One of my favorite things about the Internet is the fact that there are always new and wonderful things to run across.
I did just that recently when I visited Anna over at Nerdy Alerty and read about the short film and webseries, I Ship It.
If you pay attention to the nerdy side of the Internet—which, I'm assuming, most of you do—you know that this past weekend/half of last week was Comic Con in San Diego. It is a time of huge reveals, massive crowds, and lines that go on for days, and it's one of the most amazing experiences I've ever been a part of. (We went a few times a few years ago; sadly, we haven't been in much too long.)
While being awesome, the event can also be utterly overwhelming, particularly if you try to follow every newsy bit that's announced. That said, I'm very thankful for the news outlets that do cover everything (or almost everything), because it makes me feel a little less like I've missed out.
I'm highlighting a few of my favorite things from the event below, but do let me know if I missed any of your faves in the comments!
Wonder Woman
GhostbustersI enjoy the original Ghostbusters movies a lot. I mean, they're classics, with a lot of nerd appeal. But I certainly wasn't one of the many individuals who raged against the idea of a reboot, particularly after seeing who was going to star. Because, really, the leading ladies—and Chris Hemsworth—are all pretty dang awesome, and I trusted that they (and director Paul Feig) would be able to pull off something fresh without trashing the originals.
And, I'm happy to say, I believe I was right in placing my trust in their hands. I really enjoyed seeing this new Ghostbusters. Was it perfect? Nope. But I don't think it needed to be.
My assertions about the cast certainly came true; Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones and Melissa McCarthy were great, and it was nice seeing Melissa in a role that never once asked her to be gross or make fun of herself/her body for the sake of comedy. The standout among the ladies was definitely Kate McKinnon, however. I'm sure you've seen people singing her praise far and wide, and I'm jumping on that hype train hardcore. There's something undeniably attractive about Holtzmann, and pretty much every moment she had on screen was a delight. (As fellow nerdy blogger Barb of You Fancy Me Mad put it so eloquently: " ... I wasn’t sure I wanted to be her, be friends with her, or make out with her.") And Chris Hemsworth brought his comedy a-game. I was quite impressed, having really only seen him in more serious action/leading man type roles. (Yes, I know, Thor has comedic moments. But the role of Kevin is much more traditional comedy.)
The cameos, of which there are quite a lot, are all well done, too. I won't go into detail, so as to not spoil them for you, but keep your eyes peeled from start to finish.
The plot of the movie isn't exactly complex, and it doesn't shy too far away from the plots of the original films, but I don't consider this a fault. Sticking with formulas that were created for the originals made this Ghostbusters fit well in the established universe. (Side note: There's a moment in which a secondary character talks about this sort of paranormal problem happening before, but people just forgetting about it, which made me think that this isn't so much a remake as a reboot. I'm not sure if that was meant to be taken that way or not ...)
Basically, if you like movies about bustin' ghosts, watching ladies who can be smart, beautiful, and hilarious at the same time, and seeing Chris Hemsworth being his beefcakey self, I think you should go see this one. In theaters, specifically, to prove all those haters wrong.
Swiss Army ManBefore I get into my review, I have a disclaimer: I might have not been the right audience for this movie. (I've heard so many people rave about it, and, well, you'll see how I felt below.) So, grain of salt.
Going to see Swiss Army Man was the Mister's idea, but I was game to check it out. I'm not purely a "mainstream" movie fan—I do like to branch out from superheroes and action sequences on occasion. I knew it was going to be a strange movie from seeing the preview and reading various snippets of reviews, but I was hoping the strangeness would balance out with the rest of the plot.
Sadly, that didn't quite happen. Instead, Swiss Army Man made me uncomfortable, physically, thanks to what Hank (Paul Dano) uses Manny (Daniel Radcliffe) for. Nothing drastically inappropriate, mind you, but think about the title of the movie and watch the trailer and you'll see what I mean.
The movie was definitely more magical than I'd expected, however, and left me with a sense of hope that I wasn't expecting. I also enjoyed Dano and Radcliffe's chemistry, and Radcliffe pulled off being a dead body surprisingly well.
I just ... I don't really know what to think. Even now, nearly two weeks after seeing the movie, I'm conflicted. I (really) don't want to see it again, but it wasn't all bad. Just really, really weird.
If you've seen it, or plan to, I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Independence Day: ResurgenceThanks to having an awesome movie theater chain in our area (the Alamo Drafthouse—seriously, we're so spoiled), we often get to attend unique theater experiences in addition to normal ones. A couple of weeks ago, we got to attend one of the former, with a double feature of Independence Day and Independence Day: Resurgence.
Now, I adore Independence Day. It's such a classic—which I can say now that's it's 20 years old *sigh*—and features my favorite fictional president and one of the best movie speeches of all time. So going into the double feature, I knew that regardless of how good the sequel might be, it would be tempered by watching the original just prior.
Suffice it to say, the sequel might have actually been helped by the fact that I was still riding the high from the original while watching it. It's not that it wasn't entertaining, because it was, in the way that every movie filled with high-stakes action and explosions is entertaining. (I have simple tastes.) But the "new" characters didn't have nearly as much charm as the originals. Specifically Jessie T. Usher's Dylan Hiller—the grown-up version of Vivica A. Fox's kiddo from the first movie—and Liam Hemsworth's Jake Morrison, a totally new character who is basically every role Liam's ever played in a movie, except this one gets to hang out in space. Jessie was extremely wooden, and Liam is, well, Liam (i.e., the human equivalent of the word fetch).
I was also super disappointed in Sela Ward's President Lanford. Lady had some big shoes to fill, and she totally let me down.
It was great to see Jeff Goldblum back as David Levinson, however. That man has some SERIOUS swagger, both in literal walk and portraying of characters. I was excited, too, to see Brent Spiner revisit his role as the wacky Doctor Dr. Brakish Okun, mostly because I'm always going to root for anyone from Star Trek: The Next Generation when they show up on my movie/TV screens, but also because I thought he died in the first movie?
The plot of the movie actually surprised me, and in a positive way. It was much more story-driven than the original, and gave a good amount of background as to the aliens' reasons for invading Earth in the first place. (I'm being purposefully vague as to avoid spoilers, natch.) These new reveals felt a tad shoehorned, but I would be lying to say that I wasn't intrigued by what was revealed. I don't know if there will be another addition to the franchise in the future, but this movie left it wide open for more.
This is one of those reboot movies that won't ruin your childhood, but isn't really one you need to rush to theaters to see.
Every year, around this time, I'm reminded of one of the greatest speeches of movie history. (President Thomas J. Whitmore is my favorite fictional president.)
We recently went to a double feature of Independence Day and Independence Day: Resurgence* in a theater, and this speech once again hit me right in the feels.
