BIRDS OF PREY MOVIE REVIEW: "NO ONE IS LIKE ME" [SPOILERS]

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Birds of Prey

and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn

Directed by Cathy Yan
Starring MARGOT ROBBIE, ROSIE PEREZ, JURNEE SMOLLETT-BELL, MARY ELIZABETH WINSTEAD, ELLA JAY BASCO, and EWAN MCGREGOR

'Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn' is gutsy, raw, twisted, and oh so much fun. It's 'Kill Bill' meets 'Deadpool' and it's a blast. Unlike 'Deadpool' (which was also an R-rated comic book film), 'Birds of Prey' was not marketed properly. It's already facing criticism because it didn't give fanboys nudity and sex appeal. It focused on women AS HUMAN BEINGS, not objects of sexual pleasure.

Birds of Prey is NOT a Flop

I'm writing part of this post on Saturday. Yet disgruntled fanboys are claiming victory for the sex appeal theory because 'Birds of Prey' is not meeting box office expectations. The echo chamber of the film news world is adding fuel to the fire.

Gotham is Nitty Gritty?| Batgirl Gets New Duds| Drunks Play Street Fighter + More

I'm sure you've noticed that I've made some website changes. I'm using a new template and I'm lovin' the new look. I hope you are too. It's a lot cleaner and simpler. Simple is always good. I'm still in the process of working out the gremlins, so if you notice any bugs please send me an email. Thanks!

New 'Gotham' Series, 'Godzilla' Growth Chart, + Cool Stuff!

Via Neatorama

See how 'Godzilla' has grown through the years. Yes I'm a little obsessed with 'Godzilla' right now, but I'd rather see a million Godzilla's than the new monstrosity from Bryan Singer, 'X-Men: Days of Future Past.' And no, I'm not referring to Singer's recent legal troubles. I never comment on such things. I have not liked Bryan Singer for years. Singer routinely butchers comics, throws them in the trash, then proceeds to burn them. He also has no brand loyalty. He is open to destroying both Marvel and DC Comics alike. I do like Marvel ok, but I'm a DC fan through and through. If you're a comic book fan, you will eventually develop some sense of brand loyalty or preference. Ergo, Singer is not a comic book fan, and he has said as much. Hugh Jackman said that Singer banned comics on the sets he works on. I don't know. It's kinda important to know the source material in my opinion. It doesn't have to be exact, but it should capture the spirit the comic book. A good balanced example is Joss Whedon's 'Avengers.'

Does Hollywood Hate 'Wonder Woman?'

Alex Ross' 'Wonder Woman'

We finally have a 'Wonder Woman' in the form of Gal Gadot. Gadot will play 'Wonder Woman' in the new 'Batman versus Superman' movie in 2016 (which has already been delayed) and will hopefully get her own feature film in the near future. Yay! Right? Well...the latter part is iffy. The standalone film has not yet been confirmed. So our best hope for seeing 'Wonder Woman' will be as a third wheel in a Zack Synder film. The same Zack Synder who did 'Sucker Punch.' Not so "yay."

Now the CW has recently announced that it is dumping the 'Amazon' television series before it begins. 'Amazon' was supposed to be an origins series for 'Wonder Woman,' similar to 'Smallville.' This is the second 'Wonder Woman' series to fall flat. There was also a NBC 'Wonder Woman' pilot in 2011 that was cancelled before it aired.

10 Reasons to Love Tom Hiddleston

Over the course of three short years, Tom Hiddleston has quickly become a household name and a fan favorite. Arguably, he is almost as popular with the fans as Chris Hemsworth, at least in the scifi community. Perhaps you don't know who Tom Hiddleston is. Or if you do recognize him, you know him as "that guy from 'Thor' and you don't know what all the fuss is about? If this is the case, then this post is for you.

Renaissance Art with Superheroes

Artist: Flash Daz

Source: Design.org

Superheroes are really "in" this year. Especially "in" art, modern or otherwise. Worth1000 held a Superhero ModRen photo-editing contest in which participants inserted modern superheroes into classical art pieces from the Renaissance. The mix of old with new is a beautiful contrast. Some of the entries are better than others. Meaning some are really good and some are?? The portrait above by Flash Daz won first place. The others are worth a look too. Clearly 'Wonder Woman' was a popular choice! All the more reason we need a Wonder Woman movie-- RIGHT NOW. Design.org has posted a sampling of finalists below:

http://design.org/blog/modern-renaissance-superhero-designs-altered-art#g

'Ant-Man'-- Who should It Be?

Variety is reporting that Marvel is having a tough time choosing between Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Paul Rudd for the role of Ant-Man. No offense to Paul Rudd fans out there, but is this even a choice? It's true that Ant-Man is not your typical stoic superhero, like Superman or Spiderman. Ant-Man is more comedic and his powers are somewhat comical. Ant-Man wears a helmet to control--you guessed it-- ANTS, and he can shrink himself down to the size of an insect. He doesn't have super strength, speed, or intelligence. So considering Ant-Man's attributes, Rudd isn't far off base, as Rudd is a comedic actor.

It's Time For A 'Wonder Woman' film

Alex Ross' 'Wonder Woman'

I love 'Wonder Woman.' I love everything about 'Wonder Woman.' She's an Amazon, she's beautiful, she's tough, she's moral, she's dating Superman, and she kills evil things. Wonder Woman is literally the perfect fictional woman. Growing up as a geek, Wonder Woman was my favorite fictional role model, not Barbie. A fan-made short film by Rainfall Films reminded me just how badly we need a 'Wonder Woman' movie. It also made me ask myself why have we not seen anything Wonder Woman-esque since Linda Carter? Mind you Carter donned the skintight leotard in the late 70's. In tv and movie land, that...was...a...long...time...ago.

Yay, The 'Justice League' Movie Is Happening!

No more Lois Lane. Superman's new love interest is Wonder Woman.

If anyone knows me, they know that I'm a huge DC fan (Detective Comics). I love Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. Whereas, Spider Man is ...eh...ok. Marvel fans, you'll be glad to know that my husband is a huge Marvel fan. We have quite a few spirited debates. So when I read that Warner Brothers is preparing to do a Justice League movie, I got excited...and scared.

Doctor Who v. Star Trek Crossover Comic - Finally!

Star Trek: TNG/Doctor Who: Assimilation #5 (Scott & David Tipton with Tony Lee. Art by J.K. Woodward)

The Wikipedia entry has a good synopsis:

Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who: Assimilation2 is an eight-issue limited series comic book written by Scott and David Tipton, with art by J.K. Woodward. The series will be published by IDW Publishing beginning May 2012 and is a cross-over featuring the science-fiction series Doctor Who and Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Assimilation2 sees the Eleventh Doctor and his companions Amy Pond and Rory Williams encounter the crew of the USS Enterprise, joining together to stop an alliance between the Borg and the Cybermen.

A Comic Book Blog has a great review of the first edition. The Comics are about $3.99 each and I believe the first few issues have already been made available. This is a must read!

Laurence Fisburne Is The New Perry White

Casting news - Laurence Fishburne is the new Perry White in Superman: Man of Steel, which I think is a good choice.  Unfortunately for CSI Laurence is being replaced by Ted Danson.  Isn't it time for that show to go off the air?  Who still watches it?

Cap'n Crunch

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER

Directed by JOE JOHNSTON

Starring CHRIS EVANS, HUGO WEAVING, and HAYLEY ATWELL 

Let there be no doubt, Captain America: The First Avenger is a good movie.  It’s miles away from the action-deprived Thor and the cgi-laden Green Lantern.  Captain America falls in the range of the crisply cool X-Men: First Class.  Captain America had the potential to be a great comic book movie, similar to the Dark Knight franchise, but it fell short.  Captain America started great, stalled in the middle, and ended well.  I hasten to say this, but one of the great things about Captain America was Chris Evans.  I was one of the naysayers about Evans because I didn’t think it appropriate for Evans, who played Johnny Storm in The Fantastic Four, to star as another Marvel hero, Captain America.  That said, Chris Evans pulled it off.  Evans’ performance in the dual role of Steve Rogers and Captain America is what gave the film it’s heart and subtlety. 

Greenday

Sorry, but I won't be seeing Green Lantern.  The reviews are terrible.  DC or not (I love DC comics), I have standards after all and we're in a recession.  I have to be careful where I throw $20 these days.  There are exceptions.  Battle Los Angeles had a 35% rating and The Tourist had a 20% rating, however, both were decent films.  Still, I saw the latter at the $1.50 theater, which is where I will likely see the Green Lantern.

Thoring...

Directed by KENNETH BRANAGH

Starring CHRIS HEMSWORTH, TOM HIDDLESTON, IDRIS ELBA, 

JAIMIE ALEXANDER, RAY STEVENSON, and ANTHONY HOPKINS

Like most folks I have a love-hate relationship with comic book movies.  When they're good they're really good (Christopher Nolan's Batman films, the original Superman films, and Iron Man).  And when they're bad they're really bad (Elektra, Catwoman, Fantastic Four films, Ghost Rider, Blade sequels, Jonah Hex, Punisher: War Zone, etc). Most range somewhere in the middle (Superman Returns, 300, the Hulk, the Spiderman, The Watchmen, Tim Burton's Batman films, and the X-Men films).  This middle range is where Thor is.  Thor is good, not great and that's ok.

The Next Best Thing on Television

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=319knAYrTRE

'The Walking Dead' television series starts out very similar to '28 Days Later,' however, the '28 Days' franchise stole a lot from 'The Walking Dead' graphic novels. I'm not sure if it was a coincidence or if '28 Days' stole the hospital scene right from the 'The Walking Dead' graphic novel.

The main difference between '28 Days Later' and 'The Walking Dead' is that antagonists in this series are true zombies and not just infected by a virus.  But by far the most interesting aspect about 'The Walking Dead' books is not the zombies, it's the living people.  Real people dealing with impossible situations such as a zombie or a cylon apocalypse ('Battlestar Galactica') is what separates good sci-fi from the bad.

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