Captain America: Civil War Review

Starring: Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Renner, Chadwick Boseman, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Rudd, Emily VanCamp, Tom Holland, Frank Grillo, William Hurt, Daniel Brühl

As you can tell, this movie has a pretty humongous cast. It really serves as an "Avengers 2.5", where Marvel's best superheros have joined either Iron Man or Captain America, and are engaged in a "civil war". The title comes from the popular definitive Marvel comic, so this should be the definitive movie, right? I mean, it's Captain America, Winter Soldier, Falcon, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, and Ant-Man VS Iron Man, Black Widow, War Machine, Black Panther, Vision, and Spider-Man. While the movie is certainly epic, and it's every fanboy's dream, I much preferred Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Civil War is still a fantastic movie and I loved it, but it's bogged down by a few problems.

Of course, the cast is amazing. For many of these actors, it's their third or fourth outing as the iconic superheroes. I'll get to Cap and Iron Man later, and address the returning supporting actors first. Scarlett Johansson is always great as Black Widow. I thought she came off a little misplaced in this movie. It's obvious Joss Whedon has the best ideas for the character, and she suffers when he doesn't direct. She undoubtedly has the best action scenes in the film, and her close combat style probably helps this. Next is Scarlet Witch. Her powers have upgraded, and I truly believe she is the Superman of the MCU. Her abilities are unlimited. However, the crime she commits at the beginning is never really addressed. I'd have loved to see Olsen emit more regret and pain over what happened, but they really brush it off quickly. I thought this was the best for Falcon and War Machine. Don Cheadle is a great actor, but Rhodey's never really made a big impact on me. This was the first time I actually felt an impact. The same goes for Anthony Mackie and Falcon, though he's had much less screen outings. My personal favorite was Ant-Man. Paul Rudd is so funny, and he just seems like the guy so surprised he's an Avenger. Plus, his powers get a HUGE upgrade, and it's done so well. Hawkeye also is always great. I think they really figured out how to portray Hawkeye in Age of Ultron (he was the most exciting part in a lackluster film) and Renner is just loving it. He doesn't appear as much as the others, but he doesn't need to. Hawkeye is perfect in his little appearance. I did not like The Vision. I wish he did more! He's so powerful and was so good in the last one, and they greatly lessened his role. I thought his sweaters were weird, and I still don't buy Paul Bettany as a superhero. Finally, Bucky aka Winter Solider. A lot of people hate Bucky. I did too, but I really understood him in this movie. I think Stan did a great job, and I finally was able to understand why Cap fights so hard for him. His helplessness is really endearing, and even though he does terrible things, it's not his fault.

Now onto Cap, Iron Man, and the new characters. First I'd like to salute Marvel for the return of General Thunderbolt Ross, now Sec. Ross. The Incredible Hulk with Ed Norton is probably something Marvel wants to forget, but William Hurt's portrayal of the Avengers legal archenemy was outstanding, and definitely the best part of the film. Marvel's ability to recognize this and have him return is really commendable. And Hurt does an amazing job here intimidating Captain America. I'm Team Cap, so I really sympathized with him for most of the movie. I will admit, I switched to Iron Man halfway though, then went back. I understood both sides, and that's because Evans and Downey Jr did such great jobs as their characters. I felt Cap's fierce independence, and his need to have all superheroes be free, but I also understood Tony's pain, and why he needed them to have limits. I think Tony is a volatile and self-destructive character, so I can't really be on his side. But I do think that Cap's big reveal at the end totally changes the Avengers forever. I understand why he did it, but it's so horrible I don't think Tony will ever be able to forgive anyone on his side. Now to the new characters. Black Panther is amazing. Chadwick Boseman captures your attention whenever he's onscreen, and the suit is incredible. His movements resemble a cat and the whole thing is completely awesome. Black Panther is coming next year, and there's a tease in the credits that excited the theater. The post-credits scene belongs to Peter Parker, and I have to say, Spider-Man was very well done. He was used in the perfect amount, and his naive quips and jokes really helped the airport battle. I'm looking forward to Tom Holland's Spider-Man, and I think it's clear Marvel handles this character best.

By far, the biggest problem is the pacing. The movie is way too long. Dreadfully long. I guess they had to give every character 15 minutes, which benefits the acting, but takes a toll on the moviegoer. I was getting really fed up and just wanted it to wrap up. I think that a good movie knows when to end, and this film just kept going on and on and on. I also did not particularly like the Vision. He's just too awkward, and I didn't realize why he wasn't utilized more. He's SO powerful so why doesn't he just annihilate everyone? It's also a superhero staple to have an opening battle scene with a B-level villain. Crossbones, an amazing Captain America villain, was really ripped off. Plus the whole scene was too long. Basically, what I'm trying to say is this: It's a good movie, but it's way too long. I much prefer The Winter Soldier to Civil War. I like that all the characters are here, but I don't like it when a good movie starts to bore me.

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The Jungle Book Review

Starring: Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong'o, Scarlett Johansson, Giancarlo Esposito, Chrsitopher Walken, Neel Sethi

 I'm going to start with a confession. The Jungle Book is one of the last Disney films I would expect to be adapted into their live action fairytales series. Not because the 1960s original isn't a good film, but simply because it's not one that stands out as an immediate classic. Sure, "The Bare Necessities" and "I Wanna Be Like You" have become staples of Disney music, but the film itself is largely underrated. It has iconic characters like Baloo and Kaa, and here we see famous actors interpreting these classic roles. Bill Murray embodies the hilarious bear Baloo. Ben Kingsley's stern voice makes him the perfect mentor for Mowgli. And Scarlett Johansson's seductive tones make her perfect for the hypnotizing python. It's not just the voice actors that captivate. The visuals are magical. Almost everything is digital aside from Mowgli. So while Neel Sethi needs to be lauded for acting with nothing, the visual effects team really creates the Indian jungle and every animal within. This is undoubtedly the best Disney live-action adaptation I've seen. It perfectly captures the whimsy of the original, while making it accessible for today's audience. The 1960s movie is full of clichés. Director Jon Favreau recognized that modern audiences aren't satisfied with that. With higher stakes and more poignant action and interaction, The Jungle Book succeeds across levels.

First I will address the actors. Now, they didn't really act. They just lent their voices to the roles. In some cases, the motion capture of their faces are used, as is the case with Murray and Walken. Obviously Bill Murray is the heart of this movie, just as Baloo is the heart of the story. The character has always been easygoing and fun, but Murray brought a kind of protectiveness I'd never seen in Baloo before. He's scared of losing Mowgli, and of being alone. While he covers this up with humor, he thinks of Mowgli as his son. Murray's version of "The Bare Necessities" was a nice surprise in a movie I didn't expect to be a musical. Ben Kingsley was also great as the panther Bagheera. Bagheera is the moral compass, and Kingsley is perfect for the role. His voice is guiding and soft, and an absolutely amazing casting choice. Then there's Idris Elba as Shere Khan the tiger. Shere Khan isn't very menacing in the animated film, but he's terrifying here. Elba's deep scratchy voice brings evil to the tiger, and he captivates the audience in every scene he's in. Small children be warned: Shere Khan is very scary and has some very jumpy scenes. Elba has many monologues as the tiger, and he executes each one like a Shakespearean actor. One about a cuckoo bird particularly gave me chills in the theater. Lupita Nyong'o also does a great job as Raksha, the mother wolf. Her emotional depth nearly brought me to tears in one scene, and you never doubt she is Mowgli's mother.

The best scene of the movie is Mowgli's encounter with Kaa the python, voiced by Scarlett Johansson. Mowgli's discovery of the enormous snakeskin was such a cool and inventive way to introduce that character. Johansson's seductive tones hypnotize the audience as she's doing the same to her prey. She provides the backstory to Mowgli, with her eyes telling the story, literally! The story fits the shape of her eye as she tells of Mowgli's father and the fire that all the animals fear. What's great is that the fire is called the "Red Flower". This is in reference to the classic line from "I Wanna Be Like You", which says "Give me the power of man's red flower so I can be like you." It's a great nod to the original, and amazing world-building. It gives the film a little fantasy feeling that this visually captivating, talking animal film benefits from. Now, onto the worst. Sadly, I would have to give this to King Louie and the monkeys. I thought Walken did great with his lines. I enjoyed that King Louie was a Gigantopithecus (an extinct ape) instead of an orangutan, seeing as orangutans don't live in India and the prehistoric ape once did. I thought the use of "I Wanna Be Like You", one of the film's signature songs was misused, and the scene was incredibly slow until the fight started. Baloo really brought life to the dull scenery. Plus, let's face it. Those monkeys are a little too creepy. I think it's great that Baloo sings his song, King Louie's seemed out of place. However, it plays in its entirety over the fantastic end credits, and it was redeemed for me.

It's clear that The Jungle Book is a visual masterpiece. The attention to detail that Jon Favreau has exhibited is stunning. Not only do the classic characters come to life, the whole jungle moves and breathes as a character. Every leaf, every bird and every rock is animated with such depth and attention, it's incredible to imagine that the movie in front of you is completely animated aside from Mowgli. A heaping amount of praise needs to go to Neel Sethi. The amount of skill for him to be able to react so well to nothing, but still stay a "stupid jungle boy" for lack of a better word, is well beyond his years. Every scene is like a fantasy dream, and it's so well written. I really recommend everybody see this. It's easily for all ages. Small children may be scared by Shere Khan (my mother certainly was), but I think it will prove a great moviegoing experience for all.

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