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Daniel Ortiz Rants on: Deadpool 2

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Action, Adventure, Comedy

May 2018
Director: David Leitch
20th Century Fox
1 hour 59 minutes

Foul-mouthed mutant mercenary Wade Wilson (AKA. Deadpool), brings together a team of fellow mutant rogues to protect a young boy of supernatural abilities from the brutal, time-traveling mutant, Cable.

1526699421407Let’s go ahead and get this out of the way; Marvel is a solid 3 for 3 in 2018. Even though Deadpool is a 20th Century Fox property, it’s still in the same comic book universe as the Avengers. This film had me dying laughing, even more than the first. You have to be a die hard Marvel fan to catch some of the deep comic book jokes and references, but it doesn’t exclude the novice fan from being entertained.

I haven’t seen any actor own a character like Ryan Reynolds does with Deadpool. I truly respect how he plays this character with such reverence and care, that he still finds these creative ways to still apologize to his fans for Wolverine: X-men Origins. You’re completely forgiven Ryan!

The reason this movie was great is that it makes fun of its flaws before you ever get a chance to. It disarms you from getting a chance to say what the storyline is similar to, or what the scene reminds you of by telling you exactly where they stole it from, even before you realize they did steal it from a particular movie. A little confusing, but you will get it when you see it.

The action in this movie was doubled from the first film and they upped the ante. The pace was non-stop and they balanced it great between shock, adrenaline and a ton of humor. I have to say the X-Force was one of my favorite additions to this film. I used to collect the X-Force comics as a teen and the absolute sloppiness they handled them with was pure film magic and I have to admit, it was my favorite part. Great, great cameos on the team!

Josh Brolin, as Cable (fresh off of playing Thanos) and Zazie Beetz as Domino (from the T.V. show Atlanta) were great additions to the Deadpool franchise injecting vibrant energy  that the first movie lacked.

The biggest flaw with the film is the CGI. Even though the budget was bigger for this film, some scenes looked extremely choppy, but to their credit, they made fun of that too.

Overall Grade: B+

This film is pretty freaking hilarious and a break from the hit or miss nonsense of the X-Men movies. Ryan Reynolds gets an A+ from me for his energy in continuously developing this character. Even if you are not a die hard fan, you can still enjoy it.

Also check out my review on the first Deadpool movie here.

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Review: Godzilla vs. Kong

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Godzilla vs. Kong reminds me that I was an idiot as a child. I allowed the 4:30 Movie too significant a piece of my brain pie. I existed in a headspace where The Planet of the Apes and Gamera were more science than fiction. I was certain skyscraper-sized monsters lived in the woods a few blocks away, and that ghosts were under my bed. Somewhere in possibility-land, a black and white Lon Chaney slowly becomes a werewolf in a handful of dissolving frames.

Cut to my final form, and I can’t help but think these movies are just a total waste of time and resources. Sure, the effects can be impressive but often they have as much weight as a video game. Buildings smash into dust, an actor says a line against a green screen, then Kong sits on a throne like a stereotypical king. Ah doi!

Sure, the hollow Earth with upside-down mountains in the sky is cool – but where’s that sun coming from? The MechaGodzilla fight has some great effects, but you can watch those on Youtube without having to sit through a bunch of lines like “Kong bows to no one.”

Maybe I just can’t enjoy normal human things anymore.

 

Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) 113min | Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller | 31 March 2021 (USA) Summary: The epic next chapter in the cinematic Monsterverse pits two of the greatest icons in motion picture history against one another - the fearsome Godzilla and the mighty Kong - with humanity caught in the balance.
Countries: USA, Australia, Canada, IndiaLanguages: English, American Sign Language

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Now that Captain America is Black…

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Now that Captain America is Black

  1. Bucky Barnes will change his name to Summer Soldier Buckquan because “Nah son! we ain’t doing sh*t in the winter!”
  2. Fearing for their lives, Police officers will fire 751 shots at Cap in the 4th of many incidents to come.
  3. In a new altered timeline, Thanos will win due to Cap being detained by a routine traffic stop. “How can you afford Vibraniun on a government salary? Please step out of the vehicle sir.”
  4. Captain America will form a Rap group with Black Panther called “Black-America.” The group will not be received well but will eventually have all their intellectual property stolen for decades to come without any due repar… I mean royalties. #MESSAGE
  5. Racists will be utterly confused when they tell Captain America to “Go back to where you came from.” Equally confused, Cap will pack up all his belongings and stay put.
  6. Cap will be accused of stealing Thor’s hammer the next time he picks it up.
  7. Cap’s shield will be replaced with a Vibraniun PlayStation Controller since black men are more comfortable throwing that.
  8. The battle decree will officially be changed from “Avengers Assemble” to “Yerrrrr! It’s on sight!”
  9. After 40 years of service, Cap will travel back in time to 1998 to finally get that last dance with his true love, Laura Winslow. They will Cha Cha Slide to “Before I let Go” as the credits role.
  10. Upon retirement, those jaded with having an Af-Am do such an amazing job will appoint a failed real estate charlatan to take up the mantle. The New Cap will immediately try and grab Scarlet by her “Johansson” and declare himself the best Captain America that ever did it during his inauguration.

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Chadwick Boseman Forever!!

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It is clear that Chadwick Boseman chose iconic roles like Thurgood Marshall, James Brown, Jackie Robinson and Black Panther with deliberate intent and for a specific purpose. In an age where positive roles for Black actors is often sparse, Chadwick managed to land and portray historical figures that made most respect his talents if not revel in his ability to transition effortlessly for one character to another. Even I had to give his African accent a solid B+ (It’s the highest grade the Nigerian Standards Bureau can give for an African accent to a non African FYI.)

Holding out and preparing for these dynamic roles came with both great frustration and incredible resolve I’m certain. Not to mention the taxing ordeal of battling Colon Cancer as the grueling scheduling of filming and increasing responsibility for positive representation loomed. Even under extreme duress, Chadwick’s commitment to others appeared to outweigh his own tribulations, unbeknownst to us all.

Black Panther may have been just a movie to some and that may be because some can easily rattle off 10 movies with a king of non Af-Am origin. It represented a lot more to others. Albeit imagined, imagery on cinema often accomplishes more to augment the social narrative and society itself than actual reality. If negative stereotypes influence perception then positive ones absolutely have the same converse effect.

Even in jest, the cultural misappropriation of raisins in potato salad on SNL skits directly spoke to the tampering of black culture to which T’challa championed, represented and aptly responded “Oh hell Nah Karen!”

If you don’t understand the relevance of representation, it’s probably because you are thoroughly represented. After all, no one is ever grateful for every breath they take until they are gasping for air.

R.I.P Chadwick Boseman. Thank you for breathing life into the possibility of Black excellence.

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