2012: Week 19: The Avengers

The Avengers

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

Main Players: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston

General Gist:  A team of super heroes is pulled together in order to save the earth from an attack by an unearthly enemy.

Deb's Take: 

I am not a super fan of the Super Hero movies.  Yet, after seeing this film that brings a team of super heroes together I realized I had seen almost every movie about each individual character that preceded The Avengers.  I think it might have something to do with my husband really liking these kinds of films.

 As far as Super Heroes go, this movie was good.  Sometimes the Sci-Fi stuff ends up being so ridiculous that I just can't get into the movie.  This movie...not to shabby in the Sci-Fi area.  I will say, see "Thor" before you see this movie, there are some pivotal points that may be lost otherwise.  This movie gives you good action, decent acting, a lot more comedy than I would have expected, and some Sci-Fi thrills.   Although it wasn't my type of movie, it really was a good movie and I have to say if this type of movie is your thing, you will love it.

Deb's Rate: Opening night for all you Super Hero Fans, personally I could have taken it as a Matinee

Tiff's Take:
Last year when all these Marvel movies were coming out I thought it was weird.  Why all the super heroes?  It wasn't until this movie came out that I realized it was on purpose and leading up to this one final movie.  I know, I'm pretty quick.  Good idea.  It seems right up my alley even though I'm not a big super hero fanatic.

Going to this movie made me feel a little bit like I did when I went to see Moneyball.  I felt like I was doing the movie a disservice by not knowing all there is to know about these super hero characters.  I mean, there were some of the movies that I didn't even see like The Hulk and the first Iron Man.  I sorta wish I had now.  Even though I hadn't seen them all I felt like I still knew what was going on mainly from seeing Thor since the main bad guy is from that movie.  So, like Deb said, you might want to see Thor first if you haven't.

As far as liking the movie...I'll be honest.  The first part was a little slow.  I felt like they could have reintroduced all the characters a little better.  It seemed like a hodge podge of activity at first.  It didn't start getting really good until about halfway through.  I did love the characters/actors in this movie though.  I love almost anything Robert Downey Jr. plays and I love Chris Hemsworth's Thor character.  He's probably my favorite.  Ruffalo's Hulk character was surprisingly funny too.

So what I'm saying here is if you're into this stuff you'll probably love the movie.  If you're not, you'll probably like it okay but maybe not think it's worth the hype.

Tiff's Rate: Borderline Matinee/Friday Night

Preview: We will post the winner of our "Footloose" giveaway tonight.  Next review...What to Expect When You're Expecting.

Bonus Review: Contagion

My husband and I decided to take in the AMC Cinema Suites last week and went to the movie Contagion. This was a movie Tiff and I were hoping to see, so I decided I would write up a review, hopefully Tiff will get to it as well.

I think the most impressionable thing about this movie wasn't necessarily the acting. I actually think it could have been somewhat of a documentary. No one actor really stuck out to me. Gwyneth Paltrow played a rather little and insignificant part in my mind. (ok, so not insignificant, rather limited movie time and not significant as an actor) Matt Damon did a good job, but again, it was really the story that made the movie. The unfolding of a contagious disease and the speed at which it can spread worldwide. The whole idea was pretty scary, even working in the healthcare field, I found myself becoming a little germaphobic. (Not to mention both my husband and I decided this movie wasn't the best for a dinner theatre atmosphere)

I think the impressionable thing about this movie was really just the realization that what we see in the news, regarding mass deaths from diseases can actually be so much worse than we imagine. Also, that behind it all the government can be extremely controlling and make our lives seem so insignificant..when they shouldn't.

I recommend this movie more for the message. Again, the acting was pretty insignificant to me...anyone could have played in it and I would have walked out feeling the same way.

Go see it, or rent it, but don't eat while you watch it!

Week 2: Country Strong

So this week was Country Strong. I really had mixed feelings going into this movie. First of all, I love love love Gwyneth Paltrow. She has been my favorite actress since around the time she was in Shakespeare in Love. She can basically do no wrong in my book. But, on the other hand, I was really having a hard time picturing her as a country singer. It just didn't fit. So I was having this internal debate before I even went into the theater. Turns out...she wasn't a believable country singer to me. *gasp* Did I just say that?? I swear I didn't mean it, Gwyneth.

But it wasn't just Gwyneth Paltrow not doing country well that didn't do it for me. It was the whole thing. I think Deb and I are probably going to have different opinions on this one.

Let me back up first. It sounds like I really disliked this movie but I didn't. It was entertaining and all the actors were generally good. Actually I think the supporting actors were the best. Leighton Meester who played the up and coming singer and Garret Hedlund who played the other guy really stole the show. Although I still think that the only actor, Tim McGraw, who could have obviously pulled off country didn't really have to "do" country which was a shame.

But when it comes down to it, overall I thought the story line was weak. I had a hard time connecting to the characters and the relationships didn't really pull me in. It focused on four main characters who sort of had these intertwining relationships. The problem was I didn't believe any of them. The movie started in the middle of a story already in process so I felt like I couldn't really connect right off the bat. And when the characters switched from one person to another I didn't really feel any emotion towards it.

So, yeah, I was a little disappointed but that could have come from my own biases before the movie even started. I probably didn't give it a chance.

To sum this movie up: A little slow, a little detached and just okay.