review | the m0vie blog

Non-Review Review: Justice League – Crisis on Two Earths

Posted on December 13, 2010 by Darren

This post is part of the DCAU fortnight, a series of articles looking at the Warner Brothers animations featuring DC’s iconic selection of characters. This is one of the “stand-alone” animated movies produced by the creative team that gave us the television shows.

Okay, well maybe it’s not quite “stand-alone”, seen as it’s based off a script that was intended to bridge the two animated series Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. Anyway, some of these movies – such as Justice League: New Frontier – are excellent examples of Western animation in their right. Some – such as Wonder Woman – are spectacular introductions to characters that perhaps never really got the attention that they so sorely deserved. On the other hand, some are just animated versions of a Jerry Bruckheimer blockbuster production.

Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths is one of those.

Owlman is a bird of prey...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: batman, crime syndicate, crime syndicate of america, crisis on two earths, dc animated universe, dc universe, dcau, dcu, grant morrison, green lantern, Greenlantern, hal jordan, james woods, Johnny Quick, justice league, justice league of america, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, Justiceleague, Martian Manhunter, non-review review, owlman, power ring, review, superman, william baldwin, wonder woman | Leave a comment »

Grant Morrison’s Run on Justice League of America – The Deluxe Edition, Vol. 3-4 (Review/Retrospective)

Posted on December 13, 2010 by Darren

This post is part of the DCAU fortnight, a series of articles looking at the Warner Brothers animations featuring DC’s iconic selection of characters. I’ll be looking at movies and episodes and even some of the related comic books. With the review of Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths later on today, I thought I’d take a look at Grant Morrison’s graphic novel which inspired it in someway. However, I figure – given that large debt that the entire Justice League cartoon owes Morrison’s iconic tenure on Justice League of America – it’s time to take a look at the latter half of Morrison’s run on the title.

We have no powers, there are millions of them and there’s a child in there who needs us to save the world. Let’s go.

– another day at the office for Superman

I remarked in my review of the first two deluxe hardcovers collecting his work on the series that I was perhaps a lot less impressed than most with Morrison’s work on the title. It was grand and bombastic, but it ended up feeling more than a little hallow, especially measured against some of his bolder efforts within the superhero genre. Although time and a few re-reads have softened my perspective quite a bit, I will concede that I don’t measure this as the writer’s best work. It’s epic and smart and fun, but never really becomes anything too much more.

But, then again, they are the Justice League. If I want deep characterisation of philosophical meanderings, I can check out a different book.

It actually looks quite peaceful when you're not saving it...

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Filed under: Comics | Tagged: aquaman, batman, Comics, dark knight returns, grant morrison, Grantmorrison, Greenlantern, hal jordan, jla, justice league, justice league of america, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, Kyle Rayner, morrison, review, superman, Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?, the shaggy, ultramarine corps, wally west, wonder woman, world war 3, world war iii | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Superman – Doomsday

Posted on December 10, 2010 by Darren

This post is part of the DCAU fortnight, a series of articles looking at the Warner Brothers animations featuring DC’s iconic selection of characters. This is the very first of the “stand-alone” animated movies produced by the creative team that gave us the television shows.

Superman: Doomsday is the first entry in the range of animated DC films featuring their iconic superheroes. The line has since ballooned to feature a wide range of other heroes, with movies focusing on Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and even the Justice League itself, but Superman seemed a logical place to start. Of course, the fact that the movie came from the minds that brought us Batman: The Animated Series and the rest of the animated universe (even if it didn’t share continuity) was also a solid indication. However, there’s very much a sense of a production team attempting to find their footing. Although it’s solidly entertaining on its own terms, the film feels like perhaps the weakest entry in the selection of films.

Well, at least he can wipe it on his cape and no one will notice...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: adam baldwin, animation, anne heche, bruce timm, dc animated universe, dc universe, dcau, doomsday, james marsters, Jimmy Olsen, john dimaggio, lex luthor, lois lane, non-review review, Perry White, review, superman, Superman: Doomsday, the death and return of superman, toyman | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Justice League – New Frontier

Posted on December 8, 2010 by Darren

Justice League: New Frontier is probably the best of the animated direct-to-DVD feature produced by Warner Brothers. It’s an adaptation of Darwyn Cooke’s superb New Frontier, a look at the gap between the Golden Age and the Silver Age of comic book superheroes, an attempt to offer an in-universe explanation for the shift in tone and content in the medium between the forties and the sixties. It’s also a damn good exploration of the shift in American public culture and consciousness, exploring the difference in America’s attitude towards the government, the attempt to reach the stars and the fall of McCarthy-ism. It’s also a damn fine bit of animation.

Some sort of League... possibly for Justice...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: animation, batman, brooke shields, Comics, darwyn cooked, dc comics, film, golden age, hal jordan, john heard, justice league, justice league: new frontier, Justice League: The New Frontier, Justiceleague, Korean War, kyle maclachlin, lucy lawless, Martian Manhunter, Movies, neil patrick harris, new frontier, non-review review, review, silver age, wonder woman | 1 Comment »

Ed Brubaker’s Run on Uncanny X-Men – The Rise and Fall of the Shi’ar Empire (Review/Retrospective)

Posted on December 8, 2010 by Darren

I’m currently wading my way through Marvel’s somewhat complicated continuity, with a major focus on The Avengers, what with the film due out in 2012 and all that. Anyway, this isn’t really a “big” crossover in its own right, but it factors into a big event I’ll be looking at later on today. Consider this an appendix.

Ed Brubaker’s run on Uncanny X-Men isn’t as widely praised as his work on Daredevil or Captain America – in fact, while Marvel couldn’t wait to churn out omnibus releases of his work on those two titles, his Uncanny X-Men run, like Matt Fraction’s run which followed, has been haphazardly collected. Part of me suspects that this might be down to factors outside Brubaker’s control – Joss Whedon was monopolising the most popular X-Men for Astonishing X-Men when Brubaker kicked off his run – but part of it comes down to the simple fact that Brubaker simply isn’t a great writer of team books. That said, writing a year-long space epic featuring none of the more iconic characters as his introductory arc probably didn’t help much.

Brotherly love…

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Filed under: Comics | Tagged: chris claremont, comic book review, Comics, ed brubaker, emperor vulcan, gabriel summers, marvel, review, shi'ar, the rise and fall of the shi'ar empire, the shi'ar, uncanny x-men, vulcan, war of kings, x-men | 6 Comments »

Non-Review Review: The A-Team

Posted on December 7, 2010 by Darren

The A-Team is the latest in a long line of attempts to adapt successful television series (preferably from years or decades past) to the big screen. It essentially suffers from the same weaknesses as other adaptations – it struggles with tone. Much as attempting to remake Miami Vice as a dry and overly self-important drug movie was a mistake, or making Starsky & Hutch as a full-blown comedy misunderstood the appeal of the original series, The A-Team feels too much like it’s working with a premise that it isn’t overly familiar with, trying to fit it into the blockbuster mold – it’s essentially trying to cram a round peg into a square hole. The film does have its charms, but it feels distinctly uncomfortable and more than a little uneven.

"'old on lad's, I've... oh, wait, wrong remake..."

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: a-team, bradley cooper, Dwight Schultz, film, hannibal, liam neeson, Movies, non-review review, review, sharlto copley, star trek: the next generation, starsky & hutch, Television, the a-team | 2 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Carriers

Posted on December 6, 2010 by Darren

At the end of the world, what do you take with you? It’s a question that underpins the vast majority of post-apocalyptic tales, wondering if our human could survive past the collapse of society. At its best, Carriers handles the question head-on, with refreshing frankness. Unfortunately, it tends to fluctuate rather unevenly – going for fairly straight-forward “gotcha!” scares and aping other far more successful movies in a fairly shallow manner. Carries isn’t the best piece of post-apocalyptic fiction in recent memory – nor is it even the best one produced in the past year. However, if you’re a fan of the genre, it provides a fairly decent amount of entertainment.

You wouldn't to sick them on you...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: 28 days later, Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, avian flu, bird flu, carriers, chris pine, christopher meloni, films, infection, infectious disease, Movies, non-review review, review | 2 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Meet the Parents

Posted on December 3, 2010 by Darren

Meet the Parents is a pleasant little film which works so well because it takes an awkward social experience that most of us have lived through – in this case meeting a partner’s parents – and turns it into a comedy of errors. It’s this smart little premise and the way that it plays off a familiar situation (with judicious application of the philosophy that “anything that can go wrong will“) that makes it so appealing – and perhaps explains the weaknesses of the movie’s sequel. Still, the original is an effective and charming comedy of manners which executes its premise well and, despite some difficulty balancing everything, manages to consistently entertain throughout.

DeNirest and Dearest...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: awkward, ben stiller, Blythe Danner, comedy, comedy of manners, dustin hoffman, Jay Roach, Little Fockers, Meet the Parents, non-review review, Owen Wilson, review, robert deniro, social comedy | 2 Comments »

Non-Review Review: El Mariachi

Posted on December 2, 2010 by Darren

El Mariachi is the first film from director Robert Rodriguez. Although his first major success, Desperado, borrows heavily from the Mexican Western, there’s a certain playful exuberance which underpins his debut. It’s a very rough film – one which doesn’t quite have the shine of a finished major motion picture release – but there’s enough charm and wit bubbling away to carry the film over the line. It’s quirky and perhaps a little cheeky, but it’s also surprisingly respectful of the genre and of the films around it. It almost lacks the ridiculously gratuitous nature of his later efforts, though perhaps here he was restrained by a tiny budget.

An unconventional choice of instrument...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: arts, desperado, el mariachi, film, Mexico, Movie, Movies, non-review review, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, review, robert rodriguez | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Clerks

Posted on November 30, 2010 by Darren

There’s a sense of life experience in Clerks – the undeniable feeling that the people involved in the production have actually been in situations similar to those being portrayed here and are writing from experience. The directorial debut from Kevin Smith, the film has a very weird feeling to it. It is as if the script (the words and the setting) are very casual and natural, but the performers are undoubtedly conscious of the camera. It creates a weird dichotomy between the very colloquial script and the relatively stiff performances. That said, there’s a charm to the film, which never really pretends to be anything more than what it actually is, and sort of cheeky rebellion which makes it endearing.