sophaljonesy

I have always loved the Superman franchise, from the classic Christopher Reeve Superman to Henry Cavill's Man of Steel. I even love Brandon Routh's Superman, and I think he did a fantastic job. This is to show that I am a bit easy to please. But I would say David Corenswet's portrayal of Superman is quite similar to Christopher Reeves's but not an imitation. I thought his version would be too whiny based on the trailer but I was intrigued by the teaser showing him beaten and wheezing. So when I got to the theater, I managed my expectations well. The movie was more cheerful and colorful than the Snyderverse Superman played by Henry Cavill. Corenswet's portrayal of Superman is very human and vulnerable but he is clearly very powerful. We see he has a good heart and feel his pain when he is rejected by the very people he tried to help. Nicholas Hoult's Lex Luthor is solid. He is angry, evil, and fully aware of himself. He is the perfect foil to Corenswet. The side characters are great. Lois Lane played by Rachel Brosnahan is a pivotal character and not waiting to be rescued or just the love interest. She questions Superman/Clark Kent's actions in a sincere way, and is actually helpful. The Justice Gang are capable and don't need Superman to help them. I also like that James Gunn included the classic Superman theme in the movie, though it was a bit modified. The credits was similar in style to the Donner version too, which fits the tone of the movie and plays on nostalgia a bit. In short, it is a new take on the Superman character that is inspired by the classic Richard Donner movie with Christopher Reeve as the titular character but manages to be it's own movie. I hope to see more.

I watched this movie completely blind and not knowing what to expect. I did not bother to check the trailers or reviews. What caught me were 'Stephen King' and 'Osgood Perkins' (who sounded familiar). The opening scene set the tone for me, and I knew it was going to be bloody. The good parts were the acting. Theo James was excellent, and Christian Convery, who played the younger version of his characters, was excellent as always. I have only heard of Tatiana Maslaney and never saw She Hulk so I did not know what to expect, but she does command attention. For me, the horror and comedic elements worked perfectly. The deaths are gory, but what makes it work is how random the deaths are, so there is tension every time a character is alone or even doing random stuff. Furthermore, the stakes are personal, and the character motivations are understandable. Every character does not seem wasted. They add to the atmosphere of the movie and are not wasted.

When I saw the trailer to the movie, I was hyped because Donnie Yen's character looked desperate and the title suggests he needs more than his expert martial arts skills to succeed. This is what makes the movie work. In all of Donnie Yen's movie, you know he can use his fists and kicks to solve problems, so to raise the stakes,not only should there be a formidable nemesis but something that even Yen's superb fighting skills will not suffice. In The Prosecutor, Donnie Yen plays a former cop on his first case as Prosecutor and decides to investigate a possible framing of an innocent teen. Of course, he has to fight multiple henchmen and there are great fight scenes but, he still needs to find evidence and keep people alive. So that the challenge is in ensuring people live because Donnie's character can always overcome his enemies but not everyone is him. For me, balancing the action with the story worked to raise the stakes. While there are prolonged dialogues with very in your face lecturing about the duty of a Prosecutor, you can feel Yen's character's desperation because he can't do it alone. Furthermore, Yen is also emphasizing his age. His character admits he can't run after thieves anymore, and we see him taking beatings, but all the fight scenes are still intense and brutal. Yen can still move fast and deal powerful blows. However , playing and aging character, his fights are more tactical and employs use of the surroundings a lot. Yen, being the director, also allows his co star to shine in a few fight scenes. This shows that he is generous as an action star too. I would love to see more movies like this from him, where he is not only physically challenged but intellectually or emotionally challenged. Moreover, Yen consistently tries new techniques in his movies. There is the use of POV camera, to wide-screen shot over a rooftop, to the cramped space of a subway train. It's like he is using his experience in John Wick to use in the movie.