Avengers: Age of Ultron

Even though I read comic books for a limited time with really little knowledge, The Avengers always stood out to me as a comic book that could be made as a film. So many superheroes and many villains for many people, and really as much as I hate to say it, it would seem like easy money for a studio. Once you got the first Avengers film in 2012, you were long overdue for another one but you couldn't take away what a great summer blockbuster it was. From directing from the always positive Joss Whedon, excellent casting, superb action, everything was running on cylinders. With what Avengers turned out to be and the money made, a sequel was bound to happen.                    

After Tony Stark tries to start a pacemaker program and eventually taps into artificial intelligence, Stark unleashes Altron (James Spader), a villain of mass destruction that only the Avengers are capable of stopping. This is a familiar formula for a superhero film and for Marvel in general.
                       

I didn't go into this expecting to have issues with characters but this sequel seems to make even more light of them. Solid acting, writing to a script that supports them, chemistry between them and the biggest highlight is some of new elements to them. Hulk/Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) is trying to control his anger and really just can't. He finds a love interest in Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) which deals with the themes of being normal, how they have different powers and two very different identities. Where as I thought Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) was given nothing to do in the first movie, he was given a quality backstory that should make us look more forward to this character once the new installments come along. Hey, we even get new character in Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olson) and Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). Scarlet Witch's cap taps into energy and a person's mind. Yes, it would seem like mind powers won't be special compared to what the Avengers cast can do but in a surprise, she brings some of the best moments to the screen. Her twin brother, Quicksilver known for impressive fast speeds is ultimately going to be remembered for how this character played out in the last act in a very memorable way.
                   

After a while, I have come to expect that superheroes films plots are convoluted and are really meant at times for comic books fans. This plot is much of the same with so much depth to it and mostly dependent on the villain character. The character Ultron has really wonderful voice work by James Spader who proves he can be a menacing character. Ulton is still very silly and not a lot background was given to him. He dazzles though in his action scenes and really like any character in this movie, he doesn't drag in any act. Ultron A memorable villain but not without issues.

Moviegoers probably come to this movie for a lot of reasons and I would expect action is one of them. Being that the budget isn't an issue and Joss Whedon has a good track record of good action movies, you can expect high flying scenes in the first part and in the last act, the action really puts this movie on top. This is the type of action that is made in a way that really would be hard to get tired of.                                                    

                                                                                                               

With two Avengers films set after this,the future looks very high for this franchise. Sure, this movie doesn't beat out the 2012 film but this is a very solid sequel. This is one of the few franchises around that I don't mind that we are getting sequels as we keep on the same road that we are on now.

4/5

Godzilla (2014)

There are monster films that stand alone and then there are monster films that are the godfathers of them all. You could say that the King Kong from 1933 was among the most influential which spawned sequels and remakes in 1976 and 2005. That said, the 1954 Japanese movie Godzilla towers over them all. With over ten sequels and an American remake in 1998, Godzilla is on the biggest scale of all monster movies, to me anyway.

No doubt, the 1998 Godzilla by Roland Emmerich was critically panned. From the silly ideas of babies and asexual reproduction, it was very simple-minded action flick. The sequels that were planned were cancelled due to the bad reception to the film. I actually who enjoyed this version of Godzilla and like others, I think we have all waited too long for this new version. Godzilla is that interesting a character and movie phenomenon.

This new installment, follows around Joe Brody (Bryon Cranston) who is in a Japanese town that has been quarantined after what is said to be a nuclear power plant incident. Joe is arrested for trespassing in this nuclear area as he believes something else is happening there. This suppression leads to more of the same and eventually the beast himself.

Unlike the 1998 film where your cast was typical, this new Godzilla cast is much more diverse. Ford Brody (Aaron Tyler Johnson) plays Joe's son, who's main role is to fight for his family and who eventually starts believing his father that something strange is going on in the area. His wife Elle is played by rising star, Elizabeth Olsen and is a nurse who is running around the city looking for a shelter for her family which makes the her the least interesting character here. Dr Vivienne Graham (Sally Hawkins) and Ichrio Serizawa (Ken Watanabe) are the scientists who have been investigating the phenomena in this area since the beginning which makes us root for them all the way through the movie.

Besides a few shots in Jamaica, Tahiti and South Pacific Ocean, the 1998 Godzilla movie was set in New York. You can say that took down the film but it also made us question the budget. Once again, this new version is quite exactly the opposite. Ford Brody grew up in Japan but now lives with wife and child in San Francisco. The action scene settings range from Las Vegas, Nevada to Honolulu, Hawaii. It does kind of come off as "all over the place" and maybe a bit too much being attempted but the atmosphere is original and this movie appears to have more of a budget than the last one.

Obviously biggest factor in any Godzilla movie is the creature itself. Whatever Godzilla film you are watching, he is always going to be what you want to see and why you are watching in the first place. This new Godzilla is made to look very modern, with ideas and character development and also his entrance to this film comes much later then you would like. The action scenes and effects involving Godzilla are beyond dazzling but the action scenes are kind of  light on buildup and ideas. Also the final shot of Godzilla is very silly and it's feels as if this is a set up to a sequel.  

In the end, I enjoyed this big budget, summer film but it is such a different Godzilla film than I expected that it is a little hard to take in. It will likely take me more than a few more viewings to fully accept and appreciate this "very different Godzilla". With this film being so different, you are only to left wonder what the likely sequel will be like and that may be the biggest question mark of them all.      

4/5