moments. And this fi lm has beautiful special
eff ects and its uses of color are impressive. It’s like
an ‘80s video game vibe and I mean that in a great
way. I anticipated all that.
But what I didn’t expect was a fi lm that made me
laugh from beginning to end. Chris Hemsworth has
the time of his life in this fi lm and we’re along for
the great ride. Mark Ruff alo is just as solid as ever.
He can do it all. His Hulk character fi nally gets a fair
amount of screen time and the chemistry between
to two is terrifi c. Jeff Goldblum is in a few scenes
and steals the show there too.
Many of these fi lms have CGI characters, but
without spoiling much, there’s one in particular
that is just hilarious.
Of course, with comedy, the tension with the
villain (in this case, the great Cate Blanchett) is
lost a bit as well as the stakes. But it really doesn’t
matter since it all works so well.
Spider-Man:
Homecoming
What do you know? The webslinger still had a
lot of mojo left in him. Although the two previous
iterations had highlights, especially the fi rst
trilogy helmed by Sam Raimi and starring Tobey
Maguire, this one really nails the theme of the
comics, which is a high school kid (the terrifi c
Tom Holland was around 18 when the movie was
fi lmed) in a teenager environment you actually buy
into.
Some may be turned off by the fact that he’s
a kid and the stakes are lower, but when this is
your third reboot, it’s time to think outside the
box. This creativity translated into a diverse
school environment where watching Peter Parker
interact with friends is funny and sometimes more
enjoyable than the big action that follows. It’s
totally reminiscent of a John Hughes coming-ofage
story.
Marvel Studios, which took creative control
on the franchise for the fi rst time, often likes
to take its movies and subtly put them in more
conventional genres. So high school comedy with
action elements is a perfect match.
Don’t forget about Michael Keaton, who is
brilliant in most anything he does. He off ers the
best on-screen foe to Spidey since Doctor Octopus
in “Spider-Man 2” and it’s not even close. His
motivations are clear. Marvel fi nally found a great
villain.
Less is more and for about a decade, the
creatives at Sony didn’t understand that. I’m
biased with Spidey, but critics loved it as did the
box offi ce, with the fi lm making nearly $900 million
worldwide. It’s good to have you back, Spider-Man
Guardians of the
Galaxy Vol. 2
“Now I look foolish!”
Marvel Studios can do no wrong and it took its
fi rst major risk in 2014 with a comic book franchise
few have heard of about starring a talking raccoon,
a talking three who says three words and a lead
actor who hadn’t established himself as a box
offi ce dr aw.
Yet it proved again that risk equals rewards. This
lovable group can be called the “Star Wars” of the
Marvel Universe. There are space and rebellious
heroes and creatures that look great on-screen.
The analogy may end there, but it’s one of the
studio’s best to date.
Would Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana and the gang
create magic a second time around? Yup! While
not as strong as the fi rst in terms of story, it
brings more laughs, something more beautiful
looking (more explosions of colors) and expands
on the characters we love so much. It also off ers
what is becoming tradition for the Guardians, an
emotional ending.
Don’t worry. The soundtrack is awesome too!
The Lego Batman
Movie
This isn’t just a great movie for kids. It’s a great
movie for all Batman fans. After the successful
“The Lego Movie,” I actually had high hopes for a
standalone fi lm on the caped Crusader. Turns out,
it didn’t disappoint. It pays homage to basically
every live-action Batman fi lm, including the one
starring the late and great Adam West, while
making fun of them.
It also cleverly portrays adult themes you
wouldn’t expect in a Lego movie, such as isolation,
Photo courtesy of Marvel
Photo courtesy of Marvel
Photo courtesy of Marvel
Photo courtesy
of Marvel
Photo courtesy of Sony
QNS.COM
10 WINTER 2017