As you all certainly know by now, I am a huge fan of the DC Animated films because I feel they have the edge on Marvel in that department. Plus, there are only 15 days left (including today) and I’ve been wanting to see today’s film Justice League: Throne Of Atlantis because I am an Aquaman fan. Arthur Curry (Matt Lanter) has always been in search of answers to certain questions his whole life, but when his surface father is killed in a mysterious attack, it sends him into a downward spiral. After certain unrest in Atlantis, Queen Atlanna (Sirena Irwin) wants Mera (Sumalee Montano) to find her son Arthur in hopes that he can be the link between both worlds, but she is killed by her devious other son and now Arthur will have to avenge her and save both worlds from colliding. The film also stars Sean Astin (Justice League: War) as Shazam, Rosario Dawson (Death Proof) as Wonder Woman, Nathan Fillion (Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox) as The Flash, Shemar Moore (The Brothers) as Cyborg, Jerry O’Connell (Stand By Me) as Superman, Jason O’Mara (Son Of Batman) as Batman, Sam Witwer (Crank) as Orm, Harry Lennix (Man Of Steel) as Black Manta, Juliet Landau (Ed Wood) as Lois Lane, and the film was directed by Ethan Spaulding (Son Of Batman).
I feel like every DC character story starts with them either being a drifter trying to figure out their place in life or an alcoholic trying to find their place in life. That was definitely the case in this film as Arthur Curry is a drunkard trying to figure out exactly who he is after the death of his father. I thought that the film was definitely a cool origin story for Aquaman that gives you some insight into who he is and what he can do. The film also introduced us to new scenarios like Wonder Woman and Superman dating which was a little different for me. One of my favorite things about the film is when he actually learns to use his powers especially the one where he summons the aquatic life like the shark that eats a certain villain in the film. The battle scene between the Justice League and the hydra/squid creatures was pretty cool and the overall battle scene at the end was good as well. Shazam is really starting to become one of my favorite characters as well because he looks like an adult, but he’s really just a kid so he acts like one in a way (his humor at least). My only criticism of the film is the little love story angles that you get, but I do understand why they did it (for subplots of course). I thought the voice acting was good and the story was well written. I am going to give the film an A- for a final grade.
For today’s film, I was in the mood for some superheroes and there are some films that I haven’t seen yet. Also, with the announcement of Justice League Dark, I figured there was some Justice League films out there I haven’t seen which is why I chose Justice League: War for today. A strange alien lifeform is planting some sort of bomb or device in Gotham, Central City, Metropolis, etc. This raises alarms for the Green Lantern (Justin Kirk) as he travels to Gotham to investigate with Batman (Jason O’Mara). With the help of Cyborg (
I do want to make something clear about the film and that the Justice League isn’t official in this film. They all begin to meet each other as they are forced to band together to fight Darkseid. Darkseid for those who don’t know is basically Marvel’s Apocalypse, but he is an alien life form who can shoot lasers out of his eyes just like Superman. The film had me excited to see that he was the villain of the film because I am a huge fan of Darkseid, but I was also excited to see Shazam in a film as well. I definitely like how they introduced him in the film and even though he looks like an adult, he still acts childish. We also get to see Cyborg’s origin in the film as he is created right before our very eyes. One of the things I enjoyed about the film was the story itself because it was a take on how they came together, but it showed how people were still afraid of them before they could rescue everyone. The film also features some language in it so I would be careful showing it to the kids (or at least use some caution) and there is definitely some violence in the film as well. This definitely isn’t my favorite DC Animated film, but it’s up there. You have to check out Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox, but if you want an origin story then check this one out. I am going to give the film an B for a final grade.
One of the greatest movie franchises of all time in my opinion are the action adventure James Bond series which has now seen six different men assume the role (Sean Connery,George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig). Out of all the Bond’s, Pierce Brosnan is the one that has played Bond that I have not see very much of so I took the chance and watched GoldenEye for today’s film. After following a couple of leads, James Bond learns that someone is trying to steal GoldenEye, a weapon that destroys through electronic devices. He teams up with a Russian woman (Izabella Scorupco) who survived the first attack with the weapon to try and stop the syndicate that is using it. Although when Bond meets the man behind the syndicate, he turns out to be a familiar person Bond thought was dead. The film also stars Sean Bean (Game Of Thrones) as Alec Trevelyan, Famke Janssen (X-Men) as Xenia Onatopp, Joe Don Baker (Cape Fear) as Jack Wade, Judi Dench (Skyfall) as M, Desmond Llewelyn (Thunderball) as Q, Samantha Bond (Downtown Abbey) as Miss Moneypenny, Alan Cumming (X-Men 2) as Boris, Gottfried John (Proof Of Life) as Gen. Ourumov, and the film was directed by Martin Campbell (Green Lantern).
There was definitely something special going on with this film especially seeing as it’s the first film Pierce did in the series that took six years to come out. They literally almost went with a whole new staff with a new M (Dench) who was the first female to play M in the series and a brand new Moneypenny. The only thing that didn’t change was Q who was once again played by the legendary Desmond Llewelyn. The film had plenty of action scenes to satisfy any Bond fan, it had the perfect Bond girl(s) in Famke Janssen (She is vicious and strange and Izabella Scorupco as well as a good enough Bond villain in a former 00 agent. Who better to match wits with James Bond then another former agent. The only thing I’m not really sure about is how I feel about Pierce Brosnan as James Bond. The only other film in the series I had seen that I didn’t like was Die Another Day. I thought the film itself was very good and I can see why people hyped this one up a lot (I was told that I had to see this one). I think I’ll have to see the rest of his films to really judge where I think he fits among the other Bonds. He’s got suave which I will give him, but he doesn’t exactly have the swagger like Connery or Moore. The car racing scene in the beginning of the film is very cool to watch and the scene with the army tank is another must see. The film was enjoyable to watch which is why I am going to give the film an A- because it may be the best Brosnan-Bond film for now.
If we have learned anything from past films that involves time travel is that you never change anything from the past because you risk screwing up the present timeline you live in. That is definitely the case with today’s film Justice League- The Flashpoint Paradox. Barry Allen (Justin Chambers) a.k.a. The Flash has lost his mother and after an encounter with Professor Zoom (C. Thomas Howell), the world as Barry knew it has changed drastically. Bruce Wayne (Kevin Conroy) was murdered instead of his parents, Aquaman (Cary Elwes) and Wonder Woman (Vanessa Marshall) are at war with each other, and Superman (Sam Daly) is no where to be found in Metropolis. Now, it’s up to Barry to try and figure out exactly what happened so that he can change it back to bring back the world that he knew. The film also stars Michael B. Jordan (The Fantastic Four) as Cyborg, Kevin McKidd (Trainspotting) as Thomas Wayne, Dee Bradley Baker (American Dad!) as Etrigan the Demon, Steve Blum (The Boxtrolls) as Lex Luthor/Captain Thunder, Nathan Fillion (Castle) as Hal Jordan, Ron Perlman (Hellboy) as Deathstroke, James Patrick Stuart (The Penguins Of Madagascar) as Captain Boomerang, Hynden Walch (Adventure Time) as Yo-Yo, and the film was directed by Jay Oliva (Batman Vs Robin).
First of all, I just want to say that Marvel may be winning the motion picture war, but DC definitely has Animated films and TV shows on lock. DC has really produced some of the most memorable animated films of the last ten or so years and this is definitely one of them. One thing that I wasn’t surprised about after watching the film was that the rating the film received was PG-13. You have to see the film for yourself to know why, but it is definitely a violent film.You’ll be shocked by some of the scenes of violence, but not in a bad way if you get what I mean. I really loved the concept of what if Bruce Wayne had died which then turned his father into Batman and his mother into The Joker. There is a giant war going on that pins villains and superheroes against each other as Wonder Woman wages war against Aquaman. Then there is the shocking discovery of Superman and what he looks and acts like in the film which is a must see. The one thing that frustrated me is that you made it obvious that Martha Wayne is The Joker, but you never show her at all during the film. The only reason it upsets me is because The Joker is my all time favorite villain. The big reveal at the end of the film is where it’s at and I am not going to give it away, but it’s a must see for anyone that enjoys smart writing. This is definitely one of my favorite DC animated films besides the Suicide Squad one that is out and the Batman: Under The Red Hood. I am going to give this one an A- for a final grade.
365moviesin365dayschallenge 