MOVIE: The Marvels (2023)

by benmweilertNo Comments
The MarvelsYear: 2023Rating: PG-13Length: 105 minutes / 1.75 hours The problem with extremely critical and vocal reviews of a movie like The Marvels (2023) is that often the problem is the fans themselves. There's an amount of misogyny that's present in fans of comic books that is difficult to ignore here. And with so many people saying this movie is bad just because it's led by three women, it comes as a bit of a surprise when it's actually pretty passable. Granted, it still relies heavily on having seen almost everything else in the MCU, but we'll get to that in a second. While I'll admit that I'm still watching these movies because it's basically a sunk cost fallacy, I found The Marvels to be entertaining. It's maybe not as goofy as any of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, but it has heart based on the characters' connections. It also has perhaps one of the most underappreciated twists that had me...
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MOVIE: Black Panther – Wakanda Forever (2022)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Year: 2022 Rating: PG-13 Length: 161 minutes / 2.68 hours As the last film in the fourth phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) proves that there was no plan for this phase other than to clean up the remains of the Infinity War saga. To its credit, though, Wakanda Forever was burdened with finding an in-universe replacement for the titular Black Panther after the untimely passing of Chadwick Boseman. However, considering how most of Phase 4 was passing the mantle from one hero to the next generation, it fits well within this theming. There's a line in Avengers: Endgame (2019) where Naka (Lupita Nyong'o) states that Wakanda is aware of an anomaly on the ocean floor near their country and that they were handling it. This throwaway line was likely played for laughs, but it's peculiar how Wakanda was woefully unprepared for the invasion of their land by underwater enemies, even though they clearly knew...
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MOVIE: Black Adam (2022)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Black Adam Year: 2022 Rating: PG-13 Length: 125 minutes / 2.08 hours I find it somewhat bizarre that DC released a successful movie with Shazam! (2019) only to follow it up with this spinoff that didn't seem to add anything to the DC Extended Universe other than to do a quick introduction of other characters. Other characters, mind you, who were much more interesting than the titular Black Adam (Dwayne Johnson). Instead of letting individual characters have room to build their own lore, this just felt rushed—a common trait of most DCEU movies, to be honest. As far as the action goes, there are a few really well-done set pieces that are visually entertaining. It's always fun to watch an overpowered superhero use the full extent of their powers. The real trick, though, is that you'd likely get a similar Marvel movie with The Falcon, Ant-Man, and Doctor Strange as the hero team sent to stop Captain Marvel. This is why DC really needs to...
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MOVIE: Spider-Man – Into the Spider-Verse (2018)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse Year: 2018 Rating: PG Length: 117 minutes / 1.95 hours There’s no hiding that Spider-Man is my favorite superhero. My reviews of Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) and Venom (2018) say as much. I grew up watching the 1990s animated Spider-Man show, so when I saw early trailers for Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018), I half-thought it would be some direct-to-video movie. After all, everything up until now had been live-action. I was encouraged to learn that it would receive a theatrical release, especially when I started to see more footage of its unique artistic style. Not only does Into the Spider-Verse embrace its comic book origins, but it also does so with a flair and panache that I’d almost like to see in other superhero franchises. Over the years, I’d only loosely been paying attention to what was happening in the Spider-Man comics. Sure, I knew about Spider-Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld) and Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) but more in the sense that they were departures from the white-male Peter Parker (Jake Johnson) that...
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MOVIE: Captain America – Civil War (2016)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Captain America: Civil War Year: 2016 Rating: PG-13 Length: 147 minutes / 2.45 hours When it comes to sequels, I fell very few film franchises do their predecessors justice. In my opinion, a great sequel requires a simple formula: cause and effect. The "cause" should be in the form of the first (or in this case, previous) movie(s). Whatever happens before a sequel should drive the plot of the following movie. This is the "effect." While it wasn't nearly as good as this effort, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) followed the same formula. Cause: Superman destroying most of Metropolis in Man of Steel (2013). Effect: Batman and Lex Luthor wanting to hold Superman accountable. See? Simple as that. What perhaps makes Captain America: Civil War such a great film is the amount of "cause" that led to its "effect." The driving plot of this film was in direct response to the destruction and mayhem brought about by the Avengers trying to save the...
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