“Infinity War” Review

 When I’m done, half of humanity will still exist. Perfectly balanced, as all things should be… I hope they remember you. (Thanos)

The summer movie season is official on us with the blockbuster Avengers: Infinity War that swept the box office with Friday estimates alone totaling over 105 million domestically.

The Marvel film is a mash up off nearly every single superhero one could imagine including the latest “Guardians” who discover Thor while in space and discover that Thanos is threatening Earth by seeking to find the rest of the infinity stones hidden throughout the heroes which thus give some of them their powers.  Now it is up to all of them, from Ironman to Black Panther to ban together and protect everyone.  But the question is can they really do it in time?

At roughly 2 and a half hours, Infinity War is packed with so much information that the ending, without giving to much away, leaves audiences saying, “What?”   Ultimately, its not the typically ending of a blockbuster, although the ending is a similar concept to that of another film that came out a few years ago, Batman v. Superman.  All I can say is one has to watch it and make their own mind as to whether or not those are dead or if there’s a possibility of something else.

Overall, the film’s director’s Mark and Joe Russo did an exceptional job of combining all the stories into one and showing where they all fit on the Marvel Universe timeline.  Nothing seemed rushed at all as the story flowed from the opening scene with Thanos and Thor where we see his plot to get all the stones to the obvious first encounter with Thor and the Guardians, which we saw in the trailer, and ultimately the question that we all had, how did they fit Black Panther and the country of Wakanda.  In addition, the choice of Peter Dinklage to the Marvel cast was a smart move as he played Eitri, the one that one didn’t know if he was a villain or just trying to protect himself.

The film had so many comical lines, one can’t see it just once to get the full exposure to everything.  The funnest scenes would have to be the self dialogue between Hulk/Bruce Banner, where Mark Ruffalo shined in his portrayal of someone who just can not change into his green self.  Another breakthrough performance is the addition of Spiderman played by Tom Holland.  Though he is just a kid, Holland has matured in his portrayal of Spiderman, taking Ironman’s (Robert Downey Jr.) advice and sticking to being the “friendly neighborhood spiderman” but when the neighborhood is threatened, he is finally brought on board as an Avenger.  His comedy as an awkward kid shines on the scene as he really does come in handy when the other more experienced heroes start to fall.

Overall, Avengers: Infinity War came out this weekend on April 27 and is definitely worth seeing at least once on the big screen.  One won’t regret it but it will leave you wanting more as it has unanswered questions that we’ll have to wait for the next Avengers movie to hopefully answer them.

“Panther” Exceeds Expectations

One of the largest pre sale grossing movies for President’s Day Weekend has finally made it to theaters as Thursday night previews proved to be a sign that the Wakandan King will fare well at the box office this weekend as it is targeting close to 200 million according to box office mojo.

Marvel’s Black Panther stars Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa who is next in line for King and high honor as Black Panther after his father passes on.  However upon assuming the role, he finds his country being challenged by an outside force as Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) attempts to overthrow him for his own angry intentions with the help of Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis).

But will T’Challa be able to keep his kingdom and save it from the terror of the other nation.

Also starring in Black Panther is Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia, Danai Gurira as Okoye, Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross and of course the much anticipated cameo by comic book  legend, Stan Lee.

At 2 hours and 20 minutes, Black Panther is not your average superhero movie, as the film itself is heavily saturated with exposition that fans craved for after Black Panther’s debut in Captain America: Civil War.  There is a lot of depth to the movie that has audiences not turning their eyes away for a second.  It explains the legend of the Panther and follows the struggle between brother and brother as it is a fight to figure out which one will be the rightful ruler.

Black Panther is currently out in theaters February 16 and is a must for any comic book fan.