8th July - Marvel is Dead



I went to see the new Thor movie last night, and I'm sad to report, but Marvel is officially dead. Like many of you, I was a huge fan of the 'MCU' (Marvel Cinematic Universe) between 2008-2019, with that initial phase securing a legacy as one of the greatest (if not, THE greatest) cinematic journeys of all time, leading up to the grand finale of 'Infinity War' and 'End-Game' in 2018 and 2019. Those two were jaw-droopingly spectacular, not just as 'superhero' movies, but as films in general. Amassing score(s) of 8.4 on IMDB, these were titles which are rated higher than the likes of 'Braveheart', 'Toy Story', 'The Dark Knight Rises', or 'Return of the Jedi' in the pantheons of the greatest movies ever made.

Aside from the star-studded duo, there was 'Ragnarok', 'Civil War', 'The Winter Solider' and 'Avengers Assemble', all critically acclaimed gems which performed spectacularly at the box office. But post-Downey Jr, the franchise just feels incredibly vague, and ultimately, lost. In the past few years, we've had to sit through 'Morbius', 'Venom: Let There Be Carnage', 'Eternals' and 'Black Widow'. For what it's worth, I didn't mind the latter. But all 4 currently sit at the very bottom of the IMDB rankings, and deservedly so.




Not since the terrible 'Hulk' movie in 2008 have Marvel movies dropped to such plummeting depths, and last night's showing didn't do much to really improve that. 'Love And Thunder', though beautifully directed by Waititi with some real Sin-City style action shots, ultimately felt messy, uninspiring, and lacking in originality, to the point where Taika felt the need to even tread the same 'nostalgic' path recently offered by Monsieurs Maguire, Garfield, McGregor and Christensen, by bringing back Natalie Portman - who, ironically, also worked extensively with the latter duo - as Thor's long-term love interest 'Jane'.

The relationship has never really felt authentic in terms of chemistry, in all honest. Whilst the should-be gasps of seeing her wield Mjolnir have been replaced by eye-rolls thanks to the fact Cap's already been there, done that, 2019. Though certain titles in recent times ('Multiverse of Madness') have offered a different take on proceedings, there now feels like a real lack of continuity, and cohesion, in the overall themes and style of the MCU. Sadly, after the extreme highs of our epic Thanos-soaked battlefield just over 3 years ago, this fall from grace has proved... 




... Inevitable. 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

20th July: I was assaulted last night

Image
Last night was just an absolute fucking disaster from start to finish, tbh. After finishing work (working from home), I set off at around 7pm to reach my destination as I was needed back in the office for the rest of the week (our office doesn’t have A/C so we were allowed to work from home on Mon & Tues on account of the heatwave), though it soon dawned on me that this was not going to prove a simple task. I arrived in London around 10.30pm and found both my 10.30pm and then 11.30pm trains had been fully cancelled. The reasoning they gave was that the tracks couldn’t handle the heat, but surely metal is strong enough to withstand even the most potent of temperatures?  As hoards of fellow commuters gathered around the departure board, looking forlorn at the rows of cancellations on the electronic board, I managed to earwig on a small group of middle-aged folk who were heading to the same destination as me. Seeking their advice, we attempted to grab one of the very few operati...
Read more

15th Jan - Dancing Queen

Image
Well, last night got a little interesting huh? I fell into 'the basic bitch trap' of jiving around to commercial drivel in one of those overpriced cocktail bar chains where a faint waft of Paco Rabanne & Gonorrhea fill the air... Be At One, All Bar One, Insert Other Name Involved 'One' and 'Bar' here. I've realised, that like many of you, when intoxicated, I possess a complete alter-ego. A gremlin inside of me which comes out to play and completely does away with the sober version of myself. This alter-ego is dangerously confident, sassy and sensual, and most worrying of all, delusional when it comes to dancing. I can't say I've ever been much of a dancer, I mean sure... I'll give it a go. I have rhythm at least, but I'm now at an age where I'm probably old enough to be able to pull off ' dad dancing ' and give the word some real personification. Last night consisted of myself & my equally intoxicated pal putting on live...
Read more

29th December - The MOST important life skill you'll learn

Image
I've spent much of this year musing a range of important and philosophical ideas and thoughts. Real deep analysis on human behaviour and psychology. And then sometimes I've just blogged about Kebabs. But there are a few really important takeaways which I can pass on from this year. The first is that when we talk about eating healthy, or 'being healthy', we alway focus on weight. Fat burning, weight loss, muscle gain etc etc. But one thing very few people talk about is that exercise, or eating nutritious foods, is first and foremost the biggest self-care for the mind. That is definitely something I discovered this year when comparing my moods on days when I stayed in like a slob, or days when I partook in my hourly walks. By clearing the mind and allowing yourself that period of isolation in fresh air, you are delivering a type of therapy to yourself more powerful than any self-help podcast, or life-coaching course. The second thing I've learned, thanks to both Jorda...
Read more