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The Avengers
I keep watching it and I keep loving it. There’s not a thing it does badly. →
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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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Avengers: Age of Ultron
At this point it feels like critiquing individual TV episodes rather than films, but, I liked it. →
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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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James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy
Part of the success of the Marvel film series comes from following the structures set down by much of contemporary TV: the Marvel films from Iron Man to Avengers Assemble are like the first season of a big-budget TV series with a story arc built through each episode and culminating in the Avengers getting together in the finale. Guardians of the Galaxy plays like that whole series concentrated into one film; it's a dense, colourful and playful piece that's just a little back-heavy and slightly forced. It isn't as sharp as Whedon's Avengers Assemble but it's certainly sharp enough. →
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Review of Thor: The Dark World
Of all the pre-Avengers Marvel films, Thor unexpectedly turned out to be my favourite. Funny, decent action, fun characters and an airy, spacious feel unlike any of the New York-based hero films; Thor is the most comic-like of all these comic adaptations. Thor: The Dark World, on the other hand, is flat, dull and joyless. →
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First impressions of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
A great pilot should, obviously, want me to come back for more. I've always been fond of the pilot episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, for its odd blend of action (the revisiting of Wolf 359) and philosophy (a discussion of linear time with aliens that exist outside of it) that made it seem like it would be more than just a Next Generation cast off. More recently, the pilot for Sleepy Hollow grabbed me just because of Tom Mison's dry, witty performance as Ichabod Crane. It doesn't take much for me to give a show a chance, but Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. gave me very little. There's a lot of potential -- a Whedon-produced TV series set in Marvel's comic universe with Clark Gregg returning as Agent Coulson is hard to imagine going wrong, but the pilot was just ok. It wasn't great. →
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The Avengers
As good as we all hoped it would be. Looking forward to seeing Hollywood cosy up to Whedon now. →
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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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My 2012 film highlights
Throughout 2012 I watched approximately 262 films, which I don't think is an unreasonable amount. What follows are 20 films from that list that I felt deserved a special mention for a variety of reasons. Not necessarily what I'd consider to be the best films I saw last year, nor even limited to films that were released that year either. →
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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 Kenneth Branagh’s Thor
Kenneth Branagh's Thor always seemed like it would be the hardest comic adaptation to fit convincingly into the shared universe Marvel have been piecing together for a few years now. Despite lacking the same level of public recognition as some of the other heroes, and having a magical background that could have felt out of kilter with the rest of the technology-borne ensemble, Thor has turned out to be one of the more solid and enjoyable Marvel films so far. →
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Review of Captain America
Captain America: The First Avenger is a mildly enjoyable period romp where some staid action and the tawdry whiff of prequel is just about held together by a decent script and likeable characters. Very much a popcorn film; you might enjoy it at the time but you're probably not going to reminisce about it later. →
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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. →