Avengers: Infinity War – Expectations vs. Reality

I wasn’t planning on writing about Avengers: Infinity War for a while.  My post on Black Panther has only begun to form in my mind – there’s so much to explore; I wasn’t certain what I’d say.  However, there’s not as much in Avengers: Infinity War (or rather, there’s a lot of stuff in Avengers: Infinity War but not as much depth) as there is in Black Panther.  For whatever reason, an idea began to form after my first viewing.  Now, two showings in, I’m (surprisingly) ready to talk about it.  HOWEVER – AND THIS IS IMPORTANT – THIS PIECE WILL HAVE ALL SORTS OF SPOILERS SO PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE DO NOT READ THIS UNTIL YOU HAVE SEEN THE FILM YOURSELF.  TRUST ME, AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR DESERVES IT.  OKAY?  OKAY.  THANK YOU.  I HATE spoilers but I didn’t want to write a vague, superficial piece.  I think the film deserves more than that too.  So, when the idea came, I decided to run with it.  With that being said, let’s begin.

Best Picture 2018 – The Oscar Nominees

Well, this was a year I did it.  I managed to see all nine films nominated for “Best Picture” at this year’s Academy Awards!  I thought it might be fun, as it’s Oscar Week and all, to do a little post with my thoughts on each of the nine Best Picture nominees.  Below you’ll find a little paragraph about each film, written in the order I saw them, all leading up to the film I think should win the Oscar for Best Picture this year.  What’s my choice??  Let’s get to it!

The Last Jedi and Star Wars’ Movement from Mythology to Folk Tale

When I came out of my first showing of The Last Jedi, I was ready to say I liked it.  By the time I exited my third showing of The Last Jedi, I was ready to say I really liked it.  I was still struggling to figure out where to place this film in my larger emotional and intellectual experience of the Star Wars Saga but I was able to say, as a film, The Last Jedi was well done.  I was not ready for the heatedly divisive storm that followed.  As someone who needed a year and a half to be able to like The Force Awakens, I certainly appreciate the pain many feel over this film.  I’m just a bit surprised, given reactions to The Force Awakens, this film caused such an uproar.  Anyway, I’m finally ready to delve into my thoughts and feelings on The Last Jedi.  Be warned MASSIVE SPOILERS WILL FOLLOW.  So if you haven’t seen it, I suggest you come back and read this once you have.

Spider-Man: Homecoming…Uh, What Can I Say?

I saw Spider-Man: Homecoming last Thursday.  Then I went to see it again Saturday night, for my birthday movie.  (YAY!!!)  But for some reason I still hadn’t written about it.  When I saw Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 it took me over a month to be able to process my emotional experience and figure out what I wanted to say.  That wasn’t the case here.  When I saw Wonder Woman I was so in awe I had to write about it immediately.  That wasn’t the case here either.  Last night I realized why this post hasn’t been flowing and, in so realizing, I found the post.  So, are you ready to talk Spider-Man: Homecoming (in a spoiler-free environment)?  Are you ready to learn what caused my writing freeze?

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: Welcome To The Family

It’s no secret that I love the Guardians of the Galaxy.  It’s also no secret that I was super excited for Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2.  However, I still really struggled with writing this piece.  I had trouble trying to capture just how this film affected me.  But…I think I’m ready to try.  In 2014, James Gunn simultaneously stole my heart and made me laugh until I cried with Guardians Of The Galaxy.  I immediately fell in love with these characters and this universe so I’ve been patiently waiting (for nearly three years!!) to see them again.  Now that I have, THERE’S SO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT.  So let’s go!  Fair warning, spoilers will follow. 

Wonder Woman: A Salvific Triumph

Even with the Rotten Tomatoes score, I wasn’t ready for this.  Wonder Woman is a revelation.  We now have a new standard bearer for what a superhero movie can do.  There are no spoilers here, obviously.  The movie just came out last night!  Everyone needs to see this and experience for themselves just how inspiring a comic book movie can be.  Marvel, and the world, need take notice too.  DC’s cinematic comic book universe has arrived and Wonder Woman is their flagship hero, carrying both the DCEU forward and the possible potential for all comic book movies.  Finding what I did in watching Wonder Woman was the most incredible surprise.  And you deserve that surprise too!  So I’m not talking spoilers but I will speak of the film thematically and speak to how it managed to move me so profoundly.

The Doctor Is Real In

Like many a comic fan I was counting the days to opening night and excitedly saw Dr. Strange on Thursday!  My intrigue couldn’t have been higher for a film that a) opened the door to the mystical in the MCU and b) was based on a character I only ever read when he’d guest-star in a comic I already liked.  THEN I went to see it again this afternoon.  I had to!  I couldn’t get it out of my head!  The movie I found was so much better than I was prepared for.  So here are my SPOILER-FREE thoughts on why I found the themes in Dr. Strange to be so captivating!