V for Vendetta

2018-07-252018-07-22 ~ Mark

V for Vendetta. Wow, I didn’t remember this being so tedious. What a drag.

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

2017-08-192017-12-02 ~ Mark

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. The Riders of Rohan are the best. Loved’em in the book. Love’em in the movies. I think they nailed the melodrama in this one. And the build-up to the spider set-piece is pretty great. I still think the song during the closing credits is a huge misfire. Should have gone instrumental!

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

2017-08-152017-12-02 ~ Mark

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. You can see the move ripping at the seams. There’s a lot of story to pack in here. Lots of it feels clipped, rushed, off-kilter. Romances are un-earned. Jarring shifts in tone. Gimli has a lot more to say. Legolas slides on a shield? It’s a mess, but may have the best landscapes of the trilogy.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

2017-08-132017-12-02 ~ Mark

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. Appreciated the soundtrack more this time around. Pretty sure it’s borrowing from Dvorak. Also reminded me of The Last of the Mohicans in mood. Great work with the suspense and setting the sense, and such a great ending. Not a teaser, but a promise of adventure.

Captain America: The First Avenger

2012-06-112018-01-15 ~ Mark

Captain America: The First Avenger. Pleasantly surprised by this one. You’ve got a solid underdog story, with an arc from bumbling to confident. The love interest wasn’t treated as typically as I expected. There was some blood spray and general grittiness that, coupled with the cutting-edge 1940s tech and throwback look, was really satisfying. I always loved that Captain America carried a gun. And they took some breaks for musical comedy! I understand and appreciate his role in the movie, but I wish they’d eased up on the Stark references. It’s really annoying to mention Stark because Stark is probably connected to Tony Stark who’s Iron Man who’s in a related movie. Stark. NUDGE. Hugo Weaving every now and then signalssss malevolenccccce with his sibilantssss. I will really miss Tommy Lee Jones if he ever retires.