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Jun18

REVIEW- FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER

June 18th, 2007 | by Tom
  • Comics
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(5 votes, average: 6.80 out of 10)
REVIEW- FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer“Well, it’s not as bad as the first one.”

That may sound like faint praise, but it’s literally the best compliment anyone can pay to Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.

Despite a strong box office performance, after the original Fantastic Four movie from 2005 left such a bad taste in the mouth of fans and critics alike, expectations were low for the sequel. Of course then they had to come out with an excellent trailer to get our hopes up and seeing The Silver Surfer in action got the geek nation whipped up in a frenzy.

Oh, how they toy with our emotions.

For the most part, the film lives up to the hype. Finally able to set aside the clumsy exposition requirements of the first film, director Tim Story drops us square into the middle of the everyday life of our heroes. Each of them have settled into the roles of super-powered protectors, but not as media figures. As Mr. Fantastic (Ioan Gruffudd) and The Invisible Woman (Jessica Alba) prepare to walk down the aisle for the fourth time, the media instrusion makes it easy to see why there have been so many postponements.

This time, however, the interruption occurs at a more… cosmic scale – The Silver Surfer.

While most of the good moments with the Surfer were used up in that trailer that cause all of our attention, his exciting chase with The Human Torch (Chris Evans) sets the rest of the movie into motion. The Surfer is flying all over the world, causing weather disruptions and undertaking massive terraforming to prepare Earth for the consumption of his “master” – the devourer of worlds, Galactus. It then becomes the peroggitive of The Fantastic Four and a particularly abrasive Army General (Andre Braugher) to catch up to The Surfer and neutralize him.

The Silver Surfer - Doug Jones, Laurence FishburneEverything The Surfer does is poetry in motion and a joy to watch on screen. Credit there can be given to Peter Jackson’s WETA Workshop in New Zealand and motion-capture performer Doug Jones. You don’t know Doug Jones, but you’re probably familiar with his work as the amphibian Abe Sapien in 2004’s Hellboy and most recently as the gruesome Pale Man and the titular Faun in last year’s Pan’s Labyrinth. His stoic, elegant performance as The Surfer speaks volumes although Jones himself does not. Laurence Fishburne provides his voice.

It’s when the Surfer is not on the screen that the movie begins to lose focus. Much of the movie is spent on The Invisible’s Woman insecurities surrounding her marriage and the ability to lead a normal life. The Human Torch is also the center of a sub-plot where he attempts to grow out of his showboating ways and become more of a team player. Meanwhile, Michael Chiklis as The Thing is almost completely left out. Useful only, it would seem, for crashing through walls or lifting heavy things.

While it probably isn’t easy to give equal time to each of the characters problems or focus on their fantastic powers, what does make it into the movie feels less like actual character development and more like details screenwriters Don Payne and Mark Frost tossed in to keep the movie from being a string of globe-trotting action pieces. But if they wanted to add something significant to the movie, they could have completely dumped Julian McMahon returning as Dr. Doom and shown us more of The Surfer and the sacrifice he made before becoming the herald of Galactus. As it is in the movie, his origin is delt with in a few line exchanges and they show us nothing. Doom’s presence in the movie felt like tacked on just to keep continuity with the first movie. They could have had him sit this one this one out and been totally fine.

A lot of movies this summer have been tagged for being too long. Rise of the SIlver Surfer is actually a movie that probably could have benefitted from another 20 minutes. Briskly burning through it’s 90 minute running time, I sometimes felt that I was watching the movie on fast forward. Or, perhaps, like I was just being shown storyboards brought to life. Director Tim Story’s history as a commercial and music video director is transparent on screen. His style lends itself well to our sound-bite culture. The action sequences are punctuated well with visuals that would work great for a trailer as a promotional photo, but rarely does it add up to anything substantial.

Equally medicore are the performances. While Jones does well with The Surfer and Evans captures the hubris of The Human Torch, both Andre Braugher and Jessica Alba are entirely over the top, Ioan Gruffudd far to flat and the film’s greatest acting resource – Michael Chiklis – is completely wasted.

What the movie does right, it does spectacularly. But it’s faults are equally spectacular. This makes the movie more balanced than it’s predecessor and more enjoyable, but, ultimately, not as satisfying a ride as it could have been.

Rating: 6 out of 10

└ Tags: Andre Braugher, Chris Evans, Doug Jones, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Galactus, Ioan Cruffudd, Jessica Alba, Laurence Fishburne, Michael Chiklis, review, The Silver Surfer
[ No Comments ]

COSTUME NEWS

January 14th, 2011 | by Tom
Posted In: Bonus Materials

If you’re a comic book nerd like I am, yesterday was a big day in terms of publicity photos leaked to the internet of actors dressed up like super heroes.

I submit for your approval Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man and (from an upcoming issue of Entertainment Weekly) Chris Evans as Captain America.

Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man

Chris Evans as Captain America

At first glance, I don’t really have a problem with either of these costume designs. I like the streamlined look of the new Spider-Man costume and I think it’s kind of clever how they integrated the spider emblem on the front into the ribcage. I also noticed they did something a little different with the gloves and made them more pointed at the cuff. Most importantly, they took off the raised webbing of the previous costume, which I always thought was impractical.

I think the texture of the costume is a little weird. It looks like leather, or something. Like the original costume, I have a hard time believing that this is something Peter Parker could have stitched together on his own. Not that a comic book movie has to be 100% plausible. It’s just something that sticks out in my mind.

If you look closely, there appear to be shiny, metallic nubs on the wrists. Possible web-shooters, anyone? I’ll be very eager to see what that looks like on-screen.

As for Evans and his Captain America duds, it looks right for the most part – if a little bulky. I have no complaints about the wings being painted on to his helmet and I think they made the costume the right amount of blue. So he still looks like Captain America, but also doesn’t look like a walking cartoon.

The most important detail to get right for me is the shield and they’ve obviously done that, so I’m not too concerned with this look. It’s very much in-step with the Ultimates version of Captain America and that’s never a bad thing.

What’s your take on these costume photos? Leave your comments below!

└ Tags: Andrew Garfield, Captain America, Chris Evans, cosutmes, Spider-Man
[ 11 Comments ]

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CAPTAIN AMERICA TEASER POSTER

February 4th, 2011 | by Tom
Posted In: Bonus Materials
Captain America, poster, teaser, Chris Evans

Marvel officially unveiled the teaser poster for Captain America this morning. What’s your take?

Personally, I don’t think they needed to add the word “AVENGE” over the top of it. The image of Captain America is already so iconic, why add another layer to it?

I also kind of think they’re over doing it with the grime and splatter. It’s almost like they’re doing anything they can to tone down the otherwise cartoonishly bright color elements of Cap’s costume. Maybe that’s necessary. But, y’know… strike a balance.

Marvel has already announce trailers for Captain America AND Thor will air during the Super Bowl. Until then, we have this to pick apart. What are your thoughts? Leave your comments below!

[Marvel]

└ Tags: Captain America, Chris Evans, Marvel, poster, teaser
[ 2 Comments ]

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CAPTAIN AMERICA SUPER BOWL AD

February 8th, 2011 | by Tom
Posted In: Bonus Materials

I know that talking about ads that aired on the Super Bowl three days after the fact is like asking you to study ancient Sanskrit in internet terms, but I’m getting caught up, okay? I’m not going to dig into ever trailer that aired during Sunday’s game. Just the spots that got my attention. And I’d say – out of all of them – the trailer for Captain America is the one to beat.

The spot is cut together pretty fast. It’s almost “you blink and you miss it” fast. But I think it hits all the right notes in terms of flashing iconic images of Cap’s shield and The Red Skull unmasking himself. These image do what a good teaser clip should – they make us want to see more of the movie.

I’m still a little freaked out by Chris Evans’s gigantic head on a tiny body, but the effect is otherwise seamless. I’m also a little disturbed that the Super Solider serum apparently gives you boobs. But that’s neither here nor there.

What was your impression of the Captain America trailer? Leave your comments below!

└ Tags: Captain America, Chris Evans, Super Bowl, teaser, trailer
[ 13 Comments ]

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JUST A KID FROM BROOKLYN

June 24th, 2011 | by Tom
Posted In: Bonus Materials

Haphazardly monitoring Twitter last night, I saw my feed lit up from people who were wetting their pants over the new Captain America trailer. Then enthusiasm was so unbridled, it almost made me want to skip watching the trailer myself.

Almost.

I understand the emphasis is on action with this trailer, that’s fine. But the use of Tool’s “Forty Six And 2” feels COMPLETELY out of place. So easily I could have pictured more anthemic orchestration like John Williams’ Indiana Jones score. But that’s a quibble.

Despite a summer plagued by superhero movies that have created anxious doubt(X-Men: First Class), suffered critical misfires (Green Lantern) or were merely serviceable (Thor), I am actually very optimistic about Captain America because it seems like they’ve gotten a lot of the little details right. More importantly, they haven’t given away the store with their previews. They’ve been promoting this movie for almost a year and I still feel like there are plenty of treats waiting for us on the big screen.

The casting is excellent. Can I say pleases me to no end to see Tommy Lee Jones barking orders at people? It goes without saying that Hugo Weaving as The Red Skull is perfect.

I’ll let the trailer speak for itself. What’s your take on Captain America? Leave your comments below!

└ Tags: Captain America, Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, Marvel, trailer
[ 9 Comments ]

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THE AVENGERS – TRAILER

October 11th, 2011 | by Tom
Posted In: Bonus Materials

Okay, if you’ve been on the internet at all today, you know that the first trailer for The Avengers is tearing thing up.

(Although, oddly, when I tweeted about it without linking to it, several people wrote back “Uh, link?”)

So that’s what this blog post is for. If you haven’t seen the trailer for The Avengers yet, here it is:

INITIAL REACTIONS

Immediately I was impressed that there was an adversarial tone between the individual members of the team. “I don’t play well with others,” Tony Stark quips. “Big man in a suit of armor – take that away and what are you?” Captain America sneers. Oh, and is that Thor taking a flying leap, about to smash Captain America’s shield?

This is all very much in keeping with the comics. The “friendly misunderstandings” that lead to heroes battling each other before banding together to fight the common enemy. Total “Who Would Win in a Fight” geek bad-assery on display here.

Clearly Joss Wheadon is giving Tony Stark all the best lines – at least in the trailer. I hope this is the case throughout the movie. One of the biggest advantages to the Iron Man films was Robert Downey Jr’s motormouth style. With a script by Wheadon, you’ve got the best of both worlds when it comes to words and delivery.

What I really like is how close to the vest they’re keeping Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye and Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk. Barely any screen time or dialogue for either of them in this trailer. Everyone else we’ve seen in action in other movies. But these two are the last unknown variables. Expect Marvel to continue to keep fans on a string regarding those two.

What’s you reaction to the trailer? Personally, I think it was perfectly executed and it gives me high hopes for May 2012. Why don’t you leave your comments below. C’mon. You know you wanna…

└ Tags: Black Widow, Captain America, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Hawkeye, Hulk, Iron Man, Jeremey Renner, Joss Wheadon, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, The Avengers, Thor, Tony Stark, trailer
[ 7 Comments ]

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POSTER – THE AVENGERS

February 28th, 2012 | by Tom
Posted In: Bonus Materials

The Avengers got a new poster today in advance of their May 4 opening date.

The Avengers, Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Iron Man, poster

Is it just me, or is Iron Man, like, ALWAYS losing his helmet. He should, like, bolt it down, or something.

Nice of them to stick Chris Evans’ Captain America in the back. Oh, he’s not that important…

What do you think of this new poster? Does it trip your repulsor blasts?

└ Tags: Chris Evans, Iron Man, poster, Robert Downey Jr., The Avengers
[ 11 Comments ]

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