Joss Whedon Raises S.H.I.E.L.D

S.H.I.E.L.D.

              Avengers fans rejoice.  Joss Whedon, the man behind Avengers, Firefly, and Buffy is now attached to a show which follows the story of S.H.I.E.L.D. a secret spy and military organization in the Marvel Comics universe.  Featured in the majority of recent Marvel films and led by Nick Fury, S.H.I.E.L.D. could either be a great show from a master of stories (Don't believe me, please watch Avengers again, or marathon through Whedon's Firefly).
             
           The idea of a show about S.H.I.E.L.D. does raise a few questions.  In the past movies, it has just been the organization behind the scenes, supporting the action of superheroes.  It's difficult to imagine S.H.I.E.L.D. without its heroes.  Also, it's much loved character Agent Coulson died in Avengers.  A show without him would be a lesser show.

              I may have my doubts, but I am certainly still very interested in another Whedon production, especially one in the darker tales of the secret government organization.  Check out a cut opening scene in Avengers that reveals some of this darker side here.

"I'm always Angry" Hulk deserves spin off.

Mark Ruffalo as Hulk

          It took a few tries, but the Hulk finally truly succeeded on the screen in The Avengers, played by Mark Ruffalo with perfect controlled rage.  Ruffalo played Bruce Banner and Hulk via motion capture, uttering many of the film's best lines.  The pivotal "I'm always angry" and humbling "puny god" come to mind. Not only did he elicit sympathy from viewers while he worked as a doctor, but he also connected well with Rober Downey Junior's Iron Man.  The crowd favorite, Ruffalo's Hulk deserves his only movie, or at the very least deserves to be showcased in another Marvel film.  Iron Man 3 perhaps.  I'd also like a Hawkeye and Black Widow film, but I'll keep my Christmas list small.  Perhaps Jeremy Renner's new Bourne movie will be a catalyst to a new Hawkeye film anyhow.  For now, I'm happy to just ask for a new Hulk movie.  We can just pretend the other two don't exist.  They just make fans angry.

Dark Knight VS. Avengers

         Right after seeing  The Dark Knight Rises, my brother and I debated which superhero movie wins the title of Best Hero Movie of 2012.  As much as I love Spiderman, I didn't even consider The Amazing Spiderman, mostly because it just isn't on the level of The Avengers or The Dark Knight Rises.  With frenzied anticipation, fanboys and casual movie goers alike flocked to both movies, revved up by the first two Batman movies and the many Marvel movies.
         Marvel's Avengers takes a lighter approach to its heroes and battles, pitting Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and Hulk against the always entertaining but never truly terrifying Loki.  While the movie does kill Agent Coulson, giving its avengers something to avenge, it still maintains a comic and light tone for most of the film.  Captain America doesn't understand modern references, Hulk and Iron Man become besties, and Iron Man refers to Loki and Thor as "Shakespeare in the park." The movie isn't meant to echo reality, its meant to be better than it. That doesn't mean it wasn't one of the best movies of the year, period, and that it didn't offer a great theme of sacrifice among all of the action.  That, and the movie is just a lot of fun.
           The Dark Knight Rises, in contrast, presents its DC hero in a corrupt and often realistic Gotham.  The film is not afraid to hurt and possibly kill its Batman.  It makes the audience feel despair and awe with equal force, focusing on both action and humanity.  If The Avengers is an event movie, than The Dark Knight Rises is the event movie.  There is as much focus on characters and the human condition as there is on the action sequences and fancy technology.  The third movie echoed the first, when Bruce's father asks him why we fall.  So that we can get back up again.  It was the payoff for following the trilogy to see Batman conclude.                
        There is one weakness in Dark Knight Rises that was not in the Avengers.  In the Dark Knight Rises, some of the characters and story had to be rushed, like when Catwoman suddenly kisses Bruce, without really explaining when their relationship suddenly snapped into romantic.  It sometimes created development whiplash.  The Avengers, on the other hand, at the hands of the excellent Joss Whedon (Creator of Firefly, Buffy), was able to balance its heavy roster of characters remarkably well.  Rises, like Avengers,  focuses on the theme of sacrifice.
       Which movie then, is the better movie?  They are so different, it is almost impossible to say.  The Avengers was a fantastic, fun adventure and one of my favorite movies of the year.  The Dark Knight Rises was hero-poetry, beautiful and sprawling, heartbreaking and restoring.  It is then a matter of taste.  Do you like your heroes bright and shining, or dark and rising?  I have to give it to The Dark Knight Rises, mainly because I think that it defies genres, and is not only the best hero movie of the year, but also one of the best movies of 2012 in any genre.  The real winner though, is the movie goer, who has so many options in fantastic superhero stories.

       

Katniss the Trendsetter

           While we can only hope no one names their child Katniss because of The Hunger Games phenomenon, The Guardian claims that archery is cool again because of Katniss Everdeen, the girl on fire whose deadly aim empowers and protects her in the deadly games.  According to the article, young people, especially girls, are expressing interest in the sport, inspired by Katniss.  I think it is a great surge for the sometimes overlooked sport, however, I'd say Katniss isn't the only one contributing to the trend.  The Avengers brought us Hawkeye, Brave starred Merida, and who can deny the incredible skills and ultimate cool of Legolas in Lord of the Rings.  Katniss may be a leader in the archery trend, but she's flanked with other bows and arrows.  At this rate, archery may be the new vampires, penguins, and zombies, all of which have appeared all over pop culture.  There's room for more than one arrow after all.

Chronicle of a Villain

DeHaan in Chronicle

   
     A villain is only as bad as he is good.  If there is no depth to him/her, than the battle between good and evil is so much less interesting.  As much as I love Harry Potter, even I'll admit Voldemort was a little too bad to be hugely interesting.  Snape turned into the far better villain and ultimately the better hero.  It is far better to have a complex character with shades of good and bad.  This causes the audience to sometimes (to their shock and horror) sympathize and understand the villain's point of view.  The best recent case of a nuanced villain can be found in the movie Chronicle.  In the movie, three boys mysteriously gain superpowers, documenting their story on handheld (and mind held) cameras.  The origin of their powers is never fully explained, but it only adds to the mystery of the movie.  The true focus is instead on the affects of the power, and the notion that "absolute power absolutely corrupts." The three boys, played by Dane DeHaan, Alex Russell, and Michael B. Jordan play with their newly gained powers with abandon, quickly disregarding rules as they prank a convenience store with their telepathy and play football in the sky. As I watched the movie, I realized how little fun most heroes get to have with their powers.  Chronicle reveled in the fun, particularly as the camera whipped through the air with the fly boys.  The movie didn't hesitate to then  show the consequences of uncontrolled power.
     Arguably playing the main character, Dane DeHaan portrays a boy who was powerless in his sad family life and in school.  All of his sudden power starts to corrode him, morphing him into an angry and vindictive villain in the movies climatic ending.  Throughout the movie, DeHaan's character is the most sympathetic character.  I wanted good things for him and truly mourned for him when a series of circumstances and choices led him to a dark path.  Alex Russell, who play's DeHaan's cousin, is forced into the role of hero, with all its consequences in the final scenes.  Though Russell's character is heroic, it it not his movie.  It is the villain's movie, and made all the better for it.  Chronicle did well by word of mouth, though nowhere near as well as movies like The Avengers or Thor, which also cast a sometimes sympathetic Tom Hiddleston to play Loki.  Even so, Chronicle is every bit as deserving of your attention.  It is one of the most refreshing hero and villain movies in a sea of superhero movies.  Watch it and see who you root for.  You may surprise yourself.