Monthly Archives: April 2022

Movie Reviews, Movies

Review – Princess Mononoke

Leave a comment

It feels like an understatement to say that Studio Ghibli has made some special films. Chances are you grew up watching a few of their films. But there’s something unique about this film. It definitely feels the most intense and deals with the most mature films that any film from this studio has tackled. Many have praised how much of a landmark it was at the time it was released. All these years later, it still earns all that praise.

The main story focuses on a brewing war between Lady Eboshi – the leader of Iron Town – and the Forest Spirits which are lead by the Wolf Clan and their human member Princess Mononoke. We explore this world and conflict with Ashitaka, a young prince and fighter who has been cursed by a demon that was once a Boar God. It’s transformation was brought on after a bullet from one of the guns from Iron Town lodged itself in it’s body. While it gives him super strength, it feeds on hate that Ashitaka must fight. But he knows it won’t be long until it destroys his soul and body. However, that won’t stop him from doing what he can to end the conflict as peacefully as he can.

An easy thing to praise about this movie is the visuals and world. The way it is shot feels more grand in scale compared to most of the other movies from Ghibli’s filmography. The visuals leave us in awe of some of the fights, sights, and spirits themselves. And the world has some eerie parallels to our own in terms, especially in terms to the cost our progress has had on the world around us. Yet the story is one that gives us a message of hope that both human civilization and the natural environment can find a way to coexist. I’m glad this isn’t a movie that takes the easy route and has the message simply be that saving the environment is good. Because the characters of this story help show that this isn’t simple. Lady Eboshi is willing to fight and kill spirits. But we also see how she has taken in people considered outcasts in regular society and helped make them feel welcome and fulfilled. Princess Mononoke feels the only solution is to kill all of the people of Iron Town which is definitely going too far. Yet you can understand why both sides feel so strongly about their cause.

But let’s talk about the character the movie is named after. Abandoned by her birth parents, the Wolf God took her into her clan and made the human child her daughter. On the one hand, I’m somewhat let down by how she is used. She isn’t the main character in this story. We follow Ashitaka throughout the movie. Yes, Mononoke is an important and essential player. But it feels odd that the character the movie is named after isn’t the main focus. And she is shown to strongly on the side of the spirits. There doesn’t seem to be any inner conflict within her about fighting others from the species she was born as. There is one very brief moment where one of the Apes insults her by calling her that, and you see that does hurt her and maybe makes her have a deep thought. But nothing like that pops up again.

However, that lack of an inner exploration might be the point. Because there does some to be a lot to dissect about her. Someone can view her as an example of a terrorist. Someone who goes too far in their beliefs and doesn’t care who they kill – guilty or innocent – in order to see them fulfilled. But someone else can also view her as the embodiment of every indigenous person or tribe that has been on the destructive end of society’s progress. Fighting to hold onto her home and push back against those that she sees an invaders. So even though nothing in the movie might show her as the most conflicted character, there is still a fair amount to study about her. And I think that is on purpose. Probably the real reason her face is so iconic.

Going back to the movie’s main theme, I appreciate how it goes deeper than most Hollywood made films would go regarding the environment at that time. I think the best example of that is by looking at how Ashitaka does eventually lift the curse. It is only after he and Mononoke return the head of the Great Forest Spirit together that the curse is lifted from. The thing that fed on hate and even tried to spread hate within Ashitaka disappears once he reaches a hand out towards the other side of the conflict in an effort to find mutual peace. This doesn’t mean everything goes back the way it was. Iron Town will find a way to rebuild, but Eboshi does seem willing to try and make changes for the better. Mononoke will still be with the Wolf Clan but she will regularly meet Ashitaka who will help make sure Iron Town isn’t as destructive as it was. It might only be the start to finding a balance, but sometimes finding that start is the hardest thing to do. One of the most complex and mature films from Studio Ghibli is one that deserves to be watched multiple times to soak in everything it has to offer.

Comics

Justice League vs Suicide Squad

Leave a comment

Thank you DC Rebirth! For half a decade, DC Comics tried their New 52 initiative where they restart their entire universe over in an effort to get new readers. It ultimately failed and was recently reversed in full. I don’t want to get into the details of why New 52 sucked because that would take too much time. While there were good stories and titles, it’s for the best they ditched it and published the DC Rebirth One-Shot comic as a soft reboot. But one thing the New 52 did do that some people are probably grateful for is to shine a light on the Suicide Squad. And with that newfound attention, they charged into a challenge that surprisingly hasn’t been written about before. The group fight the Justice League!

One of the first major stories to come out of the Rebirth era. It begins with Batman informing the rest of the League about the existence of Amanda Waller’s task force, thanks to some snooping in his own book at the time. They raise up some valid points about the flaws of such a team, especially in regards to actually rehabilitating criminals. But they then detect the team currently active on mission and go confront them. That’s where their first battle occurs. But later on, it appears this has been orchestrated and that a secret villain is making moves behind the scenes. Forced to team-up, heroes and villains alike take down a power that threatens the entire world.

Obviously some characters in a story like this aren’t going to get as much attention as others. But the ones that do get the most solo attention work well for the story. There are the obvious choices – Waller, Batman, Maxwell Lord. But one focus that surprisingly works well is Killer Frost. She is the newest member of the Squad and her ice powers are fueled by draining the life force of other people. Not sure if they always worked liked that or if that’s something the New 52 introduced. In the first issue she seems to have the same willingness to just kill and do the kind of things she probably did before being recruited. But when given the chance to kill Superman an issue later, she hesitates. And that starts an arc where at the final issue where Eclipso fails to gain control of her and she fights back – yet refusing to kill Maxwell Lord for Amanda Waller. Batman himself is willing to start a new JL team and Frost is his first choice.

But her arc does tie into the major theme of the story. What kind of role or purpose does a program like Task Force X serve? The heroes point out this isn’t the right way to rehabilitate criminals. And since they are rewarded with shorter sentences after each successful mission, they could just end up being freed again thanks to the government the heroes are trusting to contain them. But perhaps the repetition can do some good for these villains. Frost was willing to let herself die instead of taking Maxwell Lord’s life force, despite him being the reason the world almost ended. And if we look at this from a longterm perspective, Harley’s time with the Squad definitely had some influence of pushing her to be more heroic. And taking on missions that the League might not even know about is another strong reason for their existence.

Now let’s look at the larger story. We get to see a look at Waller’s first Suicide Squad as they are being manipulated by Maxwell Lord. And there are some cool picks, but a couple of ones that I can’t help but question. How did she manage to control Johnny Sorrow and Lobo – the alien who has a healing factor that pretty much makes him invincible? Once that bomb goes off in his head, just give him a few minutes and then he’s alive and free. But it does lead to some neat action and fights. The League & Squad do fight a couple of times. Once at the beginning and later on when most of the League is controlled by Eclipso. Oh and by the way, while Maxwell Lord is the villain for most of the story, this was a cool way of reintroducing Eclipso to the DCU. Or maybe he already was? The New 52 is confusing. But thanks to him we get an extra JL vs SS fight. ANd if we had just that one in the beginning, I would probably argue the story didn’t live up to the title.

The entire story is well paced. And everyone seems to be portrayed accurately. I do like how Superman and Frost do have this talk that gets her to talk about how seeing him just fly once inspired her to try and do good. Before being turned into an ice-based villain, but that’s not important. There actually is this sort of arc between Wonder Woman and Harley Quinn. Harley saves Wonder Woman from one of the bad guys and that seems to get her on Diana’s good side and Harley seems really happy and giddy about it. I thought that was cute and nice. Now give me a Brave & Bold series starring the two! And I like how even thought Eclipso was the main threat and Maxwell Lord worked to set him free and try to control him, the story does show that Waller still somehow comes out as the worst one. This story is a good reminder at how manipulative she can be and why she is well known among the super community. She is that big of a threat if she decides to go after you and this story is a solid reminder of that fact.

Let’s see what else I can talk about…The art is good. Some of the fights had specific Squad & League members go up against each other and I thought the pairings were mostly clever. A few that didn’t have much connection, but that just happens in big fights. Not all of them have to have some clever connection to each other. There are a couple of teases at the end of the story where they would end up developing or being resolved in later stories or books. Lobo & Frost joining a version of the Justice League of America with Batman gets a series for a while. There are a couple of teases of the back then still missing OG JSA, which didn’t get resolved until very recently. But that kind of stuff just comes with reading comics.

Overall, this was a fun read that still had some thought and a touch of dramatic weight.

Movie Reviews, Movies

Review – Doctor Strange

Leave a comment

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is both impressive and frustrating. When you look back on what it’s accomplished – in terms of story-telling, making unknown characters/actors household names, and box office – there’s no denying it’s a huge achievement and should be praised. But when you have a franchise that lists this long with so many films )and now TV shows), a formula is created. One to help ensure their future installments become successful. And while the MCU should stray further from the formula and expand, it can still be executed well and enhanced by direction and acting. “Doctor Strange”, one of their installments from 2016, is a great example of that.

Dr. Stephen Strange is a neurosurgeon who loses the use of his hands to perform surgery in an accident. He ends up coming across Kamar-Taj in Nepal and meets the Sorcerer Supreme known as The Ancient One. There he learns the mystic arts and becomes involved in a conflict where one of the Ancient One’s former students attacks their Sanctums so that a being known as Dormammu can conquer Earth. Dr. Strange manages to defeat the being from the Dark Dimension, but with the iplication that the way he did it will have repercussions down the road.

This movie shares several traits that can be seen in other MCU origin stories. Several people have pointed out how Strange’s personality is similar to Tony Stark. There is truth in that. But I would argue that it takes Strange longer to move away from his more narcissistic thinking in the movie and that in future appearances he still struggles with his more arrogant nature. But he is still very like-able in this film, thanks to the casting of Benedict Cumberbatch. He also has an ally/kind of love interest, Dr. Christine Palmer. But they don’t go all the way with their romance. The closest we get is that they were once lovers before the events in the film and she gives him a kiss on the cheek before the climax. They could have changed that to just a hug, but I appreciate that the movie doesn’t have them end up together like most other MCU movies.

And that actually connects to one thing that makes this movie a little more unique. There is a supporting character named Mordo, one of Strange’s teachers in the film and allies. But by the end, he becomes disillusioned by the world of Sorcery. He is a strong believer in maintaining the natural order. But when he learns that the Ancient One uses power from the Dark Dimension to extend her life and watching Strange tamper with Time to save the planet, he ends up leaving Strange and the other sorcerers. Him leaving with the implication that he and Strange will go up against each other down the road is a little dark but in a good way. It does show some of the complexities or different philosophies when it comes to how people like Mordo or Strange should use their power. Most of the MCU films have the villains more clear-cut evil and easy to hate. It’s only in more recent films that we are getting more complex antagonists. And while Mordo wasn’t a villain or antagonist in this film, I completely get why he thinks the way he does and I understand his fears. And when he and Strange do go up against each other later on, I can’t really hate his reasoning or motivation.

But going back to Strange manipulating Time, that’s another thing that makes this film unique. When it comes to the final battle of Strange vs Dormammu, you would expect a big battle with great visuals. And while CGI is used to depict the Dark Dimension and there is action, it doesn’t play out like you think it would. The trick Strange uses is that he puts Dormammu in a time loop. So even though he is killing Strange, Dormammu is in actuality Strange’s prisoner. Eventually, he agrees to make a bargain with Strange to leave Earth and escape the loop. It’s actually a clever way to handle the final climax of a Marvel movie and I have to give credit for that.

But honestly, I just really like this film in general. I’ve always found myself more drawn to the supernatural characters of comic books. And some of the dialogue in this film reminds me why I like reading the comics I do, as well as just the types of stories I gravitate to the most. Exploring ideas and themes not usually talked about, or familiar ones from a unique perspective. And this film has some of the best visuals of any MCU film. There are several scenes that do look similar to “Inception”. But there are so many other visuals that are truly awe-inspiring. At the end of the day, this is one of my personal favorite films from this long running franchise.

Film Editorials, Movies

Can Sony’s Cinematic Universe Work?

Leave a comment

It’s no secret that Sony has been trying to create their own cinematic universe. Their most infamous attempt was using “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” as a launching pad. When they began working on Venom, many just assumed it would crash and burn like Tom Cruise’s “The Mummy” being used as the start of Universal’s Dark Universe. But despite getting mixed to negative reactions from critics, “Venom” made a lot of money and seemed to be liked by general audiences. This lead to a sequel, a Morbius film, and 2 more connected films in active development at the time this is being written. I want to explore 3 questions in this post. How has Sony’s universe changed since inception? What are the criticisms of this universe? And what can be done to improve it?

It’s been said that when they began pre-production on “Venom”, it was going to be a legit Horror film. One that took after John Carpenter & David Cronenberg that would have been a true Body Horror, psychological experience. But when “Spider-Man: Homecoming” made a lot of money in 2017, Sony wanted the option of a crossover and altered the film that was more action focused with some Horror inspired moments. I can’t say with 100% certainty if that’s what happened, but that’s the rumor and it does sound on brand for the studio. Every film released so far still has several scenes where it does still have that Horror inspiration. Moments with a dark atmosphere that show the potential of what they could have been if allowed to fully embrace it.

And that leads us to looking at the criticisms of Sony’s universe. So these films ended up focusing on more action than expected. Not a big deal. The movie “Underworld” did that but it still had a unique feel. But unlike that movie, all of the movies from this universe are PG-13. Look, you can have good PG-13 films that lean in a more dark direction. “The Batman” was PG-13 and it had a lot of dark and psychologically interesting material in it. But Sony’s films have an issue of using general plots and outlines that were used by comic book movies from the 1990s and 2000s. In “Venom”, it was executed in a way where it can be seen as an enjoyable throwback. I can’t say it’s an authentic portrayal of the character, but people looking to have fun could say they found it. It worked a bit in “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” but it doesn’t seem to be helping “Morbius”.

If you combine this with the fact that Sony won’t let them be true Horror films, that makes them look kind of stupid. Sure, from a business perspective it makes sense. You have comic book characters you want to adapt, some of them not very familiar with general audiences. The PG-13 rating has worked for a lot of comic book movies and you want to try and make your money back. But this also makes them seem behind the times. The tropes used in Sony’s films feel dated when you compare it to what is being put out today. Hell, movies like “Deadpool” & “Joker” show that R rated comic book movies can be very profitable. And that’s actually one of the main reasons there are so many Horror movies in the first place. They tend to not have very big budgets and it’s almost guaranteed you’ll make a profit. I look at “Venom” & “Morbius” and I see how they can take notes from some of the old Universal Monster films. Sony’s Spider-Man Universe could fill the hole that people wanting more mature content from Marvel are missing.

And speaking of which, let’s actually focus on the Spider-Man part of their cinematic universe. For a while, it seemed like Sony was working on a way to bring Tom Holland’s version from the MCU to their own for crossover. That makes sense from a business perspective as well as pleasing the fans of that version of the character. It seemed like we were going to get that based on what “Spider-Man: No Way Home” was marketing and the when Venom was pulled into the MCU in a post credits scene of his second film. But no, that’s not what happened. Tom Holland’s version is still in the MCU, Venom ended up being pulled back into his universe just as quickly as he was pulled out, leaving behind a sample of the symbiote. The marketing for “Morbius” showed that somehow Michael Keaton’s Vulture from “Spider-Man: Homecoming” ended up in Sony’s universe. The way he ended up in that universe was fine if a bit confusing. But the after credits scene of him meeting Morbius not only doesn’t match how it was shown in trailers, but you can clearly tell it was done at the very last minute. With neither actor actually being on stage together, and their reactions not matching what the other was saying.

Look, we knew their Sinister Six build-up was coming. But it has no real weight in this universe. The Venom movies don’t address the existence of Spider-Man until the post credits scene of the second film, and even then it was for the one outside their universe. And since he wasn’t mentioned until the post credits of “Morbius”, we don’t really know what that character feels about the hero. We don’t know if they have any history together. Sony hasn’t decided on who is playing Spider-Man or even which version of the character their using. How can you call this the Spider-Man Universe when we are 3 movies in and we’ve had only two clear references to the character who hasn’t interacted with either of these two characters? It seemed like they were preparing for Tom Holland to interact with them. But “Spider-Man: No Way Home” made clear that wasn’t happening, even though one of the villains from that franchise is now in Sony’s universe. It’s clear the executives at that studio have no clear idea of what they want to do or what they want to build up.

And finally, we have to ask…what can be done to improve this situation? Right now, Sony has two more films in development for this universe. Kraven, which I believe is filming right now, and Madame Web. I don’t know much about her, but she might be a character that can do some multiverse abilities. Both of these films need to reference Spider-Man, during the main story and not just in a post credits scene. We need to establish there is a web slinger in this universe. We also need to determine which version of the hero we are dealing with. Peter Parker, Miles Morales, Gwen Stacey, Cindy Moon, doesn’t matter. We just need to establish which one and try and shine a light on what kind of history this hero has in this cinematic universe. It would be ideal for Spider-Man to actually show up in one of these upcoming films. Sony needs to make an actual commitment to something that will give audiences one of the things they have been saying exists for a while now.

And there is some work that needs to be done before we jump into a Sinister Six film. We’ll most likely get a Venom 3, meaning we need to use that film to actually address Spider-Man. Maybe a one-on-one fight, maybe build-up so that he can join other character to be a part of the Sinister Six. But we need to show they know he exists, how he views the web slinger, establish tension between them – at the very least. I’ll even go as far as to say we need a similar situation for “Morbius 2”. Yes, I’m advocating for a sequel to that film. The previous film showed he knows about Spider-Man in the post credits scene. For this sequel, we for sure need to have Spider-Man involved in the main plot to establish what kind of relationship the two of them have. If Sony does this – as well as actually address Spider-Man to a significant enough capacity in Kraven & Madam Web – the Sinister Six movie will have some actual weight to it.

Finally, Sony needs better writing for their films. So far, all 3 have just been all right. And they are relying on tropes from over a decade ago. Better writing and stories will get us more involved with these characters and actually get us looking forward to seeing them on screen. Fully embrace the dark atmosphere these characters – these super-villains – are known for. I also would like for them to include R rated movies, but I’ll settle for actually pushing the boundaries of what PG-13 can show. Make bold moves that leave some kind of impact, even if they don’t fully work. Because at least then I will remember these movies and start to actually care for them.

That should be everything. These are all of my thoughts on this cinematic universe, it’s problems but also the potential changes they can make. Hopefully something similar to what I outlined will actually happen.

Movie Reviews, Movies

Review – Morbius

Leave a comment

Marketing is very important for a movie. They can help ensure how many people are going to see a movie once it premieres. Back in the day, “Batman: Mask of the Phantasm” didn’t make a lot of money when it opened in theaters despite how great of a movie it is. But that can be blamed on the lack of marketing there was for the movie. Both in terms of how much there was and in the low quality of the film’s marketing. And the marketing for “Morbius” wasn’t exactly stellar. Of course the numerous delays didn’t help. But now it’s out and people are already tearing it apart. And now it’s time for me to see how well the movie ended up being and it it matched how I expected it to turn out.

Overall, this movie is…all right. I know that all the trailers and TV spots probably make this movie seem lame. And there is stuff to not like about it. If you were to read the script for this movie, it’s clearly underwhelming and bland. But the main reason this movie is elevated to it being fine is thanks to the performances. While Jared Leto tends to play eccentric characters, he is more restrained and actually gives a good performance. Nothing amazing, but he does what any actor should do and get us invested in the title character. All the actors in this film give the performances they should and end up being good or good enough. Of course, Matt Smith is a stand out as he is clearly having fun. His character, Milo, grew up with Michael Morbius and they shared the same blood disease. And early on it clearly establishes their connection and you do enjoy how they interact with each other before they eventually turn on the other.

So performances all around are good. The effects are hit or miss, with admittedly more misses. Morbius has this echolocation ability that does look kind of interesting when used. The effects used to show his more monstrous form is okay. Nothing particularly memorable but I’ve seen worse. And it does have a vague vampire-like quality to it. But whenever he moves fast or jumps/glides through the air, he creates this smoke around him. Or I guess you can call it mist, I’m not sure what it should be called. There’s really no reason in-universe why it’s happening, but I think it’s used to cover the bad effects used for the action scenes. But the action overall is also okay. I’ve seen far worse when it comes to action so this didn’t really bug me. The story outline is very similar to other comic book movies from the 2000s, but it again executes it fine.

And that’s ultimately the film’s biggest failure. That it’s only fine. If this truly was as bad as most people saying it is, I would have a lot more to talk about. If this movie had tried more to add something unique or even eccentric – regardless if it worked or not – I would have something more to talk about. But I really don’t. Outside of the post credits scene – which is a clear example of how Sony has the poorest organization skills when it comes to mapping out their cinematic universe – I just don’t have much to say. There are small moments and scenes that do show the potential it could have been. But it really plays it safe all things considered. Take that for what’s it worth. Maybe not good enough to buy a ticket, but good enough to rent it or check it out on streaming.