Justice League (The Snyder Cut)

Alright I get the affection for it now.

Color me impressed, for a movie I had some but not really too much interest to see and saw the tumultous uproar to even get it released, with zero real knowledge of how it came to be in existence as we see it now I thought it was great! Now I will say the enjoyment of Joss Whedon's version has waned a bit to the point I think it's just a average decent movie, but I don't deem it superflous or worthy of being erased. Considering this is an R rated movie and a firmly warranted one at that, it tells a much more dramatic and for lack of a better word "important" story, taking it seriously and trying to convey a story meant for grown ups means it can't fully be compared to the theatrical release which is bright, fun, and ultimately your typical popcorn superhero film. There is a place for both in comic movies, and while there is undoubtedly exact same shots and a mostly unchanged story, it's how the movie goes about it that makes a universe of difference. Presented in a quite honestly fascinating aspect ratio of 4:3, the likes of which last seen here in The Lighthouse, the story still involves Bruce leading the charge for a metahuman team combating the threat of Steppenwolf and more importantly Apokolips. The beauty of this movie is it takes what was there in the theatrical movie and expands upon it with an extended runtime and select new elements, after all that was the plan once upon another time the Justice League was going to be two movies and this delivers it in an unsual way. The story is split up into parts, not quite vignettes but more chapters of a book, an interesting idea that while not changing much is a unique and novel touch. It's actually a fascinating experience watching both versions back to back because it's so similar and yet so extremely different. I greatly enjoyed and loved how the story progressed, the additional character moments and backstory we get, the visual style is truly Zack Snyder which I feel helps the movie more than the brighter shades of the Whedon version. It truthfully lived up to the hype everyone was making it to be for me, and they need to continue this story. You started it way back in 2013, it's almost been a decade and if you just take several steps back WB and DC from current projects and start at square one you could have something a lot of people would like to see. I've been on board this ship since almost day 1 and this movie reminded me how excited I get seeing a new DC movie and can't wait to see the next one. I know they can do it and Black Adam looks pretty solid so far. The movie clearly has a vision, style, and story it wants to tell and I'd say it handled it all very strongly. I had to buy this movie cause I couldn't find a place to rent it, but I gotta say that was money well spent after seeing it. It's a truly tragic thing that happened to the Snyder family and lord knows there is countless people who give a lot of love and good thoughts to them, and the fact they could get their movie out there the way they wanted it is a pretty incredible thing in and of itself. And I will be just brutally honest guys, I was NOT in a good state of mind before watching this, feeling very bitter, disillusioned, and beyond apathetic to media, the world, and specifically people. Just really despising with uncalculable anger at how just vehement and pessimistic people can be over such frivolous things as entertainment, like a comic book adaptation or a movie series. But then I remembered that not only is revenge the most worthless of causes, but hate is the most useless of emotions. It did give me pause however if I should even continue after my 1,000th review. But there is world enough and time before we reach that day. 4 stars, 8.5/10, and just for comparison I would rate the theatrical version 2.5 stars, 6/10, and I can't believe I'm doing this. Next time, League Of The Super Pets. Ohhhhhh......

Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle Of Life

Wow, I'm shocked. The movie was decent!

No really, I'm not being an ass! After the dreadful first Tomb Raider movie I was sooner ready to walk off a bridge than watch the sequel but it's surprisingly not bad! Lara is done fighting robots and trying to travel time, the movie sticks to a (mostly) realsitic fashion, with Lara on the hunt for the mythical Pandora's Box which I feel fits more in tune with the games. This is one of Lara's adventures put to the screen, with decent action, a simple but not insultingly stupid story, really and truly it's just a good filler movie if you have one of those days, and though it doesn't take much of a genius to figure out the resting place of Pandora's Box it doesn't detract from the movie. Though movie I have to say you really need to hide your references better. Damn near every scene in the movie can be traced back to any of the Indiana Jones and James Bond movies. The villain is almost SPECTRE-like just without the amazing Ken Adams designed lairs, the action and world travelling is synonymous with Indy, so it may seem very, very familiar to some people. One thing I do really love about the movies is the use of sets and practical effects, I forgot to mention in the last review but they only use CGI in these movies if necessary. You know that robot I bitched about? It was real! A real model animatronic that was used in certain shots while the more elaborate movements were done with CG, and the sets are expansive and done very well. I was surprised to see that and it made me quite happy, but honestly...you can live your life without seeing these movies. The first movie sucks, but the second is harmless fun for a boring day. I just hope the new one is well worth your time and money, because Lara needs a good movie under her belt! But all that will come before the week is out. To be honest, next week I will be a very happy camper.