Marvel Movies

I was originally going to make this as a post to try to rank the non-Avengers Marvel movies, but there is so much more to talk about than that. So first to start things out, this post is about all of the different Marvel segments, Marvel Studios owns the rights to all of the movies that have gone into the Avengers as well as many other peripheral and smaller characters, 20th Century Fox owns the rights to X-Men and the Fantastic Four, and Columbia Pictures owns the rights to Spider-Man.

So as it is my understanding, deals were signed with these other production companies before Marvel started producing its own movies, and the terms of the agreement allowed these companies the right to the characters as long as they kept using those rights. Imagine what could happen if Marvel owned the rights to all of these characters. Imagine who could pop up in what movie? There are so many possibilities that are currently unable to happen.

Now I would assume that these agreements were made well before Marvel started producing its own movies, but even if there was an inkling that they might one day produce their own movies, why would you sign an indefinite contract giving up the movie rights for some of the biggest characters?

Now I can't really complain with what has been done with the X-Men movies, I have enjoyed them all so far. The Spider-Man movies are another story, the first 2 made this whole superhero boom possible, without them we would not have had a chance for The Avengers or all of the movies leading up to it. The issue is the 3rd movie along with The Amazing Spider-Man series. The 3rd movie just had way too much going on, now the stories I have read involve it being the work of too many re-writes and a director who had already done what he had wanted to do in the first 2 films, but was obligated to make the 3rd, also possibly he might have not been in charge of the editing as well. But the new series, I could not have cared less about the first movie, and doubt I will waste time seeing the 2nd movie even on HBO, it just doesn't seem interesting. For the record, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 got 10% less on Rotten Tomatoes than Spider-Man 3.

Now the issue isn't that they are making bad Spider-Man movies, but the fact that they are going to run the character into the ground. They have 3rd and 4th movies scheduled from 2016 and 2018 already, even though this movie was so poorly rated. Give Spidey a break!

Why don't they just sell it back to Marvel for a percent of the proceeds of all future movies made with Spider-Man in them, it just pains me to see this character being ruined for future movies. As long as these movies make money, the studios will keep making them, and my dream of Spider-Man being in the Avengers can no come to fruition. I would also lots to see a Spider-Man and Deadpool movie, also just a Deadpool movie, and so many combinations of these characters teaming up, and even possible secretly popping up in other movies.

On top of the Avengers movies Marvel has been producing TV series, the animated shows actually have the characters teaming up and popping up outside of their normal domain, because Marvel has the right to all of the characters in animated form. I would also love to see an X-Men show like one of the shows being produced for Netflix, take a few of the lesser known X-Men and make a show out of their activities, something online those lines.

This doesn't really need to be mentioned, but The Fantastic Four was just brutal, and it might get messed up once again when they reboot starts up soon. I just think that Marvel could do a much better job than Fox has with it.

The reason that I like Marvel Studios rather than these other Studios is that they have been very methodical about what they have been doing. They choose good writers, as well as good actors to fill the roles, which is also what was so successful about the first 2 Spider-Man movies. The actors don't just have to be good at acting, but a fit for the role.

I guess the real takeaway from all of this ranting is that I wish this was a perfect world, and I wish it wasn't driven by money! I wish we could have some crazy crossovers or even like a Marvel vs DC style movie, but that will, in all likelihood, never happen. I wish this was a world that was ruled by what would make the best and most interesting movies, but what rules the movie industry is only money.

Netflix Chronicles #1

Well I thought I would start posting my thoughts on different things I have seen on Netflix, they aren't new movies, but there are many great movies, and also many great tv shows on Netflix Instant, as well as on demand on the premium channels that I get, and even some movies on DVD that I might have missed watching when they first came out. I just thought I would write about them as I watch them, not everything will get written about, but anything I find interesting. Netflix may be in the title, but this is not really limited to Netflix.

Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil- I watched this movie again recently with one of my friends, and I really enjoyed it, maybe not quite as much as the first time, but I definitely laughed a ton and jumped at the times I was supposed to. I think not knowing anything about the story going into it helps, other than knowing that it is a horror comedy, so there will be some scares and a bit of blood, while there are also some lovable characters. I highly recommend this movie.

Brick- This movie really wowed me, I really don't know where to start with the awesome things that it did. This was the movie that Rian Johnson wrote and directed with Joseph Gordon-Levitt in it because they worked together again in Looper. This movie takes the classic genre of film noir and places it in a high school setting. I still got the feeling that the movie was from another time, other than the semi-modern tech like cell phones. The movie was just simply awesome, and I would advise everyone to check it out. It is available on Netflix Instant, and can likely be found through other means as well, that was just the most convenient for me. I think this move was somewhat of an independent film and did not get that large of a release back in 2005 when it came out, I definitely did not heat about it until much later.

House on Haunted Hill- This is the original with Vincent Price, I had seen at least one movie with Vincent Price in it previously, but I thought another would have been a good taste of history around Halloween. This movie, I believe was likely wonderful when it was released in 1959, there were some very scary moments. I think they chose the right times for scares and the right times for twists, I liked the story, and even some of the effects were good, I just think some of it was just too dated to hold up over the 50+ years since its release. If you want to see a classic, check it out, otherwise I think you can pass on it.

Don't Trust the B in Apt. 23- I honestly can't explain why I started watching this show on Netflix, but I did. I had always thought that Krysten Ritter was funny in a weird sort of way. I think the weirdness is what I really like about this show, you have the party girl, the quiet Midwestern girl, and James Van Der Beek playing himself, or a comedic version of himself in New York. There is a lot of strange and dirty humor in this show, but that is just my kind of thing after all. I would say it is worth watching if you want a short funny show to check out, I think there are only 26 total episodes, and I am almost half way through the series, and it has really breezed by so far.

Drive- There was a lot of hype around this movie when it came out, I guess I never took the time to go and see it in the theater, and for some reason I never really felt an urgent need to see it. I don't know if I just didn't connect with this movie, but it wasn't all that enjoyable for me. I honestly think one of my favorite parts was the opening driving scene, and how that opening chase ended, such a brilliant idea! Other than that part, I felt like the movie was a lot of flash with only minimal bang. I didn't find the story very compelling, and while there were a lot of people I like in the movie, I didn't think the performances were that great. I could be a downer, but I just thought this movie was a miss for me.

Well this concludes the first edition of my ramblings about random visual media consumption that I have to share.

My Kind of Horror Movie

I can't claim that I am the biggest horror movie fan, but there are definitely certain horror movies that I enjoy, I just thought I would give a little bit of a rundown of those movies, it is October after all. Growing up I wasn't that much of a fan of horror, I was very easily scared, and had lots of nightmares. I am not older, but I still get scared, but I do enjoy it to a certain extent at this point. I just wanted to write about some of my favorite horror movies, and even found quite a few that I love on Netflix.

Alien- I love the first 2 movies of the series, great suspense and horror in them. Also one of few horror movies with a female hero, definitely 2 of my favorite Sigourney Weaver movies.

Attack The Block- A great and original monster/alien movie made in England and produced by one of my favorite directors, Edgar Wright. If you watch it, you will want to start calling your friends Bruv.

Gremlins- Who didn't watch and love this movie as a kid? Its still very enjoyable.

Leprechaun- My favorite bad horror series, how can you go wrong with Warwick Davis as the star? A young Jennifer Aniston is in the first movie, the 2nd movie is on Netflix Instant. Later in the series the movies get more ridiculous, going into space and into the hood.

Pan's Labrynth- This is a great Guillermo Del Toro movie, with some of his most creepy and erie monsters, with the back drop of being in Franco Era Spain.

Shaun of the Dead- The movie that really helped launch the carreers of Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and Edgar Wright. A great horror comedy.

The Shining- Such an all around classic! How many times has this been parodied, but it is still great with some amazing visuals, and many very creepy parts to it.

Signs- I think this is an underrated movie, I think it does a good job of hiding the aliens while still have some suspenseful, and I like how the story actually came together, I guess I don't hate M. Night as much as many other people do.

Zombieland- I think this is my 2nd favorite zombedy, love the comedy, and characters, and who doesnt enjoy Emma Stone?

The Night of the Living Dead- The original zombie movie, always shown on tv a lot around Halloween, and I watch it on a yearly basis.

Dawn of the Dead- I have to admit that I have only seen the remake, but I love watching it, I think it pays a good tribute to the original Romero style zombies.

On Netflix
The Host- I love this movie, its a Korean monster movie about creature that start attacking people and it can be found on Netflix.

The Cabin in the Woods- This is a great meta horror movies that just deconstructs the genre, truly scary while also being extremely funny, produced and written by Joss Whedon. It is on Netflix.

Carrie-The original is found on Netflix, I really enjoyed it when I watched it years ago, I am usually of the mindset that you should watch the original version of something before you watch the remake, especially when the remake doesn't really change anything. A classic story about teenage angst gone horribly wrong.

Tucker and Dale Vs Evil- I think its a different take on a horror movie where everything happens because of a misunderstanding. On Netflix. I love both Tyler Labine and Alan Tudyk in almost everything they are in.

Evil Dead 2- Available on Netflix, you don't need to see the first Evil Dead to enjoy the 2nd one. The 2nd is pretty much a remake of the first by the same group of people once they were ale to get funding for it. This helped launch the careers of Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi, a good funny horror movie. Also the sequel Army of Darkness is deifnitely worth checking out.

Slither- I love this dark and disturbing horror movie, it can be quite gross at times, I will give that warning, but its got some great people in it like Nathan Fillion and Elizabeth Banks. On Netflix

The Faculty- This is one of my guilty pleasure movies, I would watch this movie all of the time when it was on TNT or TBS or USA or one of those channels quite frequently. It is a bit of a take on The Invasion of the Body Snatchers. On Netflix

Ghostbusters- Who doesn't love this movie? If you don't I am not sure why you are reading my blog, we probably don't have much in common then. On Netflix


I haven't seen but have in me queue on Netflix

House on Haunted Hill- the Original with Vincent Price, I have seen some movies with Vincent Price and thought I would check this one out.

The Innkeepers- I heard about this movie from a podcast I listen to, and it was filmed in an old inn that is supposedly haunted out east. Seemed like an original story.

Mimic- I might be wrong, but this was Guillermo Del Toro's first english language movie. It is about an ever evolving creature that was created through the use of pesticides.

Let The Right One In- A Swedish Vampire movie that was remade in the US a few years ago.

IFC Shows

I have really loved what IFC has done with their original comedies, in their attempts, they have 3 shows that I really love, and the also have the rights to reruns of several other shows. I just wanted to show a little love for these shows, and I hope they keep making more original content like these shows. These are not the types of comedies that you would see on network television, they each have their own specific style and voice, and I am really glad these types of shows have found a home somewhere.

Portlandia
I think Portlandia is their current flagship show so to speak. It has aired 3 seasons, and the premise is really just examining cartoonish character that are found throughout Portland, Oregon. Every scene has Fred and Carrie in it, in many cases they are dressed up in unusual costumes, and Fred definitely does some cross dressing. There are some characters that appear regularly, and others that are more one off in the show's run. I love the writing of the show, and really the creativity. I also love the theme song that gets stuck in my head every time I hear it. I believe the first 2 seasons can be found on Netflix if you want to check some of it out.

Maron
The first season on Maron aired this past spring, with a 10 episode run that ended a few weeks ago. I am hopeful that it will be renewed for a 2nd season. The show follows a fictionalized version of the shows creator and star Marc Maron. The show follows him through different situations in his life from dating, to dealing with internet trolls. The show definitely has his voice captured well, and it even incorporates his podcast WTF into the plot at times, and also brings in different stars that way as well. Marc Maron has definitely spent a long time trying to find his place in the comedy world, and he is finally hitting his stride with his own very unique voice. For people who are fans of Louie on FX, this show has a similar feel to that show. Hopefully this show will be available in Netflix eventually, but because it is so new, its not yet available there.

Comedy Bang Bang
Comedy Bang Bang is a show that has been in many forms, it was originally called Comedy Death Ray, and was a radio show as well as a weekly comedy show in Los Angeles. The shows changed its name to Comedy Bang Bang, and the stage show eventually went away, the creator and host of the show is Scott Aukerman. Both the tv show and the podcast show have appearances from both real celebrities, and comedians and improvisers playing all sorts of characters. The television show really is an absurdist's take on the normal late night talk show format, with many weird and bizarre moments. The shows band is Reggie Watts, if you haven't heard of him, you should definitely look up some of his videos on Youtube, he is able to create some amazing songs all on his own, no backing instruments at all, he uses tools to loop his own voices to make melodies. On the show Scott will have one celebrity guest and at least one character of some kind, you will see some of the funniest people in the comedy world making experiences. I will admit that this show might not fit everyone's sense of humor, but the weirdness of it really makes me laugh a lot. The first season of the show is found on Netflix, and the 2nd season of 20 episodes starts last night July 12th. I am a big fan of supporting comedy that I like so I would really like to get more people to watch the show if at all possible.

Like I said before, I really like that IFC has taken chances on such unique shows and letting the talents involved with the shows have their own creative control and vision. If you don't interfere too much on the network side, lots of amazing things can be made in television.

Baseball's Back and WNYX Has It

The title line is taken from the following video. Every time I think of Opening Day I think of this video. I am going to start including more videos in my posts, I would love to provide people with some classic moments that I have enjoyed in the past.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7ZL5tfSgA0

My favorite line in the video is, "I"m Bill Mcneal......on crack.......I like boys."

News Radio is such a classic show that my brothers and I loved watching. I still enjoy watching the reruns on Reelz channel I believe. The classic battles between Phil Hartman's Bill Mcneal and Dave Foley's Dave Nelson are always enjoyable. Worth checking out if you want some with a great 90's sense of humor. Lots of people who are much more well known now got big breaks in this show.

This brings me to my excitement about baseball.

I really need to force myself to take a lot of time off of girls. I think I have been hurt so much by putting myself out there in the past, that subconsciously I am unable to really develop feelings anymore. I am just like pure brain now, and no heart. I guess I am a real life Tin Man. It was the Tin Man who lacked a heart right? (Yes I looked it up after writing that)

I need to find a way to correct myself. Maybe doing some self help reading is the solution. Maybe some healing will happen with time, and maybe I need to stop trying to force myself to have feelings for people. I think I need to suspend all of my online dating profiles on the different sites, although I guess I ccan only think of 2 different sites. That will take away the temptation of trying to contact someone online. Maybe I need to actually learn to start something offline hahahaha. I think there are a great deal of things that I need to work on. I have had some flair ups of anxiety, specifically when I was thinking about starting a job search. Of course I am still thinking about that, but it makes me a bit nervous. Maybe I actually am in need of some courage. I will have to remember that for the next time I visit the Wizard. This actually makes me think of something that I will address later in the post.

Wow that is somewhat of a decent transition to discussing looking for a job, I have kind of been putting it off, but I guess it wouldnt hurt to start as soon as possible. I still really wish I knew what I wanted to do, but maybe what i want to do is something I can do on the side, such as writing. I would just need a job with hopefully a regular schedule that I could work around and actually set up a normal routine with! I can't imagine how nice that would be. I think I would be able to get more exercise that way. I really need to set some goals for a job hunt and my personal life. I think that is what I will work on for my next post.

Where the hell has creativity gone in Hollywood? I know everyone has heard this all before, but I needed to write about it myself. I referenced this somewhat earlier about visiting the Wizard, but I believe there are 2 or 3 movies in the making that are in some way related to the Wizard of Oz. I believe there is a straight up remake coming, as well as a prequel. What is up with that? Have all the original stories been done or something? Lets make a prequel to a movie from 1939 that totally makes sense.

There are so many prequels, sequels, and remakes coming out in the next few years. I can understand wanting to make a sequel to Tron, now that the technology has advanced that you can actually make it seem so real. There are just so many movies coming out that are unoriginal. There are some re-imaginings that I have enjoyed, specifically Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, plus I am guessing I will enjoy The Dark Knight Rises, as long as it does not go Spiderman 3 on us. And of course they are re-booting Spiderman back to his high school days. Spiderman and X-men really got this comic book movie trend started and now they are both being rebooted, less than 10 years later. I really liked Spiderman 1 and 2 as well as X-men 1 and 2, and even the Last Stand to a lesser degree.

The industry is of course driven by money. Make sequels to movies taht made a ton of money. Even if the writing is not as good, just throw in tons of flashy effects to cover that up (Transformers 2, no one will ever be able to convince me that movie was even decent. Everyone who was involved with it admitted it was bad, but I still come across people who tell me it was amazing. I have never been so bored in a movie with so much action. Plus I think it killed Michael Jackson). They are remade Red Dawn, which was not that great of a movie to begin with. I think the movie has been finished for 2 years, but they are trying to cut it in a way that won't be offensive to Russians or Chinese people

Do we really need another Pirates of the Caribbean movie? And as good as The Hangover was the first time around, do you really think they can replicate that with a second movie? Or will it become a movie revered by the Jersey Shore loving crowd? I don't even think The Hangover is all that great after watching it a 2nd time. It just is not that rewatchable.

I will give Transformers 3 a chance because I enjoyed the first one enough. There are just so many of these sequels and prequels that I have little not no interest in at all. I want to like as many movies as possible, but some movies just make it way too hard for me to do that.

This topic of course brings me to Arthur. I had not until this point seen this movie, but at the same time I can't imagine Russel Brand doing the character justice. There is just something about him that rubs me the wrong way, which is weird because I usually love british humor. He was good in a small dose in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, but Get Him to the Greek was just too much of him for my taste. It was also lacking in other areas.

The extent of exposure I previously had with Arthur is the references that were made to it on the show The Critic, one of my favorite forgotten shows, and also the trailer of the new remake of Arthur. The same guy who played Jerry's dad on Seinfeld plays Liza Minelli's dad in Arthur, weird. I think I actually understand this Arthur character more than I should. I might not be a womanizing alcoholic, but i tend to laugh way too often. I sometimes think of myself as a failure, but in the end for the most part keep myself in good spirits. In the end he chose love and a working life, over a fortune

I am looking forward to the upcoming movie Your Highness. I think the cast should be fun, and its an idea that has not been beaten to death. A romantic medieval epic comedy? Other than Princess Bride I can not think of any others. Of course its 2am and I am starting to get tired, so I might be missing something.

Other movies I have not mentioned that I am looking forward to:
Bridesmaids
Super 8
Super
Bad Teacher

Write about:
Monsters- This is such an awesome movie. There are really 2 whole characters in the movie. Its quite a simplistic movie. Trying to get across a potential wasteland where some monsters are being held. There are some beautiful shots of wilderness, as well as not having all of the information about what is going on creates this uneasiness, at least it did in me. I really enjoyed the action and the mystery that was created by the situation, as well as just finding it intriguing. It has a bit of the feel of Cloverfield because of the monsters and the mystery involved. Monsters is available on Netflix Instant if you feel like giving it a try.

Garden State-This may be my favorite movie to watch when I am a bit depressed. I love, and really connect with the feelings of melancholy involved in it. I think this may still be the best soundtrack for any movie I have seen. It does such a good job of getting the feeling of the movie across to the viewer. I think many of my readers will have already seen Garden State, but if not its definitely worth viewing.

I almost forgot to write about my birthday! Its becoming less and less of an event each year. I might actually try to do something bigger next year, I think that it would help to think about doing something more than a day in advanced. I think I didn't really care this time around because well I hate being the center of attention for things, even on my birthday of all days, silly me.

Well I think I have spent more than enough time writing this, and maybe I will start to write more. I am really looking forward to it warming up so I can go on late night jogs/walks without getting too cold. I can do half of my route, but the whole route is too long and I still slip on the sidewalks due to some remaining ice. I hope by next week this will be greatly reduced.

Well as always, I would love feedback, comments, suggestions or anything anyone has to share.

Things I did while writing this:
Watched Futurama, laughed at the name Noticeably F.A.T.
Looked up how to spell Bill Mcneal
Started watching the original Arthur with Dudley Moore on Netflix Instant
Looked up the year The Wizard of Oz came out.
Worked on actually linking movies I mentioned!!!
I guess technically I slept while writing this post, had to take a 7 hours break from it
Started Watching Season 3 disc 2 of Mad Men and recognized Carla Gallo from Undeclared in an episode