#IReadsYou Movie Review: "SNAKE EYES: G.I. Joe Origins"

Snake Eyes (2021)

Running time:  121 minutes (2 hours, 1 minute)
MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of strong violence and brief strong language
DIRECTOR:  Robert Schwentke
WRITERS:  Evan Spiliotopoulos, Joe Shrapnel, and Anna Waterhouse; from a story by Evan Spiliotopoulos (based on the characters from Habro's G.I. Joe)
PRODUCERS:  Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Brian Goldner, and Erik Howsam
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Bojan Bazelli (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Stuart Levy
COMPOSER:  Martin Todsharow

ACTION/SUPERHERO/FANTASY

Starring:  Henry Golding, Andrew Koji, Haruka Abe, Takehiro Hira, Eri Ishida, Iko Uwais, Peter Mensah, Ursula Corbero, Samara Weaving, Samuel Finzi, Steven Allerick, and Max Archibald

Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins is a 2021 action and superhero fantasy film directed by Robert Schwentke.  It is the third film based on characters from Hasbro's G.I. Joe media franchise.  Snake Eyes is an origin story for the title character and a G.I. Joe spin off film.

Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins opens in the past.  We meet a boy (Max Archibald) who watches a group of men kill his father (Steve Allerick).  The leader of the men uses a pair of dice to decide the father's fate, and the dice come up “snake eyes.”

Years later, the boy has become a mysterious lone underground fighter known only as “Snake Eyes” (Henry Golding).  He falls in with Kenta (Takehiro Hira), a gang leader and gun smuggler who says he can help him.  Kenta claims to know how to find the man who killed Snake Eyes' father, and Snake Eyes has spent years seeking revenge.  After he falls out with Kenta, Snake Eyes befriends Thomas “Tommy” Arashikage (Andrew Koji), the presumptive heir of the Arashikage ninja clan.  Tommy takes Snake Eyes to Japan and offers him a chance to join the clan – if he can past the “three tests.”

However, Snake Eyes finds his loyalties constantly being tested and his motives questioned, especially by Akiko (Haruka Abe), who is in charge of security at the Arashikage compound.  Snake Eyes will soon find that his secrets and lies have him caught between two competing covert organizations, the counter-terrorist G.I. Joe and the terrorist Cobra.

I am not a big fan of the G.I. Joe media franchise although I have read a few of the comic books published by both Marvel Comics (1982-1994) and IDW Publishing (2008-present).  I watched a few episodes of the syndicated animation television series that ran from 1983 to 1986.  I have even watched the two live-action G.I. Joe films, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009) and G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013).  However, I have always been curious about the rival characters Snake Eyes (G.I. Joe) and Storm Shadow (Cobra).

Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins is an origin film, acting as the story of Snake Eyes.  It is also a reboot film, restarting the G.I. Joe film franchise, and it even includes the appearance of both the G.I. Joe and Cobra organization and the appearance of new versions of a few of the characters.

I can keep this simple.  Snake Eyes is for G.I. Joe fans.  I'm not sure that even people who were or are causal fans of the earlier G.I. Joe films will like this.  The fight scenes are good, with a few (the car chase fight) being quite spectacular.  The character drama is junk, and even the opening section about the murder of Snake Eyes' father fails to really resonate the way the killing of a protagonist's parent should.  None of the characters' motivations and few conflicts seem genuine; everything seems contrived or, at least, badly written.  It does not help the drama that most of the acting is … let's say “average” to be nice.

Like the previous G.I. Joe films, I think Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins will have a long life on cable television or however long cable TV has left as a viable medium (which is another story).  In fact, I like the fight scenes and actions enough to kind of like this movie.  I think that there is a great story to be told of the origin of Snake Eyes, but that great story just isn't in this movie.

C+

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: WONDER WOMAN: Bloodlines

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines (2019)

Running time:  83 minutes (1 hour, 23 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of fantasy action and violence, and some bloody images
DIRECTORS:  Sam Liu and Justin Copeland
WRITER:  Mairghread Scott (based on characters appearing in DC Comics)
PRODUCERS: Amy McKenna and Sam Liu
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Sam Register and James Tucker
EDITOR:  Frederik Wiedmann
COMPOSERS:  Christopher D. Lozinski
ANIMATION STUDIO:  Digital eMation, Inc.

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/ACTION/FANTASY

Starring:  (voices)  Rosario Dawson, Jeffrey Donovan, Marie Avgeropoulos, Kimberly Brooks, Michael Dorn, Mozhan Marnò, Adrienne C. Moore, Cree Summer, Courtenay Taylor, Nia Vardalos, Ray Chase, and Constance Zimmer

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines is a 2019 straight-to-video animated superhero film from Warner Bros. Animation and directors Sam Liu and Justin Copeland.  The film features classic DC Comics character, Wonder Woman, and is the 36th film in the “DC Universe Animated Original Movies” line.

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines opens several years in the past before the main story begins.  United States military pilot, Captain Steven “Steve” Trevor (Jeffery Donovan), is engaged in an aerial battle with Parademons.  He crash lands his fighter jet near Themyscira, the island home of the warrior race, the Amazons.  Princess Diana (Rosario Dawson), daughter of the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta (Cree Summer), rescues Trevor.  After he is healed, Trevor is taken prisoner because no men are allowed on Themyscira.  However, Diana sees Trevor's arrival as a sign that she needs to leave the island because it is her duty to protect man's world from a great evil she believes is coming.  This decision causes Hippolyta to disown her daughter.

In Washington D.C., Diana finds a place to stay in the home of geologist Julia Kapatelis (Nia Vardalos) and her daughter Vanessa (Marie Avgeropoulos).  Julia's hobby is the study of Amazons, so she is happy to have Diana live with them.  Vanessa, who already has issues with her mother, however, begins to resent Diana's presence in the home.

Five years later, in the present, Diana is the superhero, Wonder Woman.  Julia asks her help in finding Vanessa, who has stolen an artifact from Julia's employer, Veronica Cale (Constance Zimmer), of Cale Pharmaceuticals.  Vanessa has apparently fallen in with a cabal of villains lead by Dr. Cyber ( Mozhan Marnò) and Doctor Poison (Courtenay Taylor) and become part of their diabolical plot.  Now, Wonder Woman, Steve Trevor, and his friend, intelligence officer Etta Candy (Adrienne C. Moore), race to stop Cyber and Poison, but can Wonder Woman save Vanessa Kapatelis?

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines is standard DC Universe animated fare in terms of fights scenes, action, and animation.  In that, the film is entertaining enough.  Where it stands out is that writer Mairghread Scott offers a story that delves deeply into mother-daughter relationships – from love and war to rebellion and reconciliation.  At the point in which I finally realized that the strife between Julia Kapatelis and her daughter, Vanessa, mirrored the discord between Diana and Hippolyta, I suddenly became interested in a film that was, for the most part, boring me.

I also like the fact that the film is almost entirely driven by female leads and female supporting characters, with Etta Candy being most appealing to me.  Adrienne C. Moore delivers a standout voice performance as Etta, and I hope that Moore gets to reprise her performance if Etta appears in another DC Universe animated film.

Steve Trevor is good not great, which I can also say about Jeffrey Donovan's performance as Trevor.  On the other hand, Michael Dorn, best known as “Worf” on the the former television series, “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” makes the most of his small role as Ferdinand the Minotaur.

I heartily recommend Wonder Woman: Bloodlines to fans of Wonder Woman.  While it is not a great film, I think fans of animated films based on DC Comics characters will also like this.

B+

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: BATMAN: Hush

Batman: Hush (2019)

Running time:  82 minutes
MPAA – PG-13 for violence and action, suggestive material, and language
DIRECTOR:  Justin Copeland
WRITER:  Ernie Altbacker (based on characters appearing in DC Comics and on the story arc, “Batman: Hush”, by Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee)
PRODUCER: Amy McKenna
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Sam Register and James Tucker and Benjamin Melniker & Michael Uslan
EDITOR:  Christopher D. Lozinski
COMPOSER:  Frederik Wiedmann  
ANIMATION STUDIO:  NE4U Inc.

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/ACTION/FANTASY

Starring:  (voices) Jason O'Mara, Jennifer Morrison, Sean Maher, James Garrett, Bruce Thomas, Geoffrey Arend, Stuart Allan, Sachie Alessio, Chris Cox, Adam Gifford, Peyton R. List, Peyton List, Jerry O'Connell, Rebecca Romijn, Jason Spisak, Maury Sterling, Hynden Walch, Tara Strong, Vanessa Williams, and Rainn Wilson

Batman: Hush is a 2019 straight-to-video animated superhero film from Warner Bros. Animation and director Justin Copeland.  It is the thirty-fifth film in the “DC Universe Animated Original Movies” series.  It is also a loose adaptation of the Batman story arc, “Batman: Hush” (Batman #608-619; cover dated: October 2002 to September 2003), written by Jeph Loeb and drawn by Jim Lee.  Batman: Hush the movie focuses on a mysterious villain intent on sabotaging Batman by using the Dark Knight's worst adversaries and some of his friends against him.

Batman: Hush opens with Batman (Jason O'Mara) rescuing an abducted child that the villain, Bane (Adam Gifford), was holding for ransom.  Shortly afterwards, Catwoman (Jennifer Morrison) steals the ransom.  While Batman is pursuing her, a masked vigilante shoots at him, severing the Bat-rope Batman was using to swing through the city.  Batman falls onto the sidewalk and cracks his skull.

Batgirl (Peyton R. List) takes Batman back to the Batcave where his butler, Alfred Pennyworth (James Garrett), and, his former ward and sidekick, Dick Grayson/Nightwing (Sean Maher), create an alibi that not Batman, but his secret identity, Bruce Wayne, suffered the injury.  Alfred contacts Bruce's childhood friend, Dr. Thomas Elliot (Maury Sterling), a renowned brain surgeon, to provide Bruce's medical care.

Back on his feet, Batman discovers that his conflict with Bane and Catwoman was just part of an elaborate scheme perpetrated against him by a mysterious villain known only as “Hush.”  It seems that Hush is willing to use every major figure in Batman's “rogues gallery” to bring the Bat down.  Hush seemingly even knows the people close to Bruce Wayne and is using them.  Further complicating Batman's investigation of Hush is the growing relationship between Bruce Wayne and Catwoman's alter-ego, Selina Kyle.

I have only read the Batman story line, “Batman: Hush,” once, and that was during its original publication.  I found it to be longer than it needed to be.  I am not really a fan of writer Jeph Loeb, although he has written some comic books that I have thoroughly enjoyed.  As a story, “Hush” felt like something Loeb padded with a bunch of appearances by all-star DC Comics characters.  As beautiful as Jim Lee's art for Hush was and still is, some of it came across as cold, as if it were drawn in a manner to make it attractive to collectors of comic book original art.  But at least I found “Hush” the comic book story to be enjoyable most of the time.

Batman: Hush the film is mostly dull.  The chase between Batman and Catwoman and the subsequent Catwoman-Batgirl fight are exciting.  The big battle at the end of the film is good, except when it seems to run too long – of course.  Catwoman is well-written in this film, and I like the way Alfred Pennyworth and Dick Grayson/Nightwing are presented in Batman: Hush.

The character designs are mostly good, except Batman, who looks awkwardly drawn in this film.  The animation is mediocre, except for a few action scenes when it looks like the people involved in this production suddenly felt energized.  I will only recommend this film to fans of the “DC Universe Animated Original Movies” line.  People who mostly know Batman from the modern Batman live-action films will likely not find much to like in Batman: Hush.

C+

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


The text is copyright © 2021 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 WIDOW

Black Widow (2021)

Running time: 133 minutes
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of violence/action, some language and thematic material
DIRECTOR: Cate Shortland
WRITERS:  Eric Pearson; from a story by Jac Schaeffer and Ned Benson (based upon the Marvel Comics character)
PRODUCER: Kevin Feige
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Gabriel Beristain
EDITOR: Leigh Folsom Boyd
COMPOSER: Lorne Balfe

SUPERHERO/DRAMA/ACTION

Starring:  Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Rachel Weisz, Ray Winstone, Ever Anderson, Violet McGraw, O-T Fagbenie,  and William Hurt

Black Widow is a 2021 3D superhero film directed by Cate Shortland and produced by Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.  It is the 24th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) series.  The film is based on the Marvel Comics character, Natalia Alianovna “Natasha” Romanova/Black Widow, that was created by Stan Lee, Don Rico, and artist Don Heck and first appeared in the comic book, Tales of Suspense #52 (cover dated: April 1964).  Black Widow the film finds the title character on the run and forced to confront the conspiracies and people of her past.

Black Widow is largely set between the events depicted in the films, Captain America: Civil War (2016) and Avengers: Infinity Wars (2018).  The film, however, opens in 1995.  Young Natasha Romanoff (Ever Anderson) lives a quiet life in suburban Ohio with her younger sister, Yelena Belova (Violet McGraw), and their parents.  But Natasha and Yelena are not siblings, and their surrogate mother, Melina Vostokoff (Rachel Weisz), is really a Russian scientist/spy, and their father, Alexei Shostkov (David Harbour), is a spy and also the costumed superhero, “Red Guardian,” Russia's super-soldier version of Captain America.  When this “family's” mission suddenly ends, Natasha and Yelena are returned to Russia and sent to the “Red Room” for further training.

Twenty-one years later, in the year 2016, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) is on fugitive, on the run from U.S. Secretary of State Thaddeus Ross (William Hurt).  Fate reunites her with an older Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), who until recently was still a “Widow,” an assassin working for the Red Room.  Now, both women, traumatized by their pasts, set out to find and kill Dreykov (Ray Winstone), the head of the Red Room and the mastermind behind the “Widow” program.  To do so, however, they must mend the broken relationships of their pasts, and Natasha must face the reality that her actions could not only alert her pursuers to her whereabouts, but could also lead to her destruction.

I wondered how Marvel Studios could hope to deliver a superhero movie that would satisfy their audiences in the wake of Avengers: Endgame, which was a special effects extravaganza, which changed the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), which was a record-setting box office hit, and which saw some beloved characters die, including the Black Widow.  Black Widow does offer big action sequences: a harrowing opening air plane escape, a battle royale in Budapest, a crazy prison escape, and that final showdown on a giant aerial base.  After waiting two years for a Marvel Studios film (because of the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown of movie theaters), the big action of Black Widow is big enough to sate my Marvel needs.

However, I must be honest, it is the action that really makes Black Widow for me.  The drama is good, and the interpersonal relationship conflict and drama are fitting for the story of a character like the Black Widow who past is so very dark and is filled with violence and pain.  The main cast of Black Widow:  Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Rachel Weisz gives excellent performances in this tale of betrayal and of secrets of lies.  In a way, these performances only serve to make the drama all the more dark, edgy, and, at times, depressing.  So, that is why I must be honest.  I respected the character drama of Black Widow, which director Cate Shortland delivers in gritty detail.  But while watching the film, I was always anxious for the arrival of the next big, special effects-driven action sequence, and man, Black Widow did not disappoint!

Black Widow has a great adversary in “The Taskmaster,” but the reveal of that villain's identity is a bit of a letdown.  Ray Winstone, an actor I like, was just okay as Dreykov, a promising bad guy the script makes into a shallow character.  Still, the action scenes – I'm crazy about them.  They are both the reason that I am giving Black Widow a high grade and the reason I will watch Black Widow many more times when it starts airing on cable television in a little less than two years from now.

A

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: VENOM

Venom (2018)

Running time:  112 minutes
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and for language
DIRECTOR:  Ruben Fleischer
WRITERS:  Scott Rosenberg and Kelly Marcel; from a screen story by Jeff Pinkner and Scott Rosenberg (based on the Marvel Comics)
PRODUCERS:  Avi Arad, Amy Pascal, and Matt Tolmach
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Matthew Libatique (D.o.P.)
EDITORS:  Alan Baumgarten and Maryann Brandon
COMPOSER:  Ludwig Göransson

SUPERHERO/FANTASY/ACTION

Starring:  Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed, Scott Haze, Reid Scott, Jenny Slate, Melora Walters, Peggy Lu, Ron Cephas Jones, Stan Lee, and Woody Harrelson

Venom is a 2018 superhero fantasy-action film directed by Ruben Fleischer.  The film is based on the Marvel Comics super-villain/anti-hero characters, Eddie Brock/Venom, to which several comic book writers, artists, and editors contributed in the creation of, most especially artist Todd McFarlane and writer David Michelinie.  It is also the first film in the “Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters” series.  In Venom the film, a troubled television reporter gains superpowers after bonding with an alien entity that is part of an invasion force.

As Venom opens, a space exploration probe belonging to the bio-engineering corporation, Life Foundation, discovers a comet covered in strange lifeforms.  The probe returns to Earth with four samples of these lifeforms, but one escapes.  Later, Life Foundation CEO, Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed), has realized that these lifeforms are “symbiotes,” and that they cannot survive without human hosts.  However, soon after the symbiotes bond with humans, the humans' bodies start to reject the aliens.  Drake is obsessed with finding the perfect human hosts for these symbiotes, even if his experiments lead to the deaths of many humans.

Six months later, Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) is a failed television reporter and former star of “The Brock Report.”  He previously had a run-in with Drake, but fate has given him the opportunity to infiltrate the Life Foundation.  That is how Eddie has an unfortunate encounter with a symbiote that calls itself “Venom.”  Eddie struggles to adapt to what he calls the “parasite” inside his body and is shocked to learn that there are millions more like Venom out in space.  But Eddie will need Venom's help to stay alive when Drake and Life Foundation discover his strange union and come after him to retrieve their property – the symbiote Venom.

Except for his early comic book appearances, I have never been a fan of Venom, but I am a fan of Venom the movie.  He is one of those characters whose potential reveals itself in the movement that television and film offers.  The visual-effects crew of Venom does excellent work in creating Venom as a fascinating and alluring CGI character; noisy, chaotic, obnoxious, inconsistent, and aggressive work for this character.  In fact, there are many inconsistencies in what is supposed to be the nature of human-symbiote relationship, especially in what are the rules of Eddie Brock and Venom's merger, but I found this movie to be too much fun for me to pay attention to logic.

Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock and Riz Ahmed as Carlton Drake make the most of two characters that are not that well developed, and the characters make a good adversarial pair.  Even acclaimed actress and multiple Oscar nominee, Michelle Williams, manages to make Eddie's ex, Anne Weying, seem like something more than an obligatory female character.  But still, the gold in Venom is the special effect that is Venom the character.  I like Venom enough to watch a sequel...

B+

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: JUSTICE LEAGUE VS. THE FATAL FIVE

Justice League vs. the Fatal Five (2019)

Running time:  77 minutes (1 hour, 17 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi violence, some bloody images, language and partial nudity
DIRECTOR:  Sam Liu
WRITERS:  Jim Krieg, Eric Carrasco, and Alan Burnett; from a story by Eric Carrasco (based on characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics)
PRODUCERS:  Sam Liu and Amy McKenna
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Sam Register and Bruce Timm
EDITOR:  Christopher D. Lozinski
COMPOSERS:  Kristopher Carter, Michael McCuistion, and Lolita Ritmanis
ANIMATION STUDIO:  DR Movie

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/ACTION/FANTASY

Starring:  (voices) Elyes Gabel, Diane Guerro, Kevin Conroy, Susan Eisenberg, George Newbern, Daniela Bobadilla, Kevin Michael Richardson, Noel Fisher, Peter Jessop, Tom Kenny, Matthew Yang King, Sumalee Montano, Philip Anthony-Rodriguez, Tara Strong, and Bruce Timm

Justice League vs. the Fatal Five is a 2019 straight-to-video animated superhero film from Warner Bros. Animation and director Sam Lui.  It is the thirty-fourth film in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies series.  The film is based on the classic DC Comics superhero team, the Justice League.  The story pits the Justice League and an amnesiac hero against a powerful group of villains from the future.

Justice League vs. the Fatal Five opens in the 31st century.  There, three members of the villainous “Fatal Five”:  Mano (Philip Anthony-Rodriguez), Tharok (Peter Jessop), and The Persuader (Matthew Yang King) attack the Legion of Super-Heroes' headquarters in order to steal the Legion's time sphere.  Legionnaires Star Boy (Elyes Bagel), Saturn Girl (Tara Strong), and Brainiac 5 (Noel Fisher) try to stop them, but fail.  Just as the villains activate the sphere, Star Boy leaps at sphere and is taken back into the 21st century with it.

In the 21st century, the members of the Justice League:  Superman (George Newbern), Wonder Woman (Susan Eisenberg), Batman (Kevin Conroy), and Mr. Terrific (Kevin Michael Richardson) are working on getting new members.  Batman is a mentor of sorts to Miss Martian (Daniela Bobadilla), and Wonder Woman is trying to recruit the new Green Lantern of Sector of 2814, Jessica Cruz (Diane Guerro), who is reluctant as she is still suffering from the trauma of a near-death experience.

Soon, the League finds itself in a battle with the trio of Mano, Tharok, and The Persuader, who turn out to be formidable foes.  They have some kind of connection to Star Boy, who has been suffering from memory loss sense he arrived on Earth and is currently a patient in Arkham Asylum.  Whatever these three members of the Fatal Five want, it involves Jessica Cruz, and if she resists their demands, it could lead to mass casualties across the world.

The “DC Animated Universe” (DCAU) is a shared universe of superhero-based animated television series that were produced by Warner Bros. Animation and was based on characters that appeared in DC Comics publications.  The first DCAU TV series was “Batman: The Animated” series, which debuted in September 1992, and the last was “Justice League Unlimited,” which aired its last new episode in May 2006.  Four animated feature films that fit into the DCAU were produced during that original 14-year time period.  Bruce Timm, a writer, producer, character designer, and director of films and animated television series, can be described as the chief architect of the DCAU.  He considers two other animated feature films to be part of the DCAU.  One is 2017's Batman and Harley Quinn, a continuation of the TV series, “Batman: The Animated Series” and its follow up, "The New Batman Adventures" (1997-99).

The other is Justice League vs. the Fatal Five, which is a continuation of the animated TV series, “Justice League (2001-04), and its follow-up, “Justice League Unlimited” (2004-06).  Like “Justice League Unlimited,” Justice League vs. the Fatal Five features a wide array of characters from the universe of DC Comics.  Also, the membership role of the Justice League features characters that don't usually appear as members of the League alongside stalwarts Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman.

Although I have not seen all of its films and TV series, I am a fan of the DCAU, so I was glad that both in the design of the animation and in the spirit of the narrative, Justice League vs. the Fatal Five seems like an extra-long episode of “Justice League Unlimited.”  Having DCAU voice cast regulars, Kevin Conroy (Batman), Susan Eisenberg (Wonder Woman), and George Newbern (Superman), reprise their roles is simply wonderful.  Having one of my favorite writers of animated films, Jim Krieg, work on this this film is a satisfying bonus.

I think Jessica Cruz's story arc and heroic journey make this film such a strong drama.  However, I think Star Boy's story arc is poorly developed; there are times in this film when the character is quite frankly extraneous, which makes his final sacrifice seem hollow in the narrative.  Strangely enough, I really like Elyes Gabel's voice performance as Star Boy.

I like all the voice performances in Justice League vs. the Fatal Five, and, for the most part, the actors make the characters' personalities, conflicts, and conniving seem genuine.  The action sequences are some of the best I've seen in a DC Universe Animated Original Movie.  I highly recommend Justice League vs. the Fatal Five to fans of these movies and especially to fans of the DCAU.  I could have watched another two hours of it.

A

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: REIGN OF THE SUPERMEN

Reign of the Superman (2019)

Running time:  87 minutes (1 hour, 27 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of action violence
DIRECTORS:  Sam Liu
WRITERS:  Jim Krieg and Tim Sheridan (based on characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics)
PRODUCERS:  Sam Liu and Amy McKenna
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Sam Register and James Tucker
EDITOR:  Christopher D. Lozinski
COMPOSER:  Frederik Wiedmann  
ANIMATION STUDIO:  Maven Image Platform

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/ACTION/FANTASY

Starring:  (voices) Jerry O'Connell, Rebecca Romijn, Rainn Wilson, Patrick Fabian, Cress Williams, Cameron Monaghan, Rosario Dawson, Nathan Fillion, Christopher Gorham, Matt Lanter, Shemar Moore, Nyambi Nyambi, Jason O'Mara, Jonathan Adams, Rocky Carroll, Trevor Devall, Paul Eiding, Jennifer Hale, Charles Halford, Erica Luttrell, Max Mittelman, Toks Olagundoye, and Tony Todd

Reign of the Supermen is a 2019 straight-to-video animated superhero film from Warner Bros. Animation and director Sam Liu.  It is the thirty-third film in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies series and is a direct sequel to the 2018 film, The Death of Superman.  The movie takes its story from “Reign of the Supermen!” a 1993 story arc that was part of “The Death of Superman” DC Comics story line and publishing event (1992-93).  In Reign of the Supermen, several new people present themselves as possible successors to Superman, in the wake of his death.

Reign of the Supermen opens six months following the death of Superman at the hands of Doomsday (as seen in The Death of Superman), and the rising crime rate in Metropolis has spread beyond the city.  Meanwhile, four new super-powered beings have emerged to take Superman's place.  Still grieving the loss of Superman and, by extension, his alter-ego, Clark Kent (Jerry O'Connell), reporter Lois Lane (Rebecca Romijn) of The Daily Planet has been investigating the new Supermen by gathering whatever information she can from different sources.

One Superman is a gold-visor wearing, energy blast-shooting vigilante called “The Eradicator.”  Another is “Steel,” the armored hero who is the identity of a young scientist, John Henry Irons (Cress Williams).  The third is a teen clone of Superman created by a scientist working for Lex Luthor (Rainn Wilson), and the public starts calling him “Superboy” (Cameron Monaghan).  The fourth, who seems the most like Superman, is part-man and part machine and is called “Cyborg Superman.”

The four “Supermen” are controversial and mysterious, and one of them is conspiring with Darkseid (Tony Todd) in the lord of Apokolips' plan to invade Earth.  Meanwhile, the Justice League:  Wonder Woman (Rosario Dawson), Batman (Jason O'Mara), Aquaman (Matt Lanter), Cyborg (Shemar Moore), Flash (Christopher Gorham), Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), Hawkman, and Martian Manhunter (Nyambi Nyambi) have been sidelined.  Now, Lois and the three truly heroic Supermen must uncover the mystery of what actually happened to the real Superman if they are going to stop a plot to take over the world.

Some of the central conceits of superhero comic books and their media adaptations are that the superheroes will almost always win; the bad guys will lose; a superhero's death will ultimately not benefit the super-villain; and the villains will plot even in defeat, while the superheroes remain vigilante.  If you are never bored by this, you will generally always like or love superhero fiction.

In the case of Reign of the Supermen, the conceits are alive and well.  While the idea of Superman dying always causes the fanboy in me some internal discomfort, I found myself mostly bored by Reign of the Supermen.  I couldn't wait for this movie to end, but I wanted to finish it in order to write this review.  I did like the four “Supermen” and the drama in the film built around them.  Everything else only mildly interested me.

I found that the battle between Superman and Doomsday that made up the second half of The Death of Superman saved that movie.  The battle that dominates the last act of Reign of the Supermen only made me care about the movie a little more.  I really liked the Supermen of Reign of the Supermen, but not much else about this movie.

B-

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


The text is copyright © 2021 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 DEATH OF SUPERMAN" is a Battle Royale

The Death of Superman (2018)

Running time:  81 minutes (1 hour, 21 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of violence and action including some bloody images.
DIRECTORS:  Sam Liu and Jake Castorena
WRITER:  Peter Tomasi (based on characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics)
PRODUCERS:  Sam Liu and Amy McKenna
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Sam Register and James Tucker
EDITOR:  Christopher D. Lozinski
COMPOSER:  Frederik Wiedmann  
ANIMATION STUDIO:  Studio MIR

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/ACTION/FANTASY

Starring:  (voices) Jerry O'Connell, Rebecca Romijn, Rainn Wilson, Rosario Dawson, Nathan Fillion, Christopher Gorham, Matt Lanter, Shemar Moore, Nyambi Nyambi, Jason O'Mara, Jonathan Adams, Rocky Carroll, Trevor Devall, Paul Eiding, Jennifer Hale, Charles Halford, Erica, Luttrell, Max Mittelman, and Toks Olagundoye

The Death of Superman is a 2018 straight-to-video animated superhero film from Warner Bros. Animation and directors Sam Lui and Jake Castorena.  It is the thirty-second film in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies series.  The movie takes its story from “Doomsday!” (also known as “The Death of Superman”), a story arc that ran in various DC Comics titles in late 1992.  In The Death of Superman movie, Superman battling a seemingly insurmountable foe.

The Death of Superman finds Superman (Jerry O'Connell) at the height of his popularity as a superhero in Metropolis and around the world.  However, Superman has some brewing domestic issues in his civilian life as Clark Kent (Jerry O'Connell).  Clark is dating Lois Lane (Rebecca Romijn), a fellow reporter at The Daily Planet.  Clark's parents, Ma and Pa Kent (Jennifer Hale and Paul Eiding), are visiting, and they will finally meet Lois, but that only forces Clark to face the fact that he has not told Lois that he is Superman.

Elsewhere, without warning, a meteor has crashed on Earth causing trouble above in Earth orbit and below in the ocean depths.  Emerging from the meteor is a gray-skinned, white-haired monster with incredible strength, stamina, and invulnerability.  Also, its skeleton protrudes through its skin in the form of multiple razor-sharp spurs.

The creature, whom Lois dubs “Doomsday,” quickly dispatches the Justice League.  Doomsday beats Wonder Woman (Rosario Dawson), Batman (Jason O'Mara), Aquaman (Matt Lanter), Cyborg (Shemar Moore), Flash (Christopher Gorham), Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), Hawkman, and Martian Manhunter (Nyambi Nyambi) nearly to death.  Now, only Superman stands before the creature, but to defeat him, Superman may lose his own life.

The Death of Superman is not the first time that the “Doomsday”/“The Death of Superman” story line has been adapted into a direct-to-DVD animated film.  The first was 2007's Superman: Doomsday, which I did not care for all that much.  Concerning this newer film, I don't like the graphic design of the characters, who all appear to have anemic faces.  In fact, their heads are all face – odd, angular faces.  I find them a little jarring to look at, but the animation moves smoothly.

I thought the first half of 2018's The Death of Superman was dull, but the second half is a blast to watch.  Doomsday's fights with the other members of the Justice League are filled with bone-crushing blows and near-death intensity.  The Superman vs. Doomsday battle is so powerful that calling it “epic” does not completely describe the insane violence displayed in this literally to-the-death fight.

The character drama between Clark and Lois is also well-developed, and the depiction of the edginess in their relationship keeps the first half of the movie from being a total loss.  This film also includes a strong version of Lex Luthor (Rainn Wilson), one that could have taken over this film.  Ultimately, I am giving The Death of Superman a high recommendation because of the Superman-Doomsday battle.  This fight is like an animated equivalent of a battle one might find in a Disney/Marvel Studios' Avengers films.

B+

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: SUPERMAN: Doomsday

Superman: Doomsday (2007)

Running time:  74 minutes (1 hour, 14 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13
DIRECTOR:  Bruce Timm, Lauren Montgomery, and Brandon Vietti
WRITERS:  Duane Capizzi; from a story by Bruce Timm and Duane Capizzi
PRODUCER:  Bruce Timm
EDITOR:  Joe Gall
COMPOSER: Robert Kral

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/ACTION/DRAMA

Starring:  (voices) Adam Baldwin, Anne Heche, James Marsters, John Di Maggio, Tom Kenny, Swoosie Kurtz, Cree Summer, Ray Wise, and Adam Wylie

Superman: Doomsday is a 2007 direct-to-video animated superhero film.  It is based on “The Death of Superman,” a 1992 story line that ran through DC Comics’ various Superman comic books and that culminated in the death of Superman in Superman #75 (1987 series; cover dated: January 1993).  Superman: Doomsday was the first release in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies from Warner Premiere (a now closed label of Warner Home Video) and Warner Bros. Animation.

In Superman: Doomsday, Lex Luthor (James Marsters), through his company, LexCorp, unleashes a powerful alien monster known as “Doomsday,” from his burial place deep in the Earth.  Doomsday then goes on a murderous and destructive rampage.  It’s up to Superman (Adam Baldwin) to defend the Earth, but at the apparent cost of his life.

Later, after his burial, Superman appears to have risen from the dead.  Lois Lane (Anne Heche), his secret lover, is suspicious.  With the reluctant assistance of fellow Daily Planet reporter, Jimmy Olsen (Adam Wylie), Lois seeks the truth and discovers that Lex Luthor is behind this risen Superman, who certainly doesn’t seem like his old self.

Bruce Timm was known as one of the minds behind the popular animated TV program, “Batman: The Animated Series” (1992-95).  He wears many hats in the production of this straight to video film, Superman: Doomsday, although the look of the animation in this film is different from Timm’s earlier work.  In fact, the character design is streamlined with crisp line work, and the art direction emphasizes rich, dark colors.  Technically, the animation is quite good (although the movement of the characters is often a bit awkward and stiff), which is essential in a film with so many extended, elaborate fight sequences and scenes of destruction and explosions that rival big-budget Hollywood sci-fi and action movies.

The problem is the story and voice acting.  Not only is the narrative’s mood very dark, but the film is often violent, shockingly so, as Doomsday often kills humans – sometimes ever so slightly off screen.  That’s not really a problem, except for very young viewers.  The problem is the leaden pacing and flat mood in what should otherwise be an exciting and riveting movie.  Superman’s death and resurrection just doesn’t have the emotional impact they should have.

Superman: Doomsday is a picture show of pretty and quality animation.  It just doesn’t live up to its potential as an epic story.

C+

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: BATMAN: GOTHAM BY GASLIGHT Powered by Strong Characters

Batman: Gotham by Gaslight – video (2018)

Running time:  78 minutes (1 hour, 18 minutes)
MPAA – R for some violence
PRODUCER/DIRECTOR:  Sam Liu
WRITERS:  Jim Krieg (based on characters from the graphic novel, Gotham by Gaslight, by Brian Augustyn and Mike Mignola)
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Sam Register and Bruce Timm and Benjamin Melniker & Michael Uslan
EDITOR:  Christopher D. Lozinski
COMPOSER:  Frederik Wiedmann  
ANIMATION STUDIO:  The AnswerStudio

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/ACTION/FANTASY

Starring:  (voices) Bruce Greenwood, Jennifer Carpenter, Scott Patterson, John DiMaggio, Grey Griffin, Anthony Head, Bob Joles, Yuri Lowenthal, William Salyers, and Tara Strong

Batman: Gotham by Gaslight is a 2018 straight-to-video animated superhero film from Warner Bros. Animation and director Sam Lui.  It is the thirtieth film in the “DC Universe Animated Original Movies” series.  It is also a loose adaptation of the 1989 Batman graphic novel, Gotham by Gaslight, written by Brian Augustyn and drawn by Mike Mignola and P. Craig Russell.  Batman: Gotham by Gaslight is set in an alternate world in which Batman begins his war on crime in Victorian Age Gotham City just as Jack the Ripper begins killing women in the city.

Batman: Gotham by Gaslight opens in Victorian-era Gotham City.  A serial killer called “Jack the Ripper” is killing Gotham's poor and destitute women, especially in the area of the city known as “Skinner's End.”  Bruce Wayne (Bruce Greenwood) is also operating in the city as the bat-garbed vigilante, “the Batman.”  One night, Batman saves an unwary couple from being robbed by a trio of orphans who are in service of an abusive criminal handler.  At the same time, Pamela Isley, a prostitute and exotic dancer who performs under the name “Ivy the Plant Lady,” encounters Jack the Ripper, who savagely kills her.

Many citizens of Gotham believe that the Batman and Jack are the same man.  Stage actress, Selina Kyle (Jennifer Carpenter), is a protector of the women of “Skinner's End.”  She berates Gotham Police Commissioner James Gordon (Scott Patterson) and Chief of Police Harvey “Bulldog” Bullock (John DiMaggio) for their failure to stop the Ripper murders.  Later, when the Ripper targets Selina, Batman rescues her, but Batman discovers that Jack the Ripper is a formidable opponent who possesses the fighting skill to defeat him.  Initially, Selina rebukes Batman, but soon the two begin working together, even as the city prepares to blame Bruce Wayne for all the Ripper murders.

Writer Jim Krieg, probably one of Warner Bros. Animation's best writers (if not the best, as far as I'm concerned), has fashioned, in Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, a Batman “cinematic universe” that could be as interesting as any other world of Batman films.  Taking the source material (the Gotham by Gaslight comic), Krieg has created a world that has possibilities rather than just being a one-off, alternate-universe spin on Batman.  Batman: Gotham by Gaslight feels like it has a tangible back story behind it and an unknown, but full future ahead of it.

Krieg fills Batman: Gotham by Gaslight with highly-developed versions of familiar Batman characters.  Here, Bruce Wayne and Batman are one and the same; there is no light and dark, separate personalities so much as there is a man who understands the right time and right place to put on the correct public face – or mask, as it may be.

All the supporting characters are strong.  In fact, Batman: Gotham by Gaslight's Selina Kyle could carry her own film.  She is fierce and independent; she is beautiful and personable, even when she is being forceful in her mission to protect poor women.  Hugo Strange (William Salyers) is what some critics might call “deliciously devious,” while Alfred Pennyworth is devious in a benevolent and sly way.  And I can't help but love the “cock robins,” Dickie, Jason, and Timmy.

Batman: Gotham by Gaslight is pretty in its graphic design and art direction, and the animation moves smoothly.  Director Sam Liu oversees a film that not only plays a mystery, but offers an actually mystery that requires Batman and Selina Kyle to do some investigating.  The film's last act – a rousing section of prison escapes, brutal fights, and a burning park – is perfect escapism and also entertainment with a touch of art.  I thought that I might like Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, and I did.  I simply got far more joy out of it than I imagined I would.

A

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


The text is copyright © 2021 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 NEW MUTANTS

The New Mutants (2020)

Running time:  94 minutes (1 hour, 34 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for violent content, some disturbing/bloody images, some strong language, thematic elements and suggestive material
DIRECTOR:  Josh Boone
WRITERS:  Josh Boone and Knate Lee (based on the Marvel Comics characters)
PRODUCERS:  Simon Kinberg, Lauren Shuler Donner, and Karen Rosenfelt
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Peter Deming (D.o.P.)
EDITORS:  Andrew Buckland, Matthew Rundell, and Robb Sullivan
COMPOSER:  Mark Snow

SUPERHERO/HORROR/FANTASY/ACTION

Starring:  Blu Hunt, Maisie Williams, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Heaton, Henry Zaga, Alice Braga, Adam Beach, Thomas Kee, Colbi Gannett, and Happy Anderson

The New Mutants is a 2020 superhero movie from director Josh Boone.  It was 20th Century Fox’s thirteenth and final film film based on Marvel Comics’ X-Men comic book franchise.  The film uses comic book characters and stories created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Bob McLeod and Bill Sienkiewicz.  The New Mutants movie focuses on five young mutants held in a secret facility where they try to deal with their powers, pasts, and sins.

The New Mutants opens with Danielle “Dani” Moonstar (Blu Hunt), a young Cheyenne Native American, experiencing the devastation of her entire reservation by what seems to be an “F5” tornado.  After falling unconscious during the tornado, Dani awakens in an empty hospital room to find herself secured to a bed by restraining straps.

Dani soon meets Dr. Cecilia Reyes (Alice Braga), who comforts Dani.  Dr. Reyes explains that Dani is not an ordinary human being, but is rather a “new mutant,” a mutant who is just awakening to her mutant abilities and powers.  Dr. Reyes also explains that Dani will be confined to this mysterious and unnamed medical facility until they discover what exactly Dani's mutant power is and also until Dani learns to control that power.

Dani is introduced to four other new mutants:  Sam (Charlie Heaton), Illyana (Anya Taylor-Joy), Roberto or “Bobby” (Henry Zaga), and Rahne Sinclair (Maisie Williams).  Rahne befriends Dani and the two set out to discover the secrets of both the facility and the identity of the mysterious entity (Essex Corporation) that controls it.  Dani discovers that she isn't the only one trying to escape the traumas of her past.  Will her mysterious power and her past, personified by a mythical creature called the “Demon Bear,” destroy not only Dani, but also the other new mutants.

Apparently, Josh Boone, the co-writer and director of The New Mutants,” described the film's same-sex love story and subplot between Dani and Rahne as “character-driven stuff.”  That pretty much describes the character drama and development in The New Mutants; it's all just stuff.  Dani and Rahne's gay-teen-puppy-love is actually sweet, and when The New Mutants focuses on that, the film is actually enjoyable.  All the other character-driven … stuff is the usual young adult tropes:  (lame) bullying; (lame) guilt, (lame) grief, and (lame) teen squabbling and conflict.  And the rotten cherry on top is Anya Taylor-Joy's awful, lazy, and deplorable Russian accent as Illyana.

I am a decades-long fan of The New Mutants, going back to the original Marvel Graphic Novel (written by Chris Claremont and drawn by Bob McLeod) in which the characters made their debut and to the first issue of their own comic book, The New Mutants #1 (cover dated: March 1983).  The screenplay for The New Mutants film is not so much an adaptation of any particular New Mutants comic books, but is rather a cherry-picking of a few elements from particular stories like “The Demon Bear Saga” (written by Claremont and drawn by Bill Sienkiewicz).

The New Mutants is an explosive concept, especially considering that it follows kids with traumatic pasts who have largely unknown and untested, dangerous extraordinary powers.  The New Mutants film is a misfire instead of an explosion.  It is not that this film's story is incoherent; it is simply an easy-to-follow, but boring story.  I wanted the characters to save themselves and to have a happy ending because I simply wanted this tiresome and uninspiring movie to end.

When I first heard that 20th Century Fox was making a horror movie set in the X-Men franchise, I thought that this film could be a disaster, but I secretly hoped that they could pull it off.  But my first instincts were right, and luckily Disney absorbed Fox and put an end to Fox's parade of trashy X-Men movies.  As bad as The New Mutants is (and it is awful), its ending also signals the end of a nightmare series of movies in a franchise that had a very promising start back in 2000 with the film simply entitled, X-Men.  I won't recommend The New Mutants to anyone, even to the fans that feel they have to watch every X-Men movie.

D

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint or syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: X-MEN: DARK PHOENIX Doesn't Get the "Phoenix Saga" Right, Either

Dark Phoenix (2019)

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

Running time:  113 minutes (1 hour, 53 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action including some gun play, disturbing images, and brief strong language
DIRECTOR:  Simon Kinberg
WRITERS:  Simon Kinberg (based on Marvel Comics characters)
PRODUCERS:  Hutch Parker, Simon Kinberg, Lauren Shuler Donner, and Todd Hallowell
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Mauro Fiore
EDITOR:  Lee Smith
COMPOSER:  Hans Zimmer

SUPERHERO/SCI-FI/ACTION/DRAMA

Starring:  James McAvoy, Sophie Turner, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Evan Peters, Tye Sheridan, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Alexandra Shipp, Summer Fontana, Scott Shepherd, Ato Essandoh, and Jessica Chastain

Dark Phoenix is a 2019 superhero movie from writer-director Simon Kinberg.  It is 20th Century Fox’s twelfth film based on Marvel Comics’ X-Men comic book franchise.  This movie is also a sequel to X-Men: Apocalypse (2016).  In Dark Phoenix (also known as X-Men: Dark Phoenix), one of the X-Men begins to develop incredible powers that will force the rest of the X-Men to decide if this one mutant's life is worth more than all of humanity.

Dark Phoenix opens in 1975 and introduces eight-year-old Jean Grey (Summer Fontana) and depicts the automobile accident that changes her life and brings Charles Xavier/Professor X (James McAvoy) into her life.  Then, the story moves to 1992 and to Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.  There, Xavier has turned the X-Men into what some describe as a team of superheroes that steps in to protect and help mankind when no one else can.

The latest emergency involves a distress signal from a recently launched space shuttle, which has been critically damaged by a solar flare-like energy.  Xavier sends his strike team, “the X-Men”:  Hank McCoy/Beast (Nicholas Hoult), Raven/Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence), Peter Maximoff/Quicksilver (Evan Peters), Jean Grey (Sophie Turner), Scott Summers/Cyclops (Tye Sheridan), Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler (Kodi Smit-McPhee), and Ororo Munroe/Storm (Alexandra Shipp) to rescue the astronauts aboard the space shuttle.  Raven goes along on the mission, but she is furious that Xavier puts his students in danger for the rest of humanity, which she still regards with suspicion.

The X-Men arrive in their jet, the Blackbird, to find the situation rapidly deteriorating and the strange energy mass approaching the shuttle.  While saving the astronauts, Jean is struck by the energy and absorbs it into her body.  This apparently helps her to miraculously survive the blast of the shuttle explosion.  The X-Men and Xavier's other students start calling Jean “Phoenix” because of her miraculously survival.

However, the result of absorbing that energy causes Jean's psychic powers to be greatly amplified.  In turn, that causes her emotional state to begin to deteriorate, leading to tragedy.  Soon, the X-Men are hunting Jean Grey, and so are the X-Men's adversary/rival, Erik Lensherr/Magneto (Michael Fassbender), and also the U.S. military.  Vuk, the leader of a shape-shifting alien race known as the D'Bari, is also searching for Jean, specifically for the power Jean harbors inside her.  Can Xavier and the X-Men save Phoenix, or will their act of salvation doom humanity?

Both film adaptations of the classic X-Men comic book story arc, “The Dark Phoenix Saga,” 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand and 2019's Dark Phoenix, fail to approach the riveting melodrama and enthralling soap opera that readers found and continue to find in Marvel Comics's The X-Men #129-138 (publication cover dates:  January to October 1980).  The writers of both films alter the core original story – to the movies' detriment.

Writer-director Simon Kinberg apparently directed some of 2014's X-Men: Days of Future Past and much or most of 2016's X-Men: Apocalypse, although Bryan Singer is credited as the director of both films.  I consider both films to be disappointments, one more than the other.  True to form, Simon Kinberg delivers in Dark Phoenix a film that is mostly a dud.

The storytelling feels contrived, and the screenwriting offers laughable concepts, especially the entire D'Bari alien subplot; that's just some stupid shit.  Dark Phoenix is one of two final films in 20th Century Fox's X-Men film franchise (the other being the long-delayed The New Mutants, which was finally released in 2020).  I say that Dark Phoenix is deeply disappointing, but honestly, I did not expect much of it, from the moment I first heard that it was going into production.  In fact, this film is a devolution from the franchise's peak, which was released 16 years prior to Dark Phoenix, the fantastic X2: X-Men United (2003).

Even the acting is bad.  Playing Vuk the alien is the lowest low point of Jessica Chastain's career, which includes two Academy Award nominations.  James McAvoy as Xavier, Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, and Michael Fassbender as Erik are overwrought, and when they are trying to have serious conversations, they deliver hackneyed and derivative dialogue and unoriginal speeches.  Maybe their bad acting is a result of uninspired script writing.  However, I did find that Tye Sheridan as Scott, Kodi Smit-McPhee as Kurt, and Alexandra Shipp as Ororo made the most of their scenes, especially Sheridan.  If his Scott Summers/Cyclops were the center of Dark Phoenix, the film would be much better.  Because of him, I am giving this film a higher grade than I planned to do.

Dark Phoenix just doesn't work, and it rarely connected with me.  I don't think that it will connect with audiences the way some of the best and most popular X-Men films did.  Oh, well – let's hope that Marvel Studios does better with its planned X-Men films...

C

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint or syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: "Wonder Woman 1984" is Pretty, Empty and Goofy

Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)

Running time:  151 minutes (2 hours, 31 minutes)
MPAA – PG - 13 for sequences of action and violence
DIRECTOR:  Patty Jenkins
WRITERS:  Patty Jenkins, Geoff Johns, and Dave Callahan; from a story by Patty Jenkins and Geoff Johns (based on characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics and created by William Moulton Marston)
PRODUCERS:  Charles Roven, Zack Snyder, Deborah Snyder, Patty Jenkins, Gal Gadot, and Stephen Jones
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Matthew Jensen (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Richard Pearson
COMPOSER:  Hans Zimmer

SUPERHERO/FANTASY/HISTORICAL

Starring:  Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen, Robin Wright, Kristen Wiig, Pedro Pascal, Lucian Perez, Kristoffer Polaha, Natasha Rothwell, Ravi Patel, Oliver Cotton, Lilly Aspell, and Lynda Carter

Wonder Woman 1984 is a 2020 superhero fantasy film from director Patty Jenkins.  The film stars the DC Comics superhero, Wonder Woman, who first appeared in All Star Comics #8 (1941) and was created by writer William Moulton Marston (with artist Harry George Peter).  It is a direct sequel to 2017's Wonder Woman and is also the ninth film in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) film series.  In Wonder Woman 1984, our titular hero must battle a colleague and a businessman whose desire to have everything they ever wanted and much more could destroy the world.

Wonder Woman 1984 opens on the island of Themyscira, the home of the Amazons.  There, young Diana (Lilly Aspell) is trying to be the most accomplished Amazon.  In an athletic event against older Amazons, young Diana must also learn an important lesson about getting what she wants.

The story moves to 1984.  Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) works cultural anthropology and archaeology at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.  Secretly, Diana is also the superhero known as “Wonder Woman.”  At work, Diana meets and eventually befriends a new museum employee, Barbara Minerva (Kristen Wiig), a shy woman whose professions are geology, gemology, and lithology, in addition to being a cryptozoologist.  Barbara is barely seen by her co-workers, and she comes to envy Diana, whose radiance draws people to her.

One day, the FBI asks the museum to identify some stolen antiquities, and among them is a mysterious item, a “citrine” that turns out to be called the “Dreamstone.”  Also interested in this item is a failing businessman, Maxwell “Max” Lord (Pedro Pascal), who believes that the stone has “wish-granting” powers that can both save his failing oil company, “the Black Gold Cooperative,” and make him the powerful man he has always wanted to be.  No one really understands how dangerous the Dreamstone can be, even Diana, who gets her deceased lover, Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), back into her life.

I like that Wonder Woman 1984 deals with such themes as immediate gratification, getting things the easy way without working for it, cheating to get what you want, and the desire to have something before you are ready to have it.  However, it is the execution of these themes that is problematic.  For a film that beats viewers over the head with the idea that it is bad to get whatever you wish for, Wonder Woman 1984 is filled with magical thinking.  This film's story is illogical, nonsensical, silly, and full of pretty pictures while being largely empty and devoid of substance.

Having Steve Trevor's spirit possess the body of an actual living man and control it is a horrible idea.  Supposedly, co-writer/director Patty Jenkins says that the Trevor subplot is a reference to the body-switching trope found in films like Freaky Friday: The Movie (1976) and Big (1988).  If true, this explanation is lame.  Having Wonder Woman basically hold a man hostage so that she can use his body to play kissy-face with her dead lover's spirit does not seem like something Wonder Woman would actually do.  I won't go into the non-consensual element of this relationship...

However, that is just one element of the entire nonsense that is having Steve Trevor in this film.  In one sequence, it just happens to be the Fourth of July, which leads to Wonder Woman and Trevor stealing a conveniently located jet and flying through the clouds that are lit up by the holiday fireworks below.  Wonder Woman asks Trevor what makes flying as a pilot so special to him, and the dude says that it is because of the wind and the air...

I'm not even sure why this movie is called Wonder Woman 1984, as very little about that year really permeates this film.  1984 seems like nothing more than an arbitrary date, while calling this film “Wonder Woman: The Year of Schmaltz and Syrupy Sentiment” would seem more accurate.

Nothing epitomizes Wonder Woman 1984's nonsensical, trite, contrived nature than the “lead” villain, Max Lord.  Heaven knows that Pedro Pascal gives it his all in order to fill the vast emptiness that is Max, but even his acting skills can't save this bomb of a character.  Patty Jenkins and Geoff Johns' hackneyed script gives Max a child, Alistair (Lucian Perez), a pensive-faced waif who just loves his daddy no matter how much daddy ignores and minimizes him.  The presence of the child only emphasizes how lame Max Lord is.

The better villain is Kristen Wiig's Cheetah (who is not called that in the film), but the script relegates Barbara Minerva/Cheetah to side-piece status.  Minerva and Cheetah had the potential to be an excellent counter to Diana Prince/Wonder Woman, but no, the man-villain must be the center of attention.  Also, I'm pretty sure that Cheetah appears merely for licensing purposes – perhaps, as a hard-to-find, low-run, female action figure.

Just as she was the last time, Gal Gadot is gorgeous in this film, but whereas the Wonder Woman she played in the original film was so strong, independent, and fierce, the Wonder Woman of the sequel is a clueless broad who pines after the ghost of a long dead man.  Everything the heroine of this sequel does is either strange or thoughtless, and she puts herself and others in danger cause she's just gotta have her (dead) man!  Wonder Woman 1984 turns Gadot's Wonder Woman from historical in the first film to hysterical in the sequel.

The only reason that I am not giving Wonder Woman 1984 a grade of “D” or even of “F” is because I was so happy to see Lynda Carter, TV's Wonder Woman of the 1970s, in a mid end credits scene.  Yeah, that's a spoiler that I didn't warn you about, but hey, I am warning you about the rest of Wonder Woman 1984.  Now, dear readers, you can watch it while expecting much less of it than I did.

C

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: JUSTICE LEAGUE- The Joss Whedon Cut is a Dull Blade

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

Justice League (2017)
Running time: 120 minutes (2 hours)
MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi violence and action
DIRECTORS:  Zack Snyder and Joss Whedon
WRITERS:  Chris Terrio and Joss Whedon; from a story by Chris Terrio and Zack Snyder (based on characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics)
PRODUCERS:  Charles Roven, Jon Berg, Geoff Johns, and Deborah Snyder
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Fabian Wagner (D.o.P.)
EDITORS:  Martin Walsh, David Brenner, and Richard Pearson
COMPOSER:  Danny Elfman

SUPERHERO/FANTASY

Starring:  Ray Fisher, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, Henry Cavill, Ezra Miller, Amy Adams, Jeremy Irons, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen, J.K. Simmons, Amber Heard, Joe Morton, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Anthony Wise, and Ciarán Hinds (voice)

Justice League is a 2017 superhero film officially directed by Zack Snyder, but completed by director Joss Whedon.  The film is based on the DC Comics superhero team, the Justice League of America, that first appeared as a group in the comic book, The Brave and the Bold #28 (cover dated: March 1960).  Justice League is the fourth film in the DCEU (DC Extended Universe) film series.  Justice League the film sees a group of allies slowly come together to face a threat to Earth.

Justice League introduces a being named “Steppenwolf” (voice of Ciarán Hinds).  Thousands of years ago, Steppenwolf and his legions of “Parademons” tried to take over the Earth using the combined energies of three “Mother Boxes,” but he was defeated.  In the present, it is two years after the death of Superman (as seen in the film, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice), and his death has apparently triggered the reactivation of the Mother Boxes.

Now, Steppenwolf has returned to Earth, and although he is unaware of Steppenwolf, Batman/Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) knows that something is wrong because he has been battling the scattered Parademons that have been appearing in Gotham City and elsewhere.  Batman also knows that what is happening is too big for him to fight alone, so he has begun the difficult task of finding and recruiting other “metahumans” (superheroes) into a team that can take on the biggest threats to Earth.

Wonder Woman/Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) is familiar with Steppenwolf and is ready to unite.  The new young hero, Flash/Barry Allen (Ezra Miller), is more than happy to be part of a team.  However, the mysterious undersea metahuman, The Aquaman/Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa), brushes off Batman.  Woman Woman approaches the techno-organic metahuman, Cyborg/Victor Stone (Ray Fisher), whose powers and abilities are constantly evolving, but he also brushes off the idea of joining Batman and Wonder Woman's cause.

Even if Batman, Wonder Woman, and Flash can convince Aquaman and Cyborg to join, their powers may not be enough to stop Steppenwolf and the Parademons.  They need Superman/Clark Kent (Henry Cavill), but he is dead.  So can this “Justice League” change that?

Zack Snyder's first two films in the DCEU film series, Man of Steel (2013) and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), are interesting films.  Man of Steel contains moments of true beauty and is an imaginative and poignant retake on the story of Superman.  Batman v Superman is filled with great moments and has several brilliantly-staged action set pieces.  However, both films are at time foolishly bombastic and bombastically foolish.

Zack Snyder began production on what was to be his third DCEU film, Justice League, in early 2016, but left the film in May 2017 in order to deal with the aftermath of the death of his daughter.  Warner Bros. Pictures brought in Joss Whedon to finish the film.  Whedon is beloved in fandom because he is the creator of the long-running “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” television series.  He also wrote and directed two films for Marvel Studios, Marvel's The Avengers (2012) and Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), each of which grossed over a billion dollars in worldwide box office.

Whedon apparently changed the story that Zack Snyder's version of Justice League would have told – to some extent.  I have read that as much as seventy-five percent of the Justice League film that reached movie theaters in late 2017 is the result of Whedon's reshoots of the film.

The result is a film that does not move or sound like either Man of Steel or Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, nor does it have the genuine sense of superhero team dynamics, conflict, and melodrama that Whedon's Avengers films have.  Whedon's Justice League is neither bombastic nor foolish.  It is a collection of crescendos that fade away.  Justice League seems like a collection of loosely connected subplots and action scenes taken from another movie and stuck together to make a new blasé movie.

In Justice League, the dialogue is mostly awful.  All the emotions (grief, exhalation, anger, etc.) seem forced or outright phony.  The actors struggle with the mediocre character writing; sometimes, it gets so bad that it seems as if they are struggling to act.  Steppenwolf is a scary villain that is played as comically histrionic.  Also, the film treats the obviously dangerous Paramdemons as nothing more than props to be destroyed by the powers of the members of the Justice League.

There are a few good moments in Justice League.  The revival of Superman and the subsequent battle between the League and the Man of Steel is genuinely intense.  Every time I watch it, my attention is glued to the screen.

Justice League is not a bad movie; it doesn't have the gumption to be good or bad.  It is a movie that is without a heart, and it comes across as nothing more than an assembly line product put out to benefit a movie studio financially.  It certainly was not put out to truly entertain the audiences that wanted to be entertained by it.  Zack Snyder's version of Justice League will make its debut as Zack Snyder's Justice League on the HBO Max streaming service soon (as of this writing).  Perhaps, it would have been better that Justice League been delayed than it be released in 2017 as a mostly flavorless misfire.

C

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

The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Movie Review: BATMAN AND HARLEY QUINN Has Lovable Heroes, Dull Villains

BATMAN AND HARLEY QUINN – video (2017)

Running time:  74 minutes (1 hour, 24 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sexual content, language, violence and action, and for rude humor
DIRECTOR:  Sam Liu
WRITERS:  Bruce Timm and Jim Krieg; from a story by Bruce Timm (based on characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics)
EDITOR:  Christopher D. Lozinski
COMPOSERS:  Kristopher Carter Michael McCuistion Lolita Ritmanis
ANIMATION STUDIO:  DR Movie

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/ACTION/FANTASY

Starring:  (voices) Kevin Conroy, Melissa Rauch, Loren Lester, Paget Brewster, Kevin Michael Richardson, John DiMaggio, Eric Bauza, Robin Atkin Downes, Trevor Devall, Rob Paulsen, Mindy Sterling, and Bruce Timm

Batman and Harley Quinn is a 2017 straight-to-video animated superhero film from Warner Bros. Animation and director Sam Lui.  The film shares a connection and design style with the animated television series, “The New Batman Adventures” (1997-99), and is spiritually related to that series' predecessor, “Batman: The Animated Series” (1992-95), which is the series in which Harley Quinn made her first appearance.  In Batman and Harley Quinn, Batman and Nightwing are forced to team with Harley Quinn in order to stop a global threat.

Batman and Harley Quinn opens with Batman (Kevin Conroy) and his partner, Nightwing (Loren Lester), who was once known as Robin, the Boy Wonder.  The duo has discovered that the villainess, Poison Ivy / Pamela Isley (Paget Brewster) has teamed up with Jason Woodrue, the Floronic Man (Kevin Michael Richardson), an alien plant creature that shares Poison Ivy's desire to give plants supremacy of Earth over humanity.  Poison Ivy and Floronic Man plan to create their own viral version of the “bio-restorative formula” that transformed Dr. Alec Holland into the Swamp Thing (John DiMaggio).  To that end, they have kidnapped a scientist, Dr. Harold Goldblum (Rob Paulsen), and forced him to help them replicate the formula.

Ivy and Woodrue are unaware that their altered formula could destroy all life (human, animal, and plant), so Batman and Nightwing must stop them before they finish their formula.  However, “the Dynamic Duo” are struggling in their mission to find the villains and reluctantly turn to Ivy's best friend, Harley Quinn (Melissa Rauch), in the hopes that she will have an idea or two on where to find Ivy.  But Harley has gone into hiding after her most recent recent parole from imprisonment.  Finding Harley won't be easy, and who says she wants to help Batman and Nightwing find her BFF – best friend forever!  And if she does cooperate, can Batman and Nightwing trust Harley?

Bruce Timm was one of the main creative forces behind “Batman: The Animated Series” and “The New Batman Adventures,” as well as other wonderful animated television series that featured DC Comics superheroes.  So I am always happy when he returns to his corner of the animated DC Universe, this time as a writer and executive producer.  One of my favorite animation writers, Jim Krieg, co-wrote Batman and Harley Quinn with Timm.  Voice actor Kevin Conroy, who is beloved for his work playing the voice of Batman / Bruce Wayne on several animated TV series and films, also returns as the voice of Batman for this film.

So I have a few reasons to love Batman and Harley Quinn, and I did indeed enjoy it, but it isn't one of the better direct-to-DVD animated DC Universe films.  The Floronic Man is an uninteresting bag of wind as a villain despite the best efforts of talented voice actor, Kevin Michael Richardson.  Also the Poison Ivy of this film is shallow, and looks weird.

The plot is lame, but their a few things that make me like Batman and Harley Quinn.  First, Timm and Krieg offer strong takes on the characters of Batman, Nightwing, and Harley, and the relationship dynamic between them as a trio or as a trio of duos sparkles with wit and genuine feeling.  Secondly, there are some surprisingly magical moments in this film, such as the karaoke medley in the middle of the film.  The Sarge Steel (John DiMaggio) and A.R.G.U.S. subplot is nice.  Finally, I love the design of the animation and the animation in general in this film.  It is as if “The New Batman Adventures” returned from the old cartoons graveyard for an hour or so.

Despite my reservations concerning its weak plot and villains, I highly recommend Batman and Harley Quinn to fans of Bruce Timm's 1990s Batman TV shows.  When it comes to animation overseen by Timm, I'll take anything and everything I can get.

B+

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


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Amazon wants me to inform you that the link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the ad below AND buy something(s).