Superman TAS was so goddamn weak. Like, there was this one episode where a helicopter with a minigun gave him a lot of trouble. Absolutely retarded.
You know, I wasn't crazy about JLU, mostly because they totally butchered Hawkman, but I always wanted to see them do "Identity Crisis." That sort of story would've been perfect for that format.
Season 4 of Batman TAS sucked ass. All the art looked worse then before because Bruce Timm decided to simplify the animation style, and Batman went from being a grim badass to just being an insufferable jackass. Avoid it like the plague.
Doomsday in the DCAU is not Doomsday. Doomsday in the comics killed Superman. Doomsday in the DCAU got fucking lobotomized by Serious Superman. Lawl. Utter fail.
Unless Serious Superman from the parallel dimension took the equivalent of Kryptonian steroids or something, there's no way that he could use just his heat vision to lobotomize something like Doomsday. It's moronic.
And no, I don't particularly care about Doomsday, but they royally fucked him up in that episode. Dini and co have a pretty good batting average with their body of work, and some ideas are certainly better then what the comics had (Heart of Ice, etc) but they lay some stinkers too. I'm more then happy to point them out.
In fact, the entire Justice Lords story was ridiculous. I mean, I like Wally West as much as the next guy, but his death causes the entire JLA to turn into a bunch of fascist super-dictators? Really? Cmon, you couldn't even convince most of fandom that the destruction of an entire city on some coast would turn a hero into a villain, the death of a Flash ain't gonna do it.
Showing posts with label comic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label comic. Show all posts
Monday, April 20, 2009
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Review: Watchmen
Thought it was... ok. Definitely not a huge crowd pleaser like The Dark Knight. No real thrills or shocking payoffs. But this is coming from a guy who's read the book about 15 or 20 times, so maybe a newcomer to the story would beg to differ. But uh... just flat in a lot of areas where the book didn't translate well to the screen. What worked on the page was brought to the screen by Zach Snyder as best as anyone could've mustered, but it wasn't really brought to life in a meaningful, emotional way. The violence was fine for the few fight scenes where it was actually present, but that just made them stand out as peculiar, when 90% of the movie is about... talking. Sometimes talking with bad aged makeup.
That rape scene hit me hard. Geez. I knew it was coming, I'd read it plenty of times on the page, but the way it was filmed was just... awful, and you could feel the audience dying inside. Though that was one thing I was surprised about, the audience. I dunno if it was because I went to an 11:50 pm showing or what, but nobody at my screening laughed aloud at Dr. Manhattan's blue dong like so many other reviews have been describing. They were just... pretty much silent throughout. The biggest reaction was when Rorschach spilled the oil on the convict and yelled "I'm not locked up in here with you. You're locked up in here with me." Of course they would, it was a great line.
Yea, that Dr. Manhattan... I gotta say, he ended up falling short of my expectations. Not Crudup's voice, that was fine. But the entire CGI entity just... did not look right to me. Maybe it IS the uncanny valley, but I just thought he looked unreal, inhuman, and somewhat of a failure as a visual effect. Perhaps part of that was because he had no pupils. I just checked and he doesn't have any in the graphic novel either, but... perhaps in this case it would've been better to diverge from the source material.
Like I said before... Snyder did as good a job as anyone could've in bringing this book to the movie screen. And yet... I did miss all the material that was cut out. The stuff with the two Bernies, the Psychiatrist's marital problems, Hollis getting pumpkin'd... there was a feeling of loss throughout watching the film. So I dunno how any person who hasn't read the book will react to the movie.
The ending change? Yea, fine. It works logically. About as well as the original ending I suppose. Though the visceral impact of seeing six full pages of dead corpses in New York was completely missing here. Sorry dude, but showing us a giant blue CGI explosion just doesn't carry the same impact. We needed to feel those millions of dead. I did like the Rorschach pattern in the snow though, that was something new and worked pretty well.
Oh yea, one last thing... good god Zach, what were you thinking with that Hallelujah sex scene? Dude, I like porn and I like superheroes, but that scene... I could not have rolled my eyes any further. It was cringeworthy. And no, it was not as bad as the sex scene in 300, because I was perfectly fine with that sex scene. It was short, perfunctory, and did not have an incredibly odd soundtrack. In this case, less would've been more. The scene in the book was only 2 panels, that was about right. Mostly it was the song though... that Hallelujah song will never be the same to me again.
But I did really like the intro credits with Bob Dylan.
Again, thought it was ok. But no, not the greatest comic book movie ever. It's a mostly faithful retelling of the book in 2 and a half hours that, in my opinion, will completely fly over the heads of the mainstream audience. Let's say 7.8 out of 10, and I'm being generous.
That rape scene hit me hard. Geez. I knew it was coming, I'd read it plenty of times on the page, but the way it was filmed was just... awful, and you could feel the audience dying inside. Though that was one thing I was surprised about, the audience. I dunno if it was because I went to an 11:50 pm showing or what, but nobody at my screening laughed aloud at Dr. Manhattan's blue dong like so many other reviews have been describing. They were just... pretty much silent throughout. The biggest reaction was when Rorschach spilled the oil on the convict and yelled "I'm not locked up in here with you. You're locked up in here with me." Of course they would, it was a great line.
Yea, that Dr. Manhattan... I gotta say, he ended up falling short of my expectations. Not Crudup's voice, that was fine. But the entire CGI entity just... did not look right to me. Maybe it IS the uncanny valley, but I just thought he looked unreal, inhuman, and somewhat of a failure as a visual effect. Perhaps part of that was because he had no pupils. I just checked and he doesn't have any in the graphic novel either, but... perhaps in this case it would've been better to diverge from the source material.
Like I said before... Snyder did as good a job as anyone could've in bringing this book to the movie screen. And yet... I did miss all the material that was cut out. The stuff with the two Bernies, the Psychiatrist's marital problems, Hollis getting pumpkin'd... there was a feeling of loss throughout watching the film. So I dunno how any person who hasn't read the book will react to the movie.
The ending change? Yea, fine. It works logically. About as well as the original ending I suppose. Though the visceral impact of seeing six full pages of dead corpses in New York was completely missing here. Sorry dude, but showing us a giant blue CGI explosion just doesn't carry the same impact. We needed to feel those millions of dead. I did like the Rorschach pattern in the snow though, that was something new and worked pretty well.
Oh yea, one last thing... good god Zach, what were you thinking with that Hallelujah sex scene? Dude, I like porn and I like superheroes, but that scene... I could not have rolled my eyes any further. It was cringeworthy. And no, it was not as bad as the sex scene in 300, because I was perfectly fine with that sex scene. It was short, perfunctory, and did not have an incredibly odd soundtrack. In this case, less would've been more. The scene in the book was only 2 panels, that was about right. Mostly it was the song though... that Hallelujah song will never be the same to me again.
But I did really like the intro credits with Bob Dylan.
Again, thought it was ok. But no, not the greatest comic book movie ever. It's a mostly faithful retelling of the book in 2 and a half hours that, in my opinion, will completely fly over the heads of the mainstream audience. Let's say 7.8 out of 10, and I'm being generous.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
My Top Five Comic Book Movies
1. The Dark Knight
A dark masterpiece. Epic in scope and thought. The bar which all future superhero movies must measure themselves against. This is the Batman movie we all deserved, even if we didn't know we needed it. Heath Ledger's performance is one for the ages.
"Because he's the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now. So we'll hunt him. Because he can take it. Because he's not a hero. He's a silent guardian. A watchful protector. A Dark Knight."
2. Spider-Man 2
The quintessential superhero tale. Just the right amount of humor, tragedy, and superheroism for a Spider-Man story. Doc Ock secures his place as one of the all time great supervillains. Spidey is bent, bruised, and pushed to his limits, but never broken. Just like any great story, the triumph in the final act rewards the audience with a renewal of faith and optimism.
"I believe there's a hero in all of us, that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble, and finally allows us to die with pride, even though sometimes we have to be steady, and give up the thing we want the most. Even our dreams."
3. Superman
The granddaddy of them all. Without this 1978 classic, there wouldn't have been any Batman, Spider-Man, or Iron Man. Richard Donner's keyword was "verisimilitude", and its influence is evident in almost every scene. Christopher Reeve is Superman to me, as surely as the sky is blue. Probably the greatest credit intro sequence in the history of superhero movies, thanks to John Williams.
"You will travel far, my little Kal-El. But we will never leave you, even in the face of our death. The richness of our lives shall be yours. All that I have, all that I've learned, everything I feel, all this and more, I bequeath you, my son. You will carry me inside you, all the days of your life. You will make my strength your own, and see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father, and the father the son."
4. Iron Man
A truly engaging origin story told with enthusiasm and creativity. Robert Downey Jr completely embodies Tony Stark and allows us to believe his transformation from brilliant arms dealer to armored protector of the masses. Coupled with superb special effects and a great supporting cast, this movie lifts off and never comes close to touching down.
"They say that the best weapon is the one you never have to fire. I respectfully disagree. I prefer the weapon you only have to fire once. That's how Dad did it, that's how America does it and it's worked out pretty well so far."
5. Batman Begins
Rescued Batman from the previous entry "Batman and Robin." Nuff said.
"No, this is your mask. Your real face is the one that criminals now fear. The man I loved, the man who vanished, he never came back at all. But maybe he's still out there somewhere. Maybe some day, when Gotham no longer needs Batman, I'll see him again."
A Dark Night Indeed
I was completely blown away. It's probably the best superhero movie I've ever seen. The movie did have a lot of hype and expectations and to be honest, I think it exceeded them.
Heath Ledger was pitch perfect as the Joker. His magic pencil trick was um, quite effective, let's just say. Cackling and twitching, odd mannerisms ahoy, Ledger completely becomes the Killer Clown from Hell. No one's going to remember Jack Nicholson after this one. The one recurring thought I had walking out of the theater was how unfortunate it was that we wouldn't see his incredible talent again in the inevitable third feature.
Aaron Eckhart's Harvey Dent was also excellent. As other reviews have already said, he is the White Knight to Batman's Dark Knight. The entire central plot is pretty much designed to channel this man's fall from grace. When you first see the full reveal of Two Face's face, it's hard not to gasp. The CGI/make-up for Two Face is how he should always look, it's iconic and grotesque and realistic all at the same time.
At a running time of 2 and a half hours, this is ostensibly a rather long movie, yet it never felt that way to me. Probably the fastest 2 and a half hours I've spent in the theaters. From the opening bank robbery to the sobering finale, I was completely captivated by this epic crime tale from Chris Nolan. Yes, this is not simply a feel good superhero movie like Iron Man (which I enjoyed a lot), but an honest to God HEAT-esque crime drama. For some people, this may not be a good thing. They may complain that it wasn't light hearted enough, that it was disturbing to peer into the heart of darkness in a city without hope. For those people, yes... please go elsewhere. Maybe go watch Mamma Mia. For the rest of us, The Dark Knight is a night to remember.
Heath Ledger was pitch perfect as the Joker. His magic pencil trick was um, quite effective, let's just say. Cackling and twitching, odd mannerisms ahoy, Ledger completely becomes the Killer Clown from Hell. No one's going to remember Jack Nicholson after this one. The one recurring thought I had walking out of the theater was how unfortunate it was that we wouldn't see his incredible talent again in the inevitable third feature.
Aaron Eckhart's Harvey Dent was also excellent. As other reviews have already said, he is the White Knight to Batman's Dark Knight. The entire central plot is pretty much designed to channel this man's fall from grace. When you first see the full reveal of Two Face's face, it's hard not to gasp. The CGI/make-up for Two Face is how he should always look, it's iconic and grotesque and realistic all at the same time.
At a running time of 2 and a half hours, this is ostensibly a rather long movie, yet it never felt that way to me. Probably the fastest 2 and a half hours I've spent in the theaters. From the opening bank robbery to the sobering finale, I was completely captivated by this epic crime tale from Chris Nolan. Yes, this is not simply a feel good superhero movie like Iron Man (which I enjoyed a lot), but an honest to God HEAT-esque crime drama. For some people, this may not be a good thing. They may complain that it wasn't light hearted enough, that it was disturbing to peer into the heart of darkness in a city without hope. For those people, yes... please go elsewhere. Maybe go watch Mamma Mia. For the rest of us, The Dark Knight is a night to remember.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
