It’s finally all coming together on Friday where all the superheroes from the Marvel Cinematic Universe clash to bring down one of the galaxy’s biggest threats. Since its introduction in 2008, Marvel and Disney have made building universe look easy, but many modern studios have proven it’s an impossible task to pull off competently. Before Marvel and DC there were many established Extended and Shared, and if you’re looking for a break from Marvel, these are five you might love.
Author Archives: Felix Vasquez
Scumbag (2017)
Mars Roberge’s comedy is “Office Space” with a bit of “Fear and Loathing” with a dash of mumblecore thrown in for good measure. It’s definitely rough around the edges, but it’s also a movie that I had a good time with. The movie just drips charisma and enthusiasm and Roberge creates a comedy that’s filled to the brim with eccentric characters and a ton of sub-plots. While it wasn’t always easy to follow, Robrerge is able to derive a lot of fun moments from his entire cast.
“Super Schlock! The Weird, Wild Superheroes of the 90’s”! Buy it Today!
With superhero movies now bringing down box office records and garnering mass critical acclaim, the genre has transcended TV schlock and has now become a legitimate cinematic sub-genre. From it, auteurs all over Hollywood from Christopher Nolan to Taika Waititi have lensed some of the best superhero movies of all time.
But back in the nineties, Hollywood didn’t always want to put money behind a movie starring caped superheroes and crime fighters. A long time superhero buff, Felix Vasquez, editor of Cinema Crazed, takes a look at the decade where superhero movies were considered very risky gambles for FOX and Warner.
“Everyone knows Iron Man, Superman, Captain America, and Batman.
They are some of the biggest cinematic icons of the modern era.
But do you remember the technological hero M.A.N.T.I.S.? How about the super powered being known as Meteor Man? The Master of the Unknown, Doctor Mordrid? Ever met the super model crime fighter known as Lady X? How about the Roger Corman leather clad heroine Black Scorpion?
In the 90’s, the prospect of superhero entertainment was still in its infancy and considered a big gamble for major studios like FOX and Warner, thus superheroes were confined to television movies, and low budget films. Prepare to go back to a decade where the time of The Avengers, and Iron Man were still very far off.”
Galaxy on Fire (2018)
“Galaxy on Fire” has a lot of potential and creativity behind it, but it has a lot of work to do before it can be watchable. It’s not unwatchable in the sense that it’s bad, but in that it feels mostly incomplete and rushed. The animation varies from sharp to fuzzy, the voice work is stiff and rigid, the sound varies from loud to barely audible, and there is no real momentum to the narrative. Even for a twenty six minute movie it doesn’t do a lot to grab the audience.
Batman Ninja (2018)
Whether you love or hate “Batman Ninja,” you have to admit DC is at least going for something completely different and radical this time around. With a different crew and approach toward the mythology, “Batman Ninja” is a unique time traveling tale that finds Batman at his most godlike, worshipped as a near invincible warrior in Feudal Japan. Beautifully directed by Junpei Mizusaki, “Batman Ninja” puts the entire aesthetic of the DC character in to some of the wildest anime filters, and it works most of the time. Some concepts land with a thud, but when “Batman Ninja” soars, it’s quite spectacular.
Killer Klowns from Outer Space: Special Edition (1988) [Blu-Ray]
I’m not entirely sure why, but I hated “Killer Klowns” when I was a kid. And I say this as someone who loved “Spaced Invaders.” That said, watching it years later, it’s shocking how great “Killer Klowns” is as much as it is creative. You can tell “Killer Klowns” is working on a tight budget, but it’s also obviously spending every single penny meticulously to work toward the movie’s benefit. While the film isn’t perfect, “Killer Klowns” earns its cult classic status as a very unique horror comedy. It’s creative, it’s funny, it’s delightfully gruesome and you have to love that theme song.
Ghost Stories (2018)
“And it was going so good too.” That’s my initial reaction to the third act of “Ghost Stories” which feels like one gigantic cop out of a finale. You can reason that the creators wanted to introduce these esoteric ideas that come colliding, but I felt like “Ghost Stories” just ran out of ideas and just stopped trying. I’m also not a fan of the underlying message about how lack of belief is linked to being some kind of bitter individual with a horrible life. Either way I imagine the finale to “Ghost Stories” will be a very polarizing element in the horror movie world in 2018. I think some horror fans will defend its radical approach while others will lambast it for trying way too hard. I’m in the latter category. I didn’t buy its self important morality play.