Wonder Woman
Saw this about two months ago. I didn't think Wonder Woman was as amazing as reviews made it out to be. It's good, not great which is comforting since the previous two Detective Comics Comics movies were subpar. From what I remember, Wonder Woman's three biggest sins:
1. There's an unnecessary amount of slow-motion. Felt like Patty Jenkins tried to channel Zack Snyder. She isn't Zack Snyder, and that's a good thing. Snyder can direct an action scene well and like literally nothing else. I don't know if she was pressured into adhering to the aesthetic of Batman v Superman (or felt like she had to as part of a shared universe). Honestly, I think Jenkins is better than the final product. If she returns for the sequel, I'd like it to feel more her own.
2. The third act is the weak link. The plot twists were not as shocking as the writers thought they'd be. The villain delivers a fairly lengthy exposition dump. The villain is also not great, mostly due to being absent until the third act.
3. Maybe this is related to the above. My girlfriend said, "Of course, a female superhero would use love to defeat her enemies." I disagreed. I felt like Wonder Woman used love because it's the opposite of war which is less ridiculous but still ridiculous. It's lazy writing. I didn't buy the love story. Diana and Steve knew each other for a few weeks at best (depending on how long Steve was in Themyscira).
Spider-Man: Homecoming
Saw this on Sunday. Excellent. Spider-Man is my favorite superhero, and this is now my favorite Spider-Man film. I saw Spider-Man 2 again a few years ago, and it hasn't aged well. What it gets wrong, Spider-Man: Homecoming gets right. It doesn't dwell or even mention Uncle Ben. It never puts Aunt May or a (potential) love interest in mortal danger. Besides external antagonists, the film looks inward. It addresses Peter's internal conflict better than any previous Spider-Man film. Peter has a very believable character arc. He begins by spending his days counting the hours until he can be Spider-Man again, and ends by learning that it's a balance. Spider-Man isn't his life, merely one part of it. In a way, being Spider-Man is a sacrifice. Peter learns Uncle Ben's famous words without it being force fed to the audience.
I struggle to find any major negatives. Michael Keaton was an excellent villain. His motivation is refreshing, especially as far as Spider-Man villains. If I had to nitpick:
1. Explaining the Ferris Beuller reference. It was well-done until Watts cut to a TV playing Ferris Beuller. The 1989 Batman reference was great though.
2. Zendaya as "MJ" was just Joseph Gordon Levitt as "Robin". Either commit to it or don't. I wouldn't have had any problem with Zendaya playing Mary Jane Watson. I'm not a comic book purist so I generally don't care about changing a character's appearance such as race or gender as long as it doesn't matter. This is a little complicated for something that's ultimately inconsequential. Mary Jane Watson is a boring character. She's a love interest or damsel in distress depending on which lazy writing serves the story when she shows up, and supermodel hot because comic books. Generally speaking, while I think it's worth changing a character to make her more interesting, I wonder if that change makes it not worth referring to her as the same character anymore. So she's "MJ" but not the MJ. They went half-way with it though I don't really know why the connection even had to be there. Still, I liked Zendaya in the film. She did a good job. Michelle was funny, interesting, and the kind of off-beat that better fits Peter. And they set her up for future installments really well. She was present yet unobtrusive which is really good long-term storytelling. Nice try attempting to make Zendaya frumpy though. You can frizzy-up her hair, but she's still hella good-looking.
Again, really minor quibbles.
Topic: Rate the last movie you've seen (Read 1548525 times)
