#IReadsYou Movie Review: MADAME WEB

Madame Web (2024)

Running time:  117 minutes (1 hour, 57 minutes)

MPA – PG-13 for violence/action and language

DIRECTOR:  S.J. Clarkson

WRITERS:  Matt Sazama & Burk Sharpless and Claire Parker & S.J. Clarkson; from a story by Matt Sazama & Burk Sharpless and Kerem Sanga (based on the Marvel Comics)

PRODUCER:  Lorenzo di Bonaventura

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Mauro Fiore (D.o.P.)

EDITOR:  Leigh Folsom Boyd

COMPOSER:  Johan Soderqvist

SUPERHERO/FANTASY/HORROR/ACTION

Starring:  Dakota Johnson, Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced, Celeste O'Connor, Tahar Rahim, Adam Scott, Emma Roberts, Kerry Bishé, Zosia Mamet, José María Yazpik, and Mike Epps

Madame Web is a 2024 superhero fantasy, horror, and action film directed by S.J. Clarkson.  The movie is based on the Marvel Comics character, Madame Webb/Cassandra Webb, that was created by writer Denny O'Neil and artist John Romita Jr. and first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #210 (cover dated: November 1980).  This is also the fourth film in “Sony's Spider-Man Universe” (SSU) series.  Madame Web the movie focuses on a NYC paramedic who starts having visions of a shadowy figure hunting three young women.

Madame Web opens in 1973 in the jungles of Peru.  There, scientist Constance Webb (Kerry Bishe) searches for a rare spider deep in the Amazon.  At her side is her assistant, Ezekiel Sims (Tahar Rahim), who has plans of his own.  They are also surrounded by legends and rumors of “Las Arañas,” a secret Peruvian tribe in which its members have spider powers.  In the end, discovery leads to betrayal, death, and birth.

Thirty years later, New York City, 2003, Constance's daughter, Cassandra “Cassie” Webb (Dakota Johnson) is a paramedic.  An accident causes Cassie to start having strange visions, which she comes to believe are clairvoyant.  These visions of the future feature three young women:  Julia Cornwall (Sydney Sweeney), Anya Corazon (Isabela Merced), and Mattie Franklin (Celeste O'Connor) being hunted by a mysterious figure.  This man wears a costume; he has enhanced strength and speed; and he can crawl on walls and ceilings like a spider.  Forced to confront her past and her psychic abilities, Cassie must safeguard these three young women before this deadly adversary murders them.

Madame Web is fourth film in Sony's Spider-Man Universe following Venom (2018), Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021), and Morbius (2022).  In my estimation, dear readers, Madame Webb is the second best of the quartet behind only the original Venom.

In fact, Madame Webb isn't the “worst film ever,” “absolutely horrible,” or any of the over-the-top things haters and trolls are saying on social media.  It isn't a great film, but Madame Web is quite entertaining.  However, I have ideas about why this new film is getting so much hate.  One reason is that there is a corner of social media that is dedicated to dissing films that are largely led by women characters.  We saw this in the vitriol and invective directed at the 2016 Ghostbusters film and Marvel Studios' recent target, The Marvels.  There are also some structural and narrative reasons that might irritate some viewers, and in order to talk about them, I will have to give you, dear readers, a...

SPOILERS WARNING:  Madame Web is a hybrid of superheroes, dark fantasy, horror, action, and mysticism.  On the superhero end, only the adversary trying to kill the three young women wears a costume.  Sometime in the future of Madame Web's timeline, Julia Cornwall, Anya Corazon, and Mattie Franklin will each be a version of the hero, Spider-Woman, but now they are not.  We only see them in their respective costumes in Cassie's visions of the future.  Still, in the main body of the story, each actress plays her respective character as if she takes her role seriously.  The trio is fun and rebellious, and their energy makes this film hop when it starts to drag.

On the action end, Madame Web has car chases and crashes and eye-crossing fights.  The film's mystical angle comes across as a bit hokey, especially when Cassie talks about her powers.  However, when Cassie's visions kick-in, they are trippy, confusing, and disorienting; they come and go in so many alternate versions with horror movie intensity.

Madame Web certainly could have been a better film had the main male characters had more development.  Screen time isn't the issue.  Adam Scott's Ben Parker, to whom you should pay attention, is more errand boy than friend, and the bad guy often comes across as a stock villain.

That said Madame Web is an entertaining film, and Dakota Johnson is good as Cassie Webb, considering neither her character nor this film in general has the benefit of a strong screenplay.  Madame Webb is a slightly above-average comic book movie, and it should entertain most fans of superhero movies... except those with culture war agendas.

B

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

The text is copyright © 2024 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: THE MARVELS

The Marvels (2023)

Running time:  105 minutes (1 hour, 45 minutes)

MPAA – PG-13 for action/violence and brief language

DIRECTOR:  Nia DaCosta

WRITERS:  Nia DaCosta, Megan McDonnell, and Elissa Karasik

PRODUCER:  Kevin Feige

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Sean Bobbitt (BSC)

EDITORS:  Catrin Hedström and Evan Schiff

COMPOSER:  Laura Karpman

SUPERHERO/SCI-FI/ACTION with elements of comedy

Starring:  Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, Zawe Ashton, Gary Lewis, Park See-joon, Zenobia Shroff, Mohan Kapur, Saagar Shaikh, Leila Farzad, Abraham Popoola, Lashana Lynch, and Samuel L. Jackson, Tessa Thompson, Hailee Steinfeld, and Kelsey Grammer

The Marvels is a 2023 superhero film directed by Nia DaCosta and produced by Marvel Studios.  The film is the 33rd entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and is also a direct sequel to 2019's Captain Marvel.  The Marvels is also a continuation of the Disney+/Marvel Studios television miniseries, "Ms. Marvel" (2022).

The film is headlined by the Marvel Comics character, Carol Danvers, who first appeared in the comic book, Marvel Super-Heroes #13 (cover dated: March 1968), and who later became Captain Marvel.  In The Marvels, Captain Marvel gets her powers entangled with two other similarly-powered individuals, forcing the trio to work together to save the universe.

The Marvels opens with a focus on Hala, the capital planet of the Kree Empire.  The collapse of the empire's “Supreme Intelligence” leads to a civil war among the Kree on their home world of Hala.  The result is that the planet is becoming barren as it loses its natural resources and its sun is rapidly going dark.  Dar-Benn (Zawe Ashton), the new leader of the Kree, retrieves one of two “Quantum Bands.”  She hopes to harness its power and to pair it with her staff, “the Universal Weapon,” as part of her scheme to save Hala.

On Earth, specifically in a home in Jersey City, New Jersey, teenager Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), who is also the superhero, “Ms. Marvel,” is dealing with teenage and family issues.  Kamala also happens to possess the other half of the Quantum Bands.

Meanwhile, above the Earth, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), now residing at the S.A.B.E.R. space station, has detected a “jump point” (which allows for hyperspace travel) anomaly caused by Dar-Benn.  Nick Fury calls in Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) and Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris), an astronaut who has the ability to manipulate all wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum, to investigate the jump point anomaly near S.A.B.E.R.

When Monica touches the jump point at the same time as Captain Marvel, it causes a reaction in which Monica, Carol, and Kamala switch places through teleportation.  Now, this reaction brings the three young women together in order to stop Dar-Benn from destroying several worlds in order to save her home world, Hala.  And Kamala thinks that she, Carol, and Monica can best do this as a team, a super-team she names “The Marvels.

In addition to being a sequel to the 2019 film, Captain Marvel, and being a continuation of the Ms. Marvel TV series, The Marvels includes story elements that appear in the Disney+ Marvel Studios miniseries, “WandaVision” (2021) and “Secret Invasion” (2023).  There are also elements from Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019).  At this point, I wonder if watching Marvel movies means having to be familiar with what has happened in too many previous films and television series.  There is also a scene that runs in the middle of the end credits that references other movies based on Marvel Comics characters.

Still, I love The Marvels.  I have not subscribed to Disney+, and I only saw the fifth and sixth episodes of the Ms. Marvels miniseries when it was aired on the ABC broadcast network in early September (2023).  I love The Marvels because I can figure out what is going on without having seen everything else it references.  If I really want to know more, I can read Wikipedia summaries of the Disney+ series that I have not seen.

The Marvels is marvelously enjoyable.  It is a science fiction adventure comedy that makes a comedy of physical errors out of every fight.  It's more like Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) and Thor: Ragnarok (2017) than it is like any other Marvel film.  Director Nia DaCosta and her co-writers take time to develop the relationship between Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel, Monica Rambeau, and Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel.  Also, giving so much time to Kamala family:  her mother, Muneeba Khan (Zenobia Shroff); her father, Yusuf Khan (Mohan Kapur); and her older brother, Aamir Khan (Saagar Shaikh), gives the film a human element that keeps the sci-fi, outer space weirdness of The Marvels from entirely taking over the narrative.  Yes, the plot is a bit scattershot, but The Marvels is kinetic and packs a lot energy in its fight and action scenes.

The Marvels also gives us a lighter, funnier side of Nick Fury, and, the delights of Goose, the cat-like “Flerken” alien is multiplied this time.  Dar-Benn turns out to be one of the more ruthless and interesting of the MCU's recent villains.  And if that isn't enough, The Marvels has one of the MCU's best (if not the best) extra credit scenes.  The Marvels is refreshingly short, and while it is more loose than cohesive, it does remind me of one thing.  Every trip to the world of Marvel Studios' films is an out of this world experience.

[The film includes one extra-credits scenes that takes place during the middle of the credits (mid-credits).]

A

★★★★ out of 4 stars

Friday, November 10, 2023

The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)

Kaze no Tani no Naushika – original Japanese title

Running time:  117 minutes (1 hour, 57 minutes)

MPAA – PG for violence

DIRECTOR:  Hayao Miyazaki

WRITER:  Hayao Miyazaki (based upon the manga by Hayao Miyazaki)

PRODUCER:  Isao Takahata

CINEMATOGRAPHERS: Yasuhiro Shimizu, Koji Shiragami, Yukitomo Shudo, and Mamoru Sugiura

EDITORS: Naoki Kaneko, Tomoko Kida, and Shoji Saka

COMPOSER:  Joe Hisaishi

ANIMATION/FANTASY and ACTION/ADVENTURE

Starring:  (voices) Sumi Shimamoto, Goro Naya, Ichiro Nagai, Hisako Kyoda, Yoji Matsuda, Yoshiko Sakakibara, Iemasa Kayumi, Kohei Miyauchi, Joji Yanami, Minoru Yada, Mina Tominaga, Mahito Tsujimura, and Rihoko Yoshida

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is a 1984 Japanese animated, post-apocalyptic, fantasy film from director Hayao Miyazaki.  The film is based on Miyazaki's manga (Japanese comic), also titled Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, which first began publication in 1982.  Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind the movie focuses on a princess who is both warrior and pacifist and her desperate struggles to prevent two warring nations from destroying themselves and her homeland.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind opens one thousand years after the event known as “the Seven Days of Fire.”  It was an apocalyptic war that destroyed civilization and caused an ecological collapse, creating something called “the Sea of Decay.”  This is a poisonous forest of fungal life and plants that swarm with giant mutant insects, the largest and most dangerous being the the trilobite-like and armored “Ohm.”  The poison from the plants can kill humans, and every day, the Sea of Decay spreads, encroaching on what little open land remains.

Nausicaä (Sumi Shimamoto) is a teenage warrior and princess of the Valley of the Wind, a land that has remained, thus far, free of the Sea of Decay.  Riding the wind and sky in a powered glider, Nausicaä explores the jungles of the Sea of Decay and communicates with its creatures.  That is how she is reunited with the explorer and great swordsman, Lord Yupa Miralda (Goro Naya), who has returned to meet with Nausicaä's father, Jihl (Mahito Tsujimura), the King of the Valley of the Wind.

But tragedy strikes.  The Valley of the Wind is soon at the epicenter of two warring nations, the Kingdom of Tolmekia and Pejite.  Princess Kushana (Yoshiko Sakakibara) has led the Tolmekian Frontier Forces into the Valley.  Thus, Nausicaä must forge a relationship with Prince Asbel of Pejite (Yoji Matsuda), but there is something worse than two warring nations.  Destruction is headed towards the Valley of the Wind, and it will take all of Nausicaä's talents, skills, and tricks to save her home.

I have previously reviewed the following Miyazaki-directed films:  The Castle of Cagliostro (1979), My Neighbor Totoro (1988), Princess Mononoke (1997), Spirited Away (2001), Howl's Moving Castle (2004), Ponyo (2008), and The Wind Rises (2013).  As Netflix is shutting down its DVD-by-mail division, I am hoping to get to the Miyazaki films that I have not previously watched.

Apparently, the work of the legendary French comic book creator, Jean “Moebius” Giraud (1938-2012), influenced Miyazaki in the creation of his manga, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.  The influence of Moebius remains with Miyazaki's film adaptation of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.  I also see the influence of the famed animation director, Ralph Bakshi, especially of his 1977 fantasy film, Wizards.  J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings novels (1954-55) are clearly influences, and Frank Herbert's famed science fiction novel, Dune (1965), is also an influence.  In fact, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind the film would arrive in theaters almost nine months before the first film adaption of Herbert's novel, director David Lynch's 1984 film, Dune.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is a beautifully and practically designed film in the sense that the environments have both a sense of naturalism and realism to them while the insects are fantastical creations that seem more practical than impractical because they are based on real insects.  This makes the world of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind seem like a credible future world or at least genuine post-apocalyptic future.  Yes, Nausicaä's glider is impractical, but the animation gives it such beauty in motion that I believe in it and I believe in the way Nausicaä flies it.

The film's plot and subplots are strongly environmental and ecological and the conflict is a series of familiar tribal tropes.  However, what carries plot and narrative are the inventive and engaging characters.  Every players, regardless of the size of his or her role, is inviting and intriguing.  Yes, Nausicaä is a star born, a heroine out of fairy tale, folklore, and mythology who captures hearts and holds our imaginations captive.  Still, the denizens of the Valley and the feuding and conniving citizens of Tolmekia and Pejite are a delightful bunch, not good and evil, so much as they are selfish, but likable, each in his or her own way.  The legendary Yupa, like Nausicaä, stands as a typical heroic figure, although he stands behind Nausicaä.

A long time ago, I told a fellow Miyazaki fan that Spirited Away was my favorite of the director's films.  He insisted that I see Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.  Now, I'm not so sure which is my favorite.  Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is like no other animated feature film, and I certainly consider it one of the greatest that I have ever seen.

10 of 10

Thursday, August 10, 2023

The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: BLUE BEETLE

Blue Beetle (2023)

Running time:  127 minutes (2 hours, 7 minutes)

MPA – PG-13 for sequences of action and violence, language, and some suggestive references

DIRECTOR:  Angel Manuel Soto

WRITER:  Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer (based on characters from DC Comics)

PRODUCERS:  Zev Foreman and John Rickard

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Pawel Pogorzelski (D.o.P.)

EDITOR:  Craig Alpert

COMPOSER:  The Haxan Cloak

SUPERHERO/FANTASY/ACTION/FAMILY

Starring:  Xolo Maridueña, Bruna Marquezine, Damien Alcazar, Adriana Barraza, Belissa Escobedo, Elpidia Carrillo, Raoul Max Trujillo, Modesto Lacen, and Harvey Guillén, Susan Sarandon, George Lopez, and  (voice) Becky G

Blue Beetle is a 2023 superhero and action-fantasy film directed by Ángel Manuel Soto.  The film is based on the DC Comics character, Blue Beetle/Jaime Reyes, that was created by Keith Giffen, John Rogers, and Cully Hamner and first appeared in the comic book, Infinite Crisis #3 (cover dated: February 2006).  Blue Beetle the movie focuses on a young man who finds himself chosen to be the symbiotic host of an alien artifact that gives him a suit of armor.

Blue Beetle introduces recent college graduate, Jaime Reyes (Xolo Mariduena), who is returning to his hometown of Palmera City.  He receives a warm welcome from his family:  his father, Alberto Reyes (Damian Alcazar); his mother, Rocio Reyes (Elpidia Carrillo); his Nana (Adrian Barraza), his younger sister, Milagro (Belissa Escobedo); and his uncle, Rudy Reyes (George Lopez).  Jaime soon learns that his family will lose their home due to financial difficulties and to Alberto's poor health.  Still, Jaime is optimistic that he will quickly get a job and make enough money for his family.

Some time later, Jaime meets Jenny Kord (Bruna Marquezine), the daughter of Ted Kord, the currently-missing CEO OF Kord Industries.  Jenny is at odds with her aunt, Victoria Kord (Susan Sarandon), the current CEO.  Jenny discovers that Victoria has dark plans for her recent discovery, an alien artifact called “the Scarab.”  Jenny steals the Scarab, and not knowing its true nature, she passes it on to Jaime.

 

As soon as Jaime touches the Scarab, it activates and attaches to him, creating a suit of armor around him.  The suit gives Jaime extraordinary powers, such as flight, super-strength, and invulnerability, but those powers are unpredictable.  Now, Jaime's family calls him a “superhero.”  However, Jaime isn't sure that he wants to be a superhero, and Victoria Kord will do whatever she has to do – including murder – to regain possession of the Scarab.

The Blue Beetle first appeared in Fox Comics' Mystery Men Comics #1 (cover dated: August 1939) and was the secret identity of a young police officer, Dan Garrett.  The second Blue Beetle first appeared in Charlton Comics' Captain Atom #83 (November 1966) and was Ted Kord, an industrialist and owner of KORD Industries.  I mention this because Dan Garrett is referenced in this film.  Also, Ted Kord, with a new origin, is a major subplot in this film, although the story is that he has been missing for years under mysterious circumstances.

However, this is Blue Beetle/Jaime Reyes' film.  He comes across as a normal young man in his early twenties.  Warner Bros. didn't even cast some muscular young android-like actor for the role.  Xolo Mariduena's body is in good shape, but he looks more like a high school kid still in physical development.  Everything about Xolo comes across as boy-next-door, which makes him more relatable to a larger segment of the audience.  After all, Jaime seems so vulnerable that even an alien suit of armor doesn't seem capable of completely protecting him.  If there is a superhero of the people – the champion next door – Xolo makes Jaime Reyes as Blue Beetle fit the role perfectly.

Like Warner Bros.'s 2019 DC Comics film, Shazam, Blue Beetle emphasizes family, and the Reyes are delightful.  George Lopez's Uncle Rudy is a scene stealer, and I'm glad the story reveals that there is so much more to him than meets the eye.  Of course, one can judge how good a family is by placing it in contrast with a problematic family, and that is the Kords.  Susan Sarandon plays the evil aunt, Victoria Kord, with relish, although she doesn't really go over the top.  The film puts Jenny Kord, smoothly played by actress Bruna Marquezine, at the center of the good family (the Reyes)-bad family (Victoria Kord) dynamic.  Which will Jenny ultimately choose?  Like Shazam, Blue Beetle shows how cool an extended or surrogate family can be, especially to someone in need.

I like what director Angel Manuel Soto does with his collaborators, cast, and crew.  Blue Beetle is an easy-going superhero film that is fun for a family audience, even with the sometimes intense action and dark plot elements.  I'm surprised that the film has as its themes, “imperialism in the name of democracy” and “militarized capitalism,” neither of which are ever portrayed as a good thing.  Uncle Rudy even calls Batman a “fascist,” which has caused a stir in some Internet circles.  This film definitely has an anti-authoritarian streak.

That aside, Blue Beetle is hugely and surprisingly entertaining, and it sparkles with humor.  By focusing on Jaime Reyes as much as it does on the Blue Beetle armor, the film gets to center on the most winning aspect of it story, family and friends.  Blue Beetle won't get the attention of bigger superhero film productions, but it has more heart than most of those other films.

[Blue Beetle has two extra scenes during the end credits.]

B+

★★★½ out of 4 stars

Friday, August 18, 2023

The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: LUPIN III: The Castle of Cagliostro

Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro (1979)

Rupan Sansei: Kariosutoro no Shiro – original Japanese title

Running time:  102 minutes; MPAA – not rated

DIRECTOR:  Hayao Miyazaki

WRITERS:  Hayao Miyazaki and Haruya Yamazaki (based upon the manga by Monkey Punch)

PRODUCER:  Tetsuo Katayama

CINEMATOGRAPHER: Hirokata Takahashi

EDITOR: Masatoshi Tsurubuchi

COMPOSER:  Yuji Ohno

ANIMATION/FANTASY/COMEDY and ACTION/ADVENTURE

Starring:  (English voices – Manga Entertainment dub) David Hayter, Bridget Hoffman, Kirk Thornton, Kevin Seymour, John Snyder, Dorothy Elias-Fahn, Milton James, Michael Gregory, Barry Stigler, and Joe Romersa; (Japanese voices) Yasuo Yamada, Eiko Masuyama, Kiyoshi Kobayashi, Makio Inoue, Goro Naya, Sumi Shimamoto and Taro Ishida

Rupan Sansei: Kariosutoro no Shiro or Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro is a 1979 Japanese animated action-adventure and comic-fantasy animated from director Hayao Miyazaki.  An English-language dub of the film was first theatrically released in the U.S. in 1991 under the title, The Castle of Cagliostro, the title that I will use for this review.

The Castle of Cagliostro focuses on a master thief, Lupin III.  The film Lupin is based on the manga character, Lupin the Third, created by late manga artist, Kazuhiko Kato (1937-2019), who is best remembered by his pen name, Monkey Punch.  In the film, a dashing thief struggles to free a princess from an evil count who needs her in order to gain a mysterious treasure.

The Castle of Cagliostro opens in Monaco.  There, Master thief Lupin III (David Hayter) and his partner, Jigen (John Snyder), flee the National Casino with huge quantities of stolen money.  As they will soon learn, however, the stolen bills are actually distinctive, high-quality counterfeits known as “Goat bills.”  Lupin decides to seek out the source of this counterfeit money, the country known as the Duchy of Cagliostro.

Shortly after arriving, Lupin and Jigen see a young woman being chased by armed thugs.  It turns out that she is Lady Clarisse de Cagliostro (Bridget Hoffman), and she is running away from her fiancé, the Count de Cagliostro (Kirk Thornton), the regent of the Duchy of Cagliostro.  The Count has arranged a marriage with Lady Clarisse in order to cement his power. The marriage will also help him recover the fabled ancient treasure of Cagliostro, for which he needs both his and Clarisse's ancestral signet rings.

Lupin is determined to save Clarisse from this arranged marriage.  In addition to his partner Jigen, Lupin calls in the highly-skilled martial artist and swordsman, Goemon (Michael Gregory), and the rival professional thief, Fujiko (Dorothy Elias-Fahn).  Meanwhile, Inspector Zenigata of Interpol (Kevin Seymour) sees Lupin's activities in the Duchy of Cagliostro as a perfect opportunity to catch the thief he has been chasing for so long.  Can Lupin rescue Clarisse? Will Count Cagliostro destroy them both?  And just what is the treasure of Cagliostro?

I have previously reviewed the following Miyazaki-directed films:  My Neighbor Totoro (1988), Princess Monoke (1997), Spirited Away (2001), Howl's Moving Castle (2004), Ponyo (2008), and The Wind Rises (2013).  As Netflix is shutting down its DVD-by-mail division, I am hoping to get to the Miyazaki films that I have not previously watched.

I had heard of The Castle of Cagliostro in connection with Miyazaki, but I had put off seeing it.  I wish I'd seen it earlier, as it is a delightful and maniacal comedy.  The film is not without flaws, as it stretches credulity a bit far, even for a Japanese animated film.  Lupin is not just a master thief; he is also apparently a super-human thief with supernaturally good luck.

Still, I treasure The Castle of Cagliostro's loopiness because Miyazaki and his co-writer Haruya Yamazaki are imaginative when it comes to the comic and action-adventure possibilities of the twists and turns this quasi-mystery takes.  As both designer and storyboard artist, in addition to being director, Miyazaki is inventive in the way he stages the action as a series of chases and fights that are as defined by feats of aerial stunts and gymnastics as they are by martial arts and combat skills.

The characters are quite nice, especially gallant Lupin, who is apparently more ruthless in the original manga, and his partner, Jigen, the amiable, but quite skilled tough guy.  However, the star here is Miyazaki in his first feature-length film.  He makes the action unrestrained by gravity, natural law, or architecture.  Thus, the film is a rollicking adventure with a humorous tone that belies the threat of brutal violence and death that frequently pop up in the story.  I really like The Castle of Cagliostro, and I highly recommend it to fans of Hayao Miyazaki and to those searching for the great animated films.  I also plan on buying my own physical copy.

8 of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: THE FLASH

The Flash (2023)

Running time:  144 minutes (2 hours, 24 minutes)

MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of violence and action, some strong language and partial nudity

DIRECTOR:  Andy Muschietti

WRITERS:  Christina Hodson; from a screen story by John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein, Joby Harold (based on the DC Comics characters)

PRODUCERS:  Barbara Muschietti and Michael Disco

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Henry Braham

EDITORS:  Jason Ballantine and Paul Machliss

COMPOSER:  Benjamin Wallfisch

SUPERHERO/FANTASY/ACTION

Starring:  Ezra Miller, Michael Keaton, Sasha Calle, Michael Shannon, Ron Livingston, Maribel Verdu, Kiesey Clemons, Antje Traue Temuera Morrison, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Nicolas Cage, George Clooney, Jason Momoa, and Jeremy Irons

The Flash is a 2023 superhero and action-fantasy film directed by Andy Muschietti.  The film is based on the DC Comics character, The Flash, with the two most famous versions being created by the teams of writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert and writer Robert Kanigher and artist Carmine Infantino.  The film is the 13th entry in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU).  In The Flash, the superhero known as “the fastest man alive” uses his super-speed to change his family's tragic past, but also creates a world without superheroes.

The Flash opens at a very important time in the life of Barry Allen/The Flash (Ezra Miller).  His father, Henry Allen (Ron Livingston), has been imprisoned, wrongfully convicted for murdering his wife and Ezra's mother, Nora Allen (Maribel Verdu).  As a police forensic investigator for the Central City Police Department, Barry has been using his knowledge and connections in a bid to free his father, whose next appeal of his conviction is a day away.

However, Barry's superhero life intrudes, so he races to Gotham City where he helps Batman (Ben Affleck) stop a terrorist group.  After that, the Flash visits his childhood home.  Overcome by his emotions, Barry starts running so fast that he does not realize that his power, super-speed, has tapped into the “Speed Force” to such an extent that he has traveled back in time.  Although Batman's alter-ego, Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck), warns him against doing so, the Flash travels back in time, again.

He returns to the day his mother was murdered and changes events in order to save her life, and the thing about which Bruce warned Barry occurs, the unintended consequences of time travel.  Soon, Barry comes face to face with his younger self, college-age Barry (Ezra Miller).  Not long afterwards, Barry learns that his big change to the past has also created an Earth without superheroes.  As an alien threat looms, the two Barrys seek out the one superhero everyone knows exists – or at least once existed, Batman.  However, this Earth's Bruce Wayne (Michael Keaton) does not want to be Batman again, even if it dooms the world.

When I first heard of the premise of The Flash, I knew that Warner Bros. Pictures wanted to make its on version of Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios' multiverse adventure, Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021).  Unlike this very sharp Spider-Man flick, The Flash is not as crisp and as efficient.  The Flash's action scenes are always at least a minute too long and too overdone.  The drama is a bit too melodramatic, sometimes in danger of being corny.  Still, director Andy Muschietti and his editors offer a film that is often quite engaging, thrilling, and entertaining.

I believe that the persons that really carry The Flash are first, Ezra Miller as The Flash/Barry Allen and as younger Barry Allen and second, Michael Keaton as Batman/Bruce Wayne.  This time around Ezra offers a superhero and alter-ego that are both far less annoying and forced than they were in Joss Whedon's 2016 superhero film, Justice League.  Miller is so good at portraying two versions of Barry that they seem like distinctly different people and personalities.  Here, Miller's Flash is more like a quirky character than in Justice League, where he seemed like bad character writing and a resulting confused and awkward performance.  Sadly, Miller's legal problems may keep them from portraying the Flash again, which is a shame.  They have finally got a bead on how to play that kind of character in a way that makes him endearing.

To a slightly lesser extent, Michael Keaton also carries this film.  His Batman/Bruce Wayne is one of the most famous iterations of the character, having appeared in director Tim Burton's Batman (1989) and Batman Returns (1992).  Keaton revives the beats of the way he played the character over three decades ago, while adding a lot of new flavors to his character and new engagement in his performance.  After this appearance, I would really like to see more of Keaton's Batman.

Ben Affleck also makes a really nice turn as the “DCEU Batman/Bruce Wayne.”  Sasha Calle as Kara Zor-El/Supergirl gives a performance that makes the character seem shoe-horned into this film.  And there are some delightful cameos from other actors and characters that have appeared in DC Comics-related film and television series.  Plus, there is a surprise appearance from another cinematic Batman.  As I have said, however, Ezra Miller and Michael Keaton put a light-speed jolt into The Flash.  I found The Flash entertaining, but I'm giving it the grade I am because of Miller and Keaton.

[The Flash has one scene at the end of the credits.]

B+

★★★½ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: "GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3"

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)

Running time:  150 minutes (2 hours, 30 minutes)

MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, strong language, suggestive/drug references and thematic elements

DIRECTOR:  James Gunn

WRITER:  James Gunn (based on the Marvel Comics characters)

PRODUCER:  Kevin Feige

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Henry Braham (D.o.P.)

EDITORS:  Fred Raskin and Greg D'Auria

COMPOSER:  John Murphy

SCI-FI/FANTASY and ACTION/ADVENTURE/COMEDY

Starring:  Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Chukwudi Iwuji, Sean Gunn, Will Poulter, Nico Santos, Miriam Shor, Elizabeth Debicki, Sylvester Stallone, Nathan Fillion, Michael Rooker, Gregg Henry, and the voices of Linda Cardellini, Seth Green, Maria Bakalova, Bradley Cooper, and Vin Diesel

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is a 2023 science fiction, comedy, and action-adventure film written and directed by James Gunn and produced by Marvel Studios.  It is the third film in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy film series, following 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy and 2017's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.  It is also the 32nd film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).  Vol. 3 finds the Guardians fighting to save one of their members from his creator, a mission that may destroy the Guardians whether they are successful or not.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 opens on Knowhere, the strange space station where the Guardians of the Galaxy have established their headquarters.  Their leader, Peter Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), mourns the loss of his girlfriend, Gamora (Zoe Saldana).  The alien warlord, Thanos, killed Gamora (as seen in Avengers: Infinity War), but an alternate universe version of her appeared (as seen in Avengers: Endgame).  This new Gamora does not love Peter, and she associates with The Ravagers, which was once essentially Peter's surrogate family.

The group has bigger troubles ahead.  The Guardians are being targeted by the “Sovereign” empress Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki), someone with a grudge against them (as seen in Vol. 2).  She sends her son, Adam Warlock (Will Poulter), to attack the Guardians, and he grievously wounds Rocket (voice of Bradley Cooper).  To save Rocket, Peter and his fellow Guardians:  Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), Groot (voice of Vin Diesel), Mantis (Pom Klementieff), Nebula (Karen Gillan), and a reluctant Gamora, must confront The High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji), the Counter-Earth scientist who created Rocket.

The original Guardians of the Galaxy was one of the surprise hits of 2014, if not the surprise hit of the year.  Vol. 2 was a fun sci-fi-action movie and a surprisingly thoughtful character melodrama.  Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 does everything the first two films did well and amplifies that.  Vol. 3 is the series' funniest film, and I found myself laughing throughout it.  That still surprises me because this movie has some pretty dark moments, especially concerning The High Evolutionary, who is superbly played with volcanic intensity and unremitting cruelty by the most excellent Chuckwudi Iwuji.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is one of Marvel Studios' best films in years.  I think it works for three reasons.  First, the film's production values and special effects are impressive.  The CGI-created environments, backdrops, sets (interiors and exteriors), space-ways, worlds, etc. are so dazzling in scope, color, and imagination that they surpass the impressive work of the first two films, especially the second film.  The entire entire “Orgoscope” sequence is an eye-popping collection of inventiveness.  Even the menagerie of people, creatures, and robots exceeds the first two film, probably combined.

The acting is quite good, and that makes me want to engage the characters even more.  Chris Pratt gives his best tern as Peter Quill/Star-Lord – drama, pathos, big emotions, and the sarcasm and quips are still here – but with edginess.  This is the first time that I really hoped that Star-Lord would be a long term MCU character.  It is so shocking that Zoe Saldana can convince me that she is a different Gamora.  Karen Gillan as Nebula and Pom Klementieff as Mantis do superb work with the character arcs that the story gives them.  As Drax the Destroyer, Dave Bautista makes the character seem not extraneous for the first time.  Vin Diesel and Bradley Cooper as always are winning in their voice roles as Groot and Rocket, respectively, with Diesel bringing some extra to Groot this time.

The third reason Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is so damn good is writer-director James Gunn.  This is Gunn at the peak of his powers.  Honestly, I liked Vol. 2 so much that I didn't think he could top himself, but he does with this third film.  I did find Vol. 3 a little dry and too dark in the beginning, but once it grabbed me, it would not let go.

This film has a heart – a center that is about the struggle to help a friend or family member no matter how bad his or her troubles might be or even if he or she resists and rejects the help.  In Vol. 3, Gunn makes all the characters unique individuals with wants, needs, goals, conflicts, and melodrama.  However, the best thing that Gunn does is accept that even the most intense relationships change, so he lets some of the characters move on.  The result is a last act for the ages and a closing sequence that recalls the beginning of the original film and leaves the viewer with the warmest feelings.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 opens in the U.S. today, May 5, 2023.  That is 15 years and a few days after the release of the first MCU film, Iron Man (2008).  Vol. 3 exemplifies something that I just realize runs throughout Marvel Studios' film.  In almost all of them, a dominant theme is the formation of surrogate families.  Friends, enemies, heroes, and sometimes even the villains come together in a unit that is more than just a group of friends; they are family.  In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, James Gunn gives us the end of one version of the family as it evolves into something larger.  What makes Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 an amazing film is that it is as heartwarming as it is exciting and thrilling.  Yes, there are big, mesmerizing action set pieces, but by the end, I really believe that these guys love one another.  I could watch it forever.

9 of 10

★★★★+ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: SHAZAM! Fury of the Gods

Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023)

Running time:  130 minutes (2 hours, 10 minutes)

MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of action and violence, and language

DIRECTOR:  David F. Sandberg

WRITERS:  Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan (based on the DC Comics characters)

PRODUCER:  Peter Safran

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Gyula Pados

EDITOR:  Michel Aller 

COMPOSER:  Christophe Beck

SUPERHERO/FANTASY/ACTION/COMEDY

Starring:  Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Glazer, Adam Brody, Ross Butler, D.J Cotrona, Grace Caroline Currey, Meagan Good, Rachel Zegler, Helen Mirren, Lucy Liu, Marta Milans, Cooper Andrews, Faithe Herman, Ian Chen, Jovan Armand, and Djimon Hounsou with Gal Gadot

Shazam! Fury of the Gods is a 2023 superhero and fantasy film from director David F. Sandberg.  The film is based on the DC Comics character now called “Shazam.”  Shazam! Fury of the Gods is a direct sequel to the 2019 film, Shazam! and is also the 12th installment in “DC Extended Universe” (DCEU).  Fury of the Gods continues the story of the teenage foster kid who becomes a superhero by uttering one magic word, “SHAZAM!”

Shazam! Fury of the Gods opens in Philadelphia two years after the events depicted in the first film.  Billy Batson (Asher Angel) can still transform into an adult hero, the champion who bears the name “Shazam” (Zachary Levi).  Billy will turn 18-year-old in a few months, which he believes means that he will loose his foster parents, Rosa (Marta Milans) and Victor Vásquez (Cooper Andrews).

Billy shared the power he got from “The Wizard” (Djimon Hounsou) with his five foster siblings.  He calls them the “Shazamily.”  His foster brother, Freddie Freeman (Jack Dylan Glazer), is an adult superhero who calls himself “Captain Everything” (Adam Brody).  His older foster sister, Mary Bromfield (Grace Caroline Currey) is trying to be an adult while also being a superhero.  The other foster kid/adult hero pairs are Eugene Choi (Ian Chen and Ross Butler), Pedro Peña (Jovan Armand and D.J. Cotrona), Darla Dudley (Faithe Herman and Meagan Good).  Billy/Shazam is desperate to keep his “Shazamily” together, but they are having a rough time being superheroes.  After doing a less than stellar job saving civilians from a collapsing bridge, Shazam and company discover that the local media refers to them as the “Philly Fiascoes.”

Bigger troubles are ahead, however.  “The Daughters of Atlas” have imprisoned The Wizard, and they want to regain the powers he stole from the gods, including their father, the Titan Atlas, and gave to his new champions – Billy and his Shazamily.  Can they survive the attack of the daughters:  Hespera (Helen Mirren), Kalypso (Lucy Liu), and the reluctant Anthea (Rachel Zegler), and save the world from destruction and from the fury of the gods?

In the first Shazam! film, the drama was driven by Billy Batson's internal conflict.  It was built around the tension between the foster family Bill could have and did not want and the biological family he wanted but could no longer have (if he ever really had it to begin with).  In Shazam! Fury of the Gods, Billy/Shazam fears losing the foster family that he eventually embraced, and with such a theme, he must inevitably learn that one should not hold onto things too tightly – even loved ones.  The Daughters of Atlas must learn the same, concerning the things to which they cling too tightly.  Billy/Shazam's dilemmas don't resonate this time around the way they did in the original film, and, at times, Billy and Shazam's obsession with holding onto the family seems forced.  But at least this film has the requisite drama.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods, like Shazam!, is a very entertaining film that is part energetic superhero movie, part charming comedy, and part heartwarming family film.  The superhero action is not as intense as that found in most superhero films, although Fury of the Gods' action is more intense than in the original.  Some of the villains' murderous intentions seem really murderous.

Except for the increase in intensity, everything about Fury of the Gods is a little down from the first film.  It is not as poignant, not quite as funny, and it seems too long, although it is a littler shorter than the original film.  Still, fans of Shazam! will likely enjoy Shazam! Fury of the Gods.  It even has a nice cameo appearance by another DC Comics superhero, and that cameo makes me wish that we could get more Shazam! Films.  It would be fun to see Billy Batson and Shazam team up with other DC  heroes and pitted against DC villains.  It is likely, however, that Shazam! Fury of the Gods is the final half of a truly unique pair of superhero movies.

B

★★★ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

NOTES:

Shazam! Fury of the Gods has one extra scene in the middle of the credits and one at the end of the credits.

The DC Comics character, Shazam, was the first comic book character to have the name “Captain Marvel.”  A boy named Billy Batson became Captain Marvel by uttering the word, “Shazam!”  Captain Marvel was created by comic book artist C. C. Beck and writer Bill Parker.  He first appeared in Whiz Comics #2 (cover-dated:  February 1940) which was published by Fawcett Comics.  A legal dispute caused Fawcett to stop publishing Captain Marvel comic books in 1953.  DC Comics revived the character in 1972, but by then, Marvel Comics owned the trademark to the name “Captain Marvel.”  Thus, the original Captain Marvel is now called Shazam.

The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)

Running time:  125 minutes (2 hours, 5 minutes)

MPAA – PG-13 for violence/action, and language

DIRECTOR:  Peyton Reed

WRITER:  Jeff Loveness (based on the Marvel Comics characters)

PRODUCERS:  Kevin Feige and Stephen Broussard

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Bill Pope

EDITORS:  Adam Gerstel and Laura Jennings

COMPOSER:  Christophe Beck

SUPERHERO/SCI-FI and ACTION/ADVENTURE/COMEDY

Starring:  Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jonathan Majors, Kathryn Newton, Bill Murray, Katy M. O'Brian, William Jackson Harper, James Cutler, David Dastmalchian, Randall Park, and Corey Stoll

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a 2023 superhero and sci-fi action film directed by Peyton Reed and produced by Marvel Studios.  It is the 31st film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and is also the third entry in the Ant-Man film series.  The film and the series are based on the Marvel Comics character, Ant-Man, who first appeared in Tales to Astonish #27 (cover date: September 1962) and was created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby.  Quantumania finds Ant-Man and the Wasp on an incredible adventure in a strange universe where they face a dangerous new foe.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania finds Scott Lang/Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) living his best life after his most recent adventures with the Avengers (as seen in Avengers: Endgame).  He is a successful author and is happily living with his girlfriend, Hope van Dyne/The Wasp (Evangeline Lilly).  However, there is some trouble at home.  Scott's daughter, Cassie (Kathryn Newton), has become an activist and has been recently arrested during a protest.

While they are visiting Hope's parents, her father, Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), the scientist who was the original Ant-Man; and her mother, Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), who was the original Wasp, Cassie reveals that she has created a device that can map the “Quantum Realm,” a subatomic dimension of the Multiverse.   However, the device can also send messages to the Quantum Realm, which freaks out Janet, who was trapped there for 30 years.  Before Janet can do shut it down, a portal appears and pulls Scott, Hope, Cassie, Hank, and Janet into the Quantum Realm, separating Scott and Cassie from Hope, Hank, and Janet.

Once the two groups begin to explore the Quantum Realm, they interact with strange creatures and embark on an adventure that goes beyond the limits of what they thought was possible.  There is also a dark side.  Janet fears they are all headed for an encounter with someone she met when she was first trapped in the Quantum Realm – a despot named “Kang” (Jonathan Majors).

Ant-Man was a D-list character as far as Marvel Comics superheroes go, especially where familiarity with the general entertainment-consuming public was concerned.  Marvel Studios chose the right actor to play Ant-Man, the irresistibly likable, Paul Rudd.  The addition of Hollywood legends like Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer and television star Evangeline Lilly as a new female superhero made Ant-Man A-list box office.  The result was two lovable, loopy, and imaginative superhero films, Ant-Man (2015) and Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018), that seemed aimed at young viewers even more so than adult audiences.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is just as loopy, but is bigger than the previous two films.  If French film director, Luc Besson (The Fifth Element), made a Star Wars film, it would probably look like Quantumania.  This film's menagerie of people, beings, creatures, machines, tech, etc. are almost on the level of Avatar: The Way of Water.  Quantumania is a dazzling spectacle, and it is nothing like what I expected based on the earlier films.  Everyone from director Peyton Reed and writer Jeff Loveness to the craft and visual effects people did the damn thing and the results are mind-blowing.

The performances are excellent.  As usual, Paul Rudd comes across as the actor most perfect to be Scott Lang and Ant-Man.  Michael Douglas plays Hank Pym with a mix of spry comedy and pitch-perfect drama.  However, I must make way for the women in this film.  Quantumania allows Michelle Pfeiffer to let the dog in her out to play Janet van Dyne, in a way that she probably has not done since White Oleander (2002).  She left me wanting more of Janet.

Evangeline Lilly is once again great as The Wasp, and in Quantumania, she makes me believe that it is time for the Wasp to have a solo outing.  Also, Kathryn Newton makes it impossible to leave Cassie down on the superhero farm (so to speak).  Katy O'Brian also gives a fierce turn as the Quantum Realm freedom fighter, Jentorra.

Finally, I'm not sure that I have words to quite describe Jonathan Major's brilliant turn as Kang.  It is as if Majors has given flesh to James Earl Jones' Darth Vader voice.  He makes Kang own Quantumania, and I think it will be a blast going forward to watch Majors play this character.

You may have heard bad things about Quantumania, from film critics and reviewers and others.  But fuck 'em.  Quantumania is one of Marvel Studios' best films of the past few years, and I heartily recommend it to you, dear readers.  With its sense of the unexpected and of the future known, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the perfect start to what is called “Phase 5” of the MCU.

A+

★★★★+ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Review: BLACK PANTHER: Wakanda Forever

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)

Running time:  161 minutes (2 hours, 41 minutes)
MPA – PG-13 for sequences of strong violence, action and some language
DIRECTOR:  Ryan Coogler
WRITERS:  Ryan Coogler and Joe Robert Cole; from a story by Ryan Coogler (based on the Marvel Comics)
PRODUCERS: Kevin Feige and Nate Moore
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Autumn Durald Arkapaw (D.o.P.)
EDITORS:  Kelley Dixon, Jennifer Lame, and Michael P. Shawver
COMPOSER:  Ludwig Göransson

SUPERHERO/ACTION/SCI-FI/DRAMA

Starring:  Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Tenoch Huerta, Winston Duke, Angela Bassett, Martin Freeman, Dominique Thorne, Florence Kasumba, Michaela Cole, Alex Livinalli, Mabel Cadena, Richard Schiff, Robert John Burke, Lake Bell, Manuel Chavez, Maria Mercedes Coroy, Divine Love Konadu-Sun, Trevor Noah (voice), Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Michael B. Jordan

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is a 2022 superhero, fantasy-drama, science fiction, and action movie directed by Ryan Coogler and produced by Marvel Studios.  The film is a direct sequel to the 2018 film, Black Panther, and is the 30th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  It is based on the Marvel Comics character, Black Panther, that first appeared in Fantastic Four #52 (cover dated: July 1966) and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby.  Wakanda Forever finds Wakanda in mourning following the death of its king while also facing a threatening world and a mysterious new adversary.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever opens in the African nation of Wakanda as King T'Challa/Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) dies from a mysterious illness.  One year later, his mother, Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), must face the United Nations, as world powers demand access to Wakanda's most precious resource, the metal Vibranium.  One particular nation even hires mercenaries to invade a Wakandan outpost in order to steal its vibranium, but they are foiled by Okoye (Danai Gurira) and the Dora Milaje, the King of Wakanda's personal guard.

However, the American CIA's attempt to find vibranium on its own draws the attention of a mysterious new adversary, known by many names, but is called “Namor” (Tenoch Huerta) by his enemies.  Namor leads the forces of his kingdom, Talokan, in a strike against the Americans.  He confronts Ramonda and Shuri (Letitia Wright), Ramonda's daughter and T'Challa's younger sister, as they grieve.  He demands that they find the scientist who created the Americans' vibranium detecting device and kill him.  The him turns out to be a her, a Chicago-based teen named Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne).  Now, Shuri and Ramonda must gather allies, including T'Challa's ex-lover, Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o), and M'Baku (Winston Duke), leader of the Wakandan border tribe, the Jibari, in order to fight off the forces of Namor, which are more than capable of destroying Wakanda and perhaps, the world.  Can Wakanda survive without its champion, the Black Panther, or must another arise?...

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is a triumphant – a poignant triumphant and a superhero action movie triumph.  It is much better than I expected and that I could have hoped for.  Wakanda Forever is the most emotionally honest, genuine, and heartfelt Marvel Studios film since Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.  The fight scenes are some of the best outside of martial arts films, and the action and battles scenes are Avengers-level.

Angela Bassett stands astride this film, which is both a eulogy to Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa/Black Panther and also a powerful and successful attempt to forge ahead with the franchise.  Bassett, as regal and as dramatically potent as she has ever been, is glorious, and it time for her to receive the Oscar win she should have had ages ago.  She exemplifies the grief in the film for half its narrative.

Letitia Wright exemplifies that grief the rest of the way.  Wright also shows impressive range – playing Shuri as obstinate and angry in the face of her brother's death.  [That death is depicted in Wakanda Forever's opening moments, and the audience with which I saw this film was stunned into silence.]  Wright plays Shuri's turn to the “dark side” with the depth of performance that usually earns actors some award season notice.  She is truly the lead in Wakanda Forever, and she carries it with the flair of a veteran, accomplished actor.

I also had high hopes for Tenoch Huerta as Namor, and he easily surpasses them.  Huerta makes Namor seem so real that his murderous inclinations come across as entirely appropriate for that which Namor is fighting and defending.  Huerta's performance also works to uplift the other actors playing denizens of the kingdom of Talokan.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is filled so much good stuff.  The costumes, art direction, make-up and hair, cinematography, and editing are all … well, Oscar-worthy.  Ludwig Göransson's score is a masterpiece of tones both subtle and tremendous and is easily on the level of Hans Zimmer's award-winning score for Dune: Part One (2021).

I don't want this review to run-on too long...  If I could speak to Ryan Coogler, I would tell him that already loved him for his film, Fruitvale Station, and that he made me love him even more after the first Black Panther.  I don't have the words to describe how great an accomplishment Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is.  Coogler honored his friend and partner, Chadwick Boseman, as well as he could, and he made a truly great and magnificent film.  It honors Boseman and reveals how much respect Coogler has for his audience via the film art he creates.  I am giving Black Panther: Wakanda Forever my highest recommendation.

10 of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: BLACK ADAM

Black Adam (2022)

Running time:  124 minutes (2 hours, 4 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of strong violence, intense action and some language.
DIRECTOR:  Jaume Collet-Serra
WRITERS:  Adam Sztykiel, Rory Haines, and Sohrab Noshirvani (based on characters created by Bill Parker and C.C. Beck)
PRODUCERS:  Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, Hiram Garcia, and Beau Flynn
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Lawrence Sher (D.o.P.)
EDITORS:  John Lee and Michael L. Sale
COMPOSER:  Lorne Balfe

SUPERHERO/FANTASY/ACTION

Starring:  Dwayne Johnson, Aldis Hodge, Pierce Brosnan, Noah Centineo, Sarah Shahi, Quintessa Swindell, Marwan Kenzari, Bodhi Sabongui, Mohammed Amer, Jalon Christian, Henry Winkler, and Djimon Hounsou with Viola Davis and Henry Cavill

Black Adam is a 2022 superhero and action-fantasy film from director Jaume Collet-Serra.  The film is based on characters created by writers Bill Parker and Otto Binder and artist C.C. Beck originally for defunct publisher, Fawcett Comics, and now owned by DC Comics.  Black Adam the movie focuses on a legendary hero who returns to life after nearly 5000 years, bringing his unique form of justice to his besieged homeland.

Black Adam opens in 2600 BC.  In the city of Kahndaq, there is a legend that the tyrannical king, Anh-Kot (Marwan Kenzari), intended to create an object of dark magic, the Crown of Sabbac, which is known to give the wearer great power.  He enslaves his own people and forces them to dig in the mountains for “Eternium,” the magical crystal Anh-Kot will use to make the crown.  A legendary hero, Teth-Adam (Dwayne Johnson), arises and kills Anh-Kot before the hero himself is buried somewhere in the ruins of the Anh-Kot's castle – so the legends say.

Present day Kahndaq is oppressed by members of the international crime syndicate known as “Intergang.”  They are searching for university professor and resistance fighter, Adrianna Tomaz (Sarah Shahi).  She is trying to locate the Crown of Sabbac, with the help of her brother, Karim (Mohammed Amer), and some of his colleagues.  Ambushed after finding the crown, Adrianna revives Teth-Adam, and although he kills her assailants, the risen hero proves to be something much less than a hero.

Meanwhile, from the United States, the superhero Hawkman/Carter Hall (Aldis Hodge) leads a group of heroes, the Justice Society:  Doctor Fate/Kent Nelson (Pierce Brosnan), Cyclone/Maxine Hunkel (Quintessa Swindell), and newcomer Atom Smasher/Albert “Al” Rothstein (Noah Centineo), into Kahndaq to take Teth-Adam into custody.  While Adrianna and her son, Amon (Bodhi Sabongui), watch, Teth-Adam battles the Justice Society throughout the city.  However, Teth-Adam will be forced to confront the truth about himself and about his past if he and the Justice Society are going to stop a great evil from ruling Kahndaq again.

In case you are wondering, Teth-Adam does not become “Black Adam” until the end of the film.  He is neither hero nor villain.  Black Adam, in the case of this film, is not so much an anti-hero as he is simply Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.  The movie only exists because Johnson willed it into existence.  Warner Bros. Pictures and DC Films' original plan was apparently to make Black Adam a supporting character/villain in the movie Shazam that was released in 2019.  Johnson wanted more for the character than to be a mere lackey, and truthfully, had he appeared in Shazam as Black Adam, Johnson, as an international movie star with a huge personality, would have dominated the film in ways that probably would have been bad for it.

In the case of Black Adam the movie, it is Johnson's will that holds this film together, otherwise, it would fall apart.  The screenplay is a disaster with a plot that is a patchwork of clumsy sub-plots.  The film's pace is uneven, being a mixture of tedious action sequences and unnecessary fighting.  The characters are either barely likable or are ridiculous.  The kid character, Amon Tomaz, is actually quite nice, but his mother, Adrianna, is really irritating.

Don't get me started on the Justice Society.  As Hawkman, actor Aldis Hodge is so intense that it makes a lot of his performance seem like overacting.  [Actor Michael B. Jordan also has a problem with being too intense.]  Pierce Brosnan is embarrassing as Doctor Fate, but Brosnan's problems could be a poorly written character and crappy dialogue.  The superhero Cyclone is … tragic.  So is Atom Smasher, but actor Noah Centineo delivers Smasher's bad dialogue in a way that sounds funny.

Twice while watching Black Adam, I wanted to walk out of the film, but I was seeing it with a friend.  Black Adam seems much longer than its 124-minute running time.  At one point, I thought the film was over, so I checked my phone and discovered that there was more than a half-hour left.  I can only recommend this films to die hard fans of superhero movies and to fans of Dwayne Johnson.  I could not recommend this film to anyone else.  I'm only giving this film a “C” grade because I am a fan of Johnson and an admirer of what he has built for himself; if not for him, I don't know how much lower I would go.  I am not sure that I could watch Black Adam again, even in bits and pieces when it becomes a cable TV staple.

C
★★ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: DC LEAGUE OF SUPER-PETS

DC League of Super-Pets (2022)

Running time:  105 minutes (1 hour, 45 minutes)
MPAA – PG for action, mild violence, language and rude humor
DIRECTOR:  Jared Stern
WRITERS:  Jared Stern and John Whittington (based on characters appearing in DC Comics)
PRODUCERS: Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, Hiram Garcia, Patricia Hicks, and Jared Stern
EDITORS:  David Egan and Jhoanne Reyes
COMPOSER:  Steve Jablonsky
ANIMATION STUDIO:  Warner Animation Group/Animal Logic

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/ACTION/FANTASY

Starring:  (voices) Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Kevin Hart, Kate McKinnon, John Krasinski, Vanessa Bayer, Natasha Lyonne, Diego Luna, Thomas Middleditch, Ben Schwartz, Keanu Reeves, Marc Maron, Olivia Wilde, Jameela Jamil, Jemaine Clement, John Early, Daveed Diggs, Dascha Polanco, Maya Erskine, Yvette Nicole Brown, Alfred Molina, Lena Headey, Winona Bradshaw, and Keith David

DC League of Super-Pets is a 2022 3D computer-animated, superhero fantasy and action-comedy film directed by Jared Stern with CGI animation produced by Animal Logic.  The film is based on characters and concepts appearing in comic books published by DC Comics.  DC League of Super-Pets focuses on Superman's dog and a group newly super-powered shelter animals who must stop a conspiracy hatched by a guinea pig that is an evil genius.

DC League of Super-Pets opens with the story of how baby Kal-El and a Labrador Retriever-like pup left the planet Krypton, as it was in the throes of destruction, in a space ship headed to Earth.  Decades later, the baby is now Superman/Clark Kent (John Krasinski) and his pet, Krypto the Superdog (Dwayne Johnson).  All is well between Superman and his super-best friend until Clark decides to take his relationship with Lois Lane (Olivia Wilde), a fellow reporter at “The Daily Planet,” to the next level.  Krypto suddenly feels that his relationship with Superman is threatened.

Meanwhile, LexCorp CEO and Superman's enemy, Lex Luthor (Marc Maron), has hatched a plot to bring a meteorite of “orange kryptonite” to Earth.  Superman and Krypto easily stop the plot with the aid of the Justice League:  Wonder Woman (Jameela Jamil), Aquaman (Jemaine Clement), Flash (John Early), Green Lantern (Dascha Polanco), Cyborg (Daveed Diggs), and the Batman (Keanu Reeves).

At LexCorp, Lex used guinea pigs as test subjects.  One of them, Lulu (Kate McKinnon), is also an evil genius.  She has reeled in her own piece of orange kryptonite, having discovered that it gives super-powers to animals.  Now empowered by flight and telekinesis, Lulu is determined to free the now imprisoned Lex Luthor and to destroy Superman and the Justice League.  Now, only Krypto and a ragtag band of shelter animals:  Ace a boxer dog (Kevin Hart), PB the potbellied pig (Vanessa Bayer), Merton the slider turtle (Natasha Lyonne), and Chip the squirrel (Diego Luna), are left to stop Lulu's plot and save Superman.

DC League of Super-Pets is cute, and I imagine that it may be a hit with certain young viewers.  While watching it, I couldn't wait for it to be over.  The first 56 minutes of the film is formulaic superhero movie drivel, except for a moment here and there, such as the baby Kal-El and puppy Krypto's exodus from a dying Krypton.  The film does not have another emotional moment that feels real until Kevin Hart's Ace tells his tragic story.  When the other shelter pets tell their story, those stories don't work as well as Ace's.  Also, I wasn't crazy with the design and art direction for this film.  Everything looks like second-rate retro and draw-by-number art deco.

Perhaps, I have mixed feelings about this movie because I have mixed feelings about the voice performances.  Dwayne Johnson is okay as Krypto; to me, his personality seems wrong for Krypto.  Keanu Reeves is good as Batman, mainly because he captures the humorous angle written for the character.  Kevin Hart is quite good as Ace; actually, Hart's Ace would have been a better lead character.  [Maybe, we can get an “Ace the Bat-Hound” movie.]  Kate McKinnon is also really good as Lulu, and she makes a character that probably shouldn't work dominate much of this movie.  No other voice performances in this film really move me.

The last act of DC League of Super-Pets offers a satisfying superhero battle with a victory for the heroes.  McKinnon is so good at making Lulu evil that I cheered when she receives her comeuppance.  I can recommend this movie to fans of superhero films, especially fans of films based on DC Comics characters, and to young audiences.  For the most part, it is like the average DreamWorks Animation or Illumination Entertainment anthropomorphic animal movie.  There are many superhero films that I watch repeatedly, but I doubt DC League of Super-Pets will be one of them.

C+
★★½ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou: Movie Review: THOR: Love and Thunder

Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)

Running time:  119 minutes (1 hour, 59 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, language, some suggestive material and partial nudity
DIRECTOR:  Taika Waititi
WRITERS: Taiki Waititi and Jennifer Kaytin Robinson; from a story by Taika Waititi (based on the Marvel Comics)
PRODUCERS:  Kevin Feige and Brad Winderbaum
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Barry Idoine (D.o.P.)
EDITORS:  Peter S. Elliot, Tim Roche, Matthew Schmidt, and Jennifer Vecchiarello
COMPOSERS:  Michael Giacchino and Nami Melumad

SUPERHERO/FANTASY/ACTION and COMEDY/DRAMA

Starring:  Chris Hemsworth, Christian Bale, Tessa Thompson, Taika Waititi (voice) Jaimie Alexander, Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Vin Diesel (voice), Bradley Cooper (voice), Kieron L. Dyer, Idris Elba, Brett Goldstein, and Russell Crowe and Natalie Portman

Thor: Love and Thunder is a 2022 superhero fantasy and action-comedy directed by Taika Waititi and produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures.  It is the fourth film in Marvel's Thor film series, which began with Thor (2011).  Thor is a Marvel Comics character that first appeared in the comic book, Journey into Mystery #83 (cover dated: August 1962), and is based on the Norse mythological deity of the same name.  In Love and Thunder, Thor reunites with his ex-girlfriend to fight a being who plans to make the gods extinct.

Thor: Love and Thunder finds Thor (Chris Hemsworth), using his second enchanted hammer, “Stormbreaker,” is fighting the bad guys of the galaxy with the Guardians of the Galaxy:  Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Mantis (Pom Klementieff), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), Nebula (Karen Gillan), Groot (voice of Vin Diesel), and Rocket (voice of Bradley Cooper).  Thor is at a crossroads in his life and is unsure of what to do next.

Back on Earth, Thor's ex-girlfriend, the astrophysicist Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), is battling stage four cancer.  Seeking medical treatment, Jane travels to New Asgard.  There, she has a strange encounter with Thor's broken hammer, Mjolnir.

Meanwhile, Thor has answered a distress signal from one of Asgard's warriors, Sif (Jaimie Alexander).  She warns him of Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale), a being who possesses the god-killing weapon, “the Necrosword.”  When Gorr attacks New Asgard, Thor returns to join the battle.  Much to his shock, he discovers that Mjolnir has reforged and bonded with Jane Foster, transforming her into another Thor.

Now, Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), King of Asgard, and Korg (voice of Taika Waititi), the rocky Kronan warrior, join Thor and Thor on a journey to fight Gorr.  But are they enough to fight a being that has already killed many gods?

The last year's worth of Marvel Studios films, five including Thor: Love and Thunder, have been different, even offbeat, much to the chagrin of some critics and fans.  People complained that Marvel's films were too much alike, and now that the studio has given us five films that are quite different from the first 11 years of films, they still aren't happy.

Anyway, I want to make it clear that there is plenty of “thunder” in Thor: Love and Thunder.  Director Taika Waititi offers some action set pieces that are either unusual or have an unusual angle to them.  As Gorr, Christian Bale gives a multi-layered performance full of pathos, humor, and maniacal glee.  It is a seemingly effortless performance from one of the best actors of the last quarter-century.  So, this superhero movie has a great villain, one who can match both Thors and is genuinely vengeful, a vengeance grounded in love.

Still, Waititi wants Thor to be something really different.  The films trades in themes of love, death, and change.  Thor Odinson and Jane Foster-Thor are both in crisis.  The Odinson is having a sort of mid-life crisis.  If he is no longer the rascally young heir to the throne of Asgard or the Avenger's lightning, thunder, and muscle, then, what is he?  Jane Foster is facing an existential crisis; her cancer is really terminal.  Should she quietly accept her fate or should she go out with a bang and some thunder as Thor, fighting their enemy to death, if need be?

Thor: Love and Thunder is a perfect film for this time.  It chooses love over despair.  It is a post-breakup movie in which Thor and Jane Foster find their way back to one another.  Although death is an end, it can also mean change, and that is what can be in store for Thor and Thor and for King Valkyrie, Korg, and a few other characters.

I love what director Taika Waititi has created in his two Thor films, this and the earlier Thor: Ragnarok (2017).  Thor: Love and Thunder finds the humor in every situation, even the dark and dangerous ones, which might put off some of its audience.  However, I like that Thor: Love and Thunder is a film made of joy, color, and wonder that travels across the galaxy and into different realms.  But no matter where it goes, Thor: Love and Thunder full of thunderous sounds and furious love.

[This film as two scenes that occur during the credits, one in the middle and one at the end.]

A
★★★★ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.

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