Ranking Marvel’s Cinematic Universe

After watching Avengers: Infinity War last year I began to look at all of Marvel’s and sat down with my Wife Heather and good friend Rowan for a chilled out night to shoot the breeze. After a bit of general chit chat the conversation soon turned to the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). We all had a slightly different opinion about Infinity War and this lead us to discuss where we would rank it in terms of all the MCU releases so far. (I smell a blog idea!) So the three of us got to work and tried to hash out our ultimate ranking with a bit of democratic voting and only a few debates. Here is our ranking from 20th all the way to 1st. Enjoy! (After watching Captain marvel this week it has now been added to the rankings!)

 

 20. Thor: The Dark World

More like Snore: The Dull World, see what I did there haha…..moving on. Sequels always come with added pressure when the original was a success and this was the case after Thor was released in 2011. Fans couldn’t wait for the next instalment of Marvel’s take on Norse mythology but unfortunately we were left with a plodding and just plain boring by the numbers film.

 

 19. Iron Man 2

It was a toss up between 19th and 18th place to be honest. With the success of Iron Man in 2008 it was amazing that the same winning team brought us this dire sequel which lacked any real convincing story. With a script that was improvised while filming it is clear that Director John Favreau and co really made a big mistake as Iron Man 2 was panned by fans and critics alike.

 

18. The Incredible Hulk

Marvel were able to add another quality lead actor in 2010’s The Incredible Hulk in the form Of Edward Norton. However it just didn’t work, Norton a fine actor in his own regard just couldn’t produce a likeable and believable Bruce Banner. Success would be found later when Mark Ruffalo made the role his own in the years to come.

 

17. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2

Another film that suffered from the curse of the second film, Guardians Vol.2 lacked any real depth in story and tried too hard to recreate the same humour and set pieces that made the first so enjoyable. With some pointless and down right dodgy cameos added into the mix, Guardians Vol.2 just couldn’t find the magic it needed to work.

 

 16. Thor: Ragnarok

Thor’s conveniently l forgotten evil sister comes back to wreak confused havoc on Asgard. The third outing of the God of Thunder relied too heavily on cheap humour and gags rather than a strong story. Once is enough to see this one as after the jokes stop being funny there isn’t too much left here to delve into at any level.

 

 15. Dr Strange

Fans waited a long time to see The Sorcerer Supreme finally come to life in the MCU and in 2016 they got their wish. Benedict Cumberbatch took on the role of Dr Stephen Strange and did an admirable job in spite of an average screenplay and a very much tired superhero movie formula. A worthy attempt.

 

14. Ant-Man and the Wasp

The second outing for Ant-Man follows Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne (The Wasp) as they search for Dr Hank’s Pym’s wife who lost in a sub atomic existence since 1987. This time out the material isn’t as slick or engaging. A very thin and less than exciting plot don’t allow this film to hit the heights of it’s predecessor.

 

13. Captain Marvel

A long awaited film for sure, Captain Marvel was an enjoyable enough film that just struggled to break through the barrier of being rather average. This origin story is nothing we haven’t seen countless times before but the Sci-Fi focus allows the film to break away from the majority of the other Marvel origin films. Too many forgettable moments and characters hold Captain marvel back and prevent it from moving up any further on this list.

 

12. Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 took a different direction to it’s predecessors and shook up the villain formula by adding a very comical and surprising twist than what had been touted in pre-release build up. It paid off and the franchise returned to form and delivered a very enjoyable film that highlighted the change in Tony Stark’s character.

 

 11. Spider-Man: Homecoming

This was the third different film incarnation of one of the most popular and successful Marvel heroes of all-time. Released to tie in with MCU story ark, Spider-Man: Homecoming follows Peter Parker finding his feet as Spider-Man (Tom Holland) whilst trying to cope with the usual issues and problems as a high school student as well as coming face to face with villain Michael Keaton.

 

10. Ant-Man

Ant-Man was a fresh release from Marvel in 2015 by taking a more comic tone throughout the film. A solid cast including Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly and Michael Pena combined superbly well in Ant-Man’s first outing. Watch out for the sequel coming later this year Ant-Man and the Wasp.

 

9. Avengers: Age of Ultron

The newly formed intelligence known as Ultron takes physical form and sets about the destruction of humanity in the second Avengers film that doesn’t live up to the first. There are some great additions to the Avengers team in the form of The Vision and Scarlet Witch but the main payoff is the unexpected focus on Hawkeye’s character.

 

8. Black Panther

After only seeing glimpses of Wakanda’s most fearsome Warrior King in Captain America : Civil War  fans had to wait until 2018 before being treated to a solo outing. Black Panther was well received by fans and critics alike and took the MCU in a different and fresher direction.

 

7.Guardians of the Galaxy

Director James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy brought a blend of adventure, science fiction and comedy together in a wildly entertaining MCU outing. Following Peter Quill ‘Star Lord’ , a human taken from Earth and raise by space pirates, he soon finds himself caught up in an intergalactic hunt for one of the famed Infinity Stones. It was a huge success with many giving the film the moniker of ‘this generation’s Star Wars‘.

 

6. Captain America: Civil War

Earth’s heroes are on opposite sides as the world’s leading powers call for the Avengers to be held to account for their actions and involvement in Sokovia. This film sees Steve Rodgers ‘Captain America’ and Tony Stark ‘Iron Man’ clash as both men lead their divided comrades against each other. Friendships are tested and broken in this darker MCU outing.

 

5. Captain America: The First Avenger

Steve Rogers transformation from a skinny kid from the Bronx into the super soldier ‘Captain America’ is the main focus of this film and set against the backdrop of WW2 it is an extremely rewarding watch. Rogers battles against the infamous leader of Hydra , the Red Skull , to put an end to his plans of global domination. It was a great first outing for Captain America and the WW2 setting sets it apart from the majority of the other MCU contributions.

 

4. Avengers: Infinity War

The Universe’s ‘Big Bad’ Thanos finally brings his might against the Avengers with devastating consequences. The film is a true epic with stunning action and set pieces. The scale of Infinity War is massive but it doesn’t detract from the story. There is loss and confusion as the film sets up what is sure to be an unbelievable finale when Avengers: Endgame is released later this year.

 

3. Captain America : The Winter Soldier

The Russo brothers were at the helm for the second outing for Captain America who finds himself on the run from his own government after being infiltrated by Hydra. The chemistry between Captain America and Black Widow carry the film and smart plot twists keep the audience engaged throughout.

 

2. Iron Man

The film that launched the MCU remains one of the strongest and most enjoyable. Robert Downey Jr was the perfect choice for playboy billionaire philanthropist Tony Stark and he plays it with relish and glee. It is the change in character of Tony Stark from carefree weapons mogul to superhero Iron Man that is the driving force of the film and is compelling viewing.

 

1. Avengers: Assemble 

When we finally got to experience all of our favourite heroes uniting to fend off the invading Asgardian Loki and his army of Chitauri it was a moment that made the hairs stand up on the back of our necks. An incredibly rewarding film that gave many fans the pay off they had all been waiting for. It was an immersive and exciting story that kept audiences gripped until the very end.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Jurassic Legacy

When Jurassic World : Fallen Kingdom is released on the 6th June it will be the fifth instalment in the ever popular dinosaur franchise. With this in mind I thought it might be interesting to look back at the legacy of the series and look at what the future might bring audiences.

This blogger has said it multiple times before that one film in particular inspired my love and passion for films at a young age. The film was of course the magnificent and awe inspiring Jurassic Park which was released in 1993 and based on the Michael Crichton novel of the same name. Directed by the phenomenal Steven Spielberg (arguably the greatest director of all-time), Jurassic Park broke the mold in film-making in terms of the advanced special effects that it used. It was the first film to showcase convincing dinosaurs on the big screen through a blend of subtle computer and animatronic effects. This along with a compelling story and interesting and highly likeable characters added to a huge part of the success of the film and the chemistry between Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Richard Attenborough really held the piece together. The film itself captivated and wowed audiences on it’s release and went on to gross over $300 million worldwide. Jurassic park became an instant classic spawning toy lines and huge merchandise sales around the globe.

The success of Jurassic Park led to a sequel which came four years later in the form of The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997). This film tried hard to recapture the magic that made the it’s predecessor such a hit but ultimately failed. Even returning director Steven Spielberg couldn’t turn this sequel into the great film that many hoped it would be. Despite making over $600 million at the box office the film was negatively received by fans and critics alike. I think it was a valiant effort by all parties involved with the film but poor casting and a ridiculous plot only served to hamper the film. Both Sam Neill and Laura Dern did not reprise their roles for the sequel but Jeff Goldblum and Richard Attenborough did. Despite having some talented supporting cast members including Julianne Moore the chemistry was nowhere near as engaging.

A third film was inevitable as the Jurassic Park franchise had been so successful at the box office and Jurassic park 3 opened in theaters in 2001. Definitely the lowest point of the series the film was an utter mess. Despite Sam Neil being aboard this time around there were just so many problems with the film that it was panned and derided by moviegoers. It lacks any real cohesive story and what little story is there is bland and uninteresting. Something different was needed in order to breathe new life into the franchise at this point and what audiences got was a disaster. It felt like a dodgy monster ‘B’ movie from the 1950’s at times and it’s bland and hollow characters failed to inspire any love. Despite the negative response the film still made over $300 million worldwide.

Audiences were tired and disappointed after the release of the third film and it appeared that Hollywood had decided that moviegoers had had enough of dinosaurs at the box office. It took fourteen years until the highly ‘original’ current crop of movie producers decided to reboot the franchise in 2015 with Jurassic World. The challenge this time around was what time of film to make that would appeal to a new generation of audiences. Film-making had changed a lot since the original back in 1993 with the over reliance of computer generation now a staple in nearly every major Hollywood release.

Jurassic World was more style over substance and whilst it looked visually impressive their was no heart or soul to the film. Everything had been ramped up a gear in size and scale from the park to the dinosaurs themselves. Jurassic World followed a very similar plot to the first film and it really just felt like an overblown rehash. It isn’t a bad film by any means but it does lack in originality. The overuse of special effects distracts throughout and you never really get a sense that anything is real on the screen at any time. The worst thing about the film are the irritating characters that we are supposed to empathize with and in all honesty would rather see them become Dino-chow. Jurassic World is very much a film that you look back on and see the ingredients for a really good film but it just doesn’t add up. It is a film that splits opinion critically but by box office standards it was an overwhelming success and raked in a staggering $1.6 billion becoming one of the highest grossing films of all-time.

For me the Jurassic Park franchise has spawned more hits than misses and begs the argument that perhaps it should have begun and ended with the 1993 Spielberg masterpiece. Whatever you may think about the subsequent cinematic releases it is very hard to see an end in sight to this series as every film had made a huge profit at the box office. I don’t know what to expect from the latest outing Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom but if I’m being honest I’m not expecting much. I hope that the issues that brought Jurassic World down in my opinion will be addressed but in this cynical age of cinema I will be going in with realistic expectations. Is it time for the Jurassic Park series to become extinct? Only time will tell.

 

 

 

Why I’m done with Star Wars movies

“I have a bad feeling about this….”

Let me first say that I am a massive Star Wars fan. I have been a fan since 1997 when my Dad brought home the Star Wars Special Editions on VHS tape from the local video rental shop. I am now 30 years of age so I first saw all of the Star Wars films when I was 9 years old. Upon watching the Star Wars trilogy I was instantly taken in by a fantastic story, iconic ocharacters and a unique mythical universe.

As I grew older my love for the Star Wars trilogy only grew deeper as I could appreciate different elements and themes that I hadn’t previously recognised. I also delved further into the Star Wars lore and read numerous novels based around the Star Wars universe.

When I was 11 years old the Star Wars prequel trilogy began with The Phantom Menace in 1999 which was released worldwide to audiences. The film caused a huge split with Star Wars fans with younger movie goers enjoying the new characters and setting while older fans for the most part were distraught at what they had seen.

The next two instalments , Attack of the Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005) did little to turn around negative reviews and fan opinion. When I first saw these films I was aged between 11 and 13 years old and enjoyed them for the most part. I don’t think my critical thinking skills were quite developed enough to see the problems and issues that older viewers seemed to have with the prequel trilogy. On reflection as I grew older I began to see the flaws and cringe-worthy dialogue/characters (Jar Jar Binks)  for what they were and the prequel trilogy lessened very much in my esteem.

After a very long wait there were murmurs of a new trilogy being planned and penned by George Lucas throughout the late 00’s but nothing ever came of these rumours and in 2012 the shocking news rippled around the world that Disney was buying all the rights to Star Wars from creator George Lucas in a deal worth $4 Billion. The deal went through and a new chapter began for the Star Wars franchise.

When this deal was announced I had very mixed feelings. Disney had proven time and time again that it could produce great films like Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King and Aladdin amongst many others. Disney had also produced many live action films, many of which had been very successful.

In 2012 Disney announced that there would be a new Star Wars trilogy would be made and the search development began.  In the same year Kathleen Kennedy was made president of Lucasfilm to oversee the production the new films. It was also announced later that there would be ‘spin-off’ Star Wars films in between the main saga trilogy which would mean there would be a Star Wars film out basically every year. Soon news filtered out that director J.J Abrams would be the man to helm the first instalment of the new trilogy which did cause a bit of a stir.  Abrams had just come fresh off directing two Star Trek reboots and had gained mixed critical and fan reviews for his attempts.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released in 2015 to much critical and fan acclaim. It was hailed as a return to form by many but not everyone was so enamoured with the new instalment. I have to say that as much as I found myself wanting to love the film when I watched it in the cinema I was left rather underwhelmed and disappointed when it was over. The Force Awakens borrowed much from the structure and themes from A New Hope which I found quite lazy and uninspired. I won’t go into too much detail now as I plan to review the film at a later date.

The next outing in Disney’s Star Wars production line was Gareth Edwards’s Rogue One : A Star Wars Story which was released in 2016. When I heard that Rogue One was announced I immediately thought that this was a story that did not need to be told. The premise of the film was based on a few lines uttered at the beginning of Star Wars: A New Hope after all.

Despite my misgivings I believe after watching Rogue One when it came out in 2016 that it could have been a very good film. The components were there for an interesting and enjoyable film but it was the execution and casting that let it down. Someone more enigmatic was needed in the lead role as Jyn Erso and the character failed to generate any empathy or make a connection with me. The same can be said for a weak supporting cast of characters that were instantly forgettable. The screenplay and pacing of the film was sub par and impacted negatively on the overall viewing experience.

I found that I was becoming increasingly frustrated and disillusioned with Disney’s take on a franchise that I had grown up with. Visual style over substance seemed to be the motto for these new releases. Despite my frustrations and disappointment I convinced myself that surely things would get better with the next ‘saga’ film.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi is the film that compounded my decision never to watch a new Star Wars film release again. Many factors caused this film to be a disaster. It was hollow and soulless. It greatly misrepresented the character of Luke Skywalker (something which Mark Hammill himself has quoted) and underdeveloped others such as Finn. The film was littered with flaky plot contrivances at every turn and it failed to excite. I have no interest in seeing the conclusion of the new ‘saga’ trilogy at this point. The direction that these films have taken are a huge departure from anything that I want to witness.

Much like Rogue One,  the latest ‘spin-off’ Solo: A Star War Story is another foray into prequel territory and will explain Han Solo’s origins. There seems to be a trend in filmmaking now that all mystery surrounding established characters must be deconstructed in order to make a cheap buck. I don’t think there is a need for a Han Solo origin film and I will not be going to see Solo or for that matter, any more new Star Wars releases in the future and I feel quite good about that. I will no longer be disappointed by the erosion of a much loved franchise that is diluted with every new film we are subjected to. If only Disney had heard and listened to the old adage : ‘less is more’.