'Avengers Assemble' - Blu-ray Review.

It's finally here. The long awaited dream from fanboys the world over. The film we've been waiting for since Robert Downey Jr first donned the scarlet and gold. The Avengers. On Blu-ray. 

What was the defining factor in Avengers' record breaking, billion dollar box office intake? Was it the drawing power of Downey Jr, Evans, Hemsworth and Johansson? Was it the idea of a superhero team up, something new for the comic book movie genre? Was it the heap of possitive reviews and glowing word-of-mouth or was it the match-made-in-Heaven idea of Downey Jr voicing Joss Whedon dialogue? (or was that one just me?) Honestly, it doesn't matter. The Marvel movie-verse was a unique experiment and one that's paid off; The Avengers - or, as it's been dubbed here in the UK, 'Avengers Assemble' - is the icing on an already succulent cake. 

On paper the Marvel-verse is a hard sell to the comic-ignorant public. Where DC have the cultural icons like Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman to their name, Marvel's movie characters here are largely second stringers, with rights to their power-houses like Spider-Man and the X-Men sold off to different companies. Before Downey Jr, you could be forgiven for believing Iron Man to simply be a poor-man's Batman; or Captain America to largely be a patriotic joke outside of the US. But Marvel saw something in their characters that most others couldn't, and without wavering, without succumbing to pressure to make every comic book film like Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight, they've silenced the naysayers and given their characters voices of their own. With a series of fun, true-to-character films, accessible to a large and diverse audience, Iron Man is a now name on par with Batman; Captain America with Superman. A Norse God that becomes a superhero? A World War II 'super solider'? Sure, why not? What if they band together, fight aliens and work for the US government, operating off of a flying aircraft carrier? Perfectly feasible. 

Six films, five years. Was Avengers worth the wait? In a short answer, yes, it really was. Avengers is not just the ultimate comic book film, it's an exceptionally well crafted film in its own right, with a script that is at all times funny, exciting and even moving as well. It's no easy task, balancing four major characters, plus a handful of side-players, and making sure each is given their due, but Avengers does so with incredible ease. With Buffy, Angel and Firefly to his name, Joss Whedon has long since proven he's known how to handle an ensemble, but it's one thing balancing a large cast when you've got twenty-two episodes of a series to play with and quite another when you're limited to a two hour plus time frame of a movie. Even in Serenity, Whedon's under-appreciated film continuation of Firefly, characters are pushed to the back (or killed outright) without their chance to shine. Here, however, it's a different story. Of all the film's speaking roles, only do Cobie Smulders' Maria Hill and Stellan Skarsgard's Dr. Selvig feel remotely underdeveloped, but theirs are roles that, while vital, shouldn't feel intrusive or deter the focus from the top players. 

Like it's predecessors, Avengers is a visual treat and the Blu-ray only enhances this. The Hulk is more lifelike than ever before, Cap and Thor's powers are showcased beautifully and if you thought witnessing Iron Man suit up was impressive in previous outings, here we're treated to a flawless display of technical wizardry, as Stark's armour is removed, hands free, as he descends down some steps. There is controversy, however, surrounding this UK Blu-ray release, with Disney/Paramount having held back on some of the extra features available in other countries and even re-editing the film as well, digitally removing the blood-stained spear tip protruding from the body of the impaled Agent Coulson. With Disney publicly announcing that no 'special edition' of the film is on it's way, it's frustrating to witness their treatment of the third highest grossing film of all time on a sub-par home release, and we're left questioning whether their partnership with Marvel Studios is really for the better. 

What the future holds, however, remains to be seen, and spear tip or no spear tip, commentary or no commentary, The Avengers can still be enjoyed. It's here to stay, and as the Marvel cinematic universe continues to expand with Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World and Captain America: The Winter Solider our enjoyment of these characters, and these films, will continue for years to come. These films stand as proof that not every comic book adaptation needs to resemble Nolan's Bat trilogy, and that to craft a financially successful and critically acclaimed film you need only remain true to who the characters are in the comics, and to treat them with a little respect.  

The Dark Knight Rises - Review

Like many I eagerly awaited the release of Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises, and after a second viewing I decided it was the right film to start this blog with. Spoilers are indicated in red.

It’s easy to like The Dark Knight Rises. It’s easy to sing the films’ praise because on the surface it’s all there. This is a resounding final chapter in Christopher Nolan’s epic trilogy, one that moves along at such a pace that you start to wonder where the two hour, forty-five minute runtime has gone. You laugh, cry; you’ll be lifted to great heights by Hans Zimmer’s incredible score whilst Wally Pfister’s subtle and understated cinematography is a visual treat.

But beneath it all, Rises is not without it’s problems, and given the strength of Nolan’s past efforts you’ll be left feeling a little under whelmed.

The film opens and we're eight years on from where we left off in The Dark Knight, with Batman having taken the blame for the murders committed by Harvey Dent, to protect the image of Gotham's White Knight. It's a noble effort, and, it seems, a successful one as well, with Bruce Wayne in seclusion, the Batman retired, crime is, reportedly, at an all time low. Gotham, we are told, is in peace time, where even the cops have little to do.

But therein lies the first problem, because as much as we can believe that Batman's efforts might eradicate organized crime, it's harder to buy that every rapist, mugger and murderer leaves the streets. Of course the cops are there to deal with this, but with it all still happening can we really believe that Bruce could sit idly by and let it? It was a simple street crime that killed his parents, that gave birth to the Batman, but at present time both personas have been withdrawn for years, the Batman and the public image of Bruce Wayne, billionaire, eccentric.

And that sets off an ongoing theme throughout; this is a Batman film in which Batman barely does anything and not many answers are given as to why. If there’s one major fault with Rises it’s that it feels like you’re watching the second part to a film that doesn’t exist. Bruce Wayne is seriously injured, Gotham’s ‘silent guardian’, or ‘watchful protector’, is non existent and even the source of Bruce’s wealth, his parents’ company Wayne Enterprises, is floundering due to Bruce putting all of it’s stock into a fusion reactor that we know precious little about. These aren’t continuations of ideas established in the first two films of the trilogy, they’re brand new ones; which wouldn’t be a problem for Rises so much if it didn’t treat them merely as plot devices. Bruce’s injury is conveniently overcome, the Dark Knight must, indeed, ‘rise’, and the fusion reactor forms the backbone of the entire plot. They suit the film but don’t comfortably conclude the trilogy.

The underlining strength behind Rises, and indeed each of the three films, is the absolutely stellar cast. Each actor perfectly embodies the character they’re playing; they’re not acting out a part they’re bringing a universe to life. While Heath Ledger is surely missed, Anne Hathaway embodies every aspect of Catwoman the way Ledger embodied the Joker, whilst Tom Hardy’s Bane is a villain of Vader-like presence. The problem, though, is that some of the characters feel a little underdeveloped and the film clustered. Michael Caine’s Alfred is reduced to little more than exposition before being written out of the film entirely, whilst Matthew Modine’s Deputy Commissioner Foley is bland and forgettable. The weakest link, however, is Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard), whose romance with Bruce Wayne is rushed and un-engaging; we never feel what he supposedly feels, and we question his motives when he becomes so driven by it at the end. *SPOILER* By the time Tate is later revealed to be to be the revenge driven daughter of Ra’s al Ghul, in a twist so obvious you hope the film doesn’t go there, both the romance and Bane are rendered obsolete. His story suddenly becomes hers and he is quickly disposed of, and as the film enters the last ten minutes it’s a mad rush to tie everything up quickly. 

But to the films credit, none of these faults matter when you’re watching it. Whether it’s a combination of the directing, the cinematography, the score or the performances from the cast, the film is nothing if not engaging. Questions will undoubtedly arise (How did Bruce re-enter Gotham? Was Bane’s plan worth it if the bomb was always going to go off? What exactly is Bane even saying?) and though they are valid concerns, only those with a weak bladder wouldn’t sit their enthralled beginning to end.