Justice League

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Justice League!

Original image located here. Accessed 24th November 2017

This film surprised me: I was expecting it to be rubbish but it instead turned out to be....kinda alright.
No doubt about it, the backstage dramas are inescapable with this film, what with Zack Snyder pulling out and Joss Whedon stepping in for script reworking and re-shoots. Thus, it becomes unclear how much of this film is down to Snyder and how much of it is down to Whedon. Did Snyder want to make a less dour film? Or how much of Whedon's trademark wit came creeping in? It's anyone's guess really.

Coming off the huge success of Wonder Woman I don't feel that this movie is a step backwards but it isn't a step forwards either. More a step to the side. I like the character interaction but the villain is dull (criminal when one considers how many great villains lie within the DC Rogue's gallery). I like the presence of a humor in a DCU that is sorely lacking in it but I dislike how sometimes the action is going too fast to take in. I like the small touches (ie The sequence where the Flash taps Wonder Woman's sword into her hand) but what is intended to be grand comes across as underwhelming.
In fact a lot of this movie can be summed up with the following: it's a step up just not a step froward
Other than that, Jason Mamoa and Gal Gadot are both in fine form but the real star is Ezra Miller playing, what appears to be, an Autistic Flash. Works for me!

Also, we have a villain named Steppenwolf and there's no rendition of 'Born to be Wild"?! A wasted opportunity if ever there was one.

Being There

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Being There!

Original image located here. Accessed 17th November 2017

I heard about this movie largely through it being something of a passion project for Peter Sellers. In addition, it won him critical acclaim and whilst it isn't his final film many people choose that it rather be.

Personally I found this movie a very strange movie, even for the standards of the late 1970s. It may seem improbable in this present age but it wins purely due to Sellers' performance and director Hal Ashby's direction.
Sellers' performance is indeed his finest hour. I certainly believe that this was a part he persued with a passion and it shows in his commitment to it.
Ashby's direction is indeed something else: It has been pointed out that this movie could've been a parable on gullibility but thankfully it didn't go down that path - and I agree the movie is all the better for it.

This movie is a subtle one: it has been billed as a comedy but I don;t think it's meant to be: Sure it's farcical and a Comedy of Errors but I think, at it;s heart, it's something different. It's a deceptive piece, offering one thing but delivering something else that ultimately sticks within the mind of the viewer - indeed that final scene is the clincher, challenging everything the viewer saw beforehand.
And if a movie can do something like that, then it must've done something right
And hey, I'll take subtly over constant explosions any day.

The BFG

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....The BFG!

Original image located here. Accessed 10th November 2017

I have had a love for Roald Dahl ever since my primary school teacher read his stories to myself and the rest of her first year class. So i had high hopes with this one. Sure the adaptations of Dahl's work haven;'t been that great but having Spielberg handle this one showed promise.
Interestingly enough, this movie flopped in the US - which has led many to declare Spielberg's day as a box-office drawcard has come to an end. As fan of Dahl, such a frosty reception is puzzling - or perhaps people these days are more likely to associate the letters BFG with DOOM.

As for the movie itself, I enjoyed it. It was visually interesting, inventive and I enjoyed seeing how things work in BFG's home. There may have been some awkward moments with the script, what with the issue of snozzcumbers, pacing issues, BFG not being that friendly at first and the absence of the Jack the Giant Killer joke. But in the end, of all the adaptations of Dahl's work, this is one of the better ones.

Thor Ragnarok

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Thor Ragnarok!

Original image located here. Accessed 3rd November 2017

It's better than Dark World.

Ok seriously. I may not be the first to think that after Dark World flopped but I was curious to see if Marvel could learn from their missteps. in addition, the success of Wonder Woman also raises the issue to see if Marvel will step up their game.

Personally, i really enjoyed this movie. It has been noted that Thor is always upstaged by Loki in HIS OWN MOVIE but here, Thor finally comes into his own. But still, i have to admit Cate Blanchett steals the show.
So yeah, this was a lot of fun and definite a contender for a top tier posie in the MCU hierarchy. In fact, in my next RPG, I'm definitely using the line "Point me in the direction of whose arse I have to kick!"