Fantastic 4 is it worth it?

             

              I honestly went into this one with an open mind, but if I had to sum up the movie in one word it would be, disappointing. Clocking in at 1 hour and 45 min in length this movie just feels like its missing a 30 min segment right smack in the middle. Now be warned I’m not going to bother sparing any spoilers in this review (though I’ll do my best) because my first recommendation would be to not bother spending your hard earned cash on this summer action flick. Instead I would recommend you go see the new Mission Impossible instead. 

                One of the first issues right off the bat for this movie was its timing. Coming out so soon after Ant-man swept the Box office, was a poor decision. I honestly forgot this movie was even coming out until I started seeing news about it on the web. I’m all for having 3 superheroes movies a year but releasing them this close together didn't do them any favors.

However the overall issue with Fantastic Four is the simply empty story. Completely devoid of anything remotely original, and simultaneously trying too hard to be nothing like its predecessors ended up creating a dull and pointless experience that literally had me saying to myself “wait that’s it” as the final fight scene began. Another major fault of this film was its complete predictability. Not only is the entire film shown in the preview, but from 20 min in I could already explain to you how the entire plot was going to play out.

The movie spends basically the first half just getting to the point where they get their powers and then skips a year ahead to where they supposedly have now mastered their abilities yet still are not a team. The whole time I was wondering why we didn’t get to see them learn how to use their new found powers and was missing out on all the cool action that seemed like it would have actually added more depth to the plot. Especially since one of the biggest parts from the trailer (the Thing falling out of a plane to break into something) wasn’t even included in the actual film.

The final fight came down to the same lame fight as the first Fantastic 4 movie, with the whole “lets all attack him one at a time and get our butts whooped then learn our lesson and fight together so then we’ll win!“ cliché. All of which is accompanied by the now standard blue energy pillar of doom that has been used far too many times recently.

 

 I’m a firm believer that a good villain is what can truly make or break a story. It’s villains like Joker, Bane, Loki, Ultron, Vader, and Voldemort who are compelling, engaging, and sometimes witty. The kind who make you go oooh this guy is awesome (or scary). They make you think, they have complex and interesting motives for their actions and in the end, often make a more lasting impression than the actual heroes.

Dr. Doom unfortunately fails to be any of these things.  I still can’t really tell you why he wanted to destroy the world. He basically was just suddenly evil for no real reason. It was almost like they said "hey he’s been off screen for 30ish min, now he’s the bad guy. Ok now everybody fight!" Even his master plan of coming back to earth for no reason just to then turn around and return to the other world to destroy earth makes absolutely no sense to me. What was the whole point? Why not just stay there in the first place? I can honestly say that i enjoyed the first set of Fantastic 4 movies better than this one and I didn't even really like those much either.

While I have nothing bad to say about the acting, the visuals were nothing special and the action scenes always felt like they about to get awesome just before they ended. The same goes for the drama and relationships between the characters. Each time it felt like some sort of real depth was about to be reached between the variety of team members, the scene would end, leaving you with just a feeling that something was missing. Unfortunately that’s just the general feeling I was left with after watching this film. If it had been 30 min longer then maybe I would have something good to say about it but overall it just was lacking anything of real worth.

Ant-Man Spoiler Free Review

 

 

Ant-Man introduces a new hero to our favorite Marvel universe and does so in a way that feels just different enough from the previous installments to be fresh and engaging while still holding to the familiar feel and pattern that the other movies have drawn us in with before. This summer fun movie is chalk full of humor much like Guardians of the Galaxy was last year. Fans of the series will be quick to notice many of the Easter eggs and nods to other characters from past films, and eagle eyed fans might see some of the overarching plot points that may come up in future installments (Keep your eyes peeled because this film is loaded with them). Don’t go in expecting the grand scale and epic awesomeness from Age of Ultron, this is a movie about a hero who becomes the size of an Ant after all. However much to the films credit the producers of Ant-Man were very much aware of this weakness and instead of attempting to convince you Ant-Man is just as awesome and powerful as the likes of Thor and Iron man they instead poke fun at themselves in a way that you can’t help but laugh at with them. Overall I certainly enjoyed this film, and while I might not be running to the store to buy it on Blu-ray the day it comes out, I would definitely say it is well worth a watch, and can’t be missed if you’re a fan of the Avengers.

PS: If you’re willing to pay the extra bit to see it in 3D you won’t be disappointed. Unlike Age of Ultron which was just fine with or without 3D, Ant-Man’s filming style utilizes everything 3D has to offer and is in my opinion well worth the extra couple bucks.

Guess what happened at Comic-Con this year!

• Batman vs Superman Full Length Trailer

Perhaps one of the biggest reveals of all of Comi-Con was the brand new full trailer for the Batman vs Superman movie. With a trailer over 2 min long we got an in depth look at how the dynamics of the DC cinematic universe will be shaped after the events of Man of Steel. Bruce Wayne is clearly shown as having been present the day metropolis was practically leveled during Superman’s fight with Zod one of the buildings is even shown to be one of Wayne enterprises! (No wonder he doesn’t trust Superman) we also see that Superman is clearly being held accountable for his actions by the government and is seemingly asked to appear at a hearing of sorts. But most importantly I think was the reveal of Wonder Woman in action! I don’t know anything about the actress Gal Gadot but she looks the part and will clearly be featured heavily in the movie. I for one am incredibly excited to see a female heroine on screen. Hopefully this will lead to more in the future. Other awesome parts from the trailer showed us our first real look at Lex Luthor and his amazing locks of hair (I’m sure he’ll lose them eventually though since Lex ain’t really Lex unless he’s bald) along with evidence of past Robins implying that characters like Nightwing and the Red Hood may already be present! And then there is of course all the action and destruction. This movie looks like it will follow in The Man of Steel’s footsteps with a heavy helping of both drama and massive action. From what I’ve seen this movie is going to be amazing!

• Suicide Squad Trailer

Another heavily anticipated event this year was the new Suicide Squad trailer which gave us our first glimpse at what the deadly team will look like in action. Most characters will likely be unfamiliar if you’re not a hardcore DC comics fan. With the exception of course being Harley Quinn. I for one really hope that they don’t over sexualize her character. While Harley is supposed to be very pretty I find that anytime a character is made to be nothing more than a sex object they lose any potential of actually being a character I can care about. Hopefully they can balance her out by giving her more depth with her twisted relationship to the joker. SPEAKING OF WHICH! We finally get to see Jared Leto as the Joker! Oh man is it gonna be good! While this new take on his appearance is going to take some getting used to I swear if I had closed my eyes for that last scene I wouldn’t be able to tell you if it was classic Joker or the Heath Ledger version. It sounds to me like Jared Leto is going to capture his personality with the perfect amount of brutal cruelty mixed with light hearted humor. Keeping my fingers crossed on this one.

• Flash Season 2 Trailer

If you are even remotely a fan of superheroes you should be watching The Flash! It is now one of my favorite TV shows of all time! This weekend at comic-con we were treated to the first trailer for The Flash season two which introduces a new character to the show. None other than the speedster Zoom. I can’t wait to see how he changes things up for Barry Allen this fall.

• First look at Apocalypse

Images have leaked online showing us what the villain Apocalypse will look like in the next installment of the X-men franchise.

He looks freaking cool! Have to wonder what he's seemingly doing in the mansions hideout though...

• Hugh Jackman's Last Movie 

On a more bitter sweet note Hugh Jackman confirmed the rumors that his next and last movie as Wolverine will be based on the comic line Old Man Logan. I personally haven’t read it (yet) but it is reputed to be one of the best Wolverine comic stories ever made. It’ll be sad to see him go but I think it’s a smart move to quit while he’s ahead.

• Behind The Scenes at Star Wars Episode 7 

 

The spectators of the massive H hall showing for the Star Wars episode 7 panel were treated to a behind the scenes look at the making of the movie. In it they boasted their heavy use of practical effects over relying on CGI. Proving again that they fully intend to keep consistent with the original trilogy while simultaneously utilizing all the capabilities that modern tech has to offer. Watch out this may still be the biggest movie of the year folks.

• Deadpool Trailer (language)

The highly anticipated Deadpool trailer finally debuted to hundreds of fans last weekend, and it almost broke the internet, in the process(again). They are clearly capturing our favorite Merc with a mouth the way he is supposed to be. However with it being a rated R movie this one is definitely not going to one for the whole family. Looks like a lot of fun still.

• Green Arrow Himself Ushering in the New Season

I love the costume! and with the producers trying to take a page out of the Flash playbook and going for a lighter, more fun approach this season I fully expect this to be one of the best seasons yet.

•  Fear the Walking Dead Trailer

One of my personal favorites for upcoming stuff was the first full length trailer for the new Walking dead spin off show Fear the Walking Dead. This show has me more excited than any other right now. It’s going to be very cool to get to see how the world falls apart when the outbreak begins. This should add a fresh new perspective to an already awesome show.

• Walking Dead Season 6 Trailer

As has become tradition now, we were also graced with yet another preview for the next season of the walking dead. Based on what I saw it looks like this is going to be one of the most intense seasons we've seen! If only we didn’t have to wait all the way till October :(

• New Standalone Green Lantern Movie
  

 

Not necessarily big news but it was announced that the Next Green Lantern Movie will be titled Green Lantern Corps and will feature both Hal Jordan and my personal favorite the Black Green Lantern John Stewart. 

• Batman the killing Joke Animated Movie

 DC has consistently been pumping out two or three animated movies each year. Most of which are aimed to young adults who were fans of the cartoons growing up. I would highly recommend you give them a look if you’re in the mood for a movie some night and don’t know what to watch. The next one on DC’s list will be based on none other than The Killing Joke. This comic is regarded almost undisputedly to be the best Joker story ever written! The fact that they are going to make it into a full length animated movie has me ecstatic to say the least! If you’re a joker fan at all then you should definitely check this one out when its released.

• Other Stuff

Other side notes included a cast photo of the new Ghost Busters in Uniform,

Confirmation that the cult classic TV show Firefly will likely be returning, with the original cast

a new trailer for the Heroes TV show reboot,



More information showing that sadley Superman won't be in the new supergirl show comming this fall but the show still looks like its going to be lots of fun with plenty of girl power superheroine action. Check out the trailer this is going to be good!

Also there was news that actor Wesley Snipes has been in talks with Marvel about bringing back the Blade franchise again.... kinda cool

All together this Comic-Con delivered us an awesome amount of material to be excited for.. DC clearly took control this year (with the absence of anything Avengers related it’s really no surprise). Now we just have to wait and see what we get from Salt Lake Comic-con which is coming up fast!