Robots--Angry Robots

I finally watched Avengers: Age of Ultron two weeks ago and just tonight I watched Terminator Genisys (pffftt..Genisys). I was going to do separate posts for each film but man was I busy these past few weeks. You know, the pains of being me. Busy doing nothing. Busy sleeping. Busy having fun. Busy talking about other people. Anyways, I was probably the last person on Earth to watch Avengers: Age of Ultron. The main reason I watched Genisys is Khaleesi. I love Emilia Clarke. I loved the series too but even the first trailer was unconvincing.

Avengers: Age of Ultron
The movie starts out with a bang. With that one tracking shot that includes an amazing slow-motion sequence with all the heroes in one frame. After that, it just felt rushed. The creation of Ultron comes out of nowhere and just snap, he got made and mad. Then the film just goes to a static phase. It just treads until the Hawkeye twist then treads again until the battle scenes in Sokovia. Especially that slow-mo, no music scene. Best scene ever. For all the faults in this film, Joss Whedon proves that only he can make this kind of spectacle with amazing shots in it. I'm quite skeptic about The Russo Brothers taking over Avengers III, they did an okay job with directing but the best thing about The Winter Soldier is the game-changing story.

The one that bugged me the most with Avengers: Age of Ultron was not the overabundance of action scenes, of course. But the continuity. What happened to Tony Stark between the events after Iron Man 3 and this film? Didn't he quit being Iron Man already? Also there's suddenly a romantic thing going on with the now curly-short haired again Natascha and Bruce Banner. What happened to the over-the-roof chemistry between Black Widow and Cap? And what was Thor doing in that pool?? The actors are doing very good jobs, I'm loving Elizabeth Olsen than ever before. Her Scarlet Witch was among the highlights of the movie, especially that shot at the ending. Man, I love her so much. Avengers: Age of Ultron: rated 3/4

Terminator Genisys
The film actually isn't that bad. But then again Paramount signed their death certificate when they decided to spoil the fact that John Connor is the big baddie. If it's only in the trailers, I can take it but not on the fucking posters too. Also the fact that I keep telling myself that the Entertainment Weekly scoop about Sarah Connor calling T-800 'Pops' is a big lie only makes the reality so funny. They actually call him Pops, which translates to Japanese as Grandpa... Why. Let's start with the good parts first, the film is filled with cool imagery and pretty rad sci-fi time travel twists. The action scenes are decent too. The actors are good as well especially Jason Clarke as John Connor. I never get the hate towards Jai Courtney but he could lead this film.

The thing that bogged down this movie is the over-reliance to James Cameron's masterpieces. They messed with the original timeline so bad. But unlike Star Trek, which immediately introduced a different timeline which is still existing alongside the original, Genisys relied on the viewers' knowledge on the original timeline to move forward. It's harder for the fans to accept while the newcomers will just get lost in what's happening and who's who. There are so many plot holes about the time travel too. For example, Kyle Reese and Sarah Connor time travels to 2017 and they haven't had sex yet, so by 2029, John Connor would at least only be 12 years old. Would they bother to create a time machine just in order for them to have sex? Also the film relied too much on the Terminator-can't-smile joke and random music breaks for comedic effect. Too much homages and nostalgia that the film couldn't stand on its own. It's not working guys. I'm just glad that it's not as bad as I expected though. And watching this in Atmos helps make the film better too. I'm not seeing this film spawning any sequel though. Oh and check this line out it's when John told Arnold: "You are just an old relic from a deleted timeline" So mean... Terminator Genisys: rated 2/4.


Next: Inside Out is already released but all dubbed in Japanese and the title became Inside Head.
I guess see you when I watch Jurassic World.

Fire and Blood and Sand

Second summer movie! I've heard so many good things about Mad Max: Fury Road and finally I've got the chance to see it--in a large screen, in 3D, in Dolby Atmos. Life is just complete. I've never seen the original Mel Gibson films but I want to though. But this film just looks awesome. The film stars Tom Hardy as Max Rockatansky but the real star here is Charlize Theron as Imperator Furiosa. Firstly, that's an awesome name--Furiosa and she's so badass. I was convinced I'm going to see the film in cinemas since they released the Comic-Con footage a year ago. That was so perfect I don't need to see anymore trailers. So fun yet so risky putting your money on a director whose film credits since 2000 only includes two Happy Feet films.

The story is set in a post-apocalyptic world where all that's left of the world is a great desert. A warrior named Furiosa is looking to go back to her homeland by stealing a war tank from a cult group leader Immortan Joe which infuriates him. She met Max and helped by him escaping Immortan and another two clans chasing them. The film then plays out as one long chase scene--one long awesome chase scene.

The film is insane. The story is so simple but the mechanics of the stunts is crazy. Almost all the stunts you see there are done on set in Namibia. The green screen are mostly done for interior shots and additional effects were for landscape. The pacing of the action is just incredible, there isn't one slow second at all. It is a very satisfying experience. Add that with a killer score by Junkie XL/Tom Holkenborg. The score is necessarily loud and awesome. See the track 'Brothers In Arms' which plays during the 'fool' scene in the film. However, Holkenborg still needs to diversify his score because sometimes his percussion reminds you of his work on 300: Rise of An Empire, which is the reason why George Miller hired him though. Director George Miller is amazing. I praised the action scene enough, but the film's props, character design, and color palette are just so equally beautiful. He has an amazing eye for detail. I'm gonna put myself out here and bravely say that George Miller might be the equivalent of David Fincher in action movie-making.

The cast is amazing. I remember reading an article about the casting of Nicholas Hoult, Zoe Kravitz and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, and that article dismisses Mad Max: Fury Road to be doomed from the start. Nicholas Hoult is crazy good and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley has definitely taken some acting classes and acing them, cos her performance is 350% better than her debut in TF3: Dark of the Moon. As much as Tom Hardy is cool and fitting as the titular Max, I actually don't mind if this film is called 'Furious Furiosa' because Charlize Theron killed it in her role. Theron now specializes in playing strong badass women, I first noticed this in Hancock, where she played Will Smith's equal. Then most importantly in the highly disappointing Snow White & The Huntsman where she single-handedly saved the movie from being a total snooze-fest. Also in Prometheus until her stupid death scene. This movie justifies all those badass women character for putting her in the perfect scenario for her to be badass. This could be our summer's champion. Mad Max: Fury Road: rated 4/4.

Bonus!
I'm proud to say that I made this edit on amazing women characters in the last five years.

Up next: The last person on Earth to see Avengers: Age of Ultron is going to see Avengers: Age of Ultron this Saturday.

Cult Hall of Fame Additions

We know there are some movies that have achieved cult status, like Donnie Darko (still haven't seen it) or The Rocky Horror Picture Show which spawned numerous theaters simultaneously showing the movie and the cosplay/show live. Weird movies from the legendarily bad Ed Wood are also cult. Popular and culturally relevant films like Fight Club and The Matrix are also considered cult. Then, what is a cult movie actually? Obviously it has to have a cult-like following, hence the name. Duh. Usually it is obscure and unpopular with the mainstream. Often revolutionary or ultimate guilty pleasure. Basically cult movies are based on audience reactions.

I'm going to propose new films to be considered cult. Why? Because right now I'm in between classes and I'm dreading the idea to walk to the next class just to sleep. That's half-true but I just adore weird films that people dismiss right away. Mostly, I'm listing critically-reviled and hated-by-most-audience films. Mostly from the new millennium. So, don't judge. Don't add films that the whole world knows is good. (Like anyone's gonna bombard my comment section).

National Treasure (2005)
If you look at the past 15 years, the most fun you'll ever have watching a popcorn flick is this movie. There's Pirates of the Caribbean, my personal favorite but it needs your full attention. There are budding superhero films, but they are too gritty. But we have in our midst a full on Nicolas Cage family-friendly adventure with Sean Bean as the villain--that's like cinematic treasure is it? It's also one of the few movies where Sean Bean doesn't die. This type of movie made The Da Vinci Code popular. Messing around with history and stuff. This is gold. This film is the kind of film that you can watch repeatedly everyday. Pure fun. I'd rescue this movie when the world ends.



Eagle Eye (2008)
What I like about this movie is... Shia LaBeouf is still sane! This film is quite prophetic in some way. It might be ahead of its time. Maybe not. The whole film genre about AI is quite similar but this one's pretty awesome. There's that awesome scene just before midway thru the film, the one that ends with the car in the river/sea/lake/water. It has quite a silly climactic scene with that trumpet which just makes it just right for my taste.





Jennifer's Body (2009)
This film is so nice. Scripted by the talented Diablo Cody, it is destined to be a cult movie. But what happened? It's too good for 2009. The soundtrack is such a good compilation. There's Megan Fox post-Revenge of the Fallen, Amanda Seyfried post-Mamma Mia. Boatload of cameo too like Chris Pratt and Lance Henriksen. Academy Award winner J.K. Simmons is also in the cast. This film remains one of my favorite horror-comedies. Let's face it, it's not gonna rank up as high as Evil Dead series but it still has its unique merits.


G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra (2009)
I don't get why people hated this movie. This movie is a full non-stop action--mind you that's a phrase. I'm not referring to the literal exhausting non-stop action like Furious 7. G.I. Joe paced its action and story really good. I know the visual effects is so bad by 2009 standards and Channing Tatum couldn't act that well yet. But it's such a fun movie. The cast is amaziiiing. Out of nowhere there's Joseph Gordon-Levitt before his cult stardom from (500) Days of Summer. I'd watch this if it comes up on TV on a rainy Saturday for sure. I like this movie so much I hated when they bring new people in the sequel, even when those people are Bruce Willis and Dwayne Johnson. [update Jun 24: apparently Channing Tatum hated this film, well you're so bad here but the movie's not as bad as your acting skills]


Sucker Punch (2011)
I have confessed my love to this film numerously in this blog alone. It is a very high-concept action film, filled with awesome moments. Amazing color grading if you like your movies over-saturated--Snyder-style. Crazy action sequences, killer rock-n-roll covers soundtrack, lovely cast.. Man, I can keep going. It is also one of the few Hollywood films to feature an all female ensemble protagonists. This is just a misunderstood film. And to make it better, Zack Snyder just got to release an R-rated cut pronto. I can actually watch this movie over and over again.



Still coming up: your world on fire...and blood.

To The Dreamers

Finally kicked off the summer movie season! My first movie for the summer is Tomorrowland, which stars George Clooney and Britt Robertson, directed by Brad Bird of The Incredibles fame. This film is a rare bird since it is technically an original film, although roughly based on Walt Disney World's Tomorrowland section. I am championing originality as always--and any major promising sci-fi film, Imma gobble it up and add it to my religion. It is scripted by Bird and Damon Lindelof a.k.a. the guy behind Lost and Prometheus that you bullied into exiting Twitter. Don't be confused because this is not about the origins of that EDM festival.

The story is about Casey who found this mysterious pin which can transport her to a world beyond ours (wink-wink at that European alternate title). She then teams up with previous residents of that futuristic utopia Frank Walker and Athena (played by the talented and screen-stealing Raffey Cassidy) to go back to that place. They began on this quest to save the world and Tomorrowland altogether.

Movie-wise, the film is ably directed by Brad Bird whose first foray to live-action is so good that this film is like a walk in the park. That house invasion scene plays out like an action scene from an animated film complete with reaction shots mostly by Ms. Robertson. However, with such message and story the film kinda falls short in telling the story itself. Some of the supporting story are cut short which is sad. I want more of that little Frank Walker and also that history with Tesla, Edison, Verne and Eiffel and all the built-in mythologies. Not to mention the story is that same old 'chosen one' type. But the jokes are spot-on and the movie is funny and also touching especially in the end. The cast is great. George Clooney could use some more jokes though. Love Britt Robertson and especially Raffey Cassidy who plays Athena. It's such a great marketing tactic not to focus on Athena because she is such a pleasant surprise in the film. Some nice surprises are also in the form of the humanbots Keegan Michael Key and Kathryn Hahn in a short but hyper memorable scene in that geek store. Effects are so fine and it's jaw-dropping that some of the Tomorrowland scenes are filmed in an actual location in Valencia, Spain.

Nevertheless, I'm quite bummed when we didn't get to see more of Tomorrowland itself. Even after the third act we didn't get to see it. However, what I really love about the film is its optimism. Embodied in Britt Robertson's Casey Newton who is actually a doer in our times. This film is actually more than the promised futuristic spectacle but it also carries the message of hope. The problem presented in the movie is actually real and happening right now. We know the world is headed in the wrong direction but we sometimes just talk about it or making it worse without taking steps to actually prevent it. On an unrelated yet related note, I went to Toyota's plant and saw their mission to create AI, which as various bleak dystopian movies and scientists predicted will enslave humans and stuff. Then why are we still creating it? It's a lot of nonsense right? While Tomorrowland might not be a perfect film, or even the breakout film of the summer, the message carried in it is important and I hope more people see it in the future.

Here's to the dreamers. Here's to the people who are taking action. Here's to you making that difference. Tomorrowland: rated 3/4

Next up: your world on fire

Origins

Back in 2006, there was this hyper popular TV show. It was even more popular than anything else. Mainstream was still cool and everyone must've watched this show. It was way ahead of its time. Before superheroes run amok in your big screens and small. It was Heroes. Without hashtags, the phrase 'Save the cheerleader, save the world' became iconic to the show. It was my first TV show that I followed until the end. My first TV show that I obsessed over. Well, so before the revival limited series which is destined to be the lesser (I mean, they couldn't bring back Claire or Peter).

Heroes is only one of the very few shows I re-watched. I always say that I'll watch Game of Thrones all over again on holidays but never do. I re-watched the first two seasons of Downton Abbey with my mom. Heroes, as my first TV show, set a really high standards. It was a heavily serialized show, the first season was so masterfully plotted that it is actually a sin not to binge-watch it. After Heroes I thought all American shows were like this but sadly no. It's usually your case-of-the-week type episodes, monster-of-the-week, superhuman-of-the-week stuff. It gets really boring. Unlike Heroes.

I am now at the beginning of the third season. When I watched it religiously during high school, it was pretty fun but now the third season is just painful to watch. Heroes is just an example of how a great show was mismanaged until it became really bad. But still, I have to ask who's your favorite hero? Let's do a run down of the main cast, alphabetically.

Claire Bennet
Save the cheerleader, save the world! Her storyline in the first season was one of the best ever. Her ability to regenerate is just awesome. Sometimes it is disgusting as hell and gory but it's so good. Remember, this is TV in 2006, it's not supposed to be that good. I guess Hayden is my first TV show crush. The sad thing is her storyline in season two is awful. And that blood thing curing everyone, I never liked that. So, Kurtzman and Orci might steal all those blood thing from Heroes.

Noah Bennet
During the first half, Bennet or The Man in Horn-Rimmed Glasses is so creepy. But then his character become one of the most relatable in the films. He's just trying to protect his loved ones. Even he got himself an episode dedicated to him. And it's also one of the best episode in Heroes ever. See that episode titled 'The Company Man."

Sylar/Gabriel Gray
He was the scariest TV villain of his time, before Gus Fring and all that. And this is the first time we discovered Zachary Quinto. He played Sylar so good, that even when he's playing Spock or any other character, he is still Sylar. Like everyone else, his character was dumbed down in season two onwards after he met Maya. Ergh.







Isaac Mendez
The coolest guy ever. Got high and painted the future? Let me in. He has the most unique ability just because it's so different. And his painting is cool. Sadly, I never liked his death. By letting it all to fall to destiny and fate. Maybe you can change your destiny? Change your fate? I mean, why would you easily want to die?

Hiro Nakamura
Best character ever. His story is the best-written one. Even in the getting-worse season two he still has the best storyline. He is the one who actually understands about being a hero. His friendship with Ando is also one of the high points in the series. And thanks to Hiro, we got a glimpse to the future in the best episode in the show.








Matt Parkman
His ability to read minds is awesome. In season three he became this cool mind controller. And at one part in season four he could even trap Sylar in his mind. However, Matt is just too clumsy. He's too stubborn. And sometimes just simply stupid.

Nathan Petrelli
His character is very interesting. In season one he's one of the best characters. He's running for congress, a family man. His brotherly love with Peter is always the best. It's just sad to see him brutally killed in season three and living again in Matt's head (if I remember it correctly?).

Peter Petrelli
So, so, so highly overrated. He struggles so much to be a hero that he just looked stupid. Peter's not that interesting. I wished he died in the first season though. Probably it would make the show better. I don't know. But I never have that much love for Peter as a character.

Niki Sanders
She has the best family. All powered people. Sometimes I don't like the character but you just have to love Ali Larter. She portrayed the split personality really well. And Niki herself is pretty cool yeah? Ripping people apart like it's no big deal. I love her with D.L. and Micah. Very exciting character. Not gonna talk about Tracy, that's a different person.

Mohinder Suresh
Everytime I think of Heroes, I would think of Claire, Hiro and Mohinder. Mohinder even though he's powerless (for the first two seasons), he's very iconic to the show. I mean, the show is narrated in his voice. I really like the actor portraying him too, he's really good at it. Sadly, Mohinder is also clumsy, sometimes pretentious and in season three, he's just simply hateable.






Let's hope with fingers crossed that Heroes Reborn will be as good as Heroes Genesis.
I need to travel through the space/time continuum to make sure.
Or I'll just have to get high and paint something.


Anyway, just came back from the future, and there's gonna be more Heroes-related posts. No big deal right.