Iron Man 2

Happy Columbus Day (yesterday) - Actually today (October 12th) is the original Columbus Day. Yesterday was Columbus Day (observed). I only know this because I was born on October 12th. Yes...It's my birthday.

For my birthday, I treated myself to a DVD copy of Iron Man 2. Watched it right away. I must say, I loved it.

Of course, as we know, I can be pretty forgiving of Superhero movies, but there's a lot of good things about Iron Man 2.
Here are some of them:

• The armor looks awesome
• The effects in general look awesome
• Tony is a hard drinking, arrogant, insufferable dude who you can't help but cheer for
• Scarlet Johannsen
• Whiplash is pulled off very well by Mickey Rourke
• The Senate Committee hearing is awesome
• Lots of talk about the Avengers (Thor's hammer!)

Could I find some things wrong with the movie? Maybe...but minor issues. I could see how the following may bother some people

• Replacing Terrence Howard with Don Cheadle. I love both actors, but why replace him?
• Lots of subplots and lots of stuff going on. Not too much for a comic fan to keep up with, but maybe for a layperson (non-geek) to understand
• Whiplash ended up in armor...why?

So, a highly recommended DVD, even with a couple of issues. Of course, you should go buy it anyway to support our types of movies. As I have said many times, if we want more superhero movies, then we have to vote for them (with our money)

The real challenge for GI Joe

I loved GI Joe as a kid. I remember the tall guys where one of the dude's name was GI Joe. Later came the cool team of guys named Duke, Stalker, Snake Eyes, Rock-n-Roll, Breaker, Scarlett. I loved them as a kid.
So now, finally, there is a GI Joe movie (not surprisingly since there is a Transformers movie - everything old is new again). I haven't seen it yet, but I will.
Here is the challenge.
Back in the '80s, I remember GI Joe as being so cool when in fact, it had more cheese than a French wine festival. Today's kids are more sophisticated. Couple that with the fact that many of the movie goers at GI Joe will be former fan boys hoping for the same exilirating experience they had as youths.
So, the movie has to satisfy former fan boys who want to be thrilled but will not be thrilled by the same fare they saw when they first fell in love with GI Joe. So, it has to be different, more modern and relevant while still retaining some of the vestiges we all know and love.
The story also has to appeal to the younger generation if we want to get toy sales, spin offs, comic books, roleplaying games, a comic book (there actually is still a comic book that is pretty good).
Can it be done? Heck yeah. Look at Iron Man. So much more than just a comic book filmed in real life and put on the screen.
The right writer and director can do this for GI Joe. Let's hope they pulled it off

Yo Joe!

A list of cool metahuman movies with no spandex anywhere

I love superhero movies. I collect superhero movies. Some of my favorite movies about superheroes are not really about "superheroes". What the heck does that mean? Well, obvious superhero movies are Batman, Fantastic Four, X-men, Spiderman, Blade, Iron Man, Superman, Hancock, Watchmen...all of these are awesome, in my opinion, but there is another genre of superhero movie. I'll let the list be my example.
Here we go...
Jumper (Teleportation)
Push (Telekinesis)
The Matrix (The awakened people have all kinds of superpowers)
Next (PRecognition)
My Super Ex-Girlfriend (Kind of a standard superhero movie...cool nonetheless)
Star Wars (Jedi Knights are like Knights, Wizards and Superheroes all rolled into one)
The Transporter Movies (Martial arts and mad driving skills. Almost seems like hyper reflexes)
Fire Starters (Pyrokinesis)
The Shining (Telepathy)
Eragon (Dragon Riders are like super heroes in a fantasy setting)
Harry Potter (Magic and superpowers seem pretty similar sometimes)
Terminator (Terminators are like superheroes gone bad)
Dracula (Same comment as Terminator)
Frankenstein (The monster has mega superpowers)
Van Helsing (He's like an older version of Batman)
Underworld (All of them)
Resident Evil
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

I could probably come up with more by going to my movie cabinet, but my point is this: For those of us who love the superhero/metahuman genre, we don't always have to wait for the next comic-inspired film to find superheroes. Sometimes they are right in front of us just disguised as something a bit different.

Peace!