#Tony’s cgi machines were cool I guess

[cherrysnax]

now that cw flash is over… cw barry’s suits kinda outdoes higher budget mcu suits everytime :/

[britesparc]

Weekend Top Ten #389

Top Ten Things I Want from The Batman

So last week I celebrated the thirtieth anniversary of Tim Burton’s Batman by listing the things I thought he got “right” about the character (“right” being, I acknowledge, arbitrary). This time around, sticking with a similar theme, I’m going to flip the switch and look to the future. Matt Reeves’ long-gestating Bat-pic The Batman is finally gearing up, having recently cast its Dark Knight in the shape of erstwhile vampire Robert Pattinson. The saga of The Batman, its Affleck-ness and its connectedness with the DCEU as-was, is almost worth a movie on its own (I really hope there’s a book written about it at some point, or at least a long-form essay; the ins and outs of what became of the DCEU and the de-Snyder-fication of their film slate is potentially fascinating). At any rate, we’re going to get another Batman film and that’s quite exciting. Especially as it is – potentially – a chance to course-correct issues that I had over the previous incarnation of the Caped Crusader. Ben Affleck was very good, but he looked a bit sad and hefty in the suit (the silly cowl essentially removed his neck), and he killed a lot of people. Like, tons. What’s up with that?

So with all that in mind, and given everything that’s come before, here’s a list of places where I hope Reeves and Pattinson go with their Bat-epic. Or even don’t go! You’ll see what I mean, as we get into a list of things I want from the new Batman, The Batman.

No Guns, No Killing: this is a big one for me. The Batman I love in the comics – most of the incarnations, anyway – is very strict about this. For him, murder is the worst crime, and his whole deal is being Anti-Crime. Therefore he would never, ever kill. Also he views guns as, literally, the “weapon of the enemy”. Even Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy – which is probably the closest to the comics in terms of his “one rule” – had him bedecking his equipment with guns and “not saving” people. Here, I’d like a very strict code.

White Eyes: okay, I’m not asking for an MCU Spider-Man here; I know comics characters have whited-out eyes in costume and that doesn’t usually translate to live-action. But Batman would/could/should wear some kind of eye-piece. Even if it’s goggles that he removes/retract into his cowl. What I want to avoid is the blacked-out “panda eyes” look of seeing his real eyes within his cowl. I just find it a bit daft for Batman.

A Working Batsuit: whilst I’m on the subject of Batman’s Bat-duds, one thing that I loved about the Nolan-verse was that his outfit was sensible. Obviously not too sensible, as he’s, y’know, dressed as a bat, but it looked like a suit designed to fight crime in. The Burton/Schumacher suits looked like sculpted pieces of rubber, no good for movement; the Snyder suit looked like fancy dress with “cosmetic damage” and rubbery wrinkles. The MCU, on the other hand, is great at making superhero suits that look iconic and super-y but also workable; Captain America wears some kind of oversuit with, presumably, armour on the inside, and also a cowl of sorts, but one which allows him to move his head and which looks functional despite also having a dirty great “A” on it.

Sweet Wheels: similarly, I’d like a Batmobile that’s more “car” than “tank”. The Burton/Schumacher films, as was their want, gave Bats a car that was more form than function; going the other way, Nolan and Snyder had heavily-armoured war machines that owed a big debt to The Dark Knight Returns. I’d rather lean towards the former, but really, can’t he just have some souped-up Knight Rider thing that’s fast and stealthy? He’s more Black Widow than War Machine don’t forget.

Heh: Batman has, by his own admission, “a sense of humour that nobody gets”. I don’t want a relentlessly dour grimdark Batman. Give me a Batman who can crack a wry smile or a sardonic one-liner, even if he’s being bitterly ironic. To be fair most screen incarnations of Batman have had some sense of humour, but Batman v Superman in particular was almost relentless in its miserableness so I’m hoping The Batman has a funny bone, pitch black as it may be.

A Real Gotham: although I praised to the heavens last week the Anton Furst-ified Gotham of Batman and Batman Returns, I’d like it if the new film hewed closer to Nolan’s vision of the city as a “real” place. Sure, give it stylised embellishments; make it “New York at night” or some twisted version of New Jersey or Chicago or whatever. But I don’t think we need the ridiculous mile-high statues of the Schumacher films, and the less said about the frankly terrible CGI cityscape from the opening minutes of Justice League the better. Shoot on location, or use really good CGI. Make it 10% weirder than normal and I think we’re onto a winner.

Make Batman John Wick: I love how John Wick fights. He’s all business. Boom, boom, the guy’s down, blam, blam, he’s dead. It’s all about minimalising risk, fighting as efficiently as possible. He gets the guys down because, well, the longer they’re up the more chance that they’ll kill him. Batman should fight like that. As few moves as possible, but target them precisely; nothing flashy or extravagant, just get the guys down. Obviously he doesn’t kill or use a gun (see point number 1) but I want a Batman who looks cool when fighting, looks like he trained with monks and ninjas and assassins and wizards. Basically, let’s have some genuinely impressive-looking fight scenes for once.

Make Batman Sherlock: I have high hopes for this one, as the word round the internet campfire is The Batman will be much more detective-focused than previous films (to this date, the two Batmen who are the most sleuth-y are Adam West and Kevin Conroy). But Batman is supposed to be the World’s Greatest Detective so, y’know, let’s see him detect. Greatly. Er, around the world. Make it a proper crime film, a whodunnit. That’d be good.

Make Batman Weird: not necessarily “Tim Burton weird”, but just give us a sense that this is a Batman who has a sci-fi closet. A Batman who, maybe, has fought Monster Men, Killer Crocs, sentient mud and murderous flora. Nolan’s Batman was super-serious and Snyder’s Batman was super-miserable so whilst I applaud a more street-level focus and a noir-ish tone, I hope the possibility exists for a world full of Man-Bats, immortal warlords, dollotrons, and more.

A Wider World: I really hope this one is viable. The plan was for the Justice League-centred movies to form a spine, telling a story arc over multiple films, with the stand-alone tales functioning as spin-offs. As it turned out, the “spin-offs” were the successful ones, and with Batman being rebooted from Batfleck to Battinson, it looks like the “Extended” part of “DC Extended Universe” is up in the air (so is the “Universe” part too, I guess). I don’t know if Justice League or the preceding films are still in continuity even, or if continuity is still a thing, but all the same what I want from a DC Comics adaptation is a shared universe. I’m not a big fan of Zack Snyder’s incarnation of that universe (too dark, miserable, and po-faced), but I still want to see Bruce hanging out with Clark, teaming up with Diana, arguing with Arthur… I want that feeling you get from the MCU (and the comics, for that matter), that Wakanda going public or SHIELD being disbanded or Tony Stark dying is going to have repercussions in other films. I think The Batman is going to be pretty much self-contained in the same way as Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Shazam, but all the same, I hope the potential is still there. In much the same way as I’m very happy for the film to be a street-level noir with the potential to one day have a sequel featuring Batman and Robin fighting off Mister Freeze in a Bat-UFO, I hope it focuses on Bruce and Gotham with the potential to segue into a Justice League movie or have a sequel set in Themyscira or something. Don’t close off the universe, is what I’m saying.

So there we are. I’m aware that this is, essentially, a fanboy wishlist of My Ideal Batman, coming from a straight white bloke in his thirties who graduated from Year One through Knightfall then “New Gotham” and found his Batman apogee in the works of Grant Morrison. Matt Reeves has his vision and it’s good that he sticks to that (for better or worse, I still would have liked to have seen how Snyder’s proposed Justice League arc had played out – although I am emphatically not a “Snyder Cut” devotee). But I feel there’s a sweet spot between stylised and realistic, between comics-accurate and designed-for-film, that hasn’t quite been reached with Batman yet (The Animated Series came closest). Nolan’s films are obviously the best, but I do think that the more realistic you make Batman’s world, the less realistic he himself becomes, and you make the central conceit (trust fund orphan did a lot of push-ups then dressed as a Dracula to Fight Crime) all the more silly. I’m still a bit sad that we lost Affleck, but I’m very excited by where we’re going to go. I just hope it doesn’t preclude a World’s Finest, Justice League Unlimited, or – heck – even a Robin movie somewhere down the line.

[rickrakontoys]

Pre-Infinity War MCU rankings

How I'd rank the current 18 movies, from my least favorite to most favorite, with some brief thoughts:

18. The Incredible Hulk (5/10): I barely remember this one... and I dont like Hulk's look here. Liv Tyler gasps all her dialogue. Ed Norton did an ok job I guess, but I didnt get much of a lasting impression.

17. Iron Man 2 (6/10): I remember being extremely annoyed by Tony and his behavior, and the blatant Avengers setups. Least we got War Machine out of this. Whiplash could have been great if he didnt have to share the villain role with Justin Hammer. (Also, without this mess, we wouldn't have gotten Jon Faverau's amazing film "Chef", which was made in response to his frustrations making IM2)

16. Thor: The Dark World (6/10): Forgettable plot and villain. Some chuckle worthy scenes. Not sure what else there is to say. You could tell the movie was butchered trying to fit Loki into the plot. There is barely any chemistry between Thor and Jane.

15. Thor (7/10): Decent intro to the characters and world of Asgard. But the movie looks strangely cheap, especially the New Mexico town. I never felt Thor and Jane could be a thing, despite their performances being good. The cast all around was terrific too (Hopkins as Odin is great). Loki was a great, tragic villain though. Thor breaking the bifrost is immediately undone by the Avengers...

14. Iron Man 3 (7.25/10): I enjoyed the deconstruction of Stark and common comic book tropes. What they did with the Mandarin was pretty ballsy and I respect that. I don't even remember the true villain's name... Having Tony deal with PTSD was also interesting.

13. Ant-Man (7.25/10): Surprising that this worked at all. Pretty fun ride, if a tad generic. Cool shrinking visuals. I look forward to the Wasp.

12. Doctor Strange (7.5/10): Again... plot is generic as hell. Forgettable villain. But very cool visuals. And I love the leitmotif and main theme music.

11. Avengers: Age of Ultron (7.75/10): I loved Ultron but felt he could have been a bigger threat. The middle of the movie plods... badly. Some wasted potential for sure. The third act action is comic book action nirvana. You could tell the movie was meddled with by the studio... I don't blame Joss Whedon at all for the film's shortcomings. He was obviously frustrated with it too.

10. Spiderman Homecoming (8.25/10): Gives us a great young spidey and a terrific villain. Seriously... Michael Keaton makes this movie work. The scenes with Peter and Tony are good. The supporting cast is good too. I wish they gave spidey a more memorable theme song for the movie.

9. Captain America: The First Avenger (8.25/10): I don't know why this movie resonates with me more than with other people. The look of the movie is gorgeous. The themes sincere. The music is wonderful. The performances are memorable. This movie showed us that Chris Evans was the perfect man to play Captain America. Hugo Weaving gave us a menacing yet charismatic Red Skull. One too many montages though. "The Star-Spangled Man with a Plan" is seriously catchy! Classic Disney songwriter Alan Menkin helped write it... no wonder!

8. Guardians of the Galaxy (8.5/10): How could a movie with a talking raccoon and a senient tree man be this good? Its all about the building of a family of friends, borne from people with broken pasts. Ronan is utterly forgettable, hence why I rank it here. The supporting cast is otherwise stellar. And the soundtrack... now thats how you integrate it into a movie's soul.

7. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (8.75/10): Took the characters of the first movie to new places. Elevated them, broke them down, made them weep. The jokey dialogue can get grating. But thematically wonderful. Lots of small touches that gives life to even the most minor of characters. Everyone has an arc! Ego is a fascinating fellow, and seems genuinely likeable, until the revelation of his madness. The Sovereign are pompously silly and didn't amount to much of a threat (though I dont think they were supposed to be). The cinematography is sublime. The colors intense and vibrant. The soundtrack used impeccably. Just a wonderful piece of cinema. Others may disagree about it, but I rate it highly. It feels like a personal film by James Gunn.

6. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (8.8/10): Truly great and heartfelt while being relevant to the current times. A movie that brought Cap to the modern age, while haunting him with a spectre of the past. It just works on so many levels. Alexander Pierce didnt leave a big impression as the villain despite being played by Robert Redford. Could have been more intimate exploration of Cap and Bucky's relationship. Despite being called "The Winter Soldier", the focus is more on the fall of SHIELD... At least this gave us Falcon and some cute chemistry between Steve and Natasha.

The TOP 5 were very hard to place...

5. The Avengers (8.8/10): That this movie worked at all is a miracle. That it was actually infinitely watchable is amazing. This was the sign that the MCU ahead was heading to good things. The cast was excellent together. The dialogue refreshingly snappy. It made Loki into a staple of the MCU. The Avengers theme was memorable. Lots of fan service without it being intrusive... the middle act can be a bit slow, but it is otherwise nicely paced and tonally even. The look of the movie can border on TV production values at times... but it manages to overcome any shortcomings by being so darn fun.

4. Captain America: Civil War (8.8/10): This movie broke down our well-known heroes and gave us a villain in Zemo that is mysterious, tragic, and understated. Revenge permeates the themes of the movie, but the true heart of the movie is friendship and Cap's desire to hold onto the final relic of his past, Bucky. Motivations are clear between most of the characters and neither side of the conflict is right or wrong. Some Avengers are just along for the ride, but everyone nonetheless has a moment to shine. New characters are introduced (mostly) seamlessly (T'Challa is woven into it naturally, Spidey... not so much but he leaves a great first impression). The airport battle was a fantastic bit of fan service fun before the gut wrenching emotionally driven climax. The final showdown between Cap and Iron Man was like watching two parents fight over a child. This is a comic book movie that had ideas, and though it didn't totally follow through on some concepts like the Sokovia Accords, it did give us an emotional rollercoaster that built upon our pre-existing attachment to the characters. This movie was a true culmination of all that came before.

3. Thor Ragnarok (8.9/10): This movie felt the most fun and thoroughly enjoyable out of all the MCU. It may not be thematically challenging or very deep, but it isn't trying to be. For pure intentions, it accomplished what it sought to: make a fast and funny Thor-Hulk buddy comedy, and reinvent the God of Thunder as a likeable, dunderheaded oaf. Hela seeths with sultry menace. Korg is simply a treasure. Valkyrie is a drunken badass. Grandmaster is.... Jeff Goldblum. The score is the best in the MCU, instantly setting the tone. Led Zepplin's Immigrant song used twice to great effect. Quotable, hilarious dialogue. Korg. Taika Waititi injected new life into the MCU after a few serious installments. This reminds me of the goofy "fun" episode of a series before the finale. I love this movie!

2. Black Panther (8.9/10, bumped up after my second viewing): Epic world building and a villain that outshone the hero for once. It may have its flaws in plotting and pacing (the first hour is meandering), but what it tried to do is highly admirable. The supporting cast is great. The look of the movie is utterly beautiful. The action scenes are the least interesting part of the movie oddly enough due to bad execution and dodgy CGI. It has plenty of ideas regarding Wakanda and its place in the world, and the duty to use great power to help others. Killmonger should have been the chief focus beside T'Challa... You can tell Ryan Coogler made this film with his full heart. This is the only MCU film to make me tear up. With a few tweaks it could have been the best of the MCU.

1. Iron Man (9.5/10): Nearly everything here works. Robert Downey Jr. is perfectly cast, and turned Tony Stark into a household name. There is genuine chemistry between him and Pepper. Obadiah Stane is a likeable yet menacing villain (Jeff Bridges playing a bad guy?! He's terrific at it!). The action scenes are exciting and not too overdone. The score is energetic (why isn't Iron Man's leitmotif from this movie used more often?!). This movie wasn't bogged down with setting up a universe. It was allowed to be its own thing. But from this success, all the rest followed.

[ninetyfivepercentdantomasik]

Captain America: Civil War

Had a great time, an absolutely amazing time at this film. All started at movie theater I used to frequent in college. Was in the area, decided to stop by and check out Civil War. At the door, saw a family coming up behind me, held the door for all of them. Basic good manners. Chatted with them while in line to get tickets, talked about Kevin Hart’s new movie, shared some thoughts and opinions. Got tickets, went to theater, wouldn’t you know it, they were there for the same movie. Sat with them. They shared snacks and we all went crazy for Black Panther every time he came on screen. Movie was awesome, just perfectly done and realized for all the stuff it had to do, including a twist that actually shocked me.

Even more amazing, I switched sides from the start of the film to the end. Going in, I was Team Captain America, freedom all the way! Now, I’m actually Team Iron Man, Team Tony Stark. I love the Cap, but he just can’t keep acting like he can resolve everything. That he can always save the day. Thanos is coming, the Cap is outclassed and he doesn’t even know it yet. Tony is the one looking to the future, he’s the one looking at all the pieces, not just one or two.

Here’s the movie that Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice, tried and failed miserably to be. This is how it’s done. Every example of failure in Dawn of Justice is shown the right way in Civil War.

Superhero military operation that goes wrong

Introducing new characters

Enigmatic human villain playing two heroes against each other

Hero vs Hero

Moral dilemmas

Character dilemmas

Freedom vs Responsibility

Idealism vs Real World

Fast, hard-hitting action throughout

Exciting chase scenes

Hero fights

Diversity

Setting up future films

Humor

Plot Twists

Betrayal

Hope

A big part of the reason I switched to Team Tony Stark is that we have a great return to form for the character. Lately, it seems we’ve been watching to see Robert Downey Jr. be Robert Downey Jr., with little actual development for the character. This movie brings us back to the Tony Stark from the first Iron Man. A man who believes himself to be on top of the world, until the collateral damage of his greatness comes before him. He may think he’s saving the world, but his heroics have a staggering body count, and it’s the realization that he still has so much to learn that humbles the man. Tony shut down the weapons sector of his company and made “being responsible” his new direction. That’s what he’s been trying to do, and he seemed to be doing it, with style. But he’s responsible for some of the worst threats the planet’s yet faced.

Associates who seek to use his technology for war (Obadiah Stane in Iron Man, Justin Hammer in Iron Man 2), inventors who seek to dethrone/destroy him (Ivan Vanko in Iron Man 2 and Aldrich Killian in Iron Man 3), and, most recently, a renegade defense program that tried to wipe out the planet (Ultron from Age of Ultron). For all the personal progress Tony’s made, the results haven’t changed much from his war monger days. And the worst is yet to come. That was startling for Tony to see. Perhaps scaling back, letting the Avengers take orders from a United Nations Organization, and focusing on making the world better is the best thing to do. His opening bit at MIT, funding every thesis, every project from his alma mater, these brightest young minds of their generation, that’s a good first step to real change.

Then there’s the Cap. I love Steve Rogers, I love his old-fashioned values that the world seems to have forgotten, but Steve can be a fool. Sometimes you can’t save everyone. He couldn’t save Bucky in WWII, and he may not be able to save him now. The Winter Soldier stands to destroy everything the Avengers have built, just because of what he is. Not Bucky personally, but the Winter Soldier Program was designed to be subservient. 11 words of Russian, that’s all it takes to make Bucky into a compliant soldier. It’s not something just anyone will be able to figure out and use, but it’s out there. As we see, those 11 words can make Bucky do anything, whether he wants to or not. Bucky can never have that freedom the Captain so highly values, he will always be the Soldier.

Also making great impact is the personal conflict of Scarlet Witch, Wanda Maximoff. Since the events of Age of Ultron, we see her adapting to life as a covert op in the Avengers. She shows great promise, with her powers an extension of her capability, not her only move. The problem is while those powers can save, they can also harm. The movie does great work selling the damage that still lingers inside Wanda. Not a fear of weakness, but a fear of power she can never control. With worldwide tensions centered on superhumans, Wanda Maximoff becomes an unwilling argument for locking them all in cages. People fear what they don’t understand. As much as the other Avengers want to protect her, they also want to protect the people. Wanda played no small part in the Hulk’s rampage in Age of Ultron, she’s a foreigner, she’s a superhuman, and she’s a strong female figure. Can there be a more terrifying threat for some of the most powerful men in the world?

Now let’s talk some Black Panther. I’ve been dying to talk about Black Panther. Having only ever seen him as a supporting character with the Avengers, the exact extent of his abilities and power was never made clear. What areas he excels above others in, what deficiencies he has, what he can do, and who he is. We get all of that in about 15 minutes of movie. A beautiful setup with the Wakandan Prince speaking with Black Widow, as his proud father listens in. We get that important sense that T’Challa is a little unfamiliar in these kind of settings, preferring a warrior-like approach. That he still pushes for peaceful negotiation when he could go the way more suited for him shows personal growth in a character we’ve only just met. His father’s pride at seeing this new side of him tells us everything we need to know about T’Challa. But when a rogue superhuman assassin bombs the negotiations, killing the Wakandan King, we see the side of T’Challa that has always worked. Captain America was the Ultimate Soldier, the Winter Soldier is nearly his equal in some areas, and even his superior in others, and has operated unchallenged for decades. The Black Panther can keep up with both, be it in speed, strength, or fighting skill. With or without his suit. Black Panther is friggin’ amazing. Chadwick Boseman introduces us to Black Panther through actions, not words. A skilled warrior, a proud son, an insecure king, and an individual of conviction.

Also joining Tony’s team is another new(?) addition, our new Spiderman! It’d feel forced if the character didn’t fit so perfectly into Tony’s character. “With great power comes great responsibility”, maybe we’ve forgotten what those words mean. “When you can do the things that I can, but you don't, and then the bad things happen? They happen because of you.” Okay, little more wordy, but trust me, the kid makes an impact as both Peter Parker and Spiderman. And I’m going to friggin’ love Marisa Tomei as Aunt May. There’s also the way he fits into the whole “Queens vs Brooklyn” bit with Steve Rogers, which provides a few hilarious moments. Each new trailer for Spiderman: Homecoming raises my hopes higher. God, Marvel just has their sh*t figured out! And I love it!

Now let’s talk some diversity, because here’s another model for other movies to follow. We have strong female characters, enhanced and human, Scarlet Witch, Black Widow, Sharon Carter. We have strong African-American characters; THREE FRIGGIN’ AFRICAN-AMERICAN HEROES. Falcon, War Machine, and the new badass known as Black Panther. We have a brief but powerful glance at an African-American female warrior, the member of Black Panther’s entourage who tells Black Widow to “move, or be moved” and sells it. I just keep getting more pumped for Black Panther. We have a kid in Peter Parker, we have a foreigner in Vision (Paul Bettany, a British android in a sweater and dress pants, can not stop laughing at how cool/funny that is), and we have a superhero fight that is primarily hand-to-hand combat. Out of all these heroes, here’s the breakdown:

CGI Suits

Iron Man, War Machine, Ant-Man

Super Humans

Scarlet Witch, Spiderman, Vision

Enhanced Humans

Captain America, Winter Soldier

Normal Humans

Hawkeye, Black Widow, Falcon, Black Panther

Most of this ultra mega-fight is stunt-based fight choreography. Not heat beam laser eyes, not knocking down buildings like cardboard, not giant CGI shockwaves that level cities, and generally not flying more than 50 feet off the ground. Managing all of the little fights going on into one massive team battle, supervising every element of each character, smoothly shifting from opponent to opponent; this is a masterpiece of action and choreography. From start to finish. Best of all is the limited use of CGI. We see Tony go in with Winter Soldier with nothing more than a portable Iron Glove he keeps in his watch (which, by the way, is awesome). Even the very last fight with Tony versus Captain America and Winter Soldier is still effectively a fist fight if we count Tony’s blasts like punches.

Basically, I guess what I’m saying is Captain America: Civil War is wall-to-wall awesome. Every character, every plot twist, every new introduction, every piece of character development, every detail of every scene is done thoughtfully and awesomely. I’d put this in the Top 3 Marvel films, with Iron Man and Avengers. Better than Age of Ultron, better than Winter Soldier, and I can keep going on.