Amazing Spiderman

The "reboot" of the the 2002 "Spiderman" movie with Tobey Maguire based on the Marvel comic book character. It's the story of a high school outsider named Peter Parker who obtains spider characteristics and powers from getting bitten by a biologically engineered spider. Peter must now wrestle with who he is and who he has become and the choices he makes along the way. Some of those choices end up putting him at odds with the police as well as a scientist (Dr. Curt Connors) who worked with his father before his parents disappeared.

Cast

Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker / Spider-Man
^{Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy
Rhys Ifans as Dr. Curt Connors / The Lizard
Denis Leary as Captain George Stacy
Martin Sheen as Ben Parker
Sally Field as May Parker}

Who will like this

People who know the Spiderman character, but are not comic book fans will appreciate this movie more, as it deviates in a lot of ways from the Marvel series. Fans of the last few Marvel superhero movies might like to see this one as well. Because it is an origin story, it is a bit slow starting and then may be too intense for very young viewers.

Phantom Thoughts

I would like to start out by saying that I have been a fan of Spiderman comic books for a very long time. There are many different titles of books that have different storylines and even alternate universe stories that any "reboot" could have chosen to take. Instead, they decided to go their own way with the story for this one and in the process, I think they failed miserably.

After Spiderman 3, plans were made to make Spiderman 4 with a release date of May 2011. However, after several scripts were turned in and turned down, Director Sam Rami was not confident that they would be able to create a good enough story and "realized we didn't have a good reason to make another one."

Well then, they shouldn't have made one at all. Now you have to tell the same story of how Peter Parker becomes Spiderman all over again to an audience who all pretty much know from either the comic books or the movies from just 10 years ago. I guess they knew that, and added or subtracted some things to try to make it original. The only good thing about this movie was Emma Stone. She played a great Gwen Stacy. The rest of this rant will be riddled with spoilers, so instead of tagging each one, I suggest if you don't want to know what happens in the movie, read no further.

Peter Parker's parents mysteriously disappear when he is younger. It is revealed that Richard Parker is working on some secret experiment with Dr. Curt Connors at Oscorp. Oscorp being the big bad corporation owned by Norman Osborn, who we all know is Spiderman's biggest foe, the Green Goblin. But none of that is brought up in this movie. I guess we'll have to wait for the sequel for THAT one. So he is raised by his aunt and uncle, but since he was old enough to remember his parents, Aunt May and Uncle Ben were not the parent figures they should be to Peter. Martin Sheen plays a great Uncle Ben, but Sally Field is not the frail, old Aunt May that the character should be.

The whole story of why he lets the robber get away that later kills his uncle is REALLY flimsy as well. Basically, it was over a matter of 2 cents. Seriously? And the entire Wrestling story, which was done so well in the original Spiderman movie was reduced to him falling into a deserted wrestling arena and getting the idea for the mask from a poster there. Pathetic.

Peter Parker is a thief. Yep, I said it...and here's proof: When he finds his father's old secret file, he comes across an equation. This is the equation that is the key to regenerating limbs based on lizard DNA that Connors has been working on for years without his partner, Richard Parker. Peter gives him this equation, presenting it as his own. If you're saying to yourself  "Well, that doesn't REALLY make him a thief though". OK...how's this? He STOLE the web cartridges he uses from Oscorp. Now, I was never a fan of the fact that the webs were organic in the original series, but Peter Parker is supposed to invent the webs and web shooters himself. As much as this is a pretty big stretch of the imagination, it is used to highlight his intelligence. We're talking about a story of a kid who takes on the abilities of a spider and becomes a superhero. I would think your imagination is pretty stretched already. But this movie leads you to believe that he stole these from this corporation and Oscorp would not notice their "webs" being used by a guy in a mask swinging across the city? And what happens when he runs out? How will he get more for the sequel?

Now if you're a superhero wearing a mask, it's probably for a reason, right? So nobody knows who you are? Spiderman rips off his mask so many times in this movie, he's not wearing it more than he is! Look, I understand the whole problem with this: if you hire an actor, you want to show his face. I get it. But first of all, Andrew Garfield is not dressed as Spiderman in MOST of the movie, so believe me...you get to see his pretty little puss enough. At least when they did it in the original Spiderman movies, they did it in a reasonable way, where it got torn away in a fight sequence or for the storyline. In this one, he's just pulling off that mask like it's an Alien Facehugger for no reason whatsoever. Take a page from the ONLY thing they got right in Watchmen: Rorschach never takes that mask off until it is ripped off of him, kicking and screaming the whole way.

And where's the rest of the movie? There were scenes in the trailers and commercials we've been watching over and over again for the past 6 months that were not in the movie. Where is that amazing sequence of the POV shot where Spiderman is running over the rooftops? This happens with a lot of films actually and it's one of my pet peeves. But there is also a point in Amazing Spiderman where there is a BLATANT edit of a scene missing that left me saying "How the Hell did THAT happen?"

Speaking of that POV shot, when I saw that as a 3D trailer, it was one of the most amazing 3D scenes I had ever seen. But the movie itself was really lacking in the 3D department. Maybe I'm spoiled after seeing how great the effect was in Prometheus. And perhaps I was expecting too much from that trailer, but if you're going to entice me with effects like that, you better deliver. Amazing Spiderman did not.

And since we are on the subject of special effects, The CGI work on the Lizard was horrible. I know a few computer geek friends who could have done just about as good a job as I saw on the screen. And they are certainly not making the millions of dollars Columbia has to work with.

I really wanted to like this movie, being a fan of the franchise and all. And even though I kinda saw it coming from the previews, I tried to keep an open mind. But the only thing "Amazing" about this Spiderman movie was how bad it was.

Until next time, see you in the center seat.

Rock of Ages

A small town girl and a city boy meet on the Sunset Strip, fall in love and pursue their dreams of rock and roll fame. A famous rock star fights the demons of what he's become with the help of his scumbag manager. And a historic rock bar fights bankruptcy and  public ridicule by the conservative Mayor's wife. All three storylines intertwine in an 80's montage of classic rock hits.

Cast

Diego Boneta as Drew Boley
Julianne Hough as Sherrie Christian
Tom Cruise as Stacee Jaxx
Russell Brand as Lonny Barnett, the manager of The Bourbon Room
Paul Giamatti as Paul Gill, Stacee's manipulative manager
Catherine Zeta-Jones as Patricia Whitmore
Mary J. Blige as Justice Charlier, the owner of The Venus Club
Malin Åkerman as Constance Sack, a Rolling Stone reporter
Alec Baldwin as Dennis Dupree, the owner of The Bourbon Room
Bryan Cranston as Mike Whitmore, the Mayor of Los Angeles and Patricia's husband.

Who will like this

Fans of the Broadway show that inspired the movie will get a kick outta seeing it on the big screen, although some of the songs and storylines have changed. Anyone who is a fan of 80's hair bands will recognize the songs throughout the movie. If you're looking for an accurate depiction of what it was like to live in this time and space, you're looking at the wrong movie as this is a bubble gum, fantasy and made to be fun movie for the older teen and up crowd.

Phantom Thoughts

Rock of Ages went with the very typical, almost parody-like story of "Mid-West girl gets off the bus in the Big City and dreams of being a rock star. Meets a boy. Falls in love. Love is tested against Fame. Love endures". Mix that in with the sleazy agent only out to make a buck for himself and the Famous establishment that is in financial trouble and being targeted by the conservative political figure who SPOILER: is hiding a past of being a part of that rock community. All very played out and nothing original to see here.

But I can forgive all that in the environment of being put together in a musical with this great music. However, that was not the case. The music seemed to be shoe-horned in and forced at times to try to make it go with the story. I don't know if this was due to the changes they made from the play to the movie, but some of it just didn't fit right. They also did some mash-ups with songs which I liked and worked well together.

It was really a super clean version of the 80's. No one was smoking at all and there were no drug references anywhere to be found. This was extremely obvious when Catherine Zeta-Jones is making a speech about the evils of the Bourbon Room (an obvious reference to the Whisky a-go-go) stating the three things that it's about is "Sex, Rock 'n' Roll and........Sex!"

This is not to say that I hated the movie. It is a musical after all, and some "cleaning up" is to be expected. I think Tom Cruise did a great job as the washed up Rock and Roll Icon. He even did OK belting out the songs ("Dead or Alive" was one, which is not the easiest to sing by any stretch of the imagination.) Paul
Giamatti was excellent as the scumbag manager, but I expect nothing less from an actor of his talent. There was one plot line that I actually did NOT see coming. I will not ruin it for those who have not seen it, but it made me cringe through the entire "I can't stop this feeling" song/scene. It was disturbing on a level that made me laugh.

So for what it was, it was just "OK". The music really did save it in the end and I would probably have it on in the background of a party somewhere as subliminal entertainment. I would even watch it with some friends as an on-demand or rental, but I'm not wasting my money to see it in the theater again.

Until next time, see you in the center seat.

Brave

The story of a young princess set in what seems like 10th century Scotland, who is frustrated with the traditions and customs of being a princess that her mother has been teaching her. Merida is more of a free spirit and when she learns that she is about to be betrothed to be married against her will, it is the last straw. She sets out to change her fate with the help of the magical Will-O-the-Wisps and a reluctant witch. But when the spell turns out to have unforeseen consequences, she must try to figure out how to undo the spell and set things back on course.

Cast

Kelly Macdonald as Princess Merida

Emma Thompson as Queen Elinor

Billy Connolly as King Fergus

Kevin McKidd as Lord MacGuffin and Young MacGuffin

Craig Ferguson as Lord Macintosh

Robbie Coltrane as Lord Dingwall

Julie Walters as The Witch

John Ratzenberger as Gordon, the guard (Pixar's "good luck charm", having been in every Pixar film to date)

Who will like this

Pixar and Disney fans will be able to enjoy this although it is less in line with what Pixar has done in the past and more like the Classic Disney animated features. It is a fairy tale in the Hans Christian Anderson and even Brothers Grimm genre. Parents of very young children should be aware that it gets a bit more scary and dark than Pixar films thus far, but not anymore than a "Sleeping Beauty" for instance. This is also a good movie for Mothers and 'tweens, especially daughters.

Phantom Thoughts

Brave is the first feature-length film to use the Dolby Atmos sound format. It was only in 14 of the 4,164 theaters, which is a record-high for Pixar. I was lucky enough to be able to experience it in a Dolby Atmos theater and it was amazing! If you are able to see it in one of these theaters, I highly recommend it. Visually it was a huge step forward as well, as Pixar seems like it has finally gotten the hang of animating hair, which plagued early movies like the original "Toy Story". The 3D was pretty impressive as well, giving the submersive look without having to resort to the "Hey, it's 3D! Look we're throwing things in your face" gimmick. (Although the 3D preview for "Despicable Me 2 that they showed before the movie had this effect and actually worked)

This is the first "Disney Princess" movie Pixar has done, and it should be the example for any of those type of characters going forward. Merida is is a great new female lead who is strong and independent, yet makes mistakes. The message of communication between parents and children is not a new one, but it is brought to light in a very unique way. When seeing the commercials and trailers for "Brave", I was not expecting the quest for Merida to change her fate to turn out as it did. I was debating putting what that was in the movie description, but it's kind of a major spoiler, so I will put it here:

SPOILER: The way the spell that Merida gets from the witch to change her fate is to turn her mother into a bear. Which is enough of a problem in itself, but the fact that her father lost his leg to a bear when she was a little girl just adds to the dilemma. Both Mother and daughter now need to work together to lift the curse before it's too late and in the process learn to communicate with each other better and see each others point of view a little more clearly.

This is a great success for Pixar and a film I enjoyed seeing it. I do think that parents of very young children should use their own discretion about taking their kids to see this, but other than that, it is a fun movie for everyone.

Until next time, see you in the center seat.

Technical Difficulties

I apologize for the lack of posts due to some extreme technical difficulties. Two entire posts have been lost already and I am working out the problems.

The films I have watched will be put up just as soon as I get these issues worked out, as well as the ones I plan on seeing in the very near future.

Keep a weathered eye on the Phantom page for more details, but until then...

You know where you'll find me!

Prometheus

An archaeological find leads a team of explorers to follow clues left over the course of human existence to the possible origins of the human race. The quest leads them to the far reaches of the universe to find the answers to questions that plague mankind. However, all they find are more questions, and a threat to themselves and possibly to Earth itself.

Noomi Rapace as Elizabeth Shaw
Michael Fassbender as David
Guy Pearce as Peter Weyland
Idris Elba as Captain Janek
Logan Marshall-Green as Charlie Holloway
Charlize Theron as Meredith Vickers
Rafe Spall as Milburn
Sean Harris as Fifield

Directed by Ridley Scott

Who will like this movie

If you are a fan of Sci-Fi visual effects, this movie has some great, stunning scenes to look at. This is certainly something you have to pay attention to, as there are many things that are left for either your own interpretation, or for future sequels. Fans of the "Alien" movies will recognize certain aspects and tie ins to the original "Alien" movie, however they may be disappointed in what direction it is taken to.

Phantom Thoughts

It has taken me a few days to create this blog because I just have so many questions and different thoughts about this movie, that I needed time to get them together properly. Here's what I have come to find out:

Ridley Scott, who did the first "Alien" movie was set to create a prequel to the franchise. He got Jon Spaihts to write a screenplay for this movie. It was finished and set to begin production when, somewhere along the line, Damon Lindelof  was brought in to re-develop the screenplay. This was by far the biggest mistake they made. Lindelof used some kind of mind-numbing agents on Scott and the Fox executives to convince them that they didn't need to make a prequel, they could just do a separate storyline altogether. Then, in a moment of self-gratification, he came up with the brilliant idea that they could do BOTH!

Looking back on the movie with this knowledge, I see that they failed miserably in creating either. It is not a stand-alone Sci-Fi movie because it has too many "Alien" tie-ins and it is not an "Alien" prequel, because they have gone so far off course with that as well. In the interview I saw, Lindelof talks about "Prometheus" as a story that takes place within the same Universe as the "Alien" series, but runs parallel to it. WTF?

See, his problem was that he didn't like what the franchise had become. Where "Alien" was something that was unique and special, some of the sequels that followed lost the soul of the original. OK. I can agree with that. I mean, how do you fuck up such an awesome premise such as "Alien vs. Predator"? Well, they found a way...TWICE!
Lindelof also didn't want to just make a prequel that transitioned right into where the original picked up. He was looking to make 2 sequels to "Prometheus". Poor, brain-washed Ridley Scott stated that "by the end of the third act you start to realize there’s a DNA of the very first Alien, but none of the subsequent [films]".

Sigh. My only hope is that the hallucinogens that Lindelof used on Scott wear off in time that he can somehow guide the next two films into the prequel it SHOULD be. There are way too many holes in the script and questions I have to go into all the things that I found wrong. However, some of the things that I felt they got right were:

The android David. He was brilliantly played by Michael Fassbender and a truly interesting character. (I loved the small detail that on a close-up shot of his finger, the Weyland insignia was put into his fingerprint)

The 3-D. They didn't go for the cheap "here's something in your face" 3-D effects that just makes it look gimmicky. Instead, it was very submersive, where it was used to put you INSIDE the movie, much like they did in "Avatar".

The "Why?". With the viral videos that were released before the film with a young Peter Weyland talking about how he was gonna change the world, and the "commercial" for the David android becoming available from Weyland industries, it starts to set up the back story for the big, bad corporation that becomes part of "Alien" lore. I also like the idea of finding out where we come from as a species, and how they went about putting that possible explanation that we had help from an alien race to become who we are into the plot of the film.

Obviously, this was a major disappointment that left way too many questions to be answered. I understand the "leave them wanting more" school of thinking, but when you leave us feeling confused, it turns into a negative reaction. And you never want that to be what your audience walks away with.

Until next time, see you in the center seat.


11/12/12
UPDATE:

The original Jon Spaihts screenplay has been leaked. I have read it and will say that although it is not as impressive as I would have liked, at least I was not confused and was an actual true PREQUEL to the original Alien movie. If you would like to decide for yourself, you can read it here:

http://www.prometheusforum.net/Alien-Engineers.pdf

Dark Shadows

   
Based on the daytime gothic soap opera that ran from 1966 to 1971, Dark Shadows is about a family who moves from Liverpool, England to Maine in 1760 to build a fishing empire. They become so successful that a town is named after them (Collinsport), and the youngest son, Barnabas Collins, grows up to be a wealthy playboy. He has an affair with one of the servant girls, Angelique Bouchard, but breaks her heart when he falls in love with another girl, Josette du Pres. Turns out that Angelique is a witch and her rejection is answered with a curse that causes the death of Barnabus' parents as well as his lover Josette and turns him into a vampire. She then turns the townspeople against him and has him buried "alive" in a coffin.
    That coffin is unintentionally dug up nearly 200 years later and Barnabas goes about restoring the family name and grandeur that has fallen from what he once knew. He struggles with the ways of the world in modern times as well as dealing with Angelique, who is still around and plans to keep him and his family in ruin at all costs.

Johnny Depp as Barnabas Collins
Michelle Pfeiffer as Elizabeth Collins Stoddard, the family matriarch
Helena Bonham Carter as Dr. Julia Hoffman, the family's live-in psychiatrist
Eva Green as Angelique Bouchard
Jackie Earle Haley as Willie Loomis, the manor's caretaker.
Jonny Lee Miller as Roger Collins, Elizabeth's "ne'er-do-well" brother
Bella Heathcote as Victoria Winters, David's governess and Barnabas' love interest. Heathcote also plays the role of Josette du Pres; Victoria and Maggie Evans' roles, separate in the series, were combined in the film.
Chloë Grace Moretz as Carolyn Stoddard, Elizabeth's rebellious teenage daughter.
Gulliver McGrath as David Collins, Roger's "precocious" 10-year-old son

Who will like this movie

Because the original series was done in a soap opera style format, it is difficult to translate that into a film. However, I think that fans of the TV show will find things to enjoy about the movie, especially cameos by original cast members; Jonathan Frid, Lara Parker, David Selby and Kathryn Leigh Scott making appearances as party guests during a ball held at Collinwood Manor. This is a "take your brain and put it in the cup holder" type of movie that will be appreciated for those just wanting to be entertained for a while. Fans of Tim Burton will surely see his influence, while not being a classic "Burton-esque" style movie. This is less "Nightmare before Christmas" and more "Sleepy Hollow" in his approach. Speaking of which, this is the 8th time that Tim Burton has teamed up with Johnny Depp.
There are a few amusing moments in Barnabas trying to understand the time he is now in that is reminiscent of the first "Austin Powers" movie.

Phantom Thoughts

I have to admit, I have not seen any of the original series to compare it to. Nevertheless, this is a cult classic that most Sci-Fi/Fantasy fans all know. In 2004 and 2007, Dark Shadows was ranked #19 and #23 respectively on TV Guide's Top Cult Shows Ever, so I do know a little about it. There are those who say that it is a parody of the original or that they did not do the series justice. But in watching this myself, I can see some soap opera type elements, just enough in fact, to pay homage to the original Dark Shadows. I found it kinda funny that it was set in the year 1972, especially since Dark Shadows ended in 1971.  I believe it is what it is, which could be a rental or on-demand viewing, but was a decent movie that I liked. It was visually well done, as is all Tim Burton's movies, and the plot was well put together. Simple and true with not a whole lot of twists and turns to blow your mind out. This is the type of movie that I'd watch some evening in the Fall, when there is nothing else worth watching on TV. Johnny Depp plays the character very well (maybe a bit over the top at times). There was one scene or two that his make-up looked like it was done with an airbrush about 5 minutes before he walked on the set, but for me...that just lent itself to the campy, soap opera type show this was based on in the first place. 

Until next time, see you in the center seat.

Stay until the end of the credits

      Anyone who has had the pleasure of going to the movies with me knows two things: I don't share my popcorn and I always stay until the very end of the credits to every movie I watch. The popcorn thing is more for their safety, as I tend to put enough butter and salt on mine to kill a small pachyderm. The credits thing, on the other hand, is a bit more complex. There are three reasons why I do this, and why you should too.

1) You get what you pay for
     The price of movie tickets has gone up quite a bit since I started going to and paying for them myself. And with the boom of 3-D movies, Imax movies, 3-D Imax movies...the prices get a bit outrageous. So my thought on this is, if I'm paying these prices, I'm gonna watch the ENTIRE movie. Other people may have to scooch by and wonder why I'm still sitting there. Theater ushers come in to clean up and give me dirty looks because now they have to wait for me to leave to clean that row. I don't care. I paid for it, I'm entitled to be there.

2) Respect for the movie makers
     There was a time when you could read every name and what all the different jobs were in making a movie. Hell, they used to have the credits at the BEGINNING of the movie a few decades ago. So many people are now involved in creating this medium that it is nearly impossible to read each one, unless you happen to be a speed reader. I am not. But this does not stop me from scanning the names and jobs of the people who brought what I just watched to the screen. Sometimes you come across a funny name or one familiar to someone you know. Some of the titles are amusing and interesting also. I once saw "Bee Wrangler" as a credit. I have learned what a "Gaffer" is because I always see that credit rolling by and had to research it. (It's a term for an electrician or Head Electrician, in case you were wondering)
Every one of those people scrolling by had a part to play, and I like to give them the respect of acknowledging that name is there, even if it goes by too fast to read it.

3) More Movie at the end!

     Here's the one that maybe you can relate to the most. Sometimes, there is more movie at the end of the credits! I first ran into this at the end of the original "Lethal Weapon", where at the end of the credits, there is an entire building that is blown up from another bomb threat that Riggs and Murtaugh are called in to investigate. I thought that was the greatest thing ever. There are a lot of movies that do this, some have links to sequels, such as the Marvel movies. Some are one minute clips that can be funny or interesting as a part of the movie, such as the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies. Others are even a few minutes long as part of a wrap up of the plot. I recently wrote about this when I saw "Battleship" not too long ago. I was the only one left in the theater while a 5 minute conclusion and sequel starter played at the end of the credits. I also told many of you to stay until the end of the "Avengers" movie, and some of you didn't listen and were faked out by the "tease". A few minutes into the credits, there was a sequel scene thrown in that most of you saw. However, at the very end of the credits was what, in my mind, was the greatest end of the credits scene I have ever seen. It took a lot to knock off the original that I experienced all those years ago in a darkened screening of "Lethal Weapon", but kudos Marvel...you accomplished it.

Until next time, see you in the center seat....until the movie is completely over.