SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME

Release Date: Malaysia, 03 July 2019

Genre: Action / Adventure

Running Length: 2:09

Cast: Tom Holland, Jake Gyllenhaal, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Angourie Rice, Tony Revolori, Samuel L. Jackson, Jon Favreau, Marisa Tomei, Cobie Smulders

Director: Jon Watts 

Screenplay: Chris McKenna & Erik Sommers 

The first half of SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME felt more like an epilogue to Avengers: Endgame while the second half; the sequel to Spider-man: Homecoming.  The beginning of this film addresses the events of Thanos' The Snap and Endgame, especially the mourning of Tony Stark/Iron Man's death (sorry, spoilers for those who are yet to watch Endgame). 

This is your standard entertaining lighthearted MCU movie which is very much a welcome after the heavy and emotional Endgame.  There are some funny moments and very decent action sequences - pretty much MCU textbook stuff. 

To me, the overall tone and manner is very much similar to Homecoming. It's the typical high-school coming-of-age movie with superhero elements. Not really a bad thing for me but it's just not my favourite genre.   

Thankfully they didn't go overboard with the Peter Parker/MJ romance as it balances out very nicely with Peter's constant struggle of living up to his calling "with great power comes great responsibility" vs. being your regular teenager. 

Tom Holland is becoming more comfortable and believable as the nice guy neighbourhood superhero but the standout here is Zendaya. Her version of MJ is kinda edge and yet, has hints of vulnerability. It's very current and it works. 

You can see Jake Gyllenhaal is having fun doing this movie. This is not your dark and serious Jake as seen in Prisoners or Nightcrawler. 

It's also refreshing to have a change of environment here since the majority of the movie takes place in Europe (Venice, Praque, London) instead of the usual swinging from building to building in New York. 

If anything, the villain here is not as memorable as Michael Keaton's Vulture in the first movie. There are no memorable "highly tensed conversation in the car scene".

Do stay back for two post credit scenes. The mid-credit scene is the more interesting one as it opens up a whole new possibility for Spidey in the third installment while the after credit scene is perhaps an introduction to MCU Phase 4.  

RATING: 7.5/10

CAPTAIN MARVEL

Release Date: Malaysia, 06 Mar 2019

Genre: Action / Adventure

Running Length: 2:04

Cast: Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Jude Law, Ben Mendelsohn, Lashana Lynch, Clark Gregg, Annette Bening, Djimon Hounsou, Gemma Chan

Director: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck

Screenplay: Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck & Geneva Robertson-Dworet

CAPTAIN MARVEL ranks at the bottom half of the MCU standalone movies. It's not as weak as the recent Ant-Man and the Wasp but it's no Black Panther. To be fair, it's because the bar is already set so high up for an already overcrowded field of MCU movies, this film felt...generic.

The movie opens in outer space. When we are first introduced to Brie Larson's character, she is part of the heroic Kree team (led by Jude Law's character) looking to take down the shapeshifting villainous tribe called the Skrulls in the Kree/Skrull war. We soon learn that she has no memories of her past except the occasional flashback of her in various ages on planet Earth.

During one of her missions to take down a group of Skrulls, she ended up on Earth (the year is 1995). That's when she meets the younger looking Nick Fury (Jackson) and Agent Coulson (Gregg). By the way, the de-aging effects is amazing.

Wanting badly to know her past, she goes on a journey to discover who she really is and ended up uncovering more than she expected.

I'm not doing a one-piece bathing suit costume like in the comics.

As far as Brie Larson is concerned, the actress is fine as Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel. She has the dramatic chops for the quieter moments. In fact, I find her performance much more interesting during her character's amnesia stage as her powers were still repressed. But once she learns how to "unlock" her seemingly limitless powers, Larson somewhat lacks the charisma to carry the god-like presence of Captain Marvel.

That said, the most inspiring part of the movie is during the "unlocking" of her powers moment, represented by a montage of Carol Danvers suddenly finding her inner strength.

  

There are plenty of big visuals and actions with humorous quips; thanks to a very youthful and animated Samuel L. Jackson. And speaking of Jackson's Fury, we learn a lot more about his character here and how he ended up wearing the signature eye patch. Plus, the 90s music throwback is a nice touch especially one fight scene choreographed to the tune of No Doubt's Just A Girl.

Last time I trusted someone, I lost an eye.

There are some nice tribute scenes too; one involving a Star Wars chase sequence (accompanied by a John William-ish soundtrack) and an Indiana Jones moment played to laughs.

In summary, Captain Marvel is no Wonder Woman (the most obvious point of comparison). And Brie Larson is no Gal Gadot. The latter movie has heart, vulnerability and power and as a result, it could easily connect emotionally to its audience. Nevertheless, Captain Marvel is still an important watch as it gives us a clue to how next month's Avengers: End Game would come to an end.

  

(Just like any MCU movie, stay back for two end credit scenes; one mid-credit and the other right at the end involving Goose the Cat)

RATING: 7/10

GLASS

Release Date: Malaysia, 17 Jan 2019

Genre: Science Fiction

Running Length: 2:09

Cast: James McAvoy, Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, Sarah Paulson, Anya Taylor-Joy, Spencer Treat Clark, Charlayne Woodard

Director: M. Night Shyamalan

Screenplay: M. Night Shyamalan

GLASS serves as the final installment in Shyamalan's Eastrail 177 superhero universe where Unbreakable and Split exist. We see the return of David Dunn (Willis) and his "arch enemy" Elijah Prince aka Mr Glass (Jackson), as well as Kevin Wendell Crumb (McAvoy), the "villain" who has multiple personalities.    

While 2017's Split got better and better as the movie progressed (THAT hyperventilating brief moment at the very end...YAS!), Glass was a reverse experience for me. It started out strongly but ran out of gas mid-way. 

Eventhough Shyamalan said he already had an idea of how all these 3 main characters would exist when Unbreakable was conceptualized (that was 20+ years ago), this film felt like a rushed job with a mix of half-baked ideas. 

From a performance standpoint, many have praised McAvoy's acting. As good as he is here, his performance was "same-same" to me as he was in Split. There wasn't any additional layer(s) introduced to make his character more human. At times, he just came across as a caricature. 

The poorest performance to me was from Sarah Paulson. The whole time I was think if she was played by say, Jodie Foster (think Silence of the Lambs), this movie could have seriously leveled-up.

What bothered me about this film is also its excessive exposition. Characters in the movie will be illustrating out loud their intentions and motivations. 

That said, I enjoyed the slow-burn approach to such a genre (vs any other loud and CGI heavy superhero movies) as it gives its audience time to reflect and take it in. The signature Shyamalan twist was also serviceable, although some would argue it's a little tad too silly. 

In summary, Glass offers a tidy closure to these characters. It's watchable but an underwhelming conclusion. 

  

RATING: 6.5/10

INCREDIBLES 2 (Malaysia, 14 Jun 2018)

Genre: Animated

Running Length: 1:52

Cast: Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell, Huck Milner, Catherine Keener, Bob Odenkirk, Samuel L. Jackson

Director: Brad Bird

Screenplay: Brad Bird

What's this movie about?

The super family is back! This time Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible is left to care for the kids while Helen/Elastigirl is out saving the world. And we have a new supervillain this round - The Screenslaver.  

Highlights!

• Superior animation. The graphics somewhat do look the same as the 2004 debut but yet it's different in a good way. The characters are much richer and the backdrop is so much more photorealistic. 
• Immersive action sequences. There are many action scenes here the audience would feel like they are riding a roller coaster - yes, it's edge-of-your-seat stuff especially the sequence involving a runaway train! 
• The score. Michael Giacchino’s score is extremely catchy and really ups the action sequences all the way to its climax. Very classic James Bond-sy style.
• Baby Jack-Jack. The little one steals the show as he sprouts all sorts of unpredictable powers. There is this scene involving a raccoon which was totally LOL. Everytime he's on screen, the audience in the cinema I was in would laugh or go awww~~ 
• Mr. Incredible's arc. It's nice to see the softer side of him especially his struggle to be a good father. 

Lowlights

• Weak villain. In the first movie, Syndrome was a memorable superhero movie villain because he was cold, his motivations were realistic and he could inflict emotional pain to Mr. Incredible and his family. However, this follow-up lacks such a thoughtful villain. 
• Scripting issues. When it first came out in 2004, superhero movies were in its infancy and was starting to get popular. So, to tell a story that superheroes were a "menace" to society was a ballsy decision. Thus, re-telling the anti-superhero theme here didn't feel as fresh and the pacing suffered from its various sub-plots like raising kids in single-parent environment and a teenage crush. Eventhough the movie wasn't that long, it felt long and some moments were draggy.

In summary

INCREDIBLES 2 is a technically superior movie but the story is a little clumsy. It's action sequences are exhilarating, the colours are bright and the score is catchy. However, it lacks the ingenuity and freshness displayed by its predecessor from a narrative standpoint. (Instead, the opening shorty 'Bao' was so much fresher in re-telling a familiar story in a creative way; funny, moving and very relatable to Asians) 

RATING: 7/10

KINGSMAN: THE SECRET SERVICE (2015)

 
Genre: Action/Comedy
Running Length: 2:08
Cast: Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Caine, Mark Strong, Sophie Cookson, Sofia Boutella
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Screenplay: Jane Goldman & Matthew Vaughn, based on the comic book "The Secret Service" by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons

KINGSMAN is a fast-paced high energy action flick with a morbid sense of humour. The build-up is engaging especially the no holds barred last man standing recruitment contest to select a "kingsman" (modern day knights). But the last act was a little tiresome even though the action was pretty solid. The biggest highlight to me is Colin Firth, as he makes a surprisingly suave but down-to-earth action hero. It is said that Firth did 80% of his own stunts (and fight scenes) and this is very much evident in a wtf orgy of violence sequence set in a church. Samuel L. Jackson is serviceable as the main villain; OTT with a scarily but valid motivation. I think I would have enjoyed more if it was tighter as it suffers from some pacing issues; it felt repetitive during the training sequences. If only it was shorter, it may have resulted to a possibly much stronger and more focused film. Personally, I'm beginning to enjoy older method actors (above 50) dabbling into the whole action genre ie. cast against type; Liam Neeson, Kevin Costner, Sean Penn and now Colin Firth. That's just something very "jantan" (macho) about it. 

Rating: 6/10

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDEIR (2014)

Genre: Action/Adventure
Running Length: 2:17
Cast: Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Samuel L. Jackson, Anthony Mackie, Robert Redford, Sebastian Stan, Cobie Smulders, Frank Grillo
Director: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER is one solid piece of entertainment. It easily surpasses the original in every department. I never really grew up with Marvel superhero comics but the comic book elements are all here; side-kicks, no important characters actually die because they will come back again, intertwining stories and characters within the Marvel universe etc. However, it doesn't feel childish at all because CA:TWS has a certain realism to the narrative (and it's a strong standalone movie as it doesn't feel obligated to lead to the next Avengers extravaganza). Two thirds of the movie is reminiscent of a Cold War-era espionage thriller; a suspicious government, double agents, spy games, corrupt bureaucrats and Robert Redford. This film also works because it takes the time to develop its characters and their relationships. As a result, I’m now more invested in the Captain’s world. Despite his extraordinary powers, he is a sympathetic character, stuck in the past while struggling to adapt to the present. He is indeed the moral compass of the Avengers. Chris Evans is no Robert Downey Jr but he is definitely more than a choir boy,  giving Cap's character depth and humanity. The final one third of the movie is the expected special effects-laden (yawn) big battle scene but what made it different is Cap's side-kick Falcon's thrilling aerial acrobatics. And The Winter Soldier is one striking killing machine. Another thing noteworthy is that the filmmakers isn't afraid to shake up the status quo as one wonders how the proceedings in this film will affect SHIELD the TV series.
(End credits watchers take note. There are two scenes; one occurs mid-way and another after the end credits have completed)

Rating: 7/10