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Captain America: Civil War
My feelings on Tom Holland's Spider-Man and Paul Rudd's Ant-Man in Captain America: Civil War reflect my feelings on the film as a whole: fun, but disposable. I enjoyed watching, but I can't imagine wanting, or needing, to watch the film again. →
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Joss Whedon’s Avengers: Age of Ultron
One of the biggest fan complaints about Man of Steel was that there was something very un-Superman-like about Superman, levelling Metropolis during his fight with General Zod but doing nothing to ensure the safety of the people; director Zack Synder estimated the death toll at 5,000, but somewhere around 129,000 seems more likely. Synder's claim that all those deaths are narratively necessary so that Superman can feel, like, really heavy with sadness is spurious; having Superman save people AND defeat Zod at the same time would have given him the moral high ground, but, whatever, this isn't the time or place. →
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Review of Shane Black’s Iron Man 3
As the first post-Avengers Marvel film, Iron Man 3 feels a little peculiar. It's a decent enough film, but it feels like a minor offering; if I feel like an Iron Man film in the future, I'll probably watch the first one or The Avengers, and if I feel like a Shane Black film in which Robert Downey Jr. gets pushed around a lot, quips, teams up with a slightly mis-matched partner and is set during Christmas, I'll watch Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. →
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A genius, billionaire, playboy philanthropist
Robert Downey Jr.'s delivery of his "Genius, billionaire, playboy philanthropist" line in The Avengers changes between the trailer and the film. →
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Review of Joss Whedon’s The Avengers
I've enjoyed the Marvel films. They've been, with the exception of the plodding Iron Man 2, dependable, enjoyable popcorn flicks. The appealing presence of Robert Downey Jr. helped make an A-list character out of Iron Man, I have a soft spot for The Incredible Hulk, Captain America was a little forgettable but bolstered by a great cast and Thor, despite my initial scepticism, turned out to be my favourite of the lot. There was never anything in this line-up likely to challenge the more cerebral and serious The Dark Knight but that's ok; Marvel comics have always had a lighter tone than DC, and it's a testament to Marvel that they resisted the urge to Nolanify most of their properties. →
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Review of Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows
Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows isn't much of a Sherlock Holmes film, but it's an attractive action flick unhindered by 3D gimmickry nonetheless. Robert Downey Jr. continues doing that thing that Robert Downey Jr. does, and he does it well; I don't know of anyone who does Robert Downey Jr. better than Robert Downey Jr. →
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Some thoughts on The Avengers
Comic-Con saw confirmation that Joss Whedon is to be the director of Marvel's upcoming The Avengers, an attempt at pulling off what is commonplace in the comic world; bringing headline stars from various comics into one single whole. →
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A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
About two months ago I rounded up all the films I was looking forward to seeing, but that list largely consisted of reasonably high-profile names for which the buzz is often noticeable many months before the release. But I don't just limit myself to films I've heard about, though; sometimes I'll pick a film at random and hope for the best. It's worked out well in the past --- Angel-A, Black Book and Perfume were all films I took a chance on, and all turned out to be great. →
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A Scanner Darkly
A warning to others: seeing a film about drug addiction, paranoia, hallucinations and corporate corruption at 11am on a sleepy Sunday may cause subsequent strange behaviours, including, but not limited to, buying what appears to be a fedora minutes after the film has ended, even though the hat does not appear in the film. →