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I also started an MCU re-watch this weekend for some real comfort food. 12 years later, away from Batman Begins, X-Men, Raimi Spider-movies, IRON MAN remains a great. The story almost invisibly builds a new universe around a deceptively simple character arc. So impressive.
I'm curious to see how these MCU movies hold up. The only ones I've watched more than a couple of times are Avengers and Black Panther. There are a couple I've never seen. Should take all year, but this seems like a good time to turn to superheroes?
Finally got a chance to keep up my MCU rewatch. Watched THE INCREDIBLE HULK today. It does not feel like a MCU movie, as I suspect some of these early ones won't. Tim Blake Nelson is a great weirdo in this.
Iron Man 2 is next. I've only seen about 10 minutes of this one!
I'd seen but 10 min of IRON MAN 2 before last night. It's... not good. Has none of the "something to prove" of the first one; feels like a victory lap, but in a bad way. Like, a showy hs junior who just scored a touchdown doing an elaborate end zone dance.
There's a good story & character stuff hiding in here! I didn't realize the MCU had ever addressed Tony's alcoholism (...kind of?). I didn't know this was the 1st of Black Widow. But it's all so indulgent. You know THIS could only come from giving an actor too much rope.
It's fascinating watching Hulk and IM2 (and, I suspect, Thor and Cap, which are next two), seeing the MCU finding its voice. Hulk is humorless. IM2 has too much. The stakes in neither feel real. The stuff in the corners, the small world building moments, really work though.
I liked THOR more than I anticipated. Hemsworth, Portman, Dennings, Skarsgard, Gregg have such a lightness that you perk up when they're on. But it's a lot of movies in this one movie. I remember when Branagh was announced as director; it seemed such a good idea! ...
But ultimately, he was just too safe maybe? The big epic sword & sorcery stuff (about which it is hard for me to care in the best of movies) feels phoned in? Like that isn't what interested him (when it seems like that should have interested him most?). It's hard to say what did.
But really, this movie is asked to do SO much. There are a million characters, several new worlds, big concepts. I think people attach to the Rainbow Bridge bc it's introduced and played adeptly. We get how it works. And Thor smashing it at the end is really effective.
For how much is asked of the movie, it does a good job. I cannot imagine how many drafts of this script there are. I would like to read them all.
Again, really neat to see the MCU starting to come through in what is basically a fine sci-fi movie of its time.
Again, really neat to see the MCU starting to come through in what is basically a fine sci-fi movie of its time.
Captain America is next. I barely remember it, but I know I saw it at some point. I expect it's another mythology-burdened origin story!
Everyone! CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER is great! This movie is really a blast. Like Iron Man, it just tells the main character's story and builds the world at the edges, without being exhaustive (exhausting) about it.
It's a case where the obvious choice of director, Joe Johnston, really works. Johnston clearly loves this era and has fun creating the idealized version of it. Captain America follows through and more on the promises Johnston made with the wonderful The Rocketeer.
Also, Jurassic Park III is a lot of fun.
Is every choice the most obvious one? Sure! Like, would it have been a tick more interesting if Tommy Lee Jones & Stanley Tucci had switched roles? Definitely! Does Steve have any kind of arc? No! But it all clips along in an enjoyable Indiana Jones, "classic adventure film" way.
And Chris Evans is lightning in a bottle. He has a lightness like the best classic actors, but you never doubt his sincerity or the gravity of his beliefs. The movie is spoiled for great actors who go for it without chewing the scenery. Hugo Weaving makes this clown believable.
The effects really hold up too! I really thought skinny-Steve would look dated, but the combination of top effects & great acting leap that uncanny valley. Johnston and co set a great template for imaginative fight scenes too, the ante of which would be upped in subsequent films.
The movie is full but doesn't feel overstuffed like Thor. Both love stories-- Cap/Peggy and Cap/Bucky-- play out in believable ways. We're invested. Really sharp, efficient storytelling all around. No surprise from the first Markus & McFeely credited script.
A delightful surprise and feels like, after Iron Man, the MCU now has a strong target for future films. That target was brought into even sharper focus with The Avengers, which is next up and the one I've seen the most. Still excited to watch again!
No matter how many times I watch THE AVENGERS, I can't help but (ahem) marvel at it. Every moment lands, and some, like "Hulk, smash" or Widow tricking Loki, still elicit chills. Joss is the best at efficiently drawing characters, their wants and dynamics.
But part of what's so impressive is his mastery of plot. This thing is a machine. Action comes from character, + the story never lags. It's built of big, blockbuster sequences and small, character moments. Most satisfying piece might be this one. Dynamics at play, not yet a team:
The heli-carrier attack is the entire movie writ small. Everyone has something cool to do; every flavor is different. The Hulk/Widow piece is a little horror movie; spills into a Hulk/Thor fight that's superhero fun. Cap + Iron Man team up finally. The editors did masterful work.
And defining Colson as "us" is brilliant. He loves this stuff! He's a fan. So losing him hurts for us and them. Whedon is so good at breaking down the meaning behind tropes. What does it mean to be an "avenger?"
I also watched the short ITEM 47, which is fun. I'll have to go back and watch the other shorts from phase 1. I wish Marvel still did these. They add some fun, different tones to the MCU.
Iron Man 3 is next. I like this movie a lot and have seen it a couple of times. You can hear me talk about it, and all of his work, with @BonafideBlack here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/shane-black/id455020248?i=1000368854880
Continuing my MCU rewatch!
I love IRON MAN 3. I think the MCU is really good at continuity of character, and making Tony Stark's Averngers-movie trauma the subject of IM3 gives it a strong emotional spine. Plus, great action sequences and maybe Ben Kingsley's best role and performance in 20 years?
THOR: THE DARK WORLD isn't the wreck everyone prepared me for. Like Thor1, a lot is asked of it. But there's stuff to like. The Jane/Thor stuff works, tho everything could hit harder, and if the relationship had been the emotional core of the film, T:DW might have had some heft.
Is CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER the best MCU movie? There isn't a misstep in this film. It's confident & has a purer voice than its predecessors, a model matched only by Black Panther. Cap losing the thing he believes in- the SYSTEM- is a masterstroke of character + plot.
I feared the novelty of GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY had faded its appeal, but I liked it better now! Gunn takes the offhanded funny of RDJ & applies it top to bottom, creating a new language for the MCU. Plot gets unwieldy, but it's such a fun ride & Quill's emotional stuff works.
Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant Man will finish out Phase 2. I recall Ultron being overstuffed but having good sequences. I remember Ant Man never quite achieving liftoff, despite likable actors and a strong third act. Looking forward to both!
I've been working through the MCU! These next four movies are a weird era.
No surprise that people respond strongly to the small, personal moments in AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON. The movie is cumbersome, and the character beats are a liferaft. Picking up Thor's hammer, Hawkeye's family, even Quicksilver's wee arc. These ground a convoluted difficult plot.
There's just so much EXPLAINING in this movie, a problem that's bogged down some of the other MCU films. Often feels like groundwork is being laid for stuff that never came to fruition (like Witch stuff). But also for so much stuff that does. It's a lot.
Still, besides the the character stuff, the action sequences are terrific. Ultron attacking the party, the fractured group going after the truck, the massive ending. It all works, and it's a fun watch. Just never quite coheres.
I should say "in addition to the character stuff."
I liked ANT MAN way more than I remembered! At the time, I felt it lacked a strong POV, but in fact it's a tight, fun origin movie. Everyone in it is great, the plot is streamlined and makes sense, VFX are killer, and it ties neatly and unobtrusively w the MCU.
Yellowjacket is a really good villain! I wish he was still around. I would really love to see the Avengers build up more of a rogue's gallery, see those baddies team up at some point. This guy, Killmonger, Zemo. Only Keaton's Vulture is still alive, I think.
CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR is just a blast. It's playing with action figures as a kid. Black Panther's + Spider-man's intros are perfect. The rift between Steve and Tony hits hard, gets to be both philosophical + personal, which is really smart. Everyone gets a satisfying moment.
The movie feels like a culmination as well as the start of a new phase. It asks more complicated questions than the 12 films that preceded it could because now we've lived with these characters. It really feels like the beginning of the soap opera that is the MCU at its best.
Which is why DOCTOR STRANGE feels like a step back. It is visually stunning, but it's hard to invest in Cumberbatch, who doesn't have the warmth of RDJ. And the movie is asked to do SO much explaining, which the writers do a good job with, but it can't help but bog it down.
I genuinely don't know if the MCU can do another straight origin story without it feeling staid. The best later-phase 1st movies are Black Panther + Spider-man, intro'd in earlier movies. Of course, Dr Strange just has SO many ideas, he likely couldn't have been intro'd elsewhere
That said, the 1st + 3rd acts of Dr Strange are really fun. The new visual elements that magic opens up, the fights, + what I think is a really clever ending make it an enjoyable movie overall. And clearly necessary to the opening up the mythology of the MCU. Score is killer too.
Guardians 2 is next followed by what I think is the longest high-quality streak in the series!
I thought the MCU's longest hot streak started with Spider-man, but I truly underestimated GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 2. In both GotG films, I've underrated the character work Gunn puts in. I think, on first viewing, I get so overwhelmed by the big comedy and storm of SFX...
...and they are a LOT. But Gunn is really adept at working in the emotional story, not just for Quill but, in vol 2, for everyone. The Gamora/Nebula stuff hits and the father-issues lands hard. Even Rocket's small arc is really effective and affecting. Rewatch > first viewing!
Everything about SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING works. Top 3 MCU for me. Perfect casting, brilliant performances, great twists. It's all about the relationships- Peter + Ned, Peter + Tony, Peter + Liz, Liz + Batman, Batman + Peter, Aunt May, Happy, the academic decathlon team...
Casting Michael Keaton is a stroke of brilliance. You have to like him because he's Keaton. His performance is warm; he believes he's doing the right thing, and we buy it more than any MCU villain thusfar.
This movie has SO many writers, and I am incredibly curious about how it all came together. Because it ALL WORKS. Also, Zendaya slays.
THOR: RAGNAROK is another I was surprised to like even more on rewatch. And I liked it a lot the first time! In memory, though, it was more a series of strong sequences, which is totally untrue. It's a strong story and, like GotG2, everyone gets a good arc.
I know this one gets a lot of credit for injecting much needed humor into the Thor series, but it's Hemsworth's heavier emotional stuff that really impresses me. I think watching these in close(ish) proximity really sells how far the character has come + what a good actor he is.
I tend to tune out in these big movies when the climax becomes just "cartoons fighting cartoons," but all three of these movies-arguably the most technologically sophisticated yet-held me because of the strong character work done. Helped by 15 films before, but still impressive.
My #2 MCU film is next, and I'm excited to rewatch. It's been a couple of years. After that, we're onto the, er, endgame. @jlac says she'll watch the rest w me (she liked Ragnarok), and she's only seen Black Panther and Ant Man + Wasp. Curious how the Avengers stuff lands w her.
