Justice League gets mixed reviews

Movie Title: 
 Justice LEAGUE

Grade:  B

Rating:   PG-13, 110 minutes

In a Nutshell:  With this much superpower force, this movie should have been awesome, but is getting very mixed reviews.

The gathering of the Avengers in Captain America: Civil War brought together fun and quirky personalities that created a super spark that surprised and delighted audiences, something that this movie struggles with.

Uplifting theme: 

• “Hope is like your car keys – easy to lose, but if you look around, you can find it.” - Superman (Henry Cavill)
• “Hope is real.  All you have to do is look…up in the sky.” – Lois Lane (Amy Adams) 

Things I liked:

• I think Gal Gadot is gorgeous and I was looking forward to seeing her again after her successful Wonder Woman movie. Unfortunately, she gets a little lost in all the testosterone and frenzied action.
• Keep watching ALL the way to the very last of the rolling credits to see two more clips.
• The Amazonian women are awesome.  Their battle sequence was one of the best in the entire movie.  Their costumes and hair were dramatically changed from what they looked like in the Wonder Woman movie.  Hmmm...which one is going to stick?
• Most of the CGI is really great.
• I like Ben Affleck as Batman.  He’s certainly the solid leader in this league and his fans will think his opening scene is really cool.
• I thought Jason Momoa made a cool, bad boy Aquaman and I'm excited to see him in his own feature film for this character, which comes out December 21, 2018 in the USA.

Things I didn’t like:

• I was excited to see how DC was going to handle Superman’s death, and was pleased to see he was given so much respect in this movie.  I really like Henry Cavill as Superman in Man of Steel (2013) I think Henry Cavill is so handsome, but what was going on with his CGI face?  It turns out that he had a mustache for his upcoming role in Mission Impossible and Paramount forbade him to remove it, so they used CGI to brush over the stash.  Weird, right?  I thought it was ridiculous that Batman beat Superman to begin with in Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice.  Superman is way better than Batman. You can read my movie review of Batman vs. Superman here.
• Some of the action sequences seemed so rush and chaotic that it's hard to see what's happening.  You don't see a lot of civilians in the fighting areas, which tends to make the scenes feel less dangerous and urgent.
• The DC movies are much more dark than the Avenger films.  Based on huge box office sales at Marvel movies, audiences seem to prefer a more light-hearted superhero action flick.  My youngest son explains it by saying, “Marvel is self-aware and doesn’t take itself so seriously.”  Yup.
• I would have loved to see more of Atlantis.
• Barry Allen/The Flash played by Ezra Miller is supposed to provide the comic relief for the movie, but a lot of the humor falls flat.  He also looks really strange when he's running. Weird, since that's his big talent.
• People who aren’t familiar with DC Comics may not know who Steppenwolf is, other than they’ve heard of the rock band with the same name.  ha ha  We first saw a blurred glimpse of Steppenwolf in a deleted scene in the movie Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice, which was later released online.  He’s scary, mean, bad, and angry, but there are rumors we’ll learn more about him and the Darkseid in future movies.
• JUSTICE LEAGUE had to undergo a lot of reshoots and redo’s, because it was directed by two different directors.  Unfortunately, the first director’s daughter died, so he pulled out of the project.
• The character introductions seemed rushed for the new superheroes like Aquaman, Cyborg, and the Flash.  Warner Brothers has tried to keep their superhero movies at 2 hours or less, but this movie could have benefitted by longer backstories that explained character motivation better.  Comic book fans who are familiar with the characters and stories will be able to fill in the missing gaps, but the general public won’t.
• It always bugs me when trailers have lines and scenes that aren’t even in the final movie.
• Once you see the movie, you’ll probably forget it.

Interesting lines:

• “Technology without reason, without heart, destroys us.” – Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot)
• “I believe in truth, but I’m also a big fan of justice.” - Superman
• “What are you?” – bad guy

“A believer.” – Wonder Woman

• “You’re out of your mind, Bruce Wayne.” – Aquaman

“Doesn’t mean I’m wrong.” – Batman

• “Darkness, true darkness is not the absence of light, but the conviction that the light will not return.” – Lois Lane

Funny lines:

• “What are your super powers again?” – Barry Allen (Ezra Miller)

“I’m rich.” – Batman

• “It’s good to see you play well with others again.” – Alfred (Jeremony Irons)

“Dressed like a bat.  I dig it.” – Aquaman

“It may be temporary.” – Batman

• “Children.  I work with children.” – Wonder Woman

Tips for parents: 

• One of the superheroes drinks alcohol.
• Some profanity.
• Shootings, violent fighting, death of humans and other creatures.
• Lots of butt shots and skimpy clothing on Wonder Woman.  I really liked her movie, but she's treated like just another pretty object in this one.

@trinaboice 

Wonder Woman is wonderful

Movie Title:  Wonder Woman

Grade:  A-

Rating: PG-13, 141 minutes

In a Nutshell: I used to watch Wonder Woman on TV back when I was a little girl.  I loved it.  I thought she was beautiful, kind, and strong.  As a little girl, it made me feel like I could do almost anything. Yep, this superhero movie is about female empowerment, but it has a lot more than that.

I don’t know why it has taken this long to bring Wonder Woman to the Big Screen.  Maybe we were waiting for the perfect Gal Gadot.

This fun action flick has just the right amount of humor and Justice League magic.  Warner Brothers gives us an extremely entertaining summer popcorn blockbuster that gives Marvel a run for its money.  It’s part of a set up for Justice League and a planned trilogy for Wonder Woman.

Uplifting theme: 

• “If you see something wrong happening in the word, you can either do nothing or you can do something." - Steve Trevor (Chris Pine)
• “What one does, when faced with the truth, is more difficult than you would think.” – Diana/Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot)
• “It is our sacred duty to defend the world.” –  Diana/Wonder Woman
• "Everyone is fighting their own battles, Diana, just as you're fighting yours." - Sameer
• “A promise is unbreakable.” - Diana
• "Only love can truly save the world." - Diana
• Love vs. hate, peace vs. war, humanity

Things I liked:

• Gal Gadot and Chris Pine are both gorgeous and awesome.  As Chris Pine’s character explains, “I am above average.”  Gal Gadot has the perfect accent to sound exotic.  As Sameer says about her, “OMG, that is a work of art.”  Eye candy for everyone.
• Great female stunt work.
• Some cool and fun slow-motion, as well as sped-up action sequences.
• Female director Patty Jenkins was going to film Wonder Woman back in 2005, but she became pregnant and the project was put on hold.  She said she was thrilled to be able to pick up the project again, because it was the movie she had been wanting to make her whole life.  She’s the first woman to direct a superhero film with a female protagonist.  We haven’t seen a female superhero since Electra in 2005.  It’s about time, right?
• Most of the CGI is very good, although it becomes a bit heavy towards the end.  Gal Gadot was actually 5 months pregnant during some of the filming, so they put green screen on her belly so they could remove the baby bump during post-production.
• I love it when the directors and producers put themselves in small cameo performances in their own films.  In this case, producer Zack Snyder shows up as a World War I soldier.
• Did you know this movie has been banned in Lebanon?  Gal Gadot is Israeli and even served in the military.
• Ah, romance.  I love that both Diana and Steve learn from each other and make one another better.
• I wish I had one of those truth lassos.
• It was cool to see the symbolism of light and color illustrated in man's world and that of Themyscera.
• The soundtrack was noticeably good.

Things I didn’t like:

• There are a couple of long, explanatory scenes to help you understand what’s going on.
• I wish Lynda Carter, the first TV Wonder Woman, could have made a cameo performance.  Apparently, she sings in cabarets and couldn’t fit it into her schedule.  She definitely should have made the time for her fans.
• The villain was pretty weak.

Interesting lines:

• “You let this little thing tell you what to do?” – Diana/Wonder Woman talking about Chris Pine’s watch.
• “You know that if you choose to leave, you may never return.” – Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen)

“Who would I be if I stayed?” – Diana

• “What kind of weapon kills innocents?” – Diana

“In this war, every kind.” – Steve Trevor
* "I believe in love." - Diana

Funny lines:

• “How could a woman ever possibly fight in this?” – Diana

“Fight?  We use our principles.  Although, I’m not opposed to using fisty cuffs, should the need arise.” – Etta (Lucy Davis)

• “Please put down the sword.” – Steve

“It doesn’t go with the outfit.” – Etta

• “Welcome to jolly ‘ole London!” – Steve

“It’s hideous!” – Diana

“Yeah, it’s not for everyone.” – Steve

• “You’re a man.” – Diana

“Yeah. I mean, don’t I look like one?” – Steve

• “Stand back!  Or maybe not.” – Steve
• “I’m both frightened and aroused.” – Sameer  (Said Taghmaoui)
• “You should be very proud!” – Diana after she tastes a vendor’s ice cream.  I feel that way about great ice cream too.
• “May we get what we want.  May we get what we need. But may we never get what we deserve.”  - men's toast at campfire

Tips for parents: 

• I love that the heroine is good.  She's someone I wouldn't mind my daughters emulating...if I had daughters.  I guess she's someone I wouldn't mind my sons marrying.  :)
• You see a LOT of Chris Pine…bare naked after a bath while he covers his junk with his hands.
• A man and woman close the door and a sexual romp is implied.
• Lots of violence, destruction, and explosions.
• At 141 minutes, it’s a long movie that a lot of little ones won’t be able to sit through.
• In the comics, the war is WWII, but the director chose to highlight WWI in the movie.  Parents might need to explain the differences between those two wars.