Short Films for You! Productions Spectrum Special [SDCC 2022]

Normally, we’d bring you a bunch of random shorts all under one theme and from a variety of filmmakers and producer. This week, I’m bringing you a fantastic group of short films about superheroes because well, it’s San Diego Comic Con and everyone has heroes on the brain.

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The 5 Worst Films I Saw in 2021

I didn’t offer up best or worst of lists in 2020, mainly because I spent all of December fighting off COVID. I was sick as a dog but thanks to Phil Hall and Emilie Black for keeping the site chugging along like a well oiled machine!

In either case, 2021 was sadly hard enough to keep up with, what with there now being at least five or six new movies released every week on twelve streaming services (and in theaters) in America. In either case, opting for less cynicism (and because I subconsciously avoided a lot of movies that I thought would stink, sue me) this year, this is five of the worst movies of 2021.

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The Bootleg Files: SuperMark vs. Batmark!

BOOTLEG FILES 770: “Supermark vs. Batmark!” (2021 one-man parody of superhero flicks).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS:
An obvious parody of trademarked properties.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Unlikely.

On New Year’s Eve 2018, Connecticut real estate broker Mark Pires was sitting alone in his office was reviewing his sales efforts for the year that was coming to a close.
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Robert Kirkman’s “Invincible” is a Stellar, if Flawed, Superhero Epic

Full Disclosure: Amazon Studios gave us access to the first three episodes of “Invincible.” Please read with discretion.

I missed the boat when Invincible had its run in Image Comics, and I regret it, especially as a fan of “The Walking Dead.” Robert Kirkman is one of the group of Image comics heavyweights who manages to offer up his own superhero tale, but it’s given a massive twist that’s both bold and insanely violent. Taking the animated route this time out, producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg help realize Kirkman’s epic “Invincible” for the small screen, sticking true to many of the comics original storylines, and unfolding what is a unique, exciting, albeit imperfect at times, saga.

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We Can Be Heroes (2020)

When Robert Rodriguez is in kids movie mode, he tends to create some of the most syrupy sweet, loud, tepid movies for his intended audience that though they have a lot of the good intention behind them are pretty much destroyed by the climax. That’s the case with “We Can Be Heroes,” a movie so derivative and tired that it destroys a lot of the charming characters and conflicts in the process.

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Scooby-Doo & Batman: The Brave and the Bold (2018)

For the uninitiated when Scooby Doo was attempting a new formula, they turned “Scooby Doo” in to a series of movies where they solved crimes with big celebrities like Dick Van Dyke and Sonny and Cher. Among the most popular crossovers was Batman and Robin. For years Batman and Robin were the most consistent allies of Mystery, Inc. getting in to all kinds of scrape ups with them, and battling people like Joker and the Penguin. They just seemed to click. “The Brave and the Bold” continues the long tradition by teaming them together by pairing the modern iteration of Scooby Doo with the family friendly animated “Batman: Brave and Bold” and it works.

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The Incredibles 2 (2018)

“You can’t count on anyone, especially your heroes.”  – Syndrome

Leave it to Disney and Pixar. They have the stable of Marvel superheroes at their disposal and they approach “The Incredibles 2” not as a cash grab but a sincere look at the idea of superheroes in the modern era. Sure superheroes seem like a great idea in theory, but “The Incredibles 2” uses its concept as a means of exploring the world with superheroes and how it can have its definite upsides and crushing downsides. The first film had the concept of the idea of the meaning of being exceptional, our natural advantages, and how mediocrity has become the norm for society that only accepted stellar, once upon a time. “The Incredibles 2” takes it a bit further dissecting the need for heroes and whether self-reliance is the only thing we have in this world.

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