Category Archives: Movies
Review: Wreck-It Ralph
I knew Wreck-It Ralph was going to be good, but I didn’t know it was going to be this good! I can’t remember a cartoon kiddie movie with this many layers, with this much devastation and with more twists and turns than your average Sugar Rush race track. There were several moments in the film where I was very surprised at the latest turn of events, but also in awe at just how well-structured those events were. Wreck-It Ralph is made with obvious forethought, setting up many plot points and story threads that pay off with delightful glee in the end.
Wreck-It Ralph is the rare kids’ movie that doesn’t hold your hand or soften its blows. And for that, I loved it!
Movie rating: 5/5: Great!
Kids are not idiots. When you’re making entertainment for kids, you don’t need to talk down to them and you don’t need to pander to them. Kids may not understand more complex concepts, but deep down, they understand and can appreciate the difference between comedy and tragedy. Wreck-It Ralph is one of those movies that expects its viewers to think, to understand a character’s complex motivations. Why does Ralph want to be a good guy? What does it mean when he hurts his friend in order to help her? These are not simple matters of good guy and bad guy. Ralph can’t just win a medal and expect everything to work out all hunky-dory. He has to earn his happy ending – and believe me, he does!
The characters are especially fantastic. John C. Reilly as Wreck-It Ralph is a great leading man, who really comes through in the end. Jack McBrayer is a little grating as Fix-It Felix Jr., but then I mostly just feel that way about Jack McBrayer. Alan Tudyk makes a surprising turn as the Candy King, who is a far more complex character than one might think. And the great, glorious Sarah Silverman is beyond adorable as Vanellope the glitch. She has all the cutes. There isn’t a bad character in the bunch.
In a match up between Pixar’s Brave from earlier this summer and Disney’s Wreck-It Ralph, it should be no surprise that the one filled to the brim with video game references is by far the best. Suck it, Pixar.
Join me after the jump for the full review. There will be full SPOILERS!
It Will Never Stop Being Funny That the Amazing Spider-Man Uses Bing
Honest Trailers is back, this time parodying The Amazing Spider-Man.
Each and every one of these that they have made has been gold, or at least the ones I’ve seen. And they’re clearly having a lot of fun poking holes in some pretty popular movies. Even though I loved The Amazing Spider-Man, there’s no denying that Screen Junkies are right on the mark about this. No teenage science geek like Peter Parker would stoop to using Bing!
‘Jamie Foxx is Electrifying’ Will Be the New Thing to Say
So it seems that Jamie Foxx has been tapped to play Electro in the Amazing Spider-Man sequel. That’s pretty fascinating, actually. It tells us that Sony doesn’t want to repeat the villains from the first trilogy, and it also tells us that they want to keep things classy. Electro is hardly a marquee villain, but they casting an A-list actor anyway.
For those of you who don’t know, this is Electro:
He’s going to ‘zap’ to it!
Yeah, not exactly…ready for the big screen. That bright gold and yellow leotard might work in comics (or at least comics from the 60s and 70s), but there’s no way it’s going to fly in today’s modern movie market. Maybe in the original Spidey trilogy, but definitely not in the darker, grittier Amazing Spider-Man reboot universe. But hey, don’t worry, there already exists a much better version they can use.
Meet Ultimate Electro:
Much snazzier
He’s the hipper, more modern version of the character introduced in Ultimate Spider-Man. Same powers, same badassery, but much better costume.
As for origin, motivation and character? None of that matters! Electro, or Max Dillon, has never had a solid story based around him like some of the other villains. He’s always been just a workman sort of super-villain, a common criminal who just happened to have electricity powers. So the new movie can do whatever they want with him. Including turning him into a black man.
He will super villain you with his eyes
Though they may have some problems, considering DC already has that covered with Black Lightning…
But anyway, what do I think? I think it’s a fine idea. Jamie Foxx is a great actor, and I’m sure he could do a great job as a menacing super-villain. And Electro is a good choice for villain. His powers are tough, and I bet they’d look great on the big screen. I listed him as one of the 6 villains I’d like to see in this new franchise.
I just wonder what this might mean for the Green Goblin/Norman Osborn appearance…
New Zealand Should Just Change Their Name to New Middle Earth
Perhaps you’ve heard that the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies were filmed in New Zealand. And perhaps you know that this has been a huge boon to the New Zealand tourism industry, since so many people travel there to see all the sights. Well New Zealand certainly knows.
Because honestly, does anybody even remember Old Zealand?
The Wolverine Is Lookin’ Fancy
The first official poster for The Wolverine has been released, and it looks pretty snazzy.
I’m sure somebody who knows art could tell you a lot about this image, but I know diddly squat. What I do know is that I love it. Minimalist style is coming back in a big way these days, and I’m excited to see a movie actually take advantage of that instead of going with some hideous, overly photoshopped picture of the cast. Like they did for The Avengers, or pretty much every X-Men movie. So this is a good sign that someone somewhere may have some design sense.
Henchman-4-Hire 