VENOM!

It's been a little over two years since I last wrote in this blog.  The last thing I wrote about here was the ill-fated Suicide Squad, a movie that was a mess from start to finish.  This post isn't about that, however.  It's about something much more fascinating: VENOM!

I've been reading comics since I was little and Venom was always one of my favorites.  Co-created by Spawn creator Todd McFarlane, Venom was introduced as one of Spider-Man's greatest nemeses in the late 1980's in The Amazing Spider-Man #300.  He was almost literally a shadow version of Spider-Man since the symbiote used to be bonded to Peter Parker and thus was able to evade his spider sense, a trait that made him even more dangerous.

Venom's appearance in 2007's Spider-Man 3 marked his big screen debut.  It was a mixed bag to say the least.  His look had some echoes of the original design, but was pretty much seen as a misfire all around.  It's more evident when you know that director Sam Raimi didn't have any plans to include Venom in the first place, but was forced into it and that shows.  Spider-Man 3 had many other issues besides Venom, but it was one of the most glaring.

Fast forward to 2018 and Sony's forthcoming Venom looks like it will finally correct that wrong and do the character justice.  Whether the movie itself will be any good or not remains to be seen.  On the design front at least, they've done a solid job thus far.  Venom's face is pitch perfect and truly looks like the comic book come to life.

This version of the character is physically imposing and looks much more intimidating than the previous film version.  It's not a perfect design as he's missing the hallmark white spider symbol on his chest, but given that this version of the character does not yet have any connection to Spider-Man, that's understandable.  Everything else looks to be good to this point.  And being played by one of the best actors in the business, Tom Hardy, means Sony has high hopes for this movie.

Venom is said to be loosely based on the Lethal Protector mini-series, which was significant as it was Venom's first series as the lead character.  In Lethal Protector, Venom goes up against five other symbiotes, one of which is named Riot.  At the time of this writing, the only other symbiote to be shown is Riot, although there will likely be two others shown at some point (including a possible appearance by Carnage). 

I think the movie has a lot of potential, but I will remain cautiously optimistic until it's out in the wild.

Suicide Squad Movie Thoughts

I just returned from watching Suicide Squad a little bit ago.  Admittedly, it wasn't a movie that was high on my list.  That said, I will say it was a very enjoyable movie.  It was better than Batman vs Superman.  Think about that for a moment.  A movie filled with characters that are largely unknown to the general public is more fun to watch than a movie with 3 of the biggest superheroes in the world.  

Yeah, that's what I thought, too.  Suicide Squad isn't a perfect movie by any stretch, but I'll get to that in a little bit.  First off, Margot Robbie is great as Harley Quinn.  She fits the character to a T.  Next to Will Smith's Deadshot, she is one of the cores of the movie.  Though I've never been fond of her costume design for this film, it works (keep your eyes open and you will see her original costume briefly at a certain point).

Will Smith is also fine as Deadshot, though his backstory doesn't come across as heartfelt as I think the director intended.  It feels forced and inauthentic.  He displays his trademark sense of wit and humor throughout the movie, but it comes across as tonally opposite to what the movie is aiming for.

One of the biggest question marks coming into the movie was Jared Leto's Joker.  To me, he didn't really stand out much in comparison to other actors who've played the role, but that may be due to the fact that he's barely in the movie.  In fact, they could've cut all of his scenes and the story wouldn't have been materially changed at all.  I know that Joker is always tied to Harley Quinn's origin, but there were other ways to establish that without needing to have Joker physically there.  The only 2 scenes of his that really contributed anything were the flashback that establishes Harley Quinn as his queen and the bit *SPOILER* at the end where he breaks Harley out of Belle Reve (which would've worked better as a post credits tease than a part of the main movie).

Suicide Squad spends most of its screen time on Harley Quinn, Deadshot, and Amanda Waller.  Most of the other members of the titular squad have very little presence or even need to be there.  Boomerang, Slipknot, and Killer Croc all could've been cut from the script and very little would've changed.  After this year's Civil War, which showed how to deftly handle a huge ensemble cast, Suicide Squad feels like another example where more is not better.  

Though Suicide Squad has its problems (the soundtrack is very hit and miss), it is a fun movie overall and definitely worth watching at least once.  

What A Mess: Batman vs Superman

Batman vs Superman ended up being such a colossal mess and it's such a shame because it could've been the movie to establish WB/DC as major players in the cinematic universe genre, a spot which Marvel has owned for almost a decade now.  However, it ended up playing more as an expensive example of what not to do.

The theatrical cut of the film clocks in at a hefty 2 hours 33 minutes.  It's about the length of what one expects from big budget movies these days.  The time isn't its biggest problem.  The biggest problem with Batman vs Superman is that it bastardized all the key characters, was poorly edited and overstuffed with subplots that really shouldn't have made it past the conceptual stage. 

Supposedly, there will be an extended cut of the film that clocks in at 3 hours on the home video release (and rumored to be a possible theatrical release, too), but I don't see how adding in another 30 minutes would help a story that is already overstuffed with filler (what was the point of the bullet subplot?).  

The worst sin in Batman vs Superman is that it shits all over the characterization of its 2 leads.  Batman is just a meathead on a violent crusade, not the World's Greatest Detective.  His beef with Superman is ultimately resolved because they have mothers with the same name and not because they realize they're the only true checks on each other.

Superman is moping, pitiful and glum, a complete 180 from where he was at the end of Man of Steel and with no real reason within the story for him to be so.  The public is worried about what threats he may pose given his God-like abilities, but they also built him a freakin' statue! 

The movie is visually stylish and Wonder Woman (played in her limited screen time by Gal Gadot) is in many ways the only redeeming aspect of this movie.  Batman vs Superman will make money and it will ultimately be a huge box office hit, but I and many others can't help but feel stung at what could've been and what ultimately is. 
 

Captain America: CIVIL WAR Trailer Thoughts

So the first trailer for Captain America: Civil War has finally dropped.  I have to say it looks pretty good, but then Marvel's always done a phenomenal job with marketing their films.  

Anyone familiar with the Civil War story in the comic books already knew the movie adaptation could not follow it exactly, but it seems like it will keep the general theme intact.  Iron Man will fill the antagonist role and Captain America will lead the rebellion.  

There's  no mention of where Ant-Man fits in nor Spider-Man or Crossbones.  It's widely believed Spider-Man will make at least a cameo since his casting was done late in the production of Civil War, but his role might end up being a little bigger.  I'm hyped already.

Avengers 2: Age of Ultron Teaser Trailer Thoughts

I have watched and rewatched the recently released Avengers 2: Age of Ultron teaser trailer and I am now officially hyped.  I wasn't really sure what to think of this film as I am not very familiar with the Ultron character outside of him being an uncontrollable, somewhat insane robot.  But after seeing this first look at the film, I am excited.

I saw the concept art for the Hulkbuster armor quite some time ago and wondered if that would make it into the final film and indeed it has.  After being teased somewhat near the ending of Iron Man 3, the Hulkbuster armor will make its cinematic debut in Avengers 2.  As the name suggests, the armor was designed specifically for fighting the Hulk as Hulk is too strong to face down in regular armor.  It's unclear when the Iron Man vs Hulk battle takes place in the movie, but I do wonder if it will lead to *POSSIBLE SPOILER* Hulk being sent out into space.

Another interesting aspect shown in the trailer is Captain America's broken shield.  His shield has previously been shown and described as being unbreakable vibranium.  Mjolnir can't shatter it and neither can Hulk, so it's curious as to what can break it assuming it isn't part of a dream sequence.  Some have speculated that the broken shield could end up involving Black Panther as he's the ruler of Wakanda, the only known location in the world that has vibranium.

The last thing that I want to comment on is Ultron's grand cinematic debut.  Being very unfamiliar with the character means I have very little expectation for what he should or shouldn't sound or look like.  However, what I've seen of him in this trailer cements that he will be an intimidating, amazing, and memorable screen villain.  I admittedly wasn't all that fond of Loki and the Chitauri being the villains in Avengers as I didn't think they were imposing enough.  It looks like Ultron is going to be more than a match for the heroes and will probably end up being the starting point for the path to Civil War.  His visual design is pretty slick and it looks like he will have multiple forms throughout the film as the older picture from Entertainment Weekly shows (or that could be some type of a combat mode that he switches into).