Trailer Talk: Comic Con Trailers 2018

Here are some of the Trailer that came out of Comic Con 2018 on Saturday and some brief thoughts on them.

 Aquaman.  2018 Release   Grade  B  

The trailer has some really great moments--but also has some cheesy moments.  I really don't know know what to make of it.   Plus not being a comic book fan I still picture Aquaman as the blonde guy in tights from the Super Friends.    You know lame Aquaman.  Obviously Jason Momoa's version is already a cooler Aquaman.

DC has a bad track record for me Wonder Woman was good --but Batman vs Superman, Justice League and Suicide Squad were all disappointing.    Where will Aquaman fall?   

I really like Jason Momoa ever since I first saw him as the island bartender on a prime time soap style show called the North Shore.  He was also great in  (the not successful --but good in my opinion) Conan reboot and of course Game of Thrones.    I just don't know if I can trust what DC is going to do with the character of Aquaman.   My thoughts are to keep my expectations low for this movie and hope that it turns out good.

Shazam!  2019 Release   Grade C-

Ugh.   I wanted to like this .  Zachary Levi was amazing as Chuck in a TV Series that if you think about it mirrors the character of Shazam in many ways.   In Chuck Zachary Levi played an intelligent guy who ends up working at the Buy More as part of the Nerd Herd that fixes computers.  His character accidentally gets downloaded with amazing spy powers which made for a great fun spy/comedy tv show.    Shazam is very similar in that a kid ends up with Superman type powers.    This trailer was underwhelming and made me wish that they did a Chuck movie instead of Shazam.  Really is there anyone that was dying for a Shazam movie?   It feels like a super hero movie Shaq would star in.   

 I'll rent it because I like Zachary Levi

Glass  2019  Release    Grade B-   

As a trailer it looks pretty interesting.  Unfortunately it is directed by M. Night Shyamalan whose movies after the Sixth Sense --seemed to get worse and worse with each film.  The Happening was one of the worst big budget movies I've ever sat through.   Signs was great until the lackluster and insulting to the intelligence of its audience third act.    If you like M. Night's movies then this is probably a dream come true .  The film has good cast and links several previous films.   Being fair to the trailer I think it does a good job of setting up what could be an interesting movie.   For me........    Just tell me the twist and I'll save my 10 bucks......    I 'm not getting suckered into another M Night film.

Godzilla King of the Monsters    2019 Release    Grade B-

The trailer looks decent but all Godzilla movies look okay in the trailers.   They keep trying to do a big budget Godzilla and it always turns out to be not as good as you hope it will be.   I think Cloverfield and the first Pacific Rim have done it better.    The silly monsters that the old man in a rubber suit Godzilla used to fight are back in this film.  Eleven from Stranger Things is in this movie  , but they make her look exacly like her Stranger Things character that audiences may think she is Eleven.  I wonder if maybe Godzilla works better in the rubber suit.   I'm sure I'll see this when it comes out on DVD-- but not necessarily in the theaters.   

Based on these  Comic Con trailers  I probably see Aquaman in the theaters.   The other 3 films ----I'll see eventually --but probably not until they hit Netflix.

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Kong Skull Island 2017 vs King Kong 2005 (Battle of the Kongs)

Kong Skull Island 2017 8 out of 10

I recently got out and saw Kong Skull Island this past weekend and enjoyed it.  I immediately wanted to re-visit  King Kong from 2005 to compare the two films. 

Eras:

They were very different Kong films one is basically an updated remake of the original King Kong and takes place in the 1930's  and the other is a completely different angle on the Kong story and takes place in the 1970's at the end of Vietnam.

The Differences in King Kong himself

Skull Island Kong in the new film is absolutely gigantic.  He seems more like a giant mutated bigfoot and spends much of his time upright. The scene where the helicopters first encounter this Kong is awesome.   The military helicopters are no match for this giant Kong.   Why is this new Kong so oversized?   It is obvious that they are trying to set up a movie universe in which this King Kong can fight Godzilla.   The story focuses on Skull Island basically being a doorway to Hollow Earth which is a land of monsters. Skull Islands creatures aren't dinos, but instead some type of Mysterious underworld beasts.  The 2005  King Kong was more like a giant Gorilla living in a lost continent of oversized beasts. Peter Jackson's Kong is a more likable and humanized Kong. (Thanks to Andy Serkis mo cap performance).  Basically this Kong lives in a land of Dinosaurs.   

The Action

Both movies have some great action sequences.

Skull Island:  Features a great sequence as Kong takes on all the helicopters.    There are some good action sequences as the main characters try to avoid the creatures that live in the Hollow Earth and Kong's battle with this creatures near the end of the film is exactly what you would expect and hope for.   Samuel Jackson is in typical bad ass mode and is out for revenge on Kong for all the fellow military members he has lost which leads to some Michael Bay style explosions.

King Kong 2005:  Features some great action sequences as well.   (Okay so the Dinosaur stampede was a little over the top)  but when Kong squares off against three T-Rex's while protecting the main heroine... that sequence was epic.  And since this Kong follows the original 1933 story we also get Kong loose in New York and the iconic  Empire State Building sequence.

King Kong 2005  9+ out of 10

The Story :

King Kong from 2005 is a loving tribute to the original 1933 film. It has the tone and heart of the original film and the visuals are spectacular.   Kong falls in love with his sacrifice in the form of beautiful Noami Watts and it is eventually his undoing.  It is a Beauty and the Beast story where Kong is basically the misunderstood hero.   My only complaint about the film is the length as it is a long movie.  It starts a little slow taking awhile to develop the characters and get to the Island.  Once at the island it is an amazing film that stands up there with some of the Jurassic Park films.

Kong Skull Island 2017  is a different Kong.    Kong is still basically the misunderstood hero.  After all he is just trying to protect his island and the villagers on it from the creatures below.  Samuel L Jackson happens to invade Kong's Island and pays the price for that.  It is a fun Kong movie and a decent take on the Kong story, but is missing the love story element and the heart that Peter Jackson's Kong was able to recreate.  I think they were more concerned with setting up this giant Kong as a bad ass for future possible films  (vs Godzilla for example)  then telling the best Kong story.    Still a fun watch regardless.

The winner in this battle of Kong's for me in the Peter Jackson version.   Although if the two Kong's themselves actually battled  The much larger(less Gorilla like)  Skull Island Kong would surely win.

Kong Skull Island 2017

King Kong 2005

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Kingsman The Secret Service 2014 7+ out of 10

Kingsman The Secret Service   2014   7+ out of 10

Kingsman The Secret Service has one of the most crazy violent scenes I've ever seen in a movie that takes place in a church.  The violence is in a silly over the top style that reminded me of an Itchy and Scratchy cartoon and therefore didn't seem as violent as it really was.   The film about a super secret spy organization and is based on a comic book called The Secret Service. It definitely had the look and feel of a comic book with its wild action sequences that felt like panels ripped straight out of a comic book.  

Colin Firth the Bad ass:

 Colin Firth gets to play a bad ass for once and comes off like a total James Bond especially in an action scene early in the film.  This fight scene is a big departure from the classic not so manly fight he had with Hugh Grant in Bridget Jones Diary.  Colin Firth is one of my favorite (non Python) British actors and it was refreshing to see him in this kind of role.    

The movie Itself:

I was surprised by the level of over the top violence in the film. The movie reminded me a lot of Shoot Em Up with Clive Owen in it's visual style .   I was expecting a spy movie that felt more like the X-Men First Class movie which its creators were involved in--but instead it felt more like a mix between Snatch and the original 1960's Casino Royale to me.  The story basically follows the recruitment of a young troublemaker to be a replacement for a fallen spy into the secret organization.  I felt the film got bogged down in this training phase a little as the main character competes with other recruits for the only spot in the organization.   I would have rather seen more of actual spy missions and this was probably the main reason I didn't rank the film higher.   The action was fun if you except the over the top cartoonish violence. Samuel L Jackson plays the main villain of the film and  Jack Davenport (Captain Norrington from Pirates) also stars in a brief role as an agent at the start of the film. 

I'd say if you liked Shoot Em Up you will probably like this as well.

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Captain America: The Winter Solider 2014 9+ out of 10

Captain America: The Winter Soldier  2014   9+ out 10

I thought the first Captain America was pretty good....but it was nowhere near how good this sequel was.   I always thought Captain America was kind of a cheesy comic book character.  They was a really bad Captain America movie made back in the early 1990's that made me think of him as a really goofy character.   I really wasn't into the Red Skull as a villain because it reminded me too much of that cheesy 1990's movie.   Well Comic book movies and Captain America have both come a long way.  Post Avengers this Captain America is actually kind of kick ass and this movie is excellent and almost on the same level as the Avengers.   Marvel Studios and Disney have created a great dynamic universe that is a joy to watch.  The intermingling  of all the characters in this universe and directly with the now  excellent Agents of Shield TV show that is directly effected by what happened in this film is exciting.  I've never been a big comic book fan --but what Marvel/Disney are doing is truly epic.

Rundown

1.   Great Story:

Captain America: The Winter Solider had an excellent political thriller plot line that was both action packed and interesting.

2. Great Action sequences: 

A great car chase with the bad guys trying to kill Nick Fury and a kick ass battle at the end were among the great sequences in this film

3.  Great Special Effects:  

  The Hovering aircraft carriers at the end were epic

4.  Great Cast :  

The cast that in addition to Chris Evans as Captain America included  Sam Jackson, Scarlett Johansson and Robert Redford was top notch and the addition of  the new character the Falcon was also great. 

The only thing that probably kept it from being a 10 out of 10 is that once you assembled the Avengers ---it is hard to see an individual film of this magnitude and not wonder why those other heroes aren't involved in such an important plot....  I was surprised at how much I like Captain America: The Winter Solider-----it may be early in the year --but this could be the best movie of 2014

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