Reviewing the MCU: Part 6 · 11:31pm May 10th, 2018
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 2
At first glance, this film seems unnecessary. It establishes no major story points in the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and seems to be little more than a comedic mess. But Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is much more than that. Plus, after the heaviness of Civil War and the mindfuck that was Doctor Strange, we could use a little refreshing “comedic mess”.
Right away, the hilarity begins with the opening credits, with the Guardians fighting a hideous space freak while Baby Groot dances and frolics in the foreground, setting up the action/humor tone of the movie perfectly. Characters are well-cast as usual, with each having a new struggle to face.
Rocket, perhaps still grieving over the loss of Groot (director James Gunn confirms that Baby Groot is the son of the original, who died protecting his friends in the first movie), lashes out at everyone around him to avoid his own feelings. Outside the group, Yondu is an outsider to his own crew and falls victim to mutiny, and Nebula’s rage toward her sister Gamora drives her throughout most of the film. Drax and Gamora have little to do at first, but are shaped later in the movie, with the former coming across as a laughing idiot for most of it until he bonds with Mantis, while the latter is confronted with how her sister feels about her, balancing it with her feelings for Quill. The Ravager mutiny has its high points (Rocket bonding with Yondu, every scene with Baby Groot, etc.) and its low points (“Taserface”). But the main conflict is Peter Quill discovering the secret of his parentage—Ego the Living Planet, his father, returns to show Peter his birthright as a Celestial. These scenes, especially for someone like me with “daddy issues”, are particularly powerful, and the surprise casting of Kurt Russell works spectacularly.
One of the strongest themes of this movie is hidden emotions. Gamora hides her feelings from Peter. Rocket hides his feelings from the team.
Yondu hides his feelings from his crew and from Peter. And Nebula hides her feelings from Gamora. This theme plays well with the presence of an empath in the cast. Speaking of, Pom Klementieff’s Mantis is one of the most adorable characters I’ve ever seen on screen; what a happy coincidence that an empath would have viewers feeling for her and wanting to protect her! Bravo to the superb character writing on that front. Another heavy theme is family—Quill has rediscovered his father, but nearly at the expense of his newfound family with the Guardians. Gamora and Nebula share sisterly moments, and Yondu shows his true self as a father figure to Peter—making his selfless sacrifice and the Ravagers’ tribute to him in the end all the more crushing. Despite the comedy, there’s a lot of tragedy to balance it out; Yondu’s death and the shocking twist that Ego was behind Peter’s mother’s cancer contribute to this. Add a disturbing and thrilling third act with Quill tapping into his Celestial powers for the first and last time, sprinkle some more classic songs that have aged like a fine wine, and this movie is far from unnecessary.
And we would already know a sequel is on the way, with the inclusion of not one, not two—but FIVE after-credits scenes adding potential to a sequel already. While weak in places, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 knocks it out of the stars with a 7.5 out of 10.
SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING
I’m so sorry. I want to love this movie. I want to adore this movie. I want to say that this is the best Spider-Man movie ever made.
But it’s not. Brace yourselves.
I understand the decision to take leaves from the “Homecoming” storyline as inspiration. It’s where the high school feel comes from. But the whole movie feels so disrespectful of the Spider-Man mythos, and not just because the teen angle is far too strong. Spider-Man is a tragic figure, and that was not represented here at all. Spider-Man’s motivations feel so wrong here; instead of using his powers responsibly (as is the theme of his character), his only real goal is to be an Avenger—a superficial and selfish goal that is so far outside his reasons for existence. They do not even mention Uncle Ben one time by name—you know, the man that Peter could have saved, but didn’t, which is WHY he wears the suit and fights crime.
True, the film sets up Peter on a journey to learn more about being a hero, but having him rely on Tony Stark, Happy Hogan, and his suits A.I. is counterintuitive to this purpose. Things feel off right when the “Eight Years Later” caption hits the screen—in a movie supposedly set eight years and two months after Tony Stark first revealed himself as Iron Man (According to Vision in Civil War).
The motivations and timeline aside, this movie has more wrong with it in its characters than anything else. Tom Holland is the finest Spider-Man put to film and I will not say otherwise, but most moments, it seems like he’s the only remotely likable thing on screen at any given time. Happy Hogan (a return of Iron Man director Jon Favreau) is obnoxious, domineering, and inconsistent in his responsibilities to Peter. Zendaya’s character of Michelle is the most obnoxious, snotty, smirking, antisocial, and repellent thing to be churned out of Marvel, and her brand of “comic relief” is flat, dimensionless and entirely unnecessary (the fact that they gave this unlikable cretin the “MJ” initials as a nod to the fans infuriates me more than I can feasibly describe). Many of the movie’s attempts at comedy are cringeworthy, including the scene with the “car thief”, the suburban chase, and the interrogation scene with Aaron “Prowler” Davis (played by an otherwise fantastic Donald Glover). Peter’s A.I., affectionately dubbed “Karen” (played by Jennifer Connelly, of all people) is a sweet addition, but entirely unnecessary. That coupled with the return of Pepper Potts (still an obnoxious tw@t) and the after-credits scene that tries to pass itself off as a jokey fun time nod to the fans and comes off more as a punishment for those accustomed to waiting for the after-credits scenes Marvel themselves made into a trend.
The worst part of this movie—and it pains me to say it as much as it pains me to see it—is Tony Stark. Robert Downey Jr. continues to give fine performances, but his purpose in this film is far more antagonistic than any villain they could have used. In Civil War, Stark gives Peter the upgraded suit with the express intention of giving him more to do as a hero, and in this movie, promptly dumps him in Queens and orders him to all but vanish from the hero scene. And when Peter does what is right from the very beginning, Stark blames Peter for nearly sinking a ferry (even though the weapon that caused it shouldn’t have been there in the first place and would have made mincemeat out of the feds Stark called believing that they could handle it) and takes away the Spider Suit. He takes away the upgraded suit that he knew perfectly well would encourage Peter to do more, since it made him capable of more, and shames him for doing exactly what Stark—and EVERY OTHER AVENGER—had done in the past: risking his life for others. This forces Peter to downgrade to his old suit and continue to do the right thing in catching Adrian Toomes in the act of robbing a plane.
The worst part of this is that it’s only NOW that Tony recognizes Peter as a true Avenger, after he’d done what he would have done anyway even with the upgraded suit, and Tony even takes credit for pushing Peter to do it. Stark is the biggest antagonist in this film; he’s no mentor, he’s selfish, cold, shortsighted and has no idea how to properly mentor anyone. He’s the real villain.
I know it seems like I despise this movie entirely, but I don’t. It’s those scenes that detract from the overall impact the film makes. As I said, Holland is a fantastic Peter Parker AND Spider-Man, and Michael Keaton as Adrian Toomes/the Vulture is one of the most layered and complex villains in comic book movie history, putting the likes of Whiplash and Malekith to shame. Marisa Tomei’s May Parker works well as the mom/sister type, rather than the venerable grandma type inconsistent with her logical age. Jacob Batalon as Ned is the right kind of comic relief sidekick—dweeby, but plucky, smart and loyal. Liz Allen and Flash Thompson have received character updates; the former is a true high school love interest, the popular girl with a mind like a steel trap, but a heart of gold that is never bitter or bratty even when at her lowest points. The latter received a makeover for today’s age—the social, psychological bully rather than the dimwitted jock. Making Flash the brunt of many jokes eases the sensitive territory of school bullying, a theme we see all too often where Spider-Man media is concerned. And due to the continuity of the MCU, public dislike for Spider-Man makes a lot of sense—in a world that has seen gods, androids, super soldiers and irradiated monsters for nearly ten years, Spider-Man appears before a world largely jaded by that stuff by now (with various comments from many characters referencing the Avengers in some way).
And despite the movie’s light, easy, happy-go-lucky tone, it’s not without its dark side. The scenes that see Peter in his suit looking through a window from a distance at his classmates having fun, signifies another huge theme firmly grounded in Spider-Man myth: his status as an outsider looking in, both as a superhuman among normal people, and as a nerd among popular kids. The scene where Toomes accidentally kills Jackson Brice and shrugs it off without blinking is particularly shocking (no pun intended). Toomes’ talk with Peter in his car is unnerving and sets up Toomes as a truly terrifying villain. And the entire third act—keeping up a golden streak of great third acts in the MCU—is harrowing and pulse-pounding, taking place entirely at night, with most of it bathed in flames and explosions. And the scene of Peter trapped beneath rubble and pushing himself out of it ("Come on, Spider-Man!") is inspiring, in every sense of the word. With all of this to go on, and a buildup of three established potential members of the Sinister Six (Vulture, Shocker, and a pre-Scorpion Mac Gargan) could see much of this movie’s biggest problems improved in the future. I certainly hope it will, at least.
As a superhero movie, it’s excellent. As an MCU movie, it’s fine. But as a Spider-Man movie, the more I see it, the more disappointed and angry I am.
I’ve been a Spider-Man fan since I was six years old. So it pains me to say that the greatest superhero movie series of all time did my favorite Marvel character an injustice, and for the first time, truly let me down.
I give Spider-Man: Homecoming a 7 out of 10. I’m sorry.
THOR: RAGNAROK
Three comedy films in a row for Marvel may seem like they’ve stopped caring, but with Thor: Ragnarok especially, nothing is further from the truth.
The comedic tone and colorful, over-the-top 80s space nonsense works wonders for a trilogy that spent too long stagnating in mediocrity. We see a smarter, sharper and more determined Thor, a much more contrite and selfless Loki, a Hulk with a child-like mentality (especially when arguing with Thor), and a Banner who fears losing control to the beast permanently. Sakaar, while colorful and unique, is a stark contrast to Asgard in its grungy, dystopian aesthetic (although the “Pure Imagination” intro video for it was a bit creepy and out of place). Comedy is king in this movie—Benedict Cumberbatch returns in a humorous cameo as Dr. Strange, the rock warrior Korg is hands-down the funniest character in the movie (provided by the movie’s director, Taika Waititi), and Jeff Goldblum’s Grandmaster is so grandiose, so flamboyant, and so . . . Jeff Goldblum-y that it’s hard to hate him for any length of time.
This doesn’t mean the movie doesn’t get dark or sad when it has to. Odin himself dies early on, which sets Thor on a journey of rediscovering himself as a hero and a king. The Warriors Three die tragic and unceremonious deaths at the hands of the villain. And as it turns out, Odin and his actual firstborn, Hela, were tyrannical and bloodthirsty rulers before Odin grew sense and shut Hela away. Hela herself is the first major female villain in the MCU, and she leaves an admirable impression. She’s deathly charming, sophisticated, ostentatious, and extraordinarily powerful.
Plus, I’m not gonna lie, she’s so mind-blowingly sexy that I find myself wanting to submit my body to her immediately.
I imagine people might disagree, but I did not care for Valkyrie, at least at first. She swaggers and sneers like she’s above everyone when she’s really just a coward and a drunk. But there is a reason behind her drinking and her attitude—a damn good reason. So there is depth there. Same with Skurge; his comic relief and weak justification for his actions make him almost totally unneeded, but he does redeem himself in the end. Add to this with fun ship chases, a funky electronic-style score from former Devo band member Mark Mothersbaugh, and another excellent third act that subverts expectations by making the destruction of Asgard the solution rather than the threat, and you have an impressive sci-fi super-romp that knows exactly what it is and rolls with it.
Thor: Ragnarok smashes in with an 8 out of 10.
BP and IW reviews coming soon. 
Aw poop. I liked Homecoming, but I still respect your opinion.
I understand your opinion on Homecoming. It's far from my favorite Spider-Man movie, even as much as I love Vulture and some of the other parts of it.
But I definitely do agree with you on Thor Ragnarok and GOTG 2. Those were kickass movies!
The whole Tony Stark as an antagonist, that I agree with--but I don't think it detracts from the movie itself. If anything, it shows Tony's continual character development and the ramifications that came with Ultron and Civil War.
Tony isn't antagonistic and cold because he's antagonistic and cold; he's that way to Peter because he's found a surrogate son in him and seeing him risk his life at such a young age terrifies him. You also have to remember that Tony did not have a good connection with his father, and Peter, in a way, is his chance of having that dream of a healthy relationship come true. But because Tony is deeply flawed (resulting in, well, you know from IW), he comes close to destroying that connection, due to his destructive habits.
Moreover, this is how adults treat young adults or even kids. Spider-Man? He's not a man yet. As Ned Leeds said in the movie, "...you are a kid." Sure, Peter has great power, but he's shown to be a bit reckless. He hasn't matured to the point where he understands fully what it means to encapsulate the idea of "With great power comes great responsibility." This is a repeated motif that shows itself through the comics, because the adage, while strong, is constantly being referenced, constantly being refined; and Spider-Man has to learn more from it, about it, and through it if he is to keep on fighting. So adults like Tony and Happy acting a bit condescending makes sense, because they're adults, they're experienced, and they generally know and think they know what they're doing. As such, they tend to downplay young adults' fears and warnings. That's just what adults tend to do.
Of course none of this is to say that I agree with Stark. Yeah, he's a shitty mentor. Remember, he's a very high-profile, self-interested super hero who thinks highly of himself and considers himself the smartest man in the room. With the addition of the fallout from Civil War, he probably isn't "all there." But that's part of his character growth. He has to learn how much he sucks in order to do better. In the comics, Tony is a self-destructive individual who usually means well but who also creates as much conflict as he does solve it. So I wouldn't say this is a far-cry from his actual character. It's not preferred, but it is an aspect of it.
Plus, in the Civil War storyline, he really is the antagonist and basically calls in Spider-Man for his own selfish means. And after Spider-Man died in The Other, prior to Civil War, and was then resurrected, Tony outfitted him with the Iron Spider suit, as part of fulfilling a future agenda with the Superhuman Registration Act.
This is a film about a young adult's trial to grow up and fit in a much larger and much more dangerous adult world. It highlights the conflict between the two dynamics, with the relationship between adults and kids. Peter thinks he knows best (and I do think he does!). Toomes, Stark, and Hogan think they know best and don't think much of Peter's hesitance and/or morals.
In the end, though, those adults learn the hard way that sometimes, the kid knows more than the adult.
But, on the flip side... I didn't think I was going to like GOGV2, but Drax sold it for me.
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I'm sorry, but I don't buy Stark as a father figure. If he cared so much about Peter, he never would have given him a suit with which he could do more as a hero, and he never would have enlisted his help in beating Captain America. And none of that "If Cap wanted to lay you out, he would have" garbage. Cap, maybe not, but he was also up against a professional assassin, a dangerous telekinetic and an unstable ex-Hydra agent. Any one of them could have killed Peter and Cap wouldn't have been able to do a thing about it.
Tony has no business inserting himself into Peter's life, and only did so because he needed a sixth man against Team Cap. The only thing needed to complete the scene would be if Tony took back the suit and told him to forget any of that stuff ever happened; if he'd wanted to protect Peter, that would be the way to do it. Tony needs to get off Peter's back and let him do exactly what he'd been doing from the beginning: being a hero. Tony needs to let Peter be Spider-Man.
Plus, Tony Stark has had six movies before this to "develop" and realize he sucks. If it made no difference by now, it never will.
Yeah, I get that it's about Peter learning to be a hero. But the execution was wrong. Again, Spider-Man is a tragic figure, and should have had Uncle Ben's advice in his mind from the very beginning. In Homecoming, they just brush it under the rug because it interferes with the story they want to tell--and the story they want to tell requires an irresponsible kid who just wants to be an Avenger. I guarantee you, 100%, that being an Avenger was never on Peter's mind in the comics from the second Uncle Ben died to the day he met them.
Like I said, I want to love this movie. But the way it treats Spider-Man's character and mythos ruins it for me.
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Well, that's just it. That's how Stark has been portrayed throughout this MCU endeavor. Pretty much as a guy with daddy issues and with an inability to be a good mentor. Stark has always been a "shoot first ask questions later" kind of person, and despite his brilliance, his ability to healthily perceive relationships and/or work with them to draw out the best in those he mentors. Which is why he sucks.
In other words, this Stark that we see in the films is still developing. He's still flawed, for sure. It's sort of like another alternate version of him (well, it really is), so in that sense his character, while based on the original, is still, in its own right, original.
As to why Spidey might be head over heels for him (in a platonic sense)... well, that's part of Parker's character in this movie and in this new franchise. He's a younger, more naive Peter. He does his best, but he's going to fall flat sometimes. Whether that be against a supervillain or with seeing how his idol really isn't all that great, it's clear he still has a lot to learn, and I think that is what Tony Stark served in the film.
Heck, you saw Infinity War. Spidey stood up to Stark and Stark actually listened. Spidey even blamed Stark (though he did backtrack; but that's sort of what teenagers do, and sort of what "kids" do to their "parental figures) for sending him up there.
This is a Spider-Man who does have great power, but he's still got the greenhorn-ness that comes with being a novice hero. And he's fifteen. He's a smart fucking fifteen year old, but realistically, we aren't that smart. (I'm 18, now, so it's still not much of a difference.)
I don't really agree that this movie messed with the Spidey mythos, but that's mostly because for me it doesn't really draw much on the mythos itself. But I think that just comes down to what we ourselves think counts as the mythos.
But also in that sense... I agree that Stark really should have seen the light before then. Though I guess that this was necessary due to the outcome of Infinity War. Stark still considered himself the hero who saved the world in the Avengers, and his ambition matches his arrogance evenly.
After all that is said and done, when all that he has worked for falls apart at the hands of a mad Titan, well, Stark needs to fall before he can rise.
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Stark has fallen several times. He fell when he found out his chest core was poisoning him. He fell when the Mandarin attacked his house. He fell when his brainchild ended up almost ended up wiping out the planet. And he fell when Cap kicked his ass in Siberia. Tony Stark doesn't really fall and get up so much as he stays where he is at all times, fall or rise. The only "next level" there really was for him was shutting down weapons production of his company and using his suit to help others. He hasn't gone up since then.
As for Spidey, Homecoming didn't hurt the mythos so much as it took the fun, silly, happy bits and left out the good stuff. Uncle Ben was the biggest figure in his life, and in the three movies Spidey has appeared in, he hasn't been mentioned by name once. Hinted at, yes, but it's like he never existed at all. Uncle Ben was the reason Peter became Spider-Man, and they act like it was never a big thing. And they say "Well, we know people don't wanna see Uncle Ben get shot again), which is bullshit, because we've seen the Waynes get shot at least three times, and we've seen Krypton blow up twice. If it's important to the character and their development, it stays. No arguments.
I agree though that Infinity War saw Peter grow a bit of a spine, but not enough to make him say, "You know what, Stark, you need to sit your ass down and shut up and let me be a fucking hero! I'm here, I'm helping, and there's nothing you can do about it!" I want that to be what happens in his next solo movie (I actually have an idea for a script, myself), but I know it sounds way too emo to be in a "super happy fun times" movie, so I know it won't.
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Yeah, gotta agree with you there. Marvel formula means there's less yelling and more joking.
Though to be fair, Spidey's still enamored. Well, was. Will be. Is. Might take some more movies for him to grow up some more.
In addition, Homecoming wasn't really an origin story. Sony has already done that twice. Sure, we see Krypton blowing up and the Waynes dying, but the question comes down to if we really need to see that again, or can we craft a decent enough movie without it? I'm not sure of the message of Homecoming was to reiterate that which we already as a culture know. If anything, it was meant to ground Spidey in the MCU, as a kid with a lot of potential and a whole lot more to learn. That's the theme that I got out of it, but it's always open to interpretation.
Anyways, I hope you didn't take any of these comments as antagonistic. I do like your points and I do see that you are passionate about the MCU just as much as I am. It's great to discuss the films with a fellow fan.
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It's okay. I know you didn't mean anything by it, and I'm glad you can enjoy this movie. I do hope they improve on Spidey in the future (that is, after they bring him back to life), and if not, then I'll just have to keep trying to reach Marvel to see if they'll let me write the next script.