Guardians of the Galaxy is Awesome (Spoiler Free)

5 out of 5 Stars

Guardians of the Galaxy is the latest Marvel movie.  I have been looking forward to seeing it for months, ever since I saw the first trailer that has Hooked on a Feeling playing.  The movie is very fun and entertaining and it is definitely worth checking out.  It does build on what has happened in previous Marvel movies and sets up things for future movies while still standing alone fairly well. 

I am only going to briefly discuss the plot for Guardians of the Galaxy.  People who prefer not to know anything about the plot before seeing the movie should skip the next paragraph.

** Minor Plot Discussion **
Peter Quill is abducted from Earth in 1988, just minutes after his mother passes away.  Twenty-six years later, he is calling himself Star Lord.  He ends up in a world of trouble when he manages to find an orb that Ronan, a Kree, is trying to retrieve for Thanos.  Ronan sends Gamora, an assassin and Thanos’s adopted daughter, after Peter.  Gamora and Peter end up in prison along with Groot and Rocket, where they meet Drax.  The five decide to work together to get out so they will have a chance to stop Ronan and Thanos.

** End of Minor Plot Discussion **
There is a cute scene at the end of the movie, just as the credits are starting.  There is a scene after the credits that ties back into something that happens during the movie.  All of the Marvel movies have done this, and with most of them, the extra scenes hint at something that will be coming in some way in a future movie.  Another Marvel character is introduced in the short scene.  I did recognize the character, but I have no idea what is being planned there.  I honestly never expected to see that character show up, and I am now wondering what Marvel is planning since all the other characters introduced in this way have turned up in later movies so far.

Guardians of the Galaxy is the based on the Marvel comic book.  I have never read it, so I have no idea what has stayed the same and what has been changed.  I hadn’t even heard of Guardians of the Galaxy before Marvel announced that they were making the movie.  I didn’t know what to expect from the movie, even after seeing the first few trailers, but I still wanted to see the movie.  I’m very glad that I saw it. This is one of the best movies of the year.

Peter is first shown as a child in 1988.  The movie only spends a few minutes on that point in his life, but it is a rough few minutes.  The movie then jumps forward twenty-six years to show Peter as he is finding the orb.  From that point on, things move at a fairly good pace without feeling rushed.  The story works well overall.  It is very interesting and entertaining, blending in some touching moments with really funny things.  Some of what happens is just flat out bizarre - one of the characters is a talking raccoon and another one is a sort of tree that can only say I am Groot  - but it all works perfectly to make an awesome movie. 

All of the main characters say and do things that are funny in some way.  All the humor gives a movie a lighter feel overall even with the emotional moments.  Music also plays a part in what is going on since Peter’s most treasured possession is the mix tape his mother made for him of songs from the 70s and 80s.  Those songs actually work very well with what is going on when they are heard.  I am slightly disappointed that more of Hooked on a Feeling isn’t heard during the movie like it was in one or two trailers.  Other characters react oddly to Peter’s music, and at one point, he even uses it during a confrontation in an unexpected way.  In another scene, Peter shares the legend of Footlose and hero Kevin Bacon.  The music also serves as a connection to Earth and his mother for Peter, so it is understandable why he is so protective of his walkman and the mix tape.  I do wonder where he got batteries for the walkman over the years.

I ended up seeing Guardians of the Galaxy in 3D because of the show times.  For whatever reason, all but two of the show times are in 3D at the local theater.  I do think the 3D was pretty good and that it added to a few cool images.  I think the movie is also showing in IMAX 3D at some locations.  Everything looks wonderful throughout the movie.  Several things are created with special effects that are done well. 

There is a decent amount of action to what is going on without things getting too graphically violent overall.  A few things happen that are more violent and could be upsetting or even disturbing to some viewers.  There are different fights, including a few involving space ships, that are done well.  I think there is a decent amount of action in the movie overall.  I think of the movie mostly as a fun action adventure in space.  The movie is rated PG-13, so parents should keep that in mind when deciding on taking kids to see it.  There is some swearing, though nothing extreme and the word that rhymes with luck is not used.  Peter does make an obscene gesture at one point, though it is done in a funny way. 

Guardians of the Galaxy has an interesting group of unique characters.  Peter, Gamora, Rocket, Groot, and Drax are basically misfits who are thrown together by circumstances and end up finding a way to work together.  They ultimately become friends and discover that their individual strengths compliment each other, making them stronger together.  Peter is a bit of an outlaw who has a rather inflated view of his own reputation.  Chris Pratt is perfect in the part. 

Gamora was raised by Thanos and turned into an assassin after he killed her family.  She sees the current situation as her way of getting away from him.  She is very good at fighting and does have some trust issues.  Zoe Saldana is good in the part.  Nebula, who is part cyborg,  was raised with Gamora and the two have issues.  Nebula has issues with Thanos as well, though she seems loyal to him.  Karen Gillian is really good in the part.  I don’t think I would have recognized her if I hadn’t know she was playing the part since she looks so different. 

Rocket and Groot have been working together for a while as some sort of bounty hunters/mercenaries.   Rocket is a raccoon that has been experimented on, giving him the ability to talk.  He is very fond of large weapons.  The voice Bradley Cooper does for the character fits him very well.  Groot is basically a walking tree who is very good in fights.  Vin Diesel provides his voice even though he only says one thing.  He does say it in different ways, and it seems like Rocket is able to pick up on more other things that Groot means.  Drax is after vengeance for his family.  He wants to kill Ronan and even go after Thanos, and his need for vengeance causes him to make some stupid decisions at times.  Dave Bautista is fine in the part. 

Ronan is the main villain of the movie.  He wants revenge against enemies of the Kree, and he is determined to get it.  Most people are afraid of him since he will not hesitate to use deadly force.  Lee Pace does well with the part.  Thanos is just briefly in the movie, though it is clear that he has bigger plans.  I believe that Thanos will be playing a bigger part in future movies.  Josh Brolin performed as the character for motion capture and provided his voice. 

Yondu is a bandit that has basically raised Peter.  The two have some conflicts.  Yondu isn’t really a bad guy, but he isn’t really a good guy either.  Michael Rooker does well with the character.  Glenn Close is in a few scenes as Nova Prime, the leader of the Nova Corps who are in charge of protecting the planet Xandar.  John C. Reilly turns up in a few scenes as Rhomann Dey, a member of the Nova Corps. Benicio Del Toro is The Collector in a few short scenes.  Stan Lee makes another short appearance somewhat early in the movie.  Nathan Fillion has a small cameo, though I think, now that I figured out which character it was, that he just did the voice.  Director James Gunn has a cameo too, though I didn’t manage to spot him.

Guardians of the Galaxy is absolutely awesome and definitely worth seeing in the theater.  People who have liked the other Marvel movies will probably enjoy this one as well even though it is a bit different.  This is one of the best movies of the year.

This review is part of elvisdo’s 7th Annual Funny Pages Write off

Transformers: Age of Extinction - Another Michael Bay Action Extravaganza

3 out of 5 Stars

Michael Bay is known for directing action packed movies that focus on action and CGI to the detriment of the plot.  Despite that, I have managed to enjoy his movies over the years.  They can be entertaining mindless action movies.  I have seen the first three Transformers movies and enjoyed them to varying degrees even while finding various flaws.  I honestly wasn’t sure I wanted to see the fourth movie, Transformers: Age of Extinction.  I ultimately decided to go see the movie and I got more of the same - a mindless action movie that is mostly entertaining.

Five years after the battle between the Autobots and Decepticons in Chicago, the US army is no longer working with the Autobots.  Harold Attinger is in charge of a top secret CIA black op that involves tracking down the remaining Decepticons.  Unknown to just about everyone, Autobots are also being hunted as part of the op.  Attinger sees all Transformers as a threat that he intends to eliminate to protect the country. 

Cade Yeager is a struggling inventor who salvages stuff in an attempt to make a living.  His daughter Tessa is furious when he comes home with a battered semi that he hopes to sell for parts.  It turns out the truck is Optimus Prime.  Cade decides to try to fix him, but soon mysterious agents are swarming his farm.  He and Tessa end up on the run with Shane, Tessa’s secret boyfriend rally car driver, and the few remaining Autobots.

There are no extra scenes during or after the credits.  I saw the normal version of the movie.  It is also showing in 3D - including IMAX 3D - in some theaters.  Depending on how the 3D was done, there are some scenes and images that have the potential to look cool in 3D.  I did notice 3D conversion listed in the credits, so I think it was shot normally and then converted to 3D.  

 I was first introduced to the Transformers through the cartoon that aired in the 80s.  I knew there were toys, but I never had any of them.  Over the years, there has been an animated movie connected to that cartoon series, other cartoons, and comic books.  I don’t think the story from this movie has been used in any of the comics or cartoons.

Transformers: Age of Extinction is the longest of the Transformers movies at almost three hours long.  I don’t mind longer movies if there is enough going on to support the longer run time.  That isn’t the case with this movie, just like it wasn’t with the first three.  The movie is mostly a series of jerky action scenes, loosely connected by a thin plot.  I wasn’t expecting the plot to be stronger or make me think.  The fact that the movie is so long makes the plot weakness a bigger problem because there just isn’t enough to the plot to justify a movie this long.  Yes some of the action scenes were cool - like when Optimus Prime rides another Transformer that is a fire breathing dinosaur - but there is such a thing as too much action.  After a certain point, it all blends together and the audience is left watching as one giant robot beats the crap out of another giant robot while destroying a city.   The movie would have been more entertaining if it weren’t so bloated with action scenes. 

The pacing is a bit uneven, dragging in some places, and moving lightening quick in others.  Bay uses slow motion in the middle of many action scenes.  It is overused in this movie and for the most part, I find the change to slow motion like that a bit jarring.  There are even a few sequences that seem to be pulled from the first movies - like people flying through the air because Bumblebee just has to transform out of his car form.  There is violence in several scenes, though it is mostly robots being hurt.  Younger children may not have the attention span to watch a movie this long, something that parents should consider.  The movie is rated PG-13 because of the action scenes and violence.  One character does use the word that rhymes with luck once in a somewhat funny way.  A few characters make suggestive remarks every so often that are more stupid than anything.  Those references would probably pass unnoticed by children.

There are attempts to add a bit of humor here and there to what is going on in Transformers: Age of Extinction through things that different characters say.  Some of them are mildly, and I do mean mildly, funny.  More often than not, the quips fall flat or are just stupid.  I noticed several product placements, some of which seem out of place.  At one point, a male scientist is holding a version of Rainbow Dash, one of the My Little Ponies.  At another point, things practically come to a stand still for Cade to spout something stupid and drink a Bud Light that just happens to be conveniently there.  Several of the action scenes are fine and I don’t mind the CGI for the most part.  There are entirely too many quick cuts during them though, something that Bay has in pretty much every movie he’s directed.  The point of view jumps around so much at times, it is impossible to keep track of where certain characters are, or even which one is which when it comes to the robots.  I hate when that happens and find it highly aggravating.  There is jerky camera work at times too, though it isn’t as bad as it has been in some movies.  In scenes when the Transformers, mostly the Autobots, are shown driving in vehicle form, there are all these sweeping shots that sort of zoom around, barely showing the vehicles.  That is a huge waste given what types of cars some of them transform into.

There are new Transformers in this movie, and some of them turn into some pretty awesome cars if you can manage to spot them.  One of them, Drift, turns into a Bugatti Veyron, one of the fastest cars in the world, that is extremely expensive and very cool.  Too bad Drift is barely in the form of the Veyron.  I actually had to look it up to find out that Crosshairs turns into a Corvette Stingray.  He wasn’t in that form long enough for me to recognize what type of sports car he was.  Stinger, another new character, is a Pagani Huayra, another very expensive and very fast car from Italy.  The Pagani is seen a little more, but mostly in scenes when it is sitting still.  I recognized the Veyron and Pagani from seeing them on Top Gear, a British show about cars.  Lockdown turns into a Lamborghini Aventador.  It almost seems like Bay or the screenwriter - or both - has seen Top Gear and decided that they just had to use some of the fastest cars featured on the show, never mind that they cost millions of dollars and that the cars themselves would end up having less than five minutes of screen time.  

It is said fairly early in the movie that things are happening five years after the battle in Chicago.  That battle, and the destruction, changed how some people viewed the Transformers, including the Autobots.  Some people still saw the Autobots as allies because of what they have done to help humans previously, but others, like Attinger, see things differently.  There are signs near where Cade and his daughter live in Texas about reporting alien activity.  When Chicago is seen again - and some important scenes take place there - it doesn’t look like there is any lingering damage from the battle, despite what the story tired to establish.  It just seems like the idea of backlash over what happened in Chicago is just used as an excuse for Attinger to be running his top secret op before being forgotten.  It is just another bit of story sacrificed at the altar of action and CGI.  Even with the barely there plot, the movie somehow manages to leave a few things unanswered in what is an obvious set up for yet another movie.

Things connected with Cade, Tessa, and Shane attempt to add other complications to Transformers: Age of Extinction.  Cade is trying his best to provide for his daughter, while she comes off as unappreciative and judgmental.  She thinks nothing of telling her father off for something, putting him down, and ignoring him.  She has been involved with Shane in some way for years, yet Cade only meets him when they are in the middle of running for their lives.  Cade is justifiably upset, especially when finding out that Shane is twenty - Tessa is only seventeen.  Shane pulls out a laminated copy of the Romeo & Juliet law in Texas that says if they the couple were together when they were both underage, then there is nothing illegal about the relationship.  That is a bit ridiculous, especially with how much Tessa seems to like the idea of her and Shane being Romeo and Juliet.  She seems to have forgotten that those two end up dead.  There really isn’t too much to the relationship between Shane and Tessa.  It mostly just serves as a reason for Tessa to clash with her dad and for Shane to make some cracks as well.

None of the characters have much in the way of development, something else that I figured would happen.  Cade is nice enough and it is clear that he loves his daughter more than anything.  Mark Wahlberg is fine in the part.  He seems to be doing the best he can with the material.  He is also much better than Shia LaBeouf.  Tessa comes across as a bratty teenager who has no respect for her father.  She is constantly putting down his efforts to make money and she questions his judgment.  She has kept a boyfriend from her father for years.  While Cade is a bit overprotective that still doesn’t justify her actions.  I don’t like her at all.  She wears super short cut off shorts that I think may even be shorter than ones Megan Fox wore in the first movie, something I didn’t think was possible before.  At least there were no shots lingering on her backside while she bent over or shot angled up, making it seem like some sort of personal medical exam was going on like was done in the previous movies.  While I am no fan of Fox, her character was more likable and memorable.  Nicola Peltz is nothing special in the part.  

Shane is a rally car driver originally from Ireland.  It isn’t said how long he has been in Texas, but it must have been at least three years for him and Tessa to be able to claim that the Romeo & Juliet law applies to them.  Shane is a bit mouthy at times and a very good driver.  Jack Reynor is fine in the part.  Stanley Tucci is pretty good as Joshua Joyce, a rather arrogant business owner who is mixed up in what is going on.  Attinger is a CIA agent who is in charge of the secret op to track down Transformers.  He doesn’t see a difference between Autobots and Decepticons.  He is willing to do whatever is necessary to achieve his goal.  Kelsey Grammar does well with the part and makes a good villain. 

Optimus Prime is back and still leading the Autobots, or at least who is left of them.  His faith in humans has been strained, though Cade’s actions help to fix that.  Peter Cullen returns to provide the voice of Optimus Prime.  Cullen originated the voice of Optimus Prime in the 1980's cartoon.  He has done other voice work over the years and has done the voice of Optimus again since the release of the first Transformers movie in 2007.  Optimus changes into a semi truck.  When he is first seen in this movie, he looks like a much older cab that is very damaged.  It isn’t long before he upgrades to a newer model semi.  Bumblebee is back too, first as an older Camero before also upgrading to a newer model.  He continues to be a bit sensitive about his appearance at times and he is unable to talk.  He uses sound clips to communicate.

Hound is somewhat large and transforms into some sort of military vehicle.  He does crack a lot of jokes, most of which really aren’t that funny.  John Goodman provides his voice.  He wasn’t in any of the previous movies.  Drift looks like a Samurai in robot form.  He can also change into a helicopter in addition to the Veyron.  Ken Watanabe’s voice works for the character.  Crosshairs is pessimistic about most things, including the other Autobots.  John DiMaggio provides his voice.  I don’t think Hound, Drift, or Crosshairs has been in any of the previous movies. 

Galvatron is a new robot who may have a connection with Megatron.  Frank Welker does his voice.  Stinger, as well as other robots who seem to be new Decepticons, don’t talk.  Stinger is the only one I remember.  Lockdown is neither Autobot or Decepticon.  He is basically a bounty hunter on a job.  Mary Ryan does his voice.   Later in the movie, ancient Transformers are found who turn into robotic dinosaurs instead of cars.  Optimus rides one of them, a tyrannosaurus rex that breaths fire, into battle.  The others also take part in the battle.  They aren’t identified by name, though I thought I heard Crosshairs call one of them Spike at one point. 

Transformers: Age of Extinction has issues with plot and acting, much like the first three movies.  It is also entirely too long.  Despite those things I did enjoy the movie overall.  For a mindless action movie, it is ok.  This is not a movie that everyone will like.  People who liked the first movies may also like this one.  People who didn’t like them should probably skip this one.  I didn’t love or hate this movie.  It isn’t great, but it isn’t awful either - I have seen much worse. 

This review is part of Elvisdo’s 7th Annual Funny Pages Write Off.  Elvisdo is another former Epinions member, and he hosted this write off there for six years.  It was something that several members - myself included - looked forward to each year.  I am very happy that he has decided to do it again.

Green Hornet

Since I have at least somewhat liked most of the movies I’ve seen about superheroes, I wanted to see Green Hornet even though I didn’t know much about the character and I don’t care that much for Seth Rogen.

There was a Green Hornet television show and the characters has been featured in comic books as well.  I sort of remember seeing some of the television show, but I don’t remember much of anything about it.  Even without remembering much, I’m sure that the movie is a lot sillier.  I also don’t think that the main character, Britt, was such an obnoxious jerk, in the television show.

Green Hornet manages to be an entertaining movie overall.  It has a decent origin story for how Britt decides to fight crime as the Green Hornet.  The plot isn’t overly complicated, and some of the developments are rather weak.  The subplot that I didn’t care for the most deals with Lenore, the attractive woman that Britt hires as his assistant.  Britt and Kato are both interested in her and sort of chase after her, with Britt acting like a big idiot about it.  That aspect of the movie just didn’t work well for me.  I also felt like Cameron Diaz didn’t really fit the part either.

There is a decent amount of action in Green Hornet and a few scenes get rather violent.  The action scenes are done well, though there is some slow motion and other odd effects in a few of the scenes.  I think the odd effects were somehow tied to the movie being released in 3D as well.

Britt and Kato are interesting, though Britt is such a jerk, it is hard to like him or be interested in him at times.  He’s rude and obnoxious much of the time.  I think a big reason for that is that Seth Rogen played the part.  He is also one of the writers of the movie.  Rogen’s characters have seemed like jerks to me in some of his other movies as well.  In interviews that I’ve seen of Rogen, he comes across the same way.  He acts like a self absorbed jerk with a very high opinion of himself and his acting abilities.  Britt just seems to be a thinly veiled version of Rogen.

While I have issues with how Britt acts and certain plot elements, I did enjoy Green Hornet overall.  It manages to work as an entertaining superhero type movie.

I did get a review posted on Epinions after seeing the movie in the theater.

Green Hornet

Faster

Since I usually like Dwayne Johnson movies, I decided to see Faster.  Based on the previews, I wasn’t expecting a lot from the movie, but I was entertained.

A man gets out of prison and starts killing the people involved with the murder of his brother.  The police investigate the murders and someone hires a hitman to go after the killer.  That is really it for the plot.  The name of the main character and one of the cops is used during the movie, but they are only identified as Driver and Cop in the credits and the hitman is listed as Killer.

The plot for Faster is very, very simple and thin, even for a revenge type movie.  The motivation is shared for why Driver is killing.  He kills several people, but since he is only targeting certain people, I don’t really think of it as a killing spree.  I was entertained by the movie, but it would have been nice if there had been a little more substance to the plot.  A few attempts to add complications by sharing some information about Killer and a bit of backstory for Cop just don’t work that well.  One development was probably intended to be a surprise, but I saw it coming way in advance.

There really isn’t any mystery or suspense to what is going on in Faster, but there is a lot of violence.  It doesn’t take long for Driver to start killing.  The deaths he is responsible for are violent and bloody.  At one point, there is a flashback that shows the murder of his brother, another scene that is violent.  Things aren’t that gory, but they are probably too graphic for some viewers.

Faster has minimal character development, one of the things that makes the story weaker overall.  A little bit of background is shared about Driver, Cop, and Killer, and that is really it.  Most of the characters are rather flat, and not as interesting as they could have been.  The acting is fine, but nothing special.  Dwayne Johnson doesn’t even have that many lines.  He just goes from place to place killing with a ticked off look on his face.

Overall, Faster is a fairly simple movie that does manage to be entertaining.  It isn’t a favorite, but I have seen worse.

I did get a longer review posted on Epinions.

Faster

Unstoppable

I became interested in seeing Unstoppable after seeing the trailers for the movie.  The movie looked interesting and I do usually like Denzil Washington.

Unstoppable is actually inspired by true events that happened in Ohio in 2001.  I did read some about the real incident after seeing the movie and it seems like several things have been changed for the movie.  I’m sure that was done to make things more exciting.  The setting was also changed to Pennsylvania.

At a rail yard, a worker is moving a train.  He jumps off to change a switch and then is unable to reboard the train.  It is assumed at that point that the train is just coasting.  It turns out that some lever slipped, allowing the train to build up speed.  Connie Hooper is in charge at the rail yard and she starts trying to find a way to deal with the train.  Conductor Will Colson and engineer Frank Barnes are working together for the first time that day.  Will hasn’t been out of training that long and he does make a few mistakes.  They barely miss a collision with the runaway train.  When other ideas to stop the train fail, Frank and Will put their own plan into motion.

I really enjoyed Unstoppable and found it to be a very entertaining movie.  The pace moves pretty fast after a slower start, though that is expected since the movie only covers a matter of hours.  The runaway train provides a decent amount of action for the movie and there are some suspenseful scenes as well. The way that things work out is somewhat predictable, but that doesn’t keep the movie from being entertaining.  During some scenes, usually ones involving some kind of action, jerky camera work turns up.  I hate that and don’t think it adds anything to a movie other than making it harder to tell what is going on. 

There are several characters in Unstoppable and the movie does jump back and forth between them throughout the movie.  There really isn’t much character development, but that doesn’t bother me since the movie is entertaining.  Will and Frank probably are developed a bit more than the others.  They have a few issues at first, but they end up working well together.  Denzil Washington and Chris Pine do well with their parts.  Connie is trying everything she can think of to deal with the situation.  Rosario Dawson is fine in the part.  Other workers for the railroad turn up every so often, though none of them are really that developed.

Overall, Unstoppable is a well done, entertaining movie. It has a decent amount of action and I think it deserves to be seen.  Fans of Denzil Washington should definitely check it out.

I did get a review posted on Epinions.

Unstoppable