Joss Whedon

Avengers: Age of Ultron: A Movie Review

/ Casey Tingle / Leave a comment

When presented with the opportunity to create a peacekeeping program to protect the world and leave the Avengers to retire, Tony Stark convince Bruce Banner to help him. However, what they did not anticipate was that the program would have an ego that rivaled Tony’s and that it would take it’s role of protector of the Earth to the next level: protecting the people of Earth from themselves.

What I liked is that you got into the plot of the movie within the first five minutes. The issue at hand was presented and it steadily went on from there without any big lulls in the action. I also thought Avengers: Age of Ultron presented an array of different genres. While it’s your average action/super hero film, there was also a mixture of romance, presenting characters and relationships viewers may not know about (unless, of course, if you read the comics), as well as comedy and a touch of drama.

But what my favorite part about the Avengers franchise is, is the script. I personally think Joss Whedon is an amazing writer, creating realistic dialogue between the characters that flows flawlessly and keeps the viewer hooked. I enjoyed when there was a joke presented into the movie that it would continue throughout the movie, but it wasn’t overwhelming. They would wait just long enough for the viewer to pretty much forget about the joke before bringing it back, which kept everyone laughing and the joke never got old.

My only issue with the way they are doing these movies now, are that every movie connects to one another. Which isn’t bad, I think it’s an interesting way to create this franchise, especially since all the characters work together, but also have their own films. I just hope they don’t try to integrate them together too much because then it would be necessary to see every single movie and if you miss one you won’t be able to understand what was going on, which could be disappointing to the viewer if they don’t feel like watching every single film. There were a few things in Avengers: Age of Ultron that I didn’t understand because I hadn’t seen some of the other super hero films, but it wasn’t enough that I was taken out of or didn’t understand the entire film.

Avengers: Age of Ultron is a great film and a must see for those who are into comics and the Marvel franchise.

Much Ado About Nothing (2012): A Movie Review

/ Casey Tingle / Leave a comment

Out of all the times I’ve read and watched different versions of Much Ado About Nothing, I do have to say that Joss Whedon’s version takes an interesting view on the Shakespeare play. Like several other directors and writers tried to do with other Shakespeare works, Whedon takes the play and places it in modern times, but keeps the Shakespeare language intact.

Now, I always have mixed feelings on this. The first time I’ve ever seen it done was in the 1996 Romeo + Juliet movie directed by Baz Luhrmann and I did not care for it at all. Which was one of the reasons why it took me over a year to see Whedon’s version of Much Ado About Nothing, despite my love for Whedon’s directing and screenwriting.

Much Ado About Nothing is one of Shakespeare’s comedies about love and how two couples see love differently. Hero and Claudio meet and fall in love at first sight, while Benedick and Beatrice mock and make fun of each other, choosing to ignore their feelings for each other until they are tricked into realizing it.

While I did enjoy Whedon’s version more than I thought I would, looking at it as if I had never heard of the play before I did think it was confusing. You really don’t know who the characters are, or why they are all gathering together at Leonato’s house. Is there a celebration of some kind or are they all just friends getting together? It was also difficult to keep up with who was who and what their titles were and how they knew each other. I guess that’s where reading the play would come in handy, although those plays are really best watched to fully understand the context.

What I did love was that it was shot in black and white. I think that helped bring some of an old time movie feel to it, keeping it from being too modernized. I also thought the acting was well done. The actors made sure to keep the production comical, even when it becomes upsetting at some points. The delivery of the lines was similar to the 1993 version starring Kenneth Branagh, which is probably my favorite version of the play.

Something I thought was a bit weird was that they changed one of the character roles from a male role to a female role. While it did work, the lines in the play were kept the same making some parts of scenes awkward and a bit confusing, but comical at the same time.

So while Joss Whedon didn’t completely change my feelings on the modernization of Shakespeare plays, he didn’t completely disappoint me.

Grade: B

Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog: A Movie Review

/ Casey Tingle / Leave a comment

Dr. Horrible’s (Neil Patrick Harris) main focus is his career in villainy and getting into the Evil League of Evil. That is until he meets the beautiful, do-gooder Penny at the laundromat and falls head over heels in love.

Too shy to speak to her, Dr. Horrible misses out on his chance when his arch nemesis, Captain Hammer, swoops in and wins her for himself all while stopping Dr. Horrible’s evil plans. But Dr. Horrible’s nerdy, shy side can only last so long until he is pushed too.

A 45 minute film, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog is a must see for any fan of musicals, superheroes, Neil Patrick Harris, or Joss Whedon. It takes a different point of view and shows what it’s like to be a villain who is blind sided by unrequited love. And with it’s catchy songs and great actors, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog will have you laughing, crying, singing, and dancing by the end.

Grade: A+

Cabin in the Woods: A Movie Review

/ Casey Tingle / Leave a comment

Now, before you say, ‘Oh god you saw THAT movie!?’ I’ll answer you: Yes, yes I did. And you know what? My new goal in life is to meet Joss Whedon and shake his hand. The man is a genius!

When a group of friends decide to go to a cabin in the woods (yes, really) for the weekend, the last thing they expect is to be murdered hours after getting there. But a government facility located conveniently underneath their cabin has other plans.

Starring Chris Hemsworth (Thor, The Avengers) , Cabin in the Woods will definitely have you jumping out of your seat. As it was described to me, it’s a horror movie without being a horror movie. There are jumpy parts and gore, but I don’t really think it’ll give you nightmares (unless redneck zombies aren’t your thing).

The entire plot is a bit more complex than that, but I don’t know how to explain it without really giving the entire movie away, which I really don’t want to do. In order to find out, you’ll just have to see it!

What I enjoyed a lot about this movie was that it didn’t really dwell on the deaths. They all happened fairly quickly and it wasn’t too, too gory. There was quite a lot of blood, but it wasn’t Dead Alive-esque. But I will give a fair warning: this isn’t your typical top rated Hollywood movie. The graphics and CGI are well done, don’t get me wrong, but there is a definite feel of B rated movie that lingers in there, which, in my opinion, makes it even better. There is a difference between a bad B movie and a good B movie, and Cabin in the Woods was definitely a good B rated movie!

There really isn’t anything bad I can really say about this movie. It kept me guessing the entire time. It was a little predictable when something scary was going to pop up, but I didn’t mind that so much because the jumpy scare factor doesn’t work well with me. By the end of the movie I sat there, wide eyed and opened mouthed, not quite sure what I had just seen, only knowing that it was pure gold.

Grade: A+

The Avengers: A Movie Review

/ Casey Tingle / 1 Comment

After seeing The Avengers last night, all I can say is: wow. I have never been a huge superhero fan. I’ve enjoyed the movies when I saw them, but only really saw them when friends wanted to go. I was never the initiator. So I’m really glad several friends wanted to see this movie.

The world is in danger. Loki, Thor’s brother, is planning on taking over the Earth and he must be stopped. But S.H.I.E.L.D. is having trouble getting to him. So Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) decides to bring in help. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) are called in to not only stop Loki, but to save one of their own, Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner). They are joined by Thor (Chris Hemsworth) who is determined to bring his brother back home.

The one aspect of The Avengers that I couldn’t get over was the script. It could’ve been the writer in me, but this was the first time I’ve ever watched a movie and thought the entire time, “Wow, this script is amazing!” It was witty and had the entire theater cracking up constantly. Later, as I was telling my fiance this, he informed me that it was written by Joss Whedon, writer for shows such as Firefly, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Angel. Which explained everything. I am a huge fan of Firefly and consider it to be one of the best shows to ever exist. Whedon is just an amazing writer and I think he did another amazing job!

But the writing wasn’t the only thing that amazed me. The action was choreographed amazingly and the acting was superb! This movie definitely made me wish I was more into comic books. My only suggestion is to see all the movies related to this one first. I only saw Iron Man, Captain America, and half of Thor because the power decided to go out, and I did OK with the movie, but at the same time I can see that some parts would be confusing to someone who had never seen any of the movies. Especially Thor. But they didn’t do too bad of a job with explanations.

Overall, whether you enjoy superheroes or not, I highly suggest seeing this movie! It will not disappoint.

Grade: A+