Critics are talking about this movie like it’s the rapture. For some, it probably is a religious experience. Click here for a collection of reviews. On the other side, you have a DC vs. Marvel geek war. Whenever The Avengers comes up you inevitably get comments from fans of Christopher Nolan’s Batman franchise. They say that it doesn’t matter how much people like The Avengers because come July, The Dark Knight Rises will wipe the floor with the superhero mash-up.

I mean, it’s not like I don’t agree. The Dark Knight Rises will be massive, probably the most massive, but when did nerds start getting all Kanye West on other nerds? (In meek voice) But is it ok to like The Avengers too? Even if it’s not by Christopher Nolan?

Marvel Studios intention to bring all of the early Marvel comic icons together began with The Hulk in 2003. Marvel has been building this house for YEARS. And they have a lot invested in it. This movie could have been a mess. It could have had too much happening, too much stuff blowing up, too many characters to follow. The director, Joss Whedon, has only ever directed culty stuff that doesn’t really click with the mainstream. Yet Marvel entrusted him with an expensive flagship property that doesn’t get much more mainstream, and HE. KILLED. IT!! He is absolutely the perfect person to head an undertaking such as this. He’s frugal, clever, witty, creative, and simply brilliant. I’ve always been a Joss Whedon fan! I had absolute confidence in this movie when I heard he was writing and directing it. C’mon, he has his own Whedonverse.

“Better clench up, Legolas!” The first time I saw The Avengers, I nearly lost my mind over this line. There are so many great lines. I could totally geek out about the lines. I’m seriously into Tony Stark. “Shakespeare in the park?”; “Capsicle”; and of course “That man is playing Galaga! Thought we wouldn’t notice. But we did.” are some of my favs. I also really love when Stark pokes Dr. Banner to see if he can make him Hulk out. I mean, it doesn’t even seem like Robert Downey Jr is trying.  Because it’s a lot of RDJ being sexy and snarky as Stark, mouthing off to everyone in the group, and picking on boring Boy Scout Captain America. Would have liked to have seen, at some point, Cap shut down Stark with, “Yeah well I used to party with your dad, so go get me a beer, Junior.”

Can we talk about Loki for a minute? Tom Hiddleston is talented, smart, handsome (not necessarily with that Loki hair though), and he is a HUGE dork. I love dorks. Hiddleston’s dorkiness is endearing. I’m sure the guy has an ego tucked away somewhere. Have you seen the pictures of him with the cute kid that happened across the Central Park set last year?  You can read the whole story here (Chris Evans comes off really well, too). Loki is my favorite big bad right now. He almost makes you want him to win. It’s his conviction, that smirk that’s says he’s got this situation on lock. And he would have got away with it too, if it weren’t for those meddling heroes and their Hulk. I’m glad he went to Norse God prison so (fingers crossed) he can stage a break out in the next movie.

What I wanted from The Avengers was more than just special effects and explosions. And what happens is that all of that becomes the background and everything else that’s great makes the movie, including the chemistry between the cast members, particularly RDJ and Mark Ruffalo. All I can say, in short, is that The Avengers is super fun, that I had a great time seeing it, that I was so happy after seeing it, and that I cannot wait to see it again.

If you’re waiting for The Avengers to hit dvd before you see it, or you just can’t get enough of your favorite hero’s, click on the following links for related items you can find at BCPL:The Hulk, Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, The Avengers, Joss Whedon

Can you believe how young they were??  Leo and Claire?  I forgot how pretty he was.  The fish tank scene always makes my heart happy.  He falls in love with her so convincingly, with that exquisite face of his, that you can’t help but feel so hopelessly involved yourself, never mind Shakespeare’s incomparable words describing their instant legendary connection.

Natalie Portman was apparently first offered the part of Juliet, but after shooting a few scenes with Leonardo DiCaprio, she looked so young, even next to him, that it seemed as though he was touching her inappropriately.  This is one of my favorite Hollywood factoids.  I always try to picture Portman in the role…and they were right, I never can.

Baz Luhrmann made this film into a Shakespearean acid trip, where fair Verona is a beach in modern day Florida.  It retains the original Shakespearean dialogue, but spoken with modern dialects.  The only character to speak in iambic pentameter is Father Laurence.  I wish I had been a production assistant on this set.  I wish I had been a part of this movie in any capacity.

I like Baz Luhrmann movies (except for Australia, that movie blows). His grandiose spectacle style is designed to get the attention of the people who are over stimulated by twitter and video games. That’s the audience now, isn’t it? Which is why I’m slightly concerned that he’s remaking The Great Gatsby in 3D. I don’t understand why people are so hardcore for 3D. Production for this movie was done in Luhrmann’s native Australia.  The Great Gatsby, on the short list of Great American Novels, is being filmed down under. In Australia.

Normally I don’t care about this stuff. But it’s Gatsby…a uniquely American story.  I just think that some stories belong irrevocably to a certain place.  Gatsby belongs on Long Island.  I can’t make myself like that Luhrmann is making Gatsby on a soundstage in Australia, in a totally false environment, when this real place exists. (Though sadly, the house believed to have inspired Daisy Buchanan’s East Egg estate was recently leveled. Check out these photos of the house in the days before it was demolished.)

The Great Gatsby is the product of a particular place and time.  The visuals for this movie, not surprisingly, do look amazing.  Click here to see the first official trailer that was released just this week.  I’m not sure, in this clip here, that Gatsby and Daisy share the same spark as Romeo and Juliet.  But trailers are often not representative. I’ll not put too much weight on this one then.

Here are some movies by Luhrmann that you can find at BCPL: Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge, and Australia.

First things first, what matters most is whether or not this story can be trusted in the abilities of Jennifer Lawrence. Because this movie hinges on her.

YES.  SO SO MUCH.  YES.

She IS Katniss. She is extraordinary. She makes up for the parts in the book that they couldn’t translate to film or was left out completely.

The world they’ve recreated from the visionary mind of Suzanne Collins is perfect. District 12 is perfect. The house Katniss shares with her mother and Prim is exactly how I imagined it. I felt just as profoundly unsettled about the Reaping as I did when reading the book, and watching it in full scale was amazing.

There is a triangular love story here, but it is not the focus. This is a story of survival and uprising. So glad they didn’t push a love story angle. Gale is her best friend and hunting partner (and an absolute stud). You can see hints of jealousy as he watches Katniss and Peeta in the arena, as mandated by the Capitol. Peeta admits his feelings for Katniss in a pre-games interview with Caesar Flickerman. Caesar Flickerman is played by Stanley Tucci. I love him as Caesar. SO MUCH! Katniss plays along as Peeta’s star-crossed-lover to get sponsors. It’s about survival for her. Maybe not for him.

Book purists will notice how they’ve tweaked Haymitch’s character. This Haymitch is less drunk and more active behind the scenes. Because it is a movie, we can’t get to know Haymitch’s motivations through Katniss’s thoughts. A voiceover wouldn’t cut it. A visual then becomes necessary. Haymitch at work is something new where the movie departs subtly from the book. This worked for me, totally.

The visual effects were pretty awesome, but I’m a snob and think they could have been better. I did enjoy seeing Katniss as the girl on fire. I promise you’ll enjoy it too. Overall it was a good movie. Really good. I think the violence was toned down, probably due to the targeted audience. You still feel the gravity of each district forced to send their children into an arena to kill each other as a reminder of the Capitol’s stronghold.  My main complaint would be that they opened up a lot to non-readers, but some very significant things they assumed to be understood. Like the symbolism of the mockingjay pin or the reverence of the three fingered salute. As a true fan I felt the full weight of the three fingered salute.

Is it just me or does Donald Sutherland as President Snow seem to lack a certain chill? I like my villains ice cold. So cold their smile sends a glacier down your spine as they dare you to defy them. And Katniss does by suggesting she and Peeta eat the poisonous berries together, leaving no victor for Snow to parade around. Essentially throwing “the games” back in his face. This was a risky move. It works, they both get out alive, but not without consequences. We’ll have to wait for Catching Fire to see the full extent of those consequences. I can’t wait! Can you?

Click here to check out more Hunger Games items including the motion picture soundtrack, companion guides, and unofficial cookbook at our library.

I watched The Immortals for the first time with my husband on DVD the other evening; neither of us were terribly impressed.  The film started out slow and did eventually move into some action packed fighting.  However, the kicker for me was the inaccuracy of the film with regards to its mythological foundation.
The premise is Theseus is a bastard, born to his mother after she was raped in a small Grecian village.  Unbeknownst to Theseus, his friend and mentor is actual Zeus (leader of the Gods) in disguise.  Theseus learns to fight from Zeus and eventually he faces Hyperion in his search to find the Epirus Bow and defeat all of Greece.  Meanwhile the Gods must fight the Titans whom Hyperion has released from their imprisonment in Mount Tartarus.

It wasn’t a bad film, but it certainly wasn’t what I would call a must-see thriller either.  The film ends with Theseus defeating Hyperion (of course), but dying in the process and being transported to live alongside the Gods and fight for them in the coming war.  We also see Theseus young son, Acamas, who has visions of Theseus fighting for the Gods; Acamas is the son of the Oracle and Theseus and seems to have inherited his mother’s visions.

It’s definitely worth a borrow if you like war movies, but if you’re a huge mythology buff some of the inconsistencies may get under your skin.