Superman (2025)

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Superman (2025)!

Original image located here. Accessed 26th December 2025

When I was a boy I saw the original Superman movie with Christopher Reeve. I did enjoy it but in retrospect that was the starting point for super-hero movies, proving they can work and draw in the numbers with people both inside and outside of comic book fandoms. 
However in years since, Superman has become a difficult character to get right, with subsequent movies being dour affairs (Henry Cavill) or good ideas weighed down with lousy ones (Brandon Routh).
So can James Gunn, surely the patron saint of taking lesser known/tainted material and doing something grand with it?

I will say this: This movie does learn from the mistakes of it's predecessors. There is plenty of colour, it ditches the desaturation of Cavill's era and has an effective leading man in David Corenswet. But perhaps the most striking thing about this movie is that it truly understand how a Superman movie is supposed to work: Gigantic set pieces, Superman's powers being utilised in fun and inventive methods, the realisation that Superman is meant to serve as an example and some true heart. And no Jon Peters for miles. 

And with that, this blog comes to a close for the year. This year has been a journey and a half and I hope you all enjoyed going with me with every step.
And I hope to speak to you all again in the new year when there's more movies to discover...

Deadpool and Wolverine

 Recently I went and saw Deadpool and Wolverine.

Original image located here. Accessed 4th November 2024

With Disney purchasing Fox, it's a no-brainer that Deadpool will be integrated into the MCU. It is equally a no-brainer that this means that the makers of the Deadpool movies will have access to some bigger toys to play with.

As for the movie itself, it's the same joke told yet again but strangely enough it has yet to grow stale. Part of the appeal for this movie is that this is pretty much an endpoint for the Fox-era of the MCU. As such, there are numerous nods to it and they work a treat.
But the real ace in the hole is of course Wolverine. Hugh Jackman slips back into the role like he never left and both Wolverine and Deadpool are fun to watch with these two personalities bouncing off one another. 

Once again, much like it's predecessors, there is a real love and real care put into this movie. That said movie is about a complete jerk is the icing on the cake.

Mystery Men

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Mystery Men!

Original image located here. Accessed 19th August 2022

It seems I have encountered something of an anomaly: It was a bomb upon initial release but in the twenty-plus years since release it seems to have finally found an audience in that people are rediscovering it and saying good things about it. And tonight I was one of those people.

It seems that the reason behind this resurrection of this movie is that given that superhero movies have become commonplace in recent years, one would think that parody would be somewhat inevitable. But that is a niche that has already been filled and Mystery Men does it admirably.
Has time been kind to this movie? One would think so.
Okay sure some of the jokes have aged poorly but there are some genuinely laugh-out moments. There are indeed some great gags that poke fun at the familiar superhero tropes. And the premise of superheroes with useless powers still works.
Plus it has Geoffrey Rush hamming it up. And I won't say no to that

The Suicide Squad

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

Original image located here. Accessed 20th August 2021

I've never seen the original Suicide Squad - in all honesty, the backlash it received was enough to turn me off completely. But that places me in a position where I can judge this sequel/reboot on it's own terms and without any connection to it's predecessor.

Perhaps it is fitting that i should see James Gunn's earlier piece Super weeks prior because in a way, that movie is effectively a blueprint for this one. The only difference is, whereas Super is mean-spirited (even uncomfortably so) The Suicide Squad is less so. Sure it is loud, obnoxious, gory and has loads of profanity, but Gunn pulls the same trick he did with the Guardians of the Galaxy - that being taking characters that are lesser known, and hardly the type to be taken seriously, and making them work. And that certainly is a feat in itself. Sure Harley is the most recognizable face here (courtesy of the incomparable Margot Robbie) but the real stars are the rest of the Suicide Squad. Which is indeed saying something.
Obviously, the success of Guardians of the Galaxy netted Gunn the job of doing The Suicide Squad but for me, The Suicide Squad is clearly the work of someone who has been left off the leash and is going for it at full tilt.
So yeah, this movie was great and some truly demented fun.

So the big question now is what DC are going to do next. On one hand this movie, as well as Joker, proves that their movies can work well with the villains in mind - and that can't be underestimated.
But on the other hand, I have previously praised Shazam and Aquaman - and now, The Suicide Squad proves the notion that DC's movies can be successful if they take the characters that are either lesser known or not to be taken seriously and make them work.
Needless to say, it would be interesting to see what DC will take away from The Suicide Squad....

Super

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

Original image located here. Accessed 30th July 2021

The new Suicide Squad movie is right around the corner so it is fitting that i should watch this earlier effort from director James Gunn: A parody of super hero movies that never, as I was led to believe, forgets it's a comedy. Or something.

Simply put: This movie is insane. Having said however, that isn't in a good way. On one hand, the black comedy has some appeal, Boltie is a riot, and the lead character is shown in a sympathetic light. But on the other hand, the violence is indeed tough to stomach, there is indeed a sense of mean-spirited-ness at play and some moments (like the final confrontation) fall drastically flat. I will give props to Gunn for clearly trying to throw a challenge to the superhero genre but somehow I can't shake the feeling that this type of thing was done later, and better, by the likes of Deadpool and Joker. As such, Super does come across as being the equivalent of 'talking a lot but no saying anything'
Close but no cigar

Birds of Prey

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey!

Original image located here. Accessed 14th February 2020

Let me say this up front: I like Margot Robbie. She's a great actress and she's always entertaining whatever she's doing. And she has her own production company, so clearly she's making sure the movies she wants made get made - I admire that.
I never saw Suicide Squad but it is clear that Robbie's turn as Harley Quinn was clearly a highlight so of course she would get her own movie.

And of course it's Harley's show all the way. Which is both a good thing and a bad thing: Good because Robbie is clearly enjoying every minute of this role and bad because the other characters aren't really that interesting. In fact I'm not sure what this movie's intention is: Is it a Harley vehicle or is it an attempt to get an all-female team-up going? And of course the issue of the name change is further confusing matters.

With the other characters, there are some moments of interest but other times they seem dull and more interested in who can out-curse the others. As such, aside from some inventive action sequences, this movie was a chore to get through.
Now I'm not opposed to an all-female action/superhero team but ultimately, I need interesting characters to make it work. Because once you have interesting characters you can sell anything
A fact that My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic has proven many times over.

Shazam

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

Original image located here. Accessed 19th April 2019

Its no coincidence that I saw Big last week. After all, both movies are based around the same theme so seeing how each approach differs would be something to see right?
To be honest I wasn't looking forward to this movie as i though the trailer didn't look anything special - but somehow I've heard some good things about Shazam so i decided i would give it a shot. And sometimes, there is something to be said about being proven wrong.

So yeah this movie was a lot of fun. It was funny and definitely shows signs of a low budget being made the most out of. Indeed one gets the feeling that seeing as Shazam is a lesser tier DC hero, the makers of this movie just decided that, (much like Aquaman) they could whatever they wanted - and in this case this is some sly attempt to remake Big (note the homage) under the guise of a super hero movie.
Of particular note however are instances of particular poignancy that are indeed surprising and are pulled off well.

All in all, a great movie and a sign that DC are heading down the correct path after numerous misfires - Clearly the dour approach wasn't working out for them.
Yet it is a disappointment that this movie does a better job of being a Superman movie than any of the recent Superman movies

Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse!

Original image located here. Accessed 18th January 2019

Calling it: Best Spiderman movie ever made. Better than Homecoming and better than the Sam Raimi Spiderman movies.

Not really much else i can say really: There's some great ideas, some amazing creativity, and a delight in seeing many art styles thrown together and interacting with each other. Its funny, action packed and astonishing in it's animation.
Mind you, watching this after Aquaman, one gets the feeling that the MCU set the bar high to a point where their rivals are rising to the challenge and lifting their game.
Needless to say, Far From Home has a serious challenge to face up to....

Aquaman

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

Original image located here. Accessed 11th January 2019

So, can Jason Mamoa have enough clout as a leading man? Apparently so.

Well, this is indeed a step in the right direction for DC - and certainly counts as one of the hits after numerous misses.
One gets the impression that seeing Aquaman is a low tier DC hero (and in some cases a joke hero), the people behind this decided that they had a clean slate and they could do what they liked. So yes, there is a sense of fun - and Lord knows the DC movies needed it. There is some great action, some interesting villains, imaginative designs and a cast boasting members that are made unrecognizable.

I'll say it again: This is indeed a step in the right direction for DC. So it remains to be seen whether they can capitalize on this...

Dead Pool 2

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Dead Pool 2!

Original image located here. Accessed 25th May 2018

Well there's isn't a lot i can say about this movie: Same fourth wall breaking, same jabs at super hero movies, same jokes and references.. Really it's the same joke told differently - but somehow it's still a laugh riot.

I think the only thing i can say about this movie is the same reaction I got to the original movie: How on earth did this movie get made?
Allow me to elaborate: I've heard stories of how movies get stuck in development hell. Nearly all of them follow a set pattern: Some genius comes up with a great idea for a movie and bashes out a script; said script then makes it's way to a producer who hires someone else to rewrite it; if the producer DOES read the script, they will impose a whole lot of changes in the form of mandates; more mandates come in the form the director and any actors interested; and with such mandates (not to mention those that contradict one another) the film ends up being dropped completely or makes it out as a toothless husk of the original idea.
That being said, it is difficult to imagine both Dead Pool movies being put through such a process. Did the success of the MCU movies provide a new benchmark for everyone to reach? Or is the era of Hollywood producers who don't know jack *coughJonPeterscough* truly over?
If it is then good riddance to it.

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.

Wonder Woman

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Wonder Woman!

Original image located here. Accessed 9th June 2017

Yeah it's all right.

Okay seriously, it's a given that DC's attempts to chase Marvel's successes are obvious to the point of painful. And such attempts have divided audiences drastically (ie Man of Steel, Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad). So what do you do when you've got your back to the wall? You knuckle down and make a decent movie, that's what.

So yeah there is a lot going for this movie. And it shows that a lot of effort has been put in the correct previous mistakes: A script with proper structure and plausible dialogue; a distinct lack of drab colors; action scenes that aren't a mess of confusion and blurry shots; And a true understanding of the character.

It's not quite on par with Marvel's finest but it succeeds because it shows DC are putting in effort and learning from their mistakes. Now it remains to be seen if DC can stop themselves from falling back into bad habits....

Blade 2

And this weeks Friday night movie has been....Blade 2!

Original image located here. Accessed 13th March 2015

Well if you're going to see the first one then you may as well watch the second. 

I'm not going to say something like 'not as good as the first' so what I will say is that this was pretty damn good on it's own merits. And hey, you can't go wrong with Guillermo del Toro. And Ron Perlman. And The Cat from Red Dwarf

Blade

And this weeks Friday night movie has been....Blade!

Original image located here. Accessed 30th June 2015

I admit it: I've never seen this movie before. I knew it originally came out when I was in college but I don't recall it being that big a hit. Sure people who saw it talked it up and the movie has gained something of a cult following in the years since but I never have gotten around to seeing it.

So what do i think of it? Well as an action movie it's great. And I certainly came away entertained 🙂 Furthermore one can't deny the influence Blade has in resurrecting comic book movies. Mind you, I could be cynical and say it may have cashing in on the success of Buffy but then again Buffy doesn't have a big-arse shotgun XD

Xmen First Class

And this weeks Friday night movie has been....Xmen First Class!

 Original image located here. Accessed 20th February 2015

Well seeing I've watched the Animated series all the way through it was somewhat natural to go to this. So my thoughts? This is difficult to assess because it's a prequel and like any prequel we all know what's going to happen but the real strength in the movie is daring us, the audience, that it won't. And to that end the movie is a success. The action is exciting, the James Bond-inspirations are great and there's some solid moments of character development.  Plus we have Charles Xavier as a womanizer and I find that utterly hilarious XD

Oh we also have President Michael Dugan in it too (a cookie if you get that reference)

Watchmen

I saw The Watchmen this evening. 

Original image located here. Accessed 11th July 2014

Not a bad movie - and one day I might actually get around to reading the original graphic novel