Some would say the entire continuity of DC Films universe leaned on the Justice League movie's success since this is obviously a billion dollar industry.
What started with modest success in 2013 with Man of Steel went downhill with 2016's Batman V Superman (one of the most divisive films of all time), and hit rock bottom full speed ahead with Suicide Squad the same year. However, many people liked these films despite official ratings and critiques. Moreover, Superman, Batman, The Flash & Aquaman are getting standalone movies & Suicide Squad has a sequel already in the works. Most movie enthusiasts and comic book fans alike agree Wonder Woman is the brightest and best DC Universe film made to date (released only 4 months ago!). But
everyone can chillax now because thankfully, Justice
League has a much leaner story and a lighter tone. This movie isn't
just for the die-hard DC fans (like Batman V Superman was IMO). From kids to families, everyone's gonna
have a blast watching this in the cinemas. And now that I think of it,
Justice League just might be the most efficient franchise-saving,
course-correcting sequel, of all time.
The Justice League lives!
Steppenwolf, a straightforward mean motherfucker.
What's really surprising in a positive manner, is the fact producers did learn from their mistakes and even had time to listen to what people was saying about the teasers & trailers even months before the film was complete and ready for worldwide distribution. Unlike, previous efforts, Snyder, Whedon & Co. saved everything for the premiere. The trailers & TV spots never gave away the story, and other relevant aspects of the film like it's level of catchiness remain a surprise until you hit the theater, and that is always the way to go. Specially, these days where we are flooded with superhero films several times a year.
Can't help but praise Zack Snyder's and Joss Whedon's work on this
movie. Those guys did a fantastic job. And let me assure you, you can't
tell which scene was shot by which director. There's the same tone
throughout the movie. But with that being said, if you're familiar with
Zack's usage of subtle humor and his shooting style, you'll feel his
presence in 80-85% of the movie. In short, it's Zack's movie(as the opening titles state). Period.
Also, quick shout-out to DC Films pres. Geoff Johns for bringing back
hope and optimism to the DC movies.
I can't do it alone...
...Temporarily at least.
Cast wise, really strong performances all around. The
banter and interactions between all the characters, specially the
League, is just amazing. The way the story develops and evolves each
character is really mesmerizing and by the end of the movie, you'll be
counting days till Justice League 2. Believe me when I say this, the
cast is the backbone of this movie. However, it takes some time for a couple of characters to be thought of as "Oh, I get it, this is their new personality". Personalities which do make sense after you've seen the bigger picture this film is.
As with any movie, Justice League has a few weak sides too. First and
foremost, the villain is your run-of-the-mill destroy-the-planet kind
of guy. And sadly, that kind of diminishes any stakes in the story and
kills the suspense and tension. Secondly, the movie had to fit
everything into two hours(as mandated by the CEO of WB. Thanks a lot,
dude!), so the rapid-fire pace of the movie can make parts of the movie
seem uneven and too fast.
So this is the...
Faster than a speeding bullet!
The movie's score in charge of legendary Danny Elfman (Composer of Beetlejuice, Batman, Dick Tracy, Batman Returns, The Flash (1990 TV show), Mars Attack! and many more), borrows some of Hanz Zimmer's previous work with DC Comics and mixes it up with brand new pieces that resemble some of his past works. In addition, he even goes the extra mile and adds a few nods to John Williams' Superman theme & pays homage to himself with a few Batman moments and even a few seconds from TV Flash when the speedster is in action.
CGI wise, everything is pretty standard for the current state of technology at the service of entertainment. However, there are a couple of moments where you'd wish they polished things better. I mean, for a $300 Million movie, it's not about saving money, right?.
Plot wise, as briefly stated some paragraphs before, the story works for everyone. You neither need to be a super hero movie fan or an avid comic book reader to get the idea. Essentially, there's this super powered bad guy from outer space that wants pretty much what every super villain wants in every superhero movie. On the other hand, the superheroes do what they're known for worldwide: save the day.
Aquaman is no longer an Adult Swim joke.
Mera, tough Atlantis woman.
Now comes the tough question, how does the Justice League film connects with the rest of the already established DC Movies? The answer is surprisingly positive and moreover, with only two hours, Justice League not only saves Earth from a mean inter galactic motherfucker, it also sets things right in a gently manner that suffices more than 75 years of Comic Book story writing. All in all, the film DC Comics was looking for has finally arrived. Justice League is a triumph consideringdirector Zack Snyder and his wife producer Deborah Snyder
stepped down from finishing the film, after the suicide of Zack
Snyder's daughter in March 2017. They tried to remain on the film as a
way to work through the difficulty, but decided after two months to step
away from the project to spend time with their family. Joss Whedon, who had signed on for Batgirl,
took over as director, managing additional scenes.
Wonder Woman takes the lead!
Come at me bro'.
This movie was initially going to be split into two parts: Justice
League Part One and Justice League Part Two, with an alleged singular
continuing story line. But by the time filming the idea of the film
being in two parts seemed to have quietly gone away, and it is now
rumored to be two self-contained movies with two related but separate
plots.
This film will be released on the 25th anniversary of The Death of
Superman comic, which was released November 17, 1992; and the 16th
anniversary of Justice League (2001) which premiered its first episode November 17, 2001. And some of us, lucky bastards, got tickets for the avant premiere!. Sorry, not sorry. Here's the movie trailer: The world premiere live from L.A.: A brief interview with the cast:
Happy belated Halloween to y'all! And just when you thought the superhero film ranking was led by Logan & Wonder Woman, voilá! Disney, ahem!, Marvel Studios returns with a vengeance in Thor Ragnarok! Let's admit it, the latest entries in the MCU have been rather mediocre archetypes of previous more successful efforts. Doctor Strange, Spider-Man Homecoming & Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 lacked most of what made other MCU films interesting or worth seeing at least. Anyway, and after two films that were good enough but not excellent, the mighty God of Thunder finally gets the film he deserves! and to make matters even better, you don't even need to watch Thor: The Dark World in order to fully understand what goes on in this new installment of "point blank" as Tony Stark calls Thor.
First of all, let's get rid of the "Aw,but the Ragnarok event in mythology has
great battles, foretold to ultimately result in the death of a number
of major figures (including the gods Odin, Thor, Týr, Freyr, Heimdallr,
and Loki), the occurrence of various natural disasters" nonsensical crap. These movies don't have to stick to the myth or comic books, by the book. The MCU is its own right thing. For instance,in Norse mythology, Fenrir (the giant dog) is the son of Loki and Hela is also the
child of Loki. Now tell me how the hell Marvel is gonna show us Hela
and Fenrir as Loki's children? Loki is already a well established and
grounded character. At this point,I don't think any director/writer
could change Loki's past and introduce Fenrir and Hela,as Loki's kids
cause this would also bring tons of questions,plot holes and flaws.
Thor is back!
And so does his mischievous brother!
For the sake of MCU continuity,Marvel had to make changes in the Norse
Myth and in the comics, and it fucking worked wonders!. Still, the film is mainly based on the Thor comics storylines "Ragnarok" (Thor
discovers Asgard is doomed to Ragnarok and must fight to stop it from
happening) and the Surtur saga (Surtur appears, and Thor and Loki team
up to stop him). It also incorporates elements of the Marvel storylines
"Contest of Champions" (the Grandmaster and Death host a tournament) and
"Planet Hulk" (the Hulk becomes a gladiator on an alien world).
The performances of the main cast are impressive and exceptional.This
movie also showed us the real "God of Thunder". For the first time he
was extremely powerful without his hammer. That lighting streaming all
over his body was pure awesomeness. In addition, the newly refreshing score/soundtrack really upped the overall musical environment to whole new levels. The eightish sound the score has, plus the varied color palette the many worlds seen on screen have, really drive you back to epic adventures filmed in the 1980's! And don't get me started on using "Immigrant Song"! a Led Zeppelin classic that screams God of Thunder!. Led
Zeppelin rarely borrows their music for other media, and I'm sure they
made the right choice when they noticed their lyrics fit the movie like a
glove. Feel like singing?
Here's one of the greatest song ever written for your listening pleasure:
And just so you don't get lost in translation, here are the lyrics so that you can see how fantastic the soundtrack choice is:
Ah-ah, ah! Ah-ah, ah!
We come from the land of the ice and snow From the midnight sun, where the hot springs flow The hammer of the gods We'll drive our ships to new lands To fight the horde, and sing and cry Valhalla, I am coming!
On we sweep with threshing oar Our only goal will be the western shore
Ah-ah, ah! Ah-ah, ah!
We come from the land of the ice and snow From the midnight sun where the hot springs flow How soft your fields so green Can whisper tales of gore Of how we calmed the tides of war We are your overlords
On we sweep with threshing oar Our only goal will be the western shore
So now you'd better stop and rebuild all your ruins For peace and trust can win the day despite of all your losing
This movie is mostly targeted for everybody looking for a good time. As stated above, you don't need any knowledge from previous Thor films and even other MCU movies which is great, because if you can entertain people that are not familiar with your products, it's because you're making fucking masterpieces! So, ten thumbs up for director Taika Waititi.
Moreover, They finally gave hulk a personality. Even though he looks all
big,formidable and scary,he was kinda adorable every time he talks. So
glad they finally made him talk. Also, they really improved his CGI.This is the definitive
version of Hulk in the MCU. Even the haircut they gave him made him look better.
Hulk smashes again!
Doctor Strange is in the craft beer industry now.
The newcomer, Tessa Thompson surprised me with her performance. They say she based her character's personality in Terminator's Sarah Connor. The criticism on why she isn't a white actress (like in the Norde myth) is completely pointless, and biased. She kicks ass in the role because of her talent, not because of her look.
Taika Waititi felt that, despite the events of the film setting up Avengers: Infinity War
(2018), the film would not only stand on its own, but reinvent the
franchise: "A lot of what we're doing with the film is, in a way,
dismantling and destroying the old idea and rebuilding it in a new way
that's fresh. Everyone's got a slightly new take on their characters, so
in that way, it feels like Thor (2011)."And boy does Thor Ragnarok feel refreshing!. Waititi decribes his film as a "1970s and 80s science fiction fantasy, the most 'out there' of all the Marvel movies." He cited Big Trouble in Little China (1986) as a major influence on the film: "It's a fun adventure film
that has big stakes, but also has a breakneck speed and takes you on a
crazy adventure."
Girl power. Real girl power.
The Revengers!
Director Taika Waititi said that he wanted to showcase Chris Hemsworth's
comedic talent in this film: "He's so good and underutilized in that
department. He's legitimately one of the funniest things in this film." In addition, Hemsworth had to
bulk up again for his role as the mighty god Thor. He had to follow a
strict diet, and workout six to seven times a week, and eat around six
thousand calories a day. Hemsworth's trainer, Luke Zocchi,
revealed that Hemsworth put on twenty pounds of muscle for his role in
the film, taking his weight over two hundred pounds for the film, by
following an "old-school bodybuilding regime lifting a large weight-load
for small number of reps." Zocchi revealed Hemsworth's favorite body
part to train was his biceps, saying, "We design the workout around the
body parts he's gonna be showing off the most, he's gonna have his arms
and shoulders showing (through the sleeveless armor), so that's the
thing we really focus on building up. He probably bicep curls thirty
kilo dumbbells on average, each hand, so one hundred twenty pounds
total. We always do seated incline curls, standing curls, and hammer
curls. We started lighter and slowly, progressively get heavier." Zocchi
said they are trying to deliver Hemsworth's best physique yet for this
film.
Tom Hiddleston on the other hand, explains that since Thor: The Dark World
(2013), "Loki has devoted most of his efforts to narcissistic
self-glorification, not so much on good governance. Loki has always
tested the limits of his power and the boundaries placed upon him. He
doesn't just stick his finger in the electrical plug socket, he burns
the house down. And now he has to deal with the consequences." He then adds, "It's in Loki's nature to change. He's a mercurial spirit, and the
minute you try to define him he changes shape. But events in Ragnarok
try and inspire him to change forever. The Goddess of Death shows up,
and the stakes are high for everybody, so Loki, perhaps more than ever,
is challenged to define himself in the face of that threat. He and Thor
are in such an extraordinary situation where everything is so unfamiliar
that their familiarity, as family members, becomes important."
BFFs!
Suit up Revengers!
Unlike some people's petty,shallow claims,I don't think marvel is
always using the same formula again and again since 2008. Cause if they
fallowed that path since 2008,people wouldn't watch their movies for
the past 9 years.And they definitely couldn't create the
highest-grossing franchise of the planet without their major players
like Fantastic 4,X-men and Spider man.
Overall, Thor:
Ragnarok plunges headfirst into unbridled comedy and Waititi gives his
actors ample room to showcase their natural comedic talents, especially
Hemsworth and Blanchett, who are rarely seen having so much fun. Jeff
Goldblum, Karl Urban, and Ruffalo also shine, and Tessa Thompson steals
scenes as Valkyrie, a hard-drinking Asgardian bounty hunter and former
member of Odin's elite guard. Overall, the film benefits from its
director's distinct style and measured irreverence, giving Thor a
welcome boost of vitality.
