AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON Review

Organized chaos. Organized chaos is what best describes the sequel to the third biggest movie of all time. How does one top the first culmination of the first cinematic universe? Sure, bigger is always better (and Age of Ultron certainly feels bigger), but more it is the combination of broadening the scale with that of keeping the characters compelling and their story moving forward. As always, whether it be trying to manage the multiple characters or the overarching storyline that the Marvel Cinematic Universe intends to execute some things get lost in the shuffle. This is to be expected, moreso with the characters than the storyline as Marvel and head honcho Kevin Feige seem to have a pretty clear picture of where things are ultimately going if not allowing each director their own wiggle room to implement their own ideas and ambitions. Within this wiggle room we are given the titular baddie of this second Avengers film in Ultron. While Thanos has been making minuscule appearances since he first showed up in that mid-credits stinger on The Avengers and would seemingly be Marvel's biggest bad of them all, Ultron seems to be the deviation that Whedon wanted to explore and thus proved a solid enough distraction to carry the Avengers through this soggy middle ground and onto the third act of this cinematic universe they've been constructing. While Ultron is a compelling piece of artificial intelligence as far as characters go with James Spader providing a maniacally dark humored mentality to the intimidating "murder bot" the evil robots motivations are always a bit muddled. Covered up by flowery speeches and philosophical mumbo jumbo about the only way to peace being true extinction Ultron is given no motivation for his actions beyond being programmed in such a way. A program that is too smart for its own good who hijacks any physical form he can in order to execute his plan. This is all well enough reason to give earths mightiest heroes someone to fight, but it's the weakest link in an otherwise sprawling production that is everything we want it to be. Everything we've been waiting for.

Trailer Roundup: SUPER BOWL XLIX

As Sunday draws closer we have begun to see early releases of not only commercials, but some of the movie spots that will be making their way into your living room this Sunday. Yesterday we got a glimpse of a few big releases including new looks at The Avengers, Terminator and The Divergent Series: Insurgent. Each of these promising some serious bang for your buck when they hit theaters. Revealing your entire spot has become common over the last few years and is understandable when you're spending $4.5 million for thirty seconds. We were able to get a quick peak at Brad Bird's Tomorrowland earlier this week, but you can catch the full spot from the broadcast now as well as the festive spot for Minions and the banned Hot Tub Time Machine 2 commercial that didn't air due to its content poking fun at deflategate. The first official trailer for Ted 2 dropped Thursday and now you can get a look at the big game spot featuring Tom Brady. Furious 7 also made a grand appearance and upped the ante for what we expect from this franchise by putting on display some insane stunts that hopefully don't give away the best parts of the movie. No surprise spot for Mission: Impossible 5, but there was that glimpse at Heroes Reborn that will be airing soon on NBC that I had no idea was even happening. Other trailers that aired include an enticing look at Jurassic World, Pitch Perfect 2, a game-incorporated Inside Out tease, this weeks Seventh Son and the Vince Vaughn comedy Unfinished Business. Check out all of the Super Bowl trailers below.

THE HOMESMAN Review

Nowadays when one sees Hilary Swank gazing past the camera and through to the unknown on a poster we typically imagine it as a precursor to some uplifting tale where her character is the catalyst for change. One would again think that is the case with The Homesman as her Mary Bee Cuddy is certainly the most honorable character we come in contact with, but this isn't an uplifting drama that feels manufactured to redeem your confidence in the human race. In fact, if the film says anything about the human race it is about the savagery from which we spawned and the role of the female in the old west. Cuddy was a feminist without knowing the word to describe herself. She was a woman who heralded the strength of being a woman on her own, supporting herself and an advocate for equality all while feeling out of place because of the time in which she lived. It is an unfortunate scenario to say the least, but it certainly makes for an interesting character study and director Tommy Lee Jones seems to understand the ideas and themes he is playing with as his character, George Briggs, is both confused by yet struck with admiration by the confident and brave Ms. Cuddy. In The Homesman, what we have is a straight-forward tale of straight-forward people. There are no artistic flourishes (though much of the framing here results in a gorgeous visual prowess) or intent to be subtle about the politics of what topics the story is playing with, but rather Jones presents this story in a very matter-of-fact manner that suits the time period and the personalities of most while leaving the audience riddled with an unexpected clarity. It is one thing to say something turns out different than you expected because that would more generally be the case in film, but it is another to say you didn't expect what something had to offer and while I expected to get a fine enough western from an actor/director who clearly appreciates the genre, what I received was a meditative, heartbreaking and downright moving look at what life promised (or couldn't depending on how you look at it) during that time and how sometimes that wasn't enough to keep on going.

First Trailer for AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON

The first Avengers: Age of Ultron trailer has premiered after being leaked earlier today. The first peak at the follow-up to writer/director Joss Whedon’s record-breaking 2012 film was supposed to drop during next weeks episode of ABC's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. but given the circumstances Marvel has blamed Hydra and officially released the trailer online. There is no denying the anticipation for this one is sky high and our first glance at the sequel only adds to that hype in the most positive of ways. I can remember being slightly underwhelmed by the first trailer for The Avengers as the Nine Inch Nails soundtrack never met with what I imagined it to be, but ultimately we know everything turned out okay and if nothing else it was a treat to finally see all of these characters in one place together. This time around that isn't going to enough, but what Whedon has given us a glance at here is a very different, much darker tone than the original possessed. I love the color palette here, I enjoy the musical choice, I;m intrigued as to what exactly is at stake here and I appreciate the vibe comes off as dramatic while not taking itself too seriously (though some will surely criticize it for trying to be "dark and gritty" in the vein of Nolan). Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Captain America (Chris Evans), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) all return to battle Ultron (James Spader) this time around while new allies and enemies join them in the form of Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and The Vision (Paul Bettany). Avengers: Age of Ultron also stars Don Cheadle, Andy Serkis, Samuel L. Jackson, Cobie Smulders and opens on May 1, 2015.

LINCOLN Review

When coming from a generation where director Steven Spielberg has already been placed upon a pedestal as an iconic director it is hard to look at anything the guy does with anything less than high expectations. While other times it will naturally feel as if the man is skating by on his reputation rather than his abilities that could have easily come to a halt once reaching such a status. I have always wondered about this, wondered if Spielberg had what it takes to continue walking his line between serious films and blockbuster money-makers while maintaining his credibility with the critics and keeping the general public intrigued no matter what type of project he chose to take on next. In the time since I began seriously loving films (say, the last ten years) the director has created two genuinely great films and a slew of others that are very good. One thing was ultimately clear, these movies were made by a filmmaker who knew what he wanted and no matter the genre or the size has the power to make you feel something, an inherent reaction to what is happening on screen. While I have always been a fan of Spielberg and of course have wrestled with what some of his films might have become were they made by a less established name, none of this came into consideration when reflecting upon Lincoln many hours after the credits rolled. A film that has been in the works for over fifteen years, it is simply rewarding to see this work finally come to fruition. An intense and stirring look behind closed doors that doesn't cover Lincoln from birth to death but instead focuses on a small window in his life that very well defines why the man still commands an iconic status today.