ACTION MAN STRIKES! The U.K.’s one-man answer to G.I. Joe breaks mission to search for Dr. X–the villain who killed Action Man’s predecessor. But does young Action Man have the experience to pull this off?
Writing
One of the characters in this book has an X on his belt, meaning Doctor X is behind the plot. The absurdity of this is actually called out in the book. Ian is supposed to be the Action Man, the best secret agent around. Yet his decisions make him come off a bit too inexperienced to really showcase that he is ready to hold the title.
There is talk of a traitor on the team, which helps to perk up the plot a bit. Sadly this doesn’t come until the end of the issue. With any luck, John Barber will be leading with this idea from here on out and it will aid in the stories need for intrigue. Also, either show more flashbacks or less. The two pages at a time to show how Ian became part of the Action Man program is getting to be redundant, and is only distracting from the main story.
Artwork
After the first issue where IDW decided to have two artists split up the work, they ending up sticking with Paolo Villanelli on art and Joana Lafuente on colors. The book looks better for it and holds a great consistent look throughout. The scenes where Ian is throwing himself into the fight really come off well thanks to their combined effort.
Conclusion
The book is slowly starting to move forward, but just so much. Hopefully from here it will follow this traitor storyline and see how far it goes. Then the comic will increase the stakes and from there really help to establish itself as a spy comic fans will flock towards.
One of the best and most controversial Batman stories finally gets an animated movie. The original plot by comic legend Alan Moore took an in-depth look at one of the most infamous characters of DC comics, the Joker, as he commits one of his most atrocious crimes. Will the film be remembered as successfully adapting a classic, or does it fall short of recreating the magic?
It should be noted that the reviewer has never read the original graphic novel and went into the movie with just the rudimentary information about the original story. This means this review will be based on the movie itself without comparing it to the original graphic novel.
Writing
Even without reading the the comic it’s easy to tell what parts of the story are what are new for the film. It’s mostly the new stuff involving Batgirl which doesn’t really feel organic. She becomes the focus of a mob boss named Paris Franz (seriously who came up with this name?) who becomes obsessed with her. Sadly, it doesn’t really add to her character or to the film once focus goes back to the Joker and his story.
Once the Joker shows up, he steals the show and makes you forget about the first twenty minutes of film ever happened. Which really just leads you to ask, “Why did the new stuff have to be added at all?”
The story on the Joker is the best part of the movie. The plot shows just how far he will go to show that everyone is just as crazy as him. From showing his origin and the execution of his new plan, Batman: The Killing Joke is an intense ride. This is the better part of the film, and does show that there is something enjoyable to find in the film.
Directing
Time to address the elephant in the room, the Batman/Batgirl sex scene that everyone has been talking about. While it does feel weird, there is buildup to it as Batgirl does express how she wants Batman to open up and wants their relationship to be something more. This is an interesting idea, but sadly this is still part of the first twenty minutes. Refer back to the above comment on this being unnecessary padding to the overall story.
Adding more Batgirl doesn’t really help to make her later tragedy less intense or redeeming or whatever reason the director was working on to achieve with it. Also, while looking at the attempts to explore the character more were at least halfway justified, it’s hard not to ask what the purpose of the scene where Batgirl is going out for a run in her civilian outfit. Here the screen makes sure to zoom in on her butt and chest as she exercises. This scene felt more exploitative than the implied sex scene was, and really makes you question the director’s choice with the storyboards.
The ending just seems awkward. There was confirmation that this was how the original comic ended, but here it just feels abrupt, like there needed to be an extra bit of exchange between Joker and Batman. Sadly, the credits role and nothing is truly resolved except to confirm the two characters will just keep fighting until the end. If a scene of padding was needed this is where it should have been placed.
Music
The music for the film is captivating. The use of the orchestra for the more action and dramatic moments is good while the use of jazz beat helps to showcase the flashbacks into the Joker’s past. The music helps really adds the necessary atmosphere to the piece and the specific bits were so really captivating.
The movie does feature a song by Joker in which he sings while torturing his victim. The song starts out well and feels a bit disturbing, but it does seem to go on for a bit too long. It’s hard to tell if shortening it would have helped or not, but it definitely felt like it may have benefited from being like 30 seconds shorter.
Acting
The movie has some really stellar performances by Kevin Conroy as Batman, Mark Hamill as the Joker, and Tara Strong as Batgirl. Hamill and Conroy slip back into their roles and deliver exquisite performances as ever, and Hamill’s Joker does help to steal the show. Strong also easily recaptures her work as Batgirl but it should be asked why she has to do some of the more background voices on top of being one of the main characters. Doesn’t she have enough to to do?
Ray Wise providing the voice for James Gordon seems a bit too soft spoken for the role. Gordon gets put through the ringer by Joker and watches his daughter be victimized, but doesn’t deliver the reactions which one would expect for someone experiencing this kind of horror. Wise could have delivered a bit more energy given the scenes.
Production
The animation is presented well enough but feels kinda drab in certain moments. There are few outstanding visuals, such as when the Joker shows up in his vacation outfit with a look of death in his eyes, or when Bullock and Batman find some of his victims. Other moments, like at the Joker’s circus feels kinda dull in an effort to show the place is run down. There are ways to show places as being rundown without simply more bits of brown and black to make it look dirty.
This special screening of this film through Fathom Events featured an opening featurette where Mark Hamill talked about his experiencing providing the voice for the Joker, and an additional one at the end showing the creation of the music for the film. These featurettes are very interesting, especially the look at the Joker and Hamill’s experience with him. Unfortunately, these bits feel like they are more padding to add to the film because the original story wasn’t long enough for a full feature.
Frankly the film is not as entertaining as it should be. The grand moment of the film happens when Batgirl is shot, but sadly afterward there is still 30 minutes left and it isn’t nearly as thrilling. The fans finally got an animated version of The Killing Joke, but in the end it’s only worthy of a faint chuckle.
Office Christmas Party is The Hangover set in, well, a christmas party full of derelict coworkers. Jason Bateman leads a pretty incredible all star cast, including Jennifer Aniston, T.J. Miller, and Kate McKinnon.
Check out this insanity:
We don’t need a synopsis, it’s pretty clear what’s happening here. It could be incredibly funny or incredibly overdone. But with that impressive cast I’d like to think there will be at least some laughs.
The full cast beyond Bateman, Aniston, Miller, and McKinnon includes Olivia Munn, Abbey Lee, Rob Corddry, Courtney B. Vance, Vanessa Bayer, and Jamie Chung. Josh Gordon and Will Speck direct.
The long battle comes to a close. It ends a little abruptly, but at the same time in a way which is understandable and makes use of the resources at hand. Also, despite the battle resolving, there is still plenty of action in this issue to satisfy even the most diehard fan. Again, be ready for some emotional moments as you read this one. Not everyone is able to make it out alive.
This issue does show a flaw with writer James Roberts’ style. His storytelling is so intricate it sometimes takes more than one reading to appreciate and understand what happened. It does help to show how far ahead he had gone to plot the different stories to make sure not to leave any plot holes to chance. Still, even with this intense plot, he still makes sure to deliver some very powerful emotional moments.
Artwork
The team of Alex Milne and Joana Lafuente really excel this issue. The face off between the Decepticon Justice Division and Megatron is especially noteworthy thanks to their use of color and pencilling to show a lot of action in closed space. Also, the little details put into all the damage that the characters have endured and the emotional pain from different situations on their faces is especially impressive.
Conclusion
The series continues to be one of the best Transformers comics ever. Just as it seems like you know where the plot is going, a door opens, and something you never thought would happening occurs. It’s a wild ride which fans need to take part in.
Synopsis: Batman (Kevin Conroy) must save Commissioner Gordon (Ray Wise) from the Joker’s (Mark Hamill) twisted quest to drive him insane.
I wanted to love this movie. I really did. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case. Batman: The Killing Joke isn’t bad; it’s just, well, forgettable. Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy give stellar voice performances as The Joker and Batman respectively, the majority of scenes with Mistah J. were well done, and the film really embraced its dark, R rating. Other than that, however, the movie falls flat.
I’m a big fan of TheKilling Joke graphic novel. It’s the origin of one of the greatest villains of all time with an appealing art style and brilliant writing. That said, I tried not to let my love of the book hinder my opinion of the movie – but there is one major difference that needs to be addressed: the introduction and prologue of Batgirl, Barbara Gordon. The film starts with a 15 or 20 minute opening that takes us through the life of Barbara and Batgirl, giving us an idea of who that character is. When taking into account the prominence of that character in this story, it sounds like a potentially meaningful 20 minutes of film. Spoiler alert, it isn’t. The prologue felt like a disconnected, totally separate movie from The Killing Joke, and was quite boring at times. Again, I absolutely see what they were going for, but the execution simply wasn’t there.
We got several flashbacks of The Joker’s past, which was intended on giving the audience the reason as to why he’s so crazy, and was also used as an attempt to bring empathy to the character. I enjoyed the first flashback sequence, but was frankly quite bored by the fourth or fifth. They were edited into the plot randomly, felt totally out of place, and should’ve been condensed by a considerable amount. Again, I see what the writers and director were going for, but the scenes just didn’t deliver the way they could or should have.
I know I touched upon it earlier in this review, but I need to give more praise to just how brilliant Mark Hamill was in this. He’s always great as the Joker character we’ve come to know and love, but I think this might be his greatest performance in the role yet. The moment of hearing his iconic voice give the “One bad day” line will go down in Batman history as an all time great, regardless of how the overall film was received.
Reading through my thoughts again, the theme of this review definitely focuses on potential versus actual execution. Batman: The Killing Joke truly could’ve been an amazing adaptation of the famous comic, but the prologue, odd editing and seemingly lazy animation make it a story of “what if.”
Did you see the movie? If so, did you like it? Why or why not? Be sure to let me know in the comment section below this article!
Somewhat overshadowed by all of the Doctor Strange and Justice League headlines that came out of the recent Comic-Con was the fact that this past weekend the first trailer for Guy Ritchie’s King Arthur movie started circulating. People have known about this project for some time now—it’s expected to be the first in a whopping six-film epic franchise—but the details have largely been hush-hush. So what did we learn from the first trailer? Not much in terms of concrete information, but we got a pretty good feel for the tone of Ritchie’s epic, and suffice it to say it’s pretty surprising.
One thing that really stands out about the trailer is that it seemed to reveal the title of this first movie as King Arthur: Legend Of The Sword. Until now, the expected title was Knights Of The Round Table: King Arthur. It was a strange working title, but one that suggested each of the movies in the planned six-film franchise would focus on a new character within the knights of the round table. For instance, we might get a Knights Of The Round Table: Lancelot and so on, until the full cast of characters was assembled. Given that most of the major knights of Arthurian lore don’t appear to be in Legend Of The Sword, the series may still take this form, but it won’t be spelled out in the titles.
More importantly, the trailer made it exceptionally clear that Guy Ritchie and Co. have no intention whatsoever of following traditional tropes from other Arthurian tales. This is an interesting choice when you consider that a number of popular retellings of the King Arthur tale from over the years still resonate favorably with people today.
The most recent major attempt to bring Arthur and his knights to life on the big screen was 2004’s King Arthur, starring Clive Owen in the titular role and directed by Antoine Fuqua. That film earned a mixed response, but was relatively popular upon its release. It led to a video game that was reviewed by IGN as an “okay” title, but which nevertheless spoke to the way the film resonated as a high-end modern historical action flick. With this movie, Fuqua made an effort to provide the closest thing there is to a “true” Arthurian legend, and in doing so crafted a grittier tale of medieval warfare that was more Gladiator than First Knight or Camelot.
There’s also the lighter side of Arthurian legend, most notably presented by Monty Python in Monty Python And The Holy Grail, arguably one of the most enduring comedies of all time. The film is a total spoof of a King Arthur story, and yet the musical it spawned, “Spamalot,” has remained popular to this day. Gala’s casino platform, which provides various VIP benefits as a way to attract consistent gamers, also makes a habit of hosting games with themes based on popular movies and television. And amid a sea of Marvel- and fairy tale-based games, a “Spamalot” slot still has its place, despite the musical being quite old and the film even older. People still love the idea of a goofy, self-aware take on Camelot and the knights of the round table.
And then, of course, it’s worth considering that not every Arthurian tale is cinematic in nature. There are numerous written versions of the King Arthur story that people still read, though perhaps none is as recognizable to modern readers as The Once And Future King by T.H. White. Viewed by some as the definitive (or at least the best) King Arthur novel, it’s enjoyed some renewed popularity of late thanks to a recommendation from George R.R. Martin, who wrote the Game Of Thrones books. That the trendiest medieval/fantasy writer of today is citing inspiration from an Arthurian book demonstrates the power of this legend in its traditional form better than most anything else.
These are three of many examples of King Arthur tales, but they demonstrate that there are a few popular ways to tell the story. It can be presented realistically, comically, and even traditionally. Yet watching the new trailer for Ritchie’s take on these characters, it’s hard to find a shred of any of these common modes.
That’s not to say there aren’t traditional elements at hand. For instance, much of the trailer revolves around Arthur (Charlie Hunnam) drawing the sword from the stone, as is common in Arthurian origin stories. However, the rest of the trailer is simply so big, and so devoid of the traditional Arthurian imagery, that it almost better resembles some spinoff of the Lord Of The Rings saga than a story of the knights of Camelot. It’s dark, violent, loud, and packed with action. There are no knights hoisting colorful banners, no shining golden crowns or idyllic castles, and no known characters aside from Arthur himself.
It’s just an early teaser, and such trailers are often designed to obscure the true look and feel of the movie. But based on what we’ve seen, this isn’t a project that can be compared to any past Arthur project, or even any type of Arthur project. Whether that’s a disaster or a bold move that will pay off remains to be seen!
Empire Magazine has released two brand new covers for the upcoming Suicide Squad film, directed by David Ayer. The first cover features the entirety of Task Force X and Amanda Waller, while the second shows off Jared Leto’s creepy interpretation of the Joker.
Which cover is your favorite? Comment down below and let us know.
“It feels good to be bad…Assemble a team of the world’s most dangerous, incarcerated Super Villains, provide them with the most powerful arsenal at the government’s disposal, and send them off on a mission to defeat an enigmatic, insuperable entity. U.S. intelligence officer Amanda Waller has determined only a secretly convened group of disparate, despicable individuals with next to nothing to lose will do. However, once they realize they weren’t picked to succeed but chosen for their patent culpability when they inevitably fail, will the Suicide Squad resolve to die trying, or decide it’s every man for himself?”
Suicide Squad hits theaters on August 5. Tickets are on sale now.
Michael Fassbender recently talked Alien: Covenant with Collider, promising a film that is much more akin to Ridley Scott’s 1979 original than the sprawling sci-fi expanse of Prometheus:
“This Alien is going to be… I’m very excited to see it and everybody in the film was saying this is a film that we all want to see. It’s much scarier than Prometheus but it’s got the same sort of scope of Prometheus. It’s kind of got more of the sort of thriller, imminent disaster feel that Alien had, so it’s kind of a beautiful meeting of both of those films. I’m really excited to see it, I think it’s gonna be super scary number one and then again with the massive scope of Prometheus… Once it starts and the ball starts rolling, it doesn’t let up. It’s really gonna bring chills to the cinema.”
So it’s going to be scarier than Prometheus while staying at least in the same arena of scope as the 2012 film. That’s positive news. The biggest issue most had with Prometheus was the bloated storytelling, which seemed to get away from Scott. Telling an expansive story while ratcheting up the thriller elements feels like the best of both worlds.
We’ll see when Alien: Covenant opens August 4, 2017.
If you haven’t watched at least part of Netflix’s Stranger Things, why do you hate fun? The original series, set in 1983, is like an 80s movie encyclopedia fell all over the floor and was put back together in different order, with different characters. References to E.T., Close Encounters, Poltergeist, The Gate, Firestarter, and all manner of Steven Spieberg/Stephne King classics color each and every scene of The Duffer Brothers’ brilliant nostalgic thriller done right.
It also seems like a self-contained season, like it could end with these 8 episodes and everything would be fine. According to executive producer Shawn Levy, that isn’t the plan, and not only will be blessed with season 2, we could get “multiple seasons” and new characters along the way.
Levy spoke to slashfilm about the future of the show:
“We definitely are hopeful to go several more seasons. And the plan is to continue with this set of characters while introducing a few critical key new ones next season. So I’ll just say that a lot of the big mysteries get answered at the end of Season 1, but we are very much kind of unearthing new problems and questions that merit future stories and future investigation in the most enjoyable way. So we are in love with our cast and our characters.”
There are a few directions season 2 could head, and a few theories out there, but for now, let’s just enjoy the fact that Stranger Things will return.
Bad Santa 2 is on the way, and now we have a new teaser trailer. It doesn’t show us much, but what it does show us stays in, should we say, the spirit of the original.
Here goes:
It’s been forever since I’ve seen Bad Santa – it’s not really in my Yuletide movie rotation – but this has reignited the fire of cynicism and booze that colored the original so perfectly.
This time around, the story from director Mark Waters (Mean Girls) focuses on Billy Bob Thornton’s Willie Stokes and his mother (Kathy Bates) joining forces to rip off a holiday charity.
