MOVIE: Iron Man (2008)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Iron ManYear: 2008Rating: PG-13Length: 126 minutes / 2.10 hours After decades of superhero movies, it’s interesting to go back and watch some of the films that kicked off this whole interconnected cinematic universe. One wonders if, had a movie like Iron Man (2008) flopped, we’d even be in the aftermath of one of the most ambitious movie projects of all time. As it stands, the founding film for the MCU is a solid story that has great character growth and fun action sequences that would come to be the MCU standard for many of its films. As far as superhero origin stories go, Iron Man feels the most realistic. There’s no radioactivity. No dead parents. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) has a solid motivation to fight evil after he realizes his own technology that made him rich is being used to inflict suffering on others. Of course, this realization had to come at his own suffering to humble his otherwise cocky attitude...
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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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