My 6 Most Anticipated Movies of 2018

Here are my 6 Most Anticipated Movie of 2018 in order of release.

Black Panther Feb 16th 2018

Other than Indiana Jones and Star Wars –I’m not a big comic book reader.   Before the Guardians of the Galaxy movie I had no idea who Rocket Raccoon and Groot even were.   So a movie based on a comic book character named Black Pantherwouldn't  move the must-see movie meter for me.  That was before the MCU movie universe.   I thought Captain America was cheesy and Ant-Man??  why would I want to see a movie about an Ant-Man?    Marvel/Disney has changed all of that.   Although I wasn’t super invested in Black Panther in Civil War the trailer looks kick ass and I will go and see anything the MCU releases into the theaters until they make a bad movie, Guardians 2 and Thor 3 were two of my favorite films from 2017.  I’m sure Black Panther is going to be a blast.

Ready Player One  March 30th

Ready Player One.    I’m aware of the book -but haven’t read it.   The descriptions of the book have me intrigued and Steven Spielberg is directing a sci-fi adventure with 80’s references  (most of which he is responsible for).   To quote Spongebob  “I’m Ready”

The Avengers: Infinity War  May 4th

I can’t imagine Infinity War not being out of this world amazing.  The trailer is beyond cool.  This movie had me at a bearded Captain America needing a shield.   I predict that I will see this movie more than once in the theaters.  Definitely a Must-See film for 2018

Solo a Star Wars Story  May 25th  

Solo a Star Wars story.     Two words for why this is a must-see film:   Star Wars.   You thought I was going to say Han Solo didn’t you.

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom  June 22nd

Jurassic World 2:    Jurassic World had a silly plot that sometimes seemed like they came up with some cool fun scenes and then tried to make a story connecting the scenes after the fact.   That being said it was a blast and took us to the theme park we dreamt of when Jurassic Park first came out.   Sign me up for number 2

Ant-Man and The Wasp July 6th

Ant-Man and The Wasp:    I mentioned in my comments about Black Panther that I didn’t know I would ever want to see a movie about an Ant-Man.   Well now I can’t wait for a sequel about him.

What movies are on your list for 2018?

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Ant-Man 2015 9 out of 10

Ant-Man 2015 9 out of 10

Ant-Man seemed like a really a odd choice -when Marvel/Disney 

 announced it as the final movie in what it is calling its Phase two films.  Excuse the pun --but it seemed like such a small movie to followup after the Avengers: Age of Ultron.   Ant-Man on paper just seems like a minor Marvel character that wouldn't really be that interesting and I think the general public saw him as such sense the box office was a lot smaller for this pint sized hero.  I got excited to see the film the same way I got excited for Guardians by attending  a 4-D sneak peek at the Disneyland resort.   Here is a look at my thoughts from the sneak peek and the Ant-Man costume that was on display.

http://braddisneylandblog.blogspot.com/2015/07/ant-man-sneak-peek-at-dca.html

Ant-Man the movie:
The movie itself was a fantastic action adventure comedy.  Ant-Man is a lot more of a bad-ass than you would think.  The movie tells the story of how a thief Scott Lang (played by Paul Rudd) gets entangled with inventor Hank Pym (played by Michael Douglas) who gives him a chance at redemption to become the hero his daughter already sees him as.   It is an origin story for this character that will become an Avenger in the upcoming next Avengers movie that shows how he learns to use the Ant-man suit and helps to basically save the world from Hank's former protege that plans to sell the technology --he kept hidden from the world for years.   His protege Darren Cross (aka The Yellow Jacket) has just re-invented the technology and is going to sell it to Hydra and so Hank Pym enlists and trains Scott to be the Ant-Man in order to stop him.  The plot was well crafted for an origin story and filled with just the right amount of action and comedy. 

Special Effects:
This movie took shrinking to the next level.  We are no longer in the days of characters standing next to ridiculous over sized props like Lily Tomlin in the Incredible Shrinking Women.

 Although there is a great scene at the end of the film with an oversized prop used to get a laugh.   The special effects effectively shrink the character into an amazing world.

The Cast:
The cast was excellent.  Paul Rudd was a great choice for Ant-Man.  He brought just the right mix of humor and action hero to his starring role.  Michael Douglas was excellent as usual.  He still has it after all these years in his role as Hank Pym (the original Ant-Man).   I almost wish they could go back and time and see his earlier adventures as the Ant-Man.  It seems the movie business could actually do this now, since the scene at the beginning of the film was able to effectively de-age him to his younger self to play a scene between him Howard Stark/ and Peggy Carter from 1989.  It was like what they did with Jeff Bridges in Tron Legacy --but improved.    The actor that stole the movie however was Michael Pena as Luis.  Luis was  Scott's ex cell mate from prison and  every time Luis had something to say in the movie he was an absolute highlight.   I'd watch the adventures of Luis the criminal if it was turned into a TV show.

How it Connects to Marvel's Phase 3:
As I mentioned Ant-Man will be joining the Avengers -so this movie was basically an interesting way to introduce his character to the MCU.  He will be a part Captain America: Civil War which comes out next year (and has so many people in it it may as well be the next Avengers movie).   The opening scene shows that Hank Pym had a previous a connection to SHIELD and didn't trust Stark which will probably play directly into the next film.  Ant-Man encounters the Falcon during the film which will probably lead into Captain America directly as well--because at the end of the movie the Falcon is looking for Ant-Man before the end credits and mentions him to Captain America in a post credit scene.  I loved Ant-Man a lot more than I expected to when it was first announced and I'm excited to see him join the Avengers in this cool fun MCU that Disney/Marvel has created.

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Avengers : Age of Ultron 2015 10 out of 10

Avengers: Age of Ultron 2015 10 out of 10


Does anyone remember back in 1980 when Superman had to fight the three villains lead by General Zod at the end of the film. 
 It seemed so epic at the time.   I mean Superman was facing 3 powered individuals at the same time and a bus was overturned.   What more could we ask for???  


 Avengers: Age of Ultron is what we could ask for.  The opening sequence was a little too CGI and felt like one of the scenes in the jungle from Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, that everyone hated .  In Avengers it worked perfectly.  I know that this film isn't going to feel or look realistic and quite frankly it doesn't need to.   It is comic book adaptation about a bunch of super powered heroes saving the world.  It doesn't need to feel real like Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark -because there is a guy flying around holding a magical hammer. 

  Avengers: Age of Ultron was like watching that cool ending of Superman 2 in 1980 for 2 solid hours. Joss Whedon was again able to balance a large group of super heroes and give them all something to do in a thrilling story.  

The Story
  The story itself was solid with the Avengers having to save the world from something that they unwittingly unleashed themselves (okay so it is basically Bruce Banner and Iron Man's fault).  Ultron is  an Artificial intelligence that did what all artificial intelligences do in movies, goes crazy and decides humanity needs to be wiped out. The Avengers must pull together before they pull each other apart in order to save the day.  

The Action
The action was completely over the top and amazing all at once.  It was a non-stop roller coaster ride.  The action sequences popped off the screen like frames of a comic book. It was a ludicrous display of epic unbelievable action that could only be in a comic book movie.

The Cast

The cast once again was excellent including all the cameos from characters from the Avengers solo movies.  I credit this to Joss Whedon's excellent writing and his time on shows like Buufy and Firefly.  One of my favorite scenes in the movie wasn't even one of the amazing action sequences-  but instead the scene at the party --where everyone took turns trying to lift Thor's Hammer.  This scene was a perfect mix of humor and the interactions between the cast in this scene was excellent.  The look on Thor's face when Captain America was able to almost move it was priceless and at the end of that light moment of humor the villain surfaces to completely change the mood.  Whedon is able to get his cast to work so well together --a skill he honed on all of his hit TV shows.  It is the character's interactions and dialogue with each other that makes this movie a 10 out of 10

The Agents of Shield Factor

Being a Joss Whedon fan I've been following along with the TV show Agents of Shield.  The show has had an excellent Season 2 after a kind of slow start to Season 1.  The show has been clicking on all cylinders lately and the episode last week lead directly into this movie in the same way that the aftermath of Captain America: Winter Solider effected it last year.   Watching this show and its direct lead into Avengers made both the movie and the show better.  This week the show picked up right where the movie left off and had a thrilling episode that leads into a 2 hour finale next week.  It is all connected and the connections that Marvel has been making have turned me into a huge fan of the MCU.

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Podcast where we discuss the upcoming slate of Marvel Movies

Here is our latest blog where we discuss the upcoming slate of Marvel movies.


http://www.superfantasticterrific.com/super-fantastic-terrific-show-3-marvel-movies/

Incredible Hulk 2008 8 out of 10

Incredible Hulk  2008   8 out of 10

I know many say that Avengers was the first time that they got the Hulk right, but I actually enjoyed  this Incredible Hulk film.  I thought Ed Norton did a good job as Bruce Banner and the digital alter ego that he wants to rid himself of.   The plot had a Fugitive feel to it, instead of searching for the one armed man while being while being chased by the law,  Bruce Banner is seeking a cure for the monster inside of him while being pursued by the government.  This film was a  vast improvement over the terrible  2003 Ang Lee Hulk movie    (3 out of 10)  that was felt  some weird  Japanese environmentalist tone poem.  The first film had been so bad that instead of a sequel it was completely rebooted.     This Hulk had a satisfying villain  as played by  Tim Roth  and fun  Superman style CGI battle at the end of the film.   A solid entry in the movies that link the Avengers characters together.    

The Avengers 2012 10 out of 10

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The Avengers was everything a superhero movie should be.  Exciting, thrilling and action packed.  The perfect mix of comedy and action.  The movie had a clever and witty script.  The movies verbal fights were  just as good as the physical fights.  This movie was a perfect example of  the sum of its parts being more than the parts themselves.  None of the these characters on their own were this good.   The original Hulk movie was a disaster.....Iron Man was surprisingly good as was Captain Americam but not at this level....Thor was a dud ( at least when he was on earth).   I would never go and see a Hawkeye movie or Nick Fury or Black Widow, but somehow put them all together and it makes the best superhero sandwich to ever hit the screen.  I don't consider myself a comic book fan....but I'm a devoted follower of the director of The Avengers.   I love everything he has put on the small screen.  Buffy, Angel, Firefly, Dr, Horrible and Dollhouse were all great.  Whedon took everything he learned from making those shows concerning the group dynamics of those shows characters and blended it somehow just right,  Flawed good guys that can be bad at times, fighting each other and then banding together for a common goal.

The Avengers success is all about balance...it was all about the right mix of ingredients that make the recipe for success just right.  Someone in Hollywood got it right in hiring Whedon to shepherd this movie.   Just like the people that put the trust in the Lord of the Rings movies in the hands of the guy that made Dead Alive and Bad Taste.  Whoever decided to give this group of superheroes in the capable hands of the guy that made Buffy was a genius

 After seeing The Avengers I can't imagine them going back to doing solo movies again.  The scope and scale of The Avengers was well beyond the other solo films

My Top 5 most anticipated movies for 2012 so far

Coming in at number 5     Brave
From Pixar.....Even my least favorite Pixar was good.  Pixar movies are the closest to sure things as you can get. It will look amazing---it will have a good story and it will be a lot of fun.

Coming in at number 4     The Avengers
I'm not the biggest Comic book movie fan and of the Marvel movies starring these characters so far only the first Iron Man movies really impressed me, but this movie is directed by Joss Whedon and I can't wait to see how he brings his sense of humor and fun that I have enjoyed so much in Buffy, Angel, Firefly and Dollhouse to this collection of Marvel superheroes.

Coming in at number 3   Prometheus
Ridley Scott's return to Sci-Fi....The trailer is intriguing.  A sci-fi Pandora's box of horror and fun.   I'm all in for this sci-fi movie from one of the genres masters.

Coming in at number 2  The Cabin in the Woods
I'm even more excited for this than for Avengers.  Joss Whedon's and Drew Goddard's trippy twist on the typical Cabin in the Woods horror story.  The trailers make it look like an Evil Dead meets The Cube and that I really want to see.

Coming in at number 1   The Hobbit 
Peter Jackson returning to middle earth with The Hobbit......Enough said...

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