Silver Screen Review:Green Lantern

DC comic have been a part of the movie world for some time now, but only two of their prominent heroes have ever found success on the silver screen. Now another big name can be added to the list of superheroes adapted into film: Green Lantern.  Green Lantern marks the third DC mainstream superhero to make to the movies, but will this film is the comic’s brightest day or will it be its blackest night.  Many surprises await you in this review of “Green Lantern”.

Story: The plot of “Green Lantern” tells the iconic story of Hal Jordan becoming a part of the Green Lantern corps and becoming the intergalactic hero protecting earth with no fear. Unfortunately, this is the film’s biggest problem. It is not so much the story that is the issue but rather the pacing of the story. The movie does not take the time to develop scenes. The results of this leave the story feeling very much choppy.

Characters:   the movie center around Hal Jordan, played by Ryan Reynolds. So it makes that he has the best development.  Everything about his character was understandable and Ryan Reynolds performance was not too bad either.  The issues come from the film’s supporting cast.  The likes of Blake Lively did better than expected, but the villain Hector Hammond was indeed a letdown.  The movie features some great voices from the likes of Geoffrey Rush and Michael Clark, but they only such little screen time making it difficult to get any proper development. Thankfully, the movie featured an enjoyable performance from Mark Strong as Sinestro, a character who will hopefully get more development in the future.

Directing: Martin Campbell may not have the directed the perfect superhero movie, but he did have a few good decisions.  He directed some scenes fairly well and kept true to essence of Green Lantern. However, his ideas seem too be lost in translation as the movie seem to fall under the stereotypical superhero movie.

Everything Else: To be expected, the movie has some pretty decent effects. Seeing how the filmmakers bringing the effects of the Green Lantern’s powers to life were both effective and creative, and the designs for the characters and world of “Green Lantern”  were impressive.

Overall:   “Green Lantern” is far from perfect. A movie that could have been innovative turned out to be nothing more than a stereotypical superhero film. Yet despite all of its problems, the movie is ok. It is exciting enough and it is not too painful, only a little. “Green Lantern” receives 3 out 5 hats for sheer mediocrity.

Silver Screen Review: Super 8

Last weekend, the latest from the mind of J.J Abrams came to the silver screen. It was none other than the highly anticipated film: “Super 8”: Steven Spielberg as the executive producer. The movie has received many positives, but that remains to be seen from this critic. Does it live up to the anticipation and is it worth your time?  Well maybe this will bring some enlightenment; here is the  review to “Super 8”.

Story:   The story of “Super 8” follows a group of kids filming a movie, until they discover an alien life form has escape from the government and the begins to create havoc.  What do the kids do about the alien havoc? They continue to film their movie while ignoring the conflict completely at least that is what it felt like. If you were to discover an extra terrestrial, would you not get involved in the situation? Odds are you would. 

“Super 8” felt as if the plot was trying to do too much in too little time and because of that, the story suffers.

Characters:  Character development was actually done rather well. The kids’ performances were a bit of a hit and miss, but for the most part, they did alright.  The only issue was that although the characters had good development, they lacked dimension.

Directing: J.J Abrams has been known for many entertainment projects, so as the director of this film, there was much anticipation in seeing what he would do with this picture. He was able to create some good scenes as well as great details yet the movie still came up short.  In this critic’s opinion, the director recycled ideas from several 1980 films such as playing the jaws effect and not revealing the alien until an hour into the movie. I felt that it greatly detracted from the originality of the film.

Everything Else: Technically, the movie was impressive with its effects and its use of sound.   The location couldn’t be better; it took place in Ohio. Actually, “Super 8” was filmed in West Virginia, but it really looked like Ohio.

Overall: “Super 8” indeed had its moments that can be considered exciting, but the film lacked in telling a good story. The movie tried to do too much and for that, it suffered.   Did the film live up to hype? The answer to that is an unfortunate no.  Honestly, you would not be missing much if you skipped this one. “Super 8” gets 3/5 hats.

Silver Screen Review:X-Men First Class

This week's review is the most talked about film from the past weekend; the fifth film in the X-Men franchise, none other than “X-Men First Class”. The film has received a great reception, even from the likes of Rotten Tomatoes. I will be the judge of that. Is it worth your time and does it do not just the franchise, but the comic book genre justice. Find out in this review of X-Men: First Class.

Story:  The film’s plot deals with the X-Men before the X-Men as Xavier meets Eric as  they bring mutant kind together in the year of 1962. To be honest, the story to” X-Men First Class” was very original. The story had terrific pacing and had the perfect three act structure. Each act could be its own story while remaining a part of one solid story, which makes good story telling.

Character/Acting: The film features a surprising well formed cast.  Seeing the origins of Professor X and Magneto brought these characters full circle as their development creates more dimensions for both characters, especially Magneto.  The rest of the cast had a purpose being placed in the story and it felt appropriate seeing these characters in the movie. The movie features strong performance from James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Kevin Bacon much to my surprise.  With great character development and good performance,” X-Men First Class” passes in the area of character and acting.

Directing:  I must admit, when I heard that Matthew Vaughn was directing this film, I was skeptic; but the end result put my worries to rest.  Vaughn brought something original to the franchise. He brought a lots of tones to the film’s story which helped with the storytelling. My hat is off to Vaughn as he manages to keep the essence of X-Men alive by creating something new.

Everything Else: The film’s effects were both glamorous and subtle. The film was also very creative with certain scenes such as the training scene. Perhaps the one issue some may have is the film continuity with historical events and the characters used in the film. However for this critic, this factor did not hinder the film, in fact, it seemed to work for the movie.

Overall: “X-Men First Class” is perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the year. The film feature terrific storytelling, a good cast of characters and great performances, and that is just a few of the film's positive factors.  Not only did the “X-Men” franchise need a film like this, but this could quite possibly be one of the most original superhero films to come out in quite some time. Therefore I have no other choice but to take my hat off to” X-Men First Class” as I give it 5 out of 5 hats

"The Hangover Part II" is "The Hangover" all over again...and not in a good way.

"The Hangover Part II" is "The Hangover" all over again...and not in a good way.

When Sequels Attack: A look at Kung Fu Panda 2 and The Hangover Part II

When Sequels Attack: A look at Kung Fu Panda 2 and The Hangover Part II

Something Cinematic:Drink Up Me Hearties Yo-Ho

Silver Screen Review: Thor

The silver screen reviews return to start you off on the summer movie lineup, starting off with another movie for the  superhero genre; but unlike most superhero films, this movie does not just deal with a superhero, but in fact a god.  This is the next movie to come out Marvel Studios, none other than “Thor”. There is much riding on this movie, being not only the first movie of the summer, but the first superhero movie of the summer as well. Is it worth it or is it just another superhero movie? Brace yourself for the review of “Thor”.

Story:  What is compelling about “Thor’s” plot is that this is not your average superhero origin story. “Thor” already knows who he is and what he is capable of. What does seemed to be familiar is the plot point is Thor realizing the error of his ways and becoming the hero he is supposed to be.Repetative as it may seem, the plot still works for the film’s format.  As for the plot’s pacing, it was exceedingly well done as the flow of the movie was comfortable and well defined.

Character/Acting:  My hat is off to both the writers and Chris Hemsworth; because together, they brought Thor to life. Everything about this character seemed real and true to the character of the comics. The film also features a strong supporting cast with the likes of Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins and Stellan Skarsgard. But the one character that truly stole the show was Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston. Loki has to be the best developed villain to come out of marvel studios, and that is no easy feat. I can go on forever about this impressive cast was, which goes to show what great development and terrific acting can obviously do for a cast.

Directing:  I thought “Thor” would be a challenge for director Kenneth Branagh because it is part of a genre Branagh is not familiar with. But Branagh showed me that his film truly belonged with credit going to his definitive directing. What impressed me the most about Branagh’s directing was finding a way to entertain fans while making the film understandable for audiences who are not familiar with the comic.

Everything Else:  There are many things that make film worthwhile. The action is great, the effects are impressive and the music is enjoyable. Yet out of everything that makes this film outstanding to see, I was most impress with the design and look to “Thor”. The look of the Asgard as well as the Asgardians was outstanding as it brought the essence of “Thor” to life.

Overall:  What a movie to start off the summer. The plot is understandable, the acting is outstanding and Kenneth Branagh shows what it takes to make such as innovative superhero film. “Thor” may not just be one of the best films of the summer, but it may in fact be one of the best superheroes movies of all time. Hats are off to Thor with 4 ½ out 5 hats