something! What's great about his portrayal in The Avengers is they managed to make both Bruce Banner and The Hulk compelling. Mark Ruffallo gave Bruce all these nervous quivers and other nuances that helped express his inner pain, while also giving him a fun dynamic with other characters, namely Black Widow and Tony Stark, that made him endearing and enjoyable to be around. 

As for The Hulk, this was the first time that visual effects had come far enough to make it possible for the facial expressions of Bruce to be effectively carried over to his Hulk persona. Having there be a resemblance between the green behemoth and his human counterpart allows for The Hulk to seem more like an extension of Bruce rather than just a CGI critter. It's also majorly helpful that, this time around, The Hulk is fun when he's smashing up his adversaries. He's roistering in his power and abilities, and it lends The Hulk some personality (which also come from him being able to have moments of levity in this story, namely with Thor), and the amount of exhilaration one feels when The Hulk romps around and causes his unique sort of mayhem in the finale is overwhelmingly wonderful.

Now that I've given the matter some thought, the phrase "overwhelmingly wonderful" would be a perfect way to describe the Battle of New York, a sequence in The Avengers in which the titular superhero group must face Lokis army of aliens that are descending on New York. Every second of this portion of the feature is a cavalcade of character beats that wrap up or enhance arcs in an entertaining style, particularly with Black Widow, a personality that's given a lot of depth within the feature (a sharp contrast to the way she was written in Iron Man 2), and it's great to see her, a normal human being with no magical hammer or iron suit, handling the various obstacles Loki tosses her way.

The route she takes in managing her extraterrestrial rivals is by engaging in some unbelievably thrilling combat, an approach her fellow Avengers also take. Every single punch, kick, one-liner, explosion, skirmish within this segment of the plot is so meticulously crafted to appeal to any human beings innate sense of awe, whether it be Bruce transforming into the Hulk just in time to handle a space eel or Hawkeye shooting a surprising arrow at Loki (which is made all the more entertaining thanks to Lokis "bitch, please" face when he catches the arrow).

Here's the best part though: the individual members of this team don't just get turned into chess pieces to be moved along a CGI explosion laden chess board. As I mentioned before, plenty of plot points centered around the characters and their specific challenges and personalities abound whilst this tremendous battle occurs, and they're the sort of subtle moments that could only be this satisfying if they'd been developed in a satisfactory manner prior to this gigantic set piece. Rest assured, each member of The Avengers have been given an enormous amount of development, which makes their separate roles in the epic finale all the more glorious to witness.

That sensation of awe I mentioned at the start of this piece is found in abundance during The Avengers, which may be one of the most well crafted summer blockbusters of all-time. There's a reason the Marvel Cinematic Universe is enduring in this generation like few films in history have, and it's because at it's apex (as seen during this 2012 effort), these movies can combine extraordinary towering spectacle with characters that are even more absorbing. Joss Whedons work here proves that he remembers how fundamental sharp writing and character work is to making any film, regardless of if it's a summer blockbuster or not, and thankfully for all of us moviegoers, the way he demonstrated that he's aware of how crucial that mixture is is by creating The Avengers. Perhaps the only word sufficient enough to fully capture the feeling of pure giddiness anyone will feel after watching this movie is by uttering a singular word that a quite notable human being is fond of saying: EXCELSIOR!!

The First Photo of Jared Leto As The Joker Has Arrived!

With Batman v. Superman coming out next year, it's hard to remember sometimes that, hey. there's another DC Comics film headed your way as well! That other feature is the Suicide Squad, which centers on a group of various supervillains, including Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), who do government issued missions. One member of the films cast is The Joker, played by Jared Leto, and you can see the first photo of him (which David Ayer, director of the movie, tweeted out tonight) below!

Hey look! It's Nicholas Haults character from Mad Max: Fury Road!

I hate this design. I absolutely hate it. I know, I know, that sounds like I'm living up to my namesake and that I'm just acting like some drooling Marvel fanboy. Here's the deal; I've been hopeful about this movie in the past. And one aggravating costume does not a bad movie make, there's still plenty of hope for this feature. But my God ,what an aggravating costume. Why are they trying to do a "realistic" Joker? A character whose already pretty damn realistic (he doesn't have stylized superpowers, he's just an insane dude in clown makeup) is now being brought down-to-Earth even more in a manner that I find really appallling to be perfectly honest.

Oh look! He's got natural white skin! It's not makeup! And look! He's got a tattoo of a court jester! And another tattoo that says HAHAHAHAHA!!!  It's an in-joke, get it??? But for some reason, what really gets me is that he's wearing purple medical gloves now, because, I guess normal gloves were just too damn "out there"? There's nothing wrong with a new approach to a beloved character, but this just seems to line-up with DC's irritating practice of robbing these beloved comic book characters of the kind of interesting design elements that made them so memorable and replace them with all this "realism" claptrap that just stands out as aggravating to the eye on a visual level.

 Oh God, I dread to hear what Jared Leto's Joker voice is like.

A Little Bit Stronger Is Incredible, Country Strong Is Terrible. It's An Interesting Dichotomy

Welcome to a new bi-weekly column called When Good Songs Happen To Bad Movies, in which I look at pretty well done songs that just so happened to debut in more subpar features.

First off, I'll freely admit this one's a bit of a cheat, since A Little Bit Stronger debuted as a single in September 2010, a few months before Country Strong's release, but it was still released again at a later date as a single from the movie, so I'll count it for this column. Plus, it gives me a chance to talk about one of the "sleeper" bad movies of recent years, which really deserves a more prominent reputation for it's awfulness: Country Strong.
Gwyneth Paltrow is country music sensation Kelly Canter, whose alcoholism is making life for the celebrity quite difficult. Her husband, James Canter, tries to cheer up in a myriad of ways, namely in keeping a quail she took a shine to in a box in his pocket (you can't make this stuff up). As Kelly goes through her various struggles, it becomes pretty clear that A Little Bit Stronger is meant to be a mirror of her overcoming daily hardships.

The only problem is that the Sara Evans sung tune is actually pretty smart in its depiction of conquering adversity. Just by the songs title, one can know the lyrical contents of the song don't deal with vanquishing any and all conflict one discovers in life, but rather making it through the more difficult areas life has to offer and coming out of them a bit wiser. That's not gonna line up with Country Strongs way of depicting grief, which is dealt in a subtle manner that makes The Blind Side look a nuanced critique of modern day racial attitudes.

It's a true shame that the movie itself can't become something notable since A Little Bit Stronger is pretty much taking the stories primary themes and delivering them in the kind of understated execution Country Strong could only dream of. The vocals of Sara Evans are a notable reason for why the entity comes across so successful, as she adds a real sense of simultaneous weariness and courage each passage of the song.

These are the sort of emotions that just don't enter a single frame of Country Strong, no matter how many corny sequences of emotional manipulation (which ran the gamut of every single cliche you can imagine) it tries to concoct. It certainly doesn't help the movie that a much better look at facing daily anguish can be found on its own soundtrack, and that one doesn't require you to watch the languid chemistry between Tim McGraw and Gwyneth Paltrow.