Cinematic Strain, Episode 12: Right Answers, Wrong Questions

15 minutes on the events in Baltimore. Lots of pausing, but I didn't need to edit the audio in order to consider the authenticity of the clip:

Best in Movies 2014: 3. Guardians of the Galaxy

Directed by: James Gunn

Produced by: Kevin Feige

Written by: James Gunn & Nicole Perlman
Cinematography By: Ben Davis

Composed by: Tyler Bates

     Lately, there's a trend with comic book movies, where if it doesn't include character X or item Y, que that "It's not like the comics" talking point. Man of Steel was hit with that notion for being unlike the predecessors that came before it and for its darker portrayal; let alone, it was the first Superman film didn't have this feeling of cuddliness to it. Nonetheless, if you're a well-known property that's had at least 3 films or movies, good chance it'll be scrutinized by numerous sites designed to suck out joy. Guardians of the Galaxy was considered to be Marvel Studios's big test to prove if it could make a film series without Avengers or Iron Man as a title series. If it flopped, narratives would run the gamut Of course, the irony in that is, those characters were considered afterthought, once upon a time, until they received their respective earnings for Disney. As for Guardians? $774 Million dollars worldwide later suggest that the impending "Comic Book Bubble of Doom" is still a myth. In a summer where heavyweights underwhelmed by certain standards, something unfamiliar to audience made the most money, where notable franchises couldn't maintain the appeal of GOTG. I guess my surprise was that Days of Future Past or Amazing Spider-Man 2 didn't gross as much, domestically, in comparison to Guardians, so seeing a brand-new property do well instantly is a good thing. Phase 2 was already better than Phase 1, but seeing the Marvel Cinematic Universe expand to newer worlds outside of ours has finally established their intentions.

 Unorthodox Chemistry

     

     With all these characters co-existing for a greater good, they sure do have a challenging journey trying to find themselves for the greater good. One wants to exact vengeance against a man who murdered his family, another is the daughter of a man who wants to obtain all of the Infinity Stones, the other three range from a genetically-engineered raccoon, a tree whose vocabulary is limited to four words & a man who leads them all has a deeper secret other than being human. Guardians does a lot of things well, but the chemistry & banter between the five characters significantly works in tandem with its story. All of them have a bevy of insecurites to become worthy heroes  towards their own forms of redemption. We don't get a true origin story here; we do, however, get individual tales interwoven throughout the movie as a sped-up backstory. Their stories are easy to follow and don't require any handholding; you know once they meet, they all eventually have the same goal by the end of the film. All of the leads here are exceptional, led by Chris Pratt. You could tell he was born to play a role like this from the moment he puts on that Sony Walkman, moving to "come & get your love." And that just the beginning of the film. All of the leads are exceptional, but I wasn't prepared towards the roles played by Vin Diesel & Bradley Cooper. Diesel utters 4 words for the whole film as an anamorphic tree named Groot & Cooper is just insane as Rocket Raccoon. His story is pretty grim for something that's assumed to be cute & cuddly by some. If this were to be another film with by the numbers characters, the character development wouldn't be as compelling as it is with this dysfunctional group. James Gunn nailed that aspect very well. Also, the film is well-written, giving the characters lots of personality beyond their assumed archetypes.  

Why Nerd Hate Couldn't Hurt this film?

      With little knowledge from comic and that it wasn't film series, Guardians of the Galaxy wasn't picked on as much, compared to, for example, The Dark Knight Rises., and since it was a new venture for Disney, it was easy to like by all, even critics. Newer versions of characters/films tend to get hated more because some are sequels, reboots, etc. Unless if your films are the X-Men films or the older Superman films, particularly films 1 &2, starring Christopher Reeve, there's a good chance they'll be teflon from haters. It doesn't matter the inconsistencies with each argument, these people will argue breathless about why Ronan the Accuser sucks as an adversary or why this film didn't have an origin story. The ladder is valid, but in order to understand a movie requires one to be invested in the experience without being spoiled by articles, TV spots & rumors. As I said earlier, people were saying that this was supposed to be a big test for Marvel Studios and if it underperforms in theaters, it could hurt Marvel Studios. But it didn't. Another narrative dies a slow death & we all can enjoy the festivities in piece. If there's suppose to be an impending bubble of these things failing, there has to be something leading up to the demise of these films, shows, cartoons, etc. An overall representation, not a 2-3 sample size that confirms the bias of some who are addicted to the failures of these films. Guardians proved once more that you can't underestimate the vision of Marvel. But, in all honesty, none of these properties are nothing to underlook.  

WE ARE GROOT FOREVER!

      For now, this is what space operas are measured by. Fun characters, lots of colorful worlds, countless threats, bright skies, and infinite possibilities . If JJ Abrams Star Trek and the inevitable Star Wars Ep. 7 have a vision to compete against, it's this movie. I'm sure the next installment of those films will be wonderful by all measures, but they probably know that GOTG changed the way a movie like this. Other that a few exceptions in 2014, have I felt emotions for a Raccoon & a tree. I cried watching one film about space and time, yet I wasn't meant to have emotions for things that emote such small ones. Whatever Gunn has planned for Phase 3 of the MCU, things will continue towards a place that's is unbounded by imagination.

Cinematic Strain, Episode 11: Furious Collins!

-Furious 7 & Danny Collins are reviewed.

-Fandango is cool.

-Suicide Squad pic

-Batman v. Superman is leaked, then officialized!

Best in Movies 2014: 4. Gone Girl

Directed By: David Fincher

Written By: Gillian Flynn (screenplay & novel)

Distributed by: 20th Century Fox

     Admittedly, I don't like to talk a lot about social issues on the internet, since, I feel like the forum is noisy. Annoying think-pieces over-analyzing a movie, saying it doesn't live up to the topic of feminism or by focusing on the male counterpart, Nick Dunne, in Gone Girl. Just reading the debates about Amy Dunne's portrayal in the film from site after site, was a tiresome slog with thinkpieces trying to control the discussion of this movie beyond the film. Which is why, I do my best to avoid articles such as those, knowing they can detach the viewer before viewing it. Rather than give a compared portrayal of movie adaptation vs. book adaptation, I don't feel it would be necessary to do a compare/contrast on the depiction of Amy Dunne based on the condition of her feminism stance; it doesn't interest me. Doing that, would turn this into a nitpick contest of events outside the film, rather than appreciating the brilliance that David Fincher crafted here. My thoughts on Amy are this: She's needy & vindictive. The moment Nick pushed her, was when she planned to coax Nick into falsifying a murder so that he'll have no choice but to respect her. And it worked. If this was just another suspense film with a no-frills twist, it would've ruined the experience. Luckily, Gone Girl has more than just the "girl next door" vibe going around. 

Guilty as Charged: I rooted for Crazy Amy

     

 
     Never in my life, have I rooted for such a miserable, irredeemable person, such as Amy. I sort of low-key rooted for Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men, yet, he was a straight character with no catch to him. Amy pulled so many hatches here, her elaborate scheming won me over as a guy who generally roots for protagonist. (Well, we all usually root for the title character; alas, though, I was won over by a psychopath.) Her performance was so compelling, gripping even, that it left me with no choice but to settle for the main heel to walk out on top, and the reason for that was the way she sold indoctrinated herself. I don't want to compare her to real life court cases, though, she does have share similar characteristics that enables her to be more of a victim than as a cold-blooded individual. We truly don't get to know Rosamund Pike's character real motive until she sheaths herself from being innocent Amazing Amy to the antonym of "Amazing." Whatever that opposite is, it's certainly not a positive definition. What makes this movie great, is that our version of the truth doesn't matter, because our questions, be it from this film or any high-profile case with generic blonde X, are usually derivatives of why she deserves sympathy or not. When I read those columns, not enough credit was given to Amy for her ingenuity for elaborating a plot, literally; and, how she was able to weasel out of the ordeal. If only Pike nabbed the Oscar for best actress in reality, it would've been the ultimate getaway.  

Was the Ending Justified?

      For me, it was. I don't about how a lot of other people felt about the ending, nevertheless, some feel differently about it. The entire film was so good, I didn;'t want to compartmentalizing it up and down to justify why this piece doesn't fit with the others. Does it simply end without a clear explanation? That depends on how the world made sense of the hours before we saw bloody Amy Dunne comes fainting into the arms of Nick Dunne to play Damsel in Distress. What I saw, was a man coming to grips that the world wasn't going to reason with his side of the story. Despite well-managed PR, A great lawyer & a supportive sister (regardless, if you have a young side chick on the side), all of it faded since the public tends to tune-out on these cases. Only the facade of good will was going to get Nick back in the graces of the public. If he attempted anything sideways to complicate the coverage of his wife, he would be a more despised person than before. For the best, he hid behind the truth of what was really happening. Since she has the leverage on the narrative, he caved. To think of the ending as disappointing or lacking, sort of misses the point. We got finality, except, a woman sick of things changed so much that all her husband could do was submit. Not the greatest ending, but I think it has a deeper meaning after the credits rolled.    

       Fade to Black  

     Aside from the big twist in the middle, Rosamund Pike & Ben Affleck's excellent performances, David Fincher's sharp direction, there's lot of greatness here. In order to enjoy Gone Girl, stay away from any opinions from anyone. Basically, that's how I went into the movie, without any previous knowledge of it. It was a David Fincher movie & knowing the man's movies, he always something clever to sell to the audience; he's a great storyteller, in that regard. Push aside all of the previous Medea movies that you watched from before experiencing a great performance from Tyler Perry (like, really). All of the female actresses are engaging, besides Pike. Kim Dickens's Det. Rhonda Boney, in particular, was an appealing performance, too, as the persistent police officer attempting to solve the Dunne mystery. I'm still in awe from the events of this film and no time soon will I stop being in shock from what transpired. Whatever Fincher plans next, I'll definitely be there for the fun.

The Cinematic Strain, Episode 10: Agent of Blending

Figured I'd try to reciprocate the show on my blogging site to add some variety. Hope you enjoy this episode of The Cinematic Strain: