Big, dumb, fun movies
Watched a couple of this variety last weekend. First up was Guardians of the Galaxy. I found it very enjoyable, overall.
I liked the team, a bunch of "a-holes" who get together for a prison break and sort of accidentally become heroes. Avengers was about people who were already heroes, to some degree or another. GotG was about a thief, an assassin, two thugs and an extremely violent raccoon. My favorites were Rocket and Groot. The little stinger scene with baby dancing Groot was entirely too adorable.
It did fall down with the villains, though. I was underwhelmed by Ronan, Thanos barely made an appearance, and Nebula was underdeveloped, never mind Korath. I hope Nebula's back in the next movie, because I'd like to know more about her and her relationship with Gamora. Karen Gillan wasn't given much to work with--an emotional range varying between "sullen" and "pissed off"--and I know she could do much more, given the opportunity. It intrigued me when she told Gamora that of all their "siblings," she hated Gamora the least. Kind of awful for someone to have a relational baseline that starts at hatred and goes from there. And it's telling that she defected from Thanos the minute someone got more power. Loyal? Not so much when the fear runs out.
Overall, though, much fun was had. Cap 2 was fairly intense, and a movie that kind of turned the whole superhero thing on its head (their Power Walk included Gamora yawning, Quill scratching his nose and Rocket adjusting his junk) was a welcome break.
Next up was Pacific Rim on video with the bro. Again, great fun, with giant beasts, humongous mechas, gratuitous fight scenes, dodgy accents and our old friend Burn Gorman.
I mean, there's nothing that makes sense about the plot. Giant kaiju are coming up out of a dimensional breach in the Pacific and stomping coastal cities, so what do we do? Make big ol' mechas to punch 'em out! Of course! Point is, though, it's fun. Pure, brainless fun.
Dodgy accents, though. Charlie Hunnam just couldn't keep his American accent working, the "Australians" were so not, and for having been raised by an Englishman, Mako was none too comprehensible. Perhaps Pentacost raised her in Japan and they only spoke Japanese to each other, in which case one wonders why his Japanese accent wasn't better. But I can forgive that, because fun.
Aside from my gripes with his accent, I liked Raleigh as a hero. Getting a brianful of his brother dying, then having to pilot the Jaeger solo to shore, where he stumbled out, badly injured and calling for his brother . . . hell of a way to begin a movie.
(I'd like to take this moment to address some of the filmmakers' misconceptions about Alaska. One, Anchorage would not have been the best place for a Shatterdome. To protect the Kenai Peninsula, a base at Anchor Point, Seldovia or even Kodiak Island would have made more sense. Two, that crab boat would've been more likely to have been going out from Dutch Harbor than Anchorage. Three, it makes no sense whatsoever to be building a coastal wall at Sitka. Why? SITKA IS ON AN ISLAND! It would've made more sense to evacuate Alexander Archipelago and build a wall along the Alaska/Canada coast.)
Anyway, I felt for the guy. It was clear he missed his former life when he saw Gipsy Danger again, though. Mako was a good foil for him, in my opinion, Rinko Kikuchi's grasp of English notwithstanding. She did a good job of the character, especially Mako's relationship with Pentacost. Their bond was very strong, as was her need to break away somewhat. It's telling, too, that her last words to him were, "Sensei, aishiteru." She called him sensei, teacher, rather than father, but followed it up with "I love you."
Lastly, Burn Gorman as Gottlieb and Charlie Day as Newton were great scene-stealers. Gottlieb couldn't have been less like Owen Harper if they tried, save only for his choleric disposition. The two of them were delightful while they bickered and tried to one-up each other, and even more delightful when they set aside their differences to drift with the kaiju brain. I loved 'em.
Oh, and Idris Elba was hot, as usual.
Wouldn't recommend these movies to anyone looking for a deep, thoughtful movie experience, but if you're looking to hang up your brain and enjoy, go for it.
I liked the team, a bunch of "a-holes" who get together for a prison break and sort of accidentally become heroes. Avengers was about people who were already heroes, to some degree or another. GotG was about a thief, an assassin, two thugs and an extremely violent raccoon. My favorites were Rocket and Groot. The little stinger scene with baby dancing Groot was entirely too adorable.
It did fall down with the villains, though. I was underwhelmed by Ronan, Thanos barely made an appearance, and Nebula was underdeveloped, never mind Korath. I hope Nebula's back in the next movie, because I'd like to know more about her and her relationship with Gamora. Karen Gillan wasn't given much to work with--an emotional range varying between "sullen" and "pissed off"--and I know she could do much more, given the opportunity. It intrigued me when she told Gamora that of all their "siblings," she hated Gamora the least. Kind of awful for someone to have a relational baseline that starts at hatred and goes from there. And it's telling that she defected from Thanos the minute someone got more power. Loyal? Not so much when the fear runs out.
Overall, though, much fun was had. Cap 2 was fairly intense, and a movie that kind of turned the whole superhero thing on its head (their Power Walk included Gamora yawning, Quill scratching his nose and Rocket adjusting his junk) was a welcome break.
Next up was Pacific Rim on video with the bro. Again, great fun, with giant beasts, humongous mechas, gratuitous fight scenes, dodgy accents and our old friend Burn Gorman.
I mean, there's nothing that makes sense about the plot. Giant kaiju are coming up out of a dimensional breach in the Pacific and stomping coastal cities, so what do we do? Make big ol' mechas to punch 'em out! Of course! Point is, though, it's fun. Pure, brainless fun.
Dodgy accents, though. Charlie Hunnam just couldn't keep his American accent working, the "Australians" were so not, and for having been raised by an Englishman, Mako was none too comprehensible. Perhaps Pentacost raised her in Japan and they only spoke Japanese to each other, in which case one wonders why his Japanese accent wasn't better. But I can forgive that, because fun.
Aside from my gripes with his accent, I liked Raleigh as a hero. Getting a brianful of his brother dying, then having to pilot the Jaeger solo to shore, where he stumbled out, badly injured and calling for his brother . . . hell of a way to begin a movie.
(I'd like to take this moment to address some of the filmmakers' misconceptions about Alaska. One, Anchorage would not have been the best place for a Shatterdome. To protect the Kenai Peninsula, a base at Anchor Point, Seldovia or even Kodiak Island would have made more sense. Two, that crab boat would've been more likely to have been going out from Dutch Harbor than Anchorage. Three, it makes no sense whatsoever to be building a coastal wall at Sitka. Why? SITKA IS ON AN ISLAND! It would've made more sense to evacuate Alexander Archipelago and build a wall along the Alaska/Canada coast.)
Anyway, I felt for the guy. It was clear he missed his former life when he saw Gipsy Danger again, though. Mako was a good foil for him, in my opinion, Rinko Kikuchi's grasp of English notwithstanding. She did a good job of the character, especially Mako's relationship with Pentacost. Their bond was very strong, as was her need to break away somewhat. It's telling, too, that her last words to him were, "Sensei, aishiteru." She called him sensei, teacher, rather than father, but followed it up with "I love you."
Lastly, Burn Gorman as Gottlieb and Charlie Day as Newton were great scene-stealers. Gottlieb couldn't have been less like Owen Harper if they tried, save only for his choleric disposition. The two of them were delightful while they bickered and tried to one-up each other, and even more delightful when they set aside their differences to drift with the kaiju brain. I loved 'em.
Oh, and Idris Elba was hot, as usual.
Wouldn't recommend these movies to anyone looking for a deep, thoughtful movie experience, but if you're looking to hang up your brain and enjoy, go for it.