Melancholia

This is one review I do not want to write. I don't know how to tell you what I felt about it, while at the same time discouraging any of you from watching it. There are rarely films that I watch that I feel have absolutely no point. Melancholia is one of those films. However, I enjoyed it somewhat. Maybe it's my mentality toward the norm. The status quo if you will. I love to like things that everyone else doesn't get or plain out hate. It makes me feel superior in a way to know that I get "it" whatever that may be. The title however is a perfect match for my final emotion when the credits ran. I expected this great artsy film about a woman who had infinite knowledge about the Universe and all living things. Not the case. The trailer made it seem like Justine (Dunst) was a medium of sorts. She was somehow connected to the universe and maybe she had an outlook beyond the standard human knowledge. Turns out she may or may not. It actually doesn't let us know anything about her, except for the fact that she is completely Bat S#!+ crazy. We are never given an inside view of why everyone pussyfoots around her. No one wants to upset her, or she may have an incident. The first 35 minutes of the film is exactly as it should be. No frills, one camera, dialog driven, indie film that makes me glad I am watching it. The through a turn of events, a lack of explanation, and a cauldron of misconception it kind of derails. I will say this. If you have any inkling to see Melancholia, watch the opening 8 minutes which is filled with random images that move at an alarmingly slow motion, while Beethoven's 9th plays in the background. That song is already dramatic and depressing, but when paired with the images, it almost suicidal. If you get past that, you will enjoy the next half hour. After that, it's a crap shoot. Melancholia actually is referring to a planet on a course to glide by Earth in a wonderment of beauty never before seen. However, there may be a slight chance it hits Earth destroying all life. The brightest spot in the film is Kiefer Sutherland's character. He is brilliant in his angriness. John Hurt is also brilliant as Justine's Father who may or may not be insane. It is very strange, and I don't know anyone who would like it. Slightly enjoy it maybe, but like it is unlikely. I also feel if any of my readers went out and rented it, they would blame me solely for their current state of unhappiness.


NBM rates Melancholia - Good

The Avengers

To say that The Avengers has been anticipated for a while now is under selling it. Think about it. We first heard about "The Avengers Initiative" in 2007 after the credits in Iron Man. That's half a decade ago, and worth the wait. Way to not rush through Marvel. Patience is key when dealing with this many parameters. At 2 hours 22 minutes, I believe it is the longest Marvel film to date, and I did not want it to end. The reason I feel it worked so well at that run time is the fact we need little to no character development. We know the players through years of individual releases from Thor to Captain America and Iron Man we get all the info we need, so the story can get right down to it. I had heard there some comedy, no doubt from group smart ass Tony Stark, but a lot of times the entire theater was rolling. It really is 30% pure comedy. We all know the gist of the film from hours of promotion, TV ads, internet clips, Interviews, Spoilers, and common knowledge of the series, but it is so much fun to see it on the BIG screen. I wanna see it again already. There is really not a lot to say about it, except it is perfect in every way. As a film it is like Captain America in the sense that it was birthed out of Love to be the absolute best it could be. When Loki (Thor's evil brother) comes to Earth to take over, Nick Fury takes issue with this. This is when The Avengers are brought together for the first time. The Avengers looks good on paper as a resort to thwart terrorism, but too many egos is nothing but a bad combination. The whole first half of the film is them getting to know each other and realizing they don't like each other. Captain America is technically a senior citizen, so those jokes are slow pitches, and some of the team get along, but like High School, there will always be divided groups. Tony and Banner get along because they speak the same language. Tech and Science. Thor feels he is above everyone, demigod and all. Hawkeye and Black Widow are on the same page, but it is still a disaster. Loki is a force not of this world and other than Thor, no one knows how to deal with him. He is bringing an alien army, and he feels The Avengers are no match, but little does he know. The ultimate battle between the two worlds is very reminiscent of Transformers 3, but it doesn't matter. It is pure awesomeness. The action and direction is top notch and in a CG world, it is very easy to make it look like crap. Not the case here. It is perfect. I also want to discuss the character with the most controversy. Bruce Banner/Hulk. Mark Ruffalo is the third actor to take on Banner, and he is my favorite as the character. I love Ruffalo anyway, but I actually thought Eric Bana was a good cast for the part, unfortunately it was a HORRID script. Then Edward Norton was brilliant, but Ruffalo carries a brooding, dark attitude better than Norton did or could in my opinion. Now on to The Hulk. This is the biggest love it/ hate it character due to the difficulty of portrayal. He is 100% computer generated and until now he never looked real. This is the first Hulk, where we believe he is part of this team. He doesn't look disconnected or cartoony. He is everyone's favorite because of the shear force and destruction he is capable of. SPOILER - When Hulk and Thor beat the crap out of each other, it is AWESOME - Mind Blowing even. I so wanted Hulk to have a lot of screen time and be a viable character, and boy was he. He also provides one of the biggest laughs of the film. When The Avengers finally figure it out, they are somewhat on the same page. Luckily Captain takes over as the only one with military training and strategic battle planning knowledge, and he gets his ducks in a row. I honestly cannot determine what I liked more. The Avengers beating the snot out of each other at the beginning of the film, or fighting the enemy at the end. It has to be the end, because we love to see the good guys win. The last thing I will say is to PAY ATTENTION to the greatest cross movie reference in this film. Listen closely when Iron Man is gonna fly Hawkeye to the skyline. Literally LMAO at the joke. Oh ya and stay through the credits....all the way through. Trust me, It is a brilliantly, silently, hilarious 60 seconds that you will appreciate.


NBM Rates The Avengers - A Cinematic Work of Art