“Avengers: Age of Ultron” Movie Review

Year: 2015

Director: Joss Whedon

Writer: Joss Whedon, Stan Lee & Jack Kirby (comic book)

Stars: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, James Spader, Samuel L. Jackson, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany

One of the most anticipated films of 2015, “Avengers: Age of Ultron” has finally come to Europe and it lives up to the expectations, mostly. Although not perfect, and arguably not quite as good as the first one, it is not really a disappointment either. Overall, I really liked it, but I wish it was a bit more than a good comic book movie. And that’s only because I have faith in Joss Whedon, who’s capable of great things. But the fact is that “Avengers” is not just his movie, it’s a Marvel property before anything else. It still worked out very well, having in mind how many characters and plot elements Whedon had to juggle. The film also touches on some interesting themes, facilitated by Tony Stark’s ego and willingness to take any risk in order to ensure world peace.

Just like the first “Avengers” the best thing about the film is the interaction between the characters. That said, for me, some of these scenes didn’t work as well as others. The jokes are more than what you’d expect from the trailer and even Ultron has a dark sense of humor. Besides that humor, the most thrilling characters are possibly Ultron himself and Vision. Ultron was put together a bit too fast and I wish more of his motivations were clarified.  Still, he is one of the best Marvel villains, if not the best. Vision, although having even less screen time, is absolutely magnificent. I guess we owe that to a great performance from Paul Bettany and the fact that he wasn’t CGI-ed, but relied entirely on make-up. As for the main Avengers team, the focus this time is mainly on Hawkeye, Black Widow and Banner. I did find some of the revelations for Hawk Eye a bit stereotypical though. Unfortunately, with so much going on, you wind up wanting more from most of the heroes. The story and motivations of the twins seemed a bit forced into the overall arc, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s accent just takes the audience out of the movie. And his acting as a whole – I just couldn’t buy it. Both siblings could have been used better, but I found Scarlet Witch much more interesting than Quick Silver, who, essentially has two lines of dialogue.

I didn’t expect obvious product placement as well, but it was there. Then, there’s the “epic” moment when I was just thinking how all comic movies are just trying too hard to top each other. And although the movie is a bit darker and the stakes are higher, when some of the most dramatic moments happen, they aren’t really that effective, mostly because some characters aren’t so well developed. And although the threat to civilians is addressed, we only see the ones that are rescued. Besides, normal people get shot at with huge lasers and survive.

I don’t think that the visual effects were that spectacular as well, especially with the 3D. The big fighting sequences sometimes looked blurry or just kind of fake. I’m sure that in 2D will be much easier to tell what’s going on the screen. For comparison, in “Guardians of the Galaxy” the 3D was more efficiently used and looked better. The same goes for the effects. Probably, of all action scenes, the first is the best, especially considering that it is an intricately composed long tracking shot.

As all Marvel movies, “Avengers” also has to set up the following films and some of the scenes dedicated to this task aren’t very organic to the plot and feel just like thrown here and there. For example, there’s a rather irrelevant Thor scene that seems out of place. For the most part, the weaker parts are balanced out by the humor and character interactions. So, “Avengers: Age of Ultron” remains an enjoyable movie-going experience. I am also looking forward to the release of the director’s cut that will supposedly have an alternate ending and a lot more extra footage that could deliver on some of the lacking character development and motivations.

The movie has 8,4 on IMDB - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2395427/?ref_=fn_al_tt_4

Still no results from users and 72 from critics on MetaCritic - http://www.metacritic.com/movie/avengers-age-of-ultron

80% on RottenTomatoes -  http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/avengers_age_of_ultron/

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“Calvary” Movie Review

Year: 2014

Director: John Michael McDonagh

Writer: John Michael McDonagh

Stars: Brendan Gleeson, Chris O'Dowd, Kelly Reilly, Aidan Gillen, Dylan Moran, Isaach De Bankolé, M. Emmet Walsh, Marie-Josée Croze, Domhnall Gleeson, David Wilmot

“Calvary” is John Michael McDonagh’s second film after “The Guard” and also starring Brendon Gleeson, but this time as a priest. The story takes place in Ireland, after the child-abuse scandal, when the church is openly despised and mocked, accused of cynicism or simply seen as irrelevant in a time when corporations rule the country.

As a film about a priest, “Calvary” doesn’t come off as the typical movie about religion and it doesn’t feel preachy. As someone who’s not a fan of the church in any way, I didn’t feel like watching a religious film, it is simply a striking film about human relations, life and death, morality and stoicism. It explores fate as a path towards finding forgiveness and staying true to your ideals and mission.

Set in a world where there’s no justice for the guilty, “Calvary” looks at the sacrifice of the good. From the very beginning of the film, we hear the death threat against the priest that will drive the story: “There’s no point in killing a bad priest. But a good one… that would be a shock.” After this “confession” Father James (Brendon Gleeson) has one week to prepare himself and to make a decision whether to run away, to turn in the man who threatened him or to stay. During that time we’re trying to figure out who made the threat. However, it is not the typical whodunit story. “Calvary” consists mainly of various conversations with all the parishioners, which are cleverly written and include a surprising amount of dark humor.

Father James is a flawed man, but a good priest that genuinely tries to help and understand his “flock” without judging them. He is witty and sometimes unorthodox; has a humble home, but also a convertible car. He has his own troubled past and just as troubled daughter, which give him more depth. Father James doesn’t pretend to know all the answers and simply tries to give some sensible advice. He doesn’t mind discussing possible situations when killing could be justified or suggesting pornography as an outlet for frustration.

In contrast to James is Father Leary, who seems to be much more innocent and kind, but he’s naïve, ignorant and “has no integrity.” He has no experience and he didn’t make the mistakes James made in the past, thus being far less unprepared to be a good priest.

“Calvary” has a big ensemble cast with a lot of great performances, but Brendon Gleeson is definitely the heart of the film. His acting is grounded, but warm and poignant. He has no problems convincing us that he is this flawed, but ultimately good and stoic priest. And by the end of the story, after he talks to all these people, you learn a lot not only about the world around him, but about his own fears and virtues. With such great performances, no wonder the last act of the film is so hitting.

“Calvary” can be seen as a bit more “theatrical”, heightened movie, full with extraordinary, bigger-than-life characters. However, it is extremely well written, engaging and believable. The nature in the movie has this indifferent and overpowering presence, with the Knocknarea hill looking like a monolith, placed by the gods to remind us of the cruel randomness of the world. Similarly, the horrible sentence doesn’t seem to have any logic or sense of justice behind it: “I’m going to kill you, because you’re innocent.” What if Father James chooses to reach his limits to help his parishioners and become the innocent one to pay for the others? Is it possible for his virtues to endure? You have to see (and decide) for yourself.

The movie has 7,5 on IMDB - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2234003/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

7,6 from users and 77 from critics on MetaCritic -  http://www.metacritic.com/movie/calvary

89% on RottenTomatoes -  http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/calvary_2013/?search=calva

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“Wild Tales” ("Relatos Salvajes") Movie Review

Year: 2014

Director: Damián Szifrón

Writer: Damián Szifrón

Stars: Ricardo Darín, Erica Rivas, Darío Grandinetti, María Marull, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Julieta Zylberberg, Oscar Martínez, Diego Gentile

“Wild Tales” is nothing short of amazing, simultaneously hilarious and dark thrill ride. Actually, the less you know about the film, the better it is. When I saw it with a friend, we knew absolutely nothing about it, besides the fact that it’s Oscar-nominated and “fun.” So, when we sat down in the cinema, we were absolutely surprised, electrified and by the end of the movie – thoroughly entertained. I didn’t even know that it consists of six different stories.

“Wild Tales” is a black comedy, filled with violence and action that will keep you at the edge of your seat. It effortlessly combines action and tension with the comedy; it does the same with with drama, romance and thriller. The introductory story even takes the type of situation that we would usually see in cartoons and excitingly ushers us headfirst into the crazy world of the movie.

Damián Szifrón, who has been directing and writing primarily for TV up to this point, takes full advantage of his experience with the short form. In fact, the film originally included a seventh tale called “Bonus Track” and the order of the stories was different. Remarkably, every unique story is enough fascinating and exciting by itself, but there are still common themes and style between all “tales.” With hot-headed characters that are driven in one way or another to their breaking point and often to a quite animalistic state, “Wild Tales” makes you question the inherent humanity of our species. In relation to that the movie has great opening credits, in which each actor is represented by the image of a wild animal. The director himself chose a fox, because he has red hair and his father had a fondness of the animal.

“Wild Tales” is considered an Argentine-Spanish production with the notable involvement of Pedro Almodovar as one of the producers. The movie looks great cinematically and also sounds great. Gustavo Alfredo Santaolalla, a two-time Oscar winner composed the soundtrack.

“Wild Tales” was among the Oscar nominated foreign-language films for 2014 and probably the most unexpected one, since it’s very fast-paced, filled with action and violence. It is also the seventh film from Argentina nominated for the award. The movie quickly became the most seen film in Argentina for 2014 and was shown in 275 cinemas throughout the country. Consequently, by the end of the it became the most seen film from Argentine of all-time. “Wild Tales” was also celebrated at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, where it reportedly received a standing ovation for about 10 minutes. The film was also in the competition for the Palme d'Or at the Festival.

The movie has 8,2 on IMDB - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3011894/

8,9 from users and 77 from critics on MetaCritic -  http://www.metacritic.com/movie/wild-tales

95% on RottenTomatoes -  http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wild_tales

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