Titanic

***SPOILER ALERT***

In 1997, James Cameron brought us what I feel is the last "event movie" since the ease and accessibility of the internet.  I remember droves of people waiting in long lines for months on end to see this film.  I even remember people saying they were going to see it multiple times.  After all, why not?  "Titanic" is one of the finest films cinema has delivered to us in the past quarter century.

The story was told by one Rose Calvert (Dawson, Dewitt-Bukater, or any other last name she couldn't decide to keep) as she reminisced on her voyage on Titanic in her youth.  Now over 100 years old, she finally feels she can tell her story.  Considering she'd been married and had a family I'm surprised she never told her husband about Jack.  Even telling her husband about Cal Hockley would lead to Jack.  As one of the people listening to Rose's story said, "She's a very old God damned liar."  As the only way she could omit Jack's story is by lying to her husband.  But that's all technical information we're supposed to ignore.

The first half of the film does an amazing job at developing Rose and Jack's "Romeo and Juliet" style romance.  Rose from the upper class, Jack from the lower case.  Of course add the pending disaster to it and all you can think about is how this romance is doomed for disaster.  As well as many tears from the audience watching.

Despite it's error in story telling, "Titanic" is an amazing cinematic achievement that I can't help but revisit at least once annually.  I've learned that the heart of this film puts people into one of two categories, those who love "Titanic" and those who are in denial about loving "Titanic."

I turn to mush every time I watch this film pretty much due to the ending sequence when the old lady dies and you see through pictures that she lived a long and happy life.  Then when she passes away and there's a montage of her meeting Jack at the clock on the "Titanic," I can't help but become an emotional sap.

In many ways I can sit here telling you the rights and wrongs of "Titanic" but that doesn't keep this film from being a complete masterpiece.  There's no way this film could get a recommendation other than that of the Essential Collection.

The Avengers

***SPOILER ALERT***

Let's be honest here, there was a lot of hype surrounding the release of "The Avengers."  A LOT of hype.  In my opinion, last summer's release of "Thor" and "Captain America" were done in anticipation of this film.  The question, does "The Avengers" live up to the hype?  The answer, yes and no.

There are a lot of action sequences in this movie.  Three main ones.  The film pretty much has a large scale action scene at the beginning, middle and end of the film.  My main problem is with the last scene in New York City.  For the simple reason that it was extremely similar to the climax of last summer's "Transformers: Dark of the Moon."  The advantage "The Avengers" has is that they did it better.  It was eye candy at it's finest and even though the whole "portal to an alien world that releases a whole bunch of aliens from another world into New York City via a device on top of a real tall building" is not a new concept, it was incredibly effective here.

The villian of this story, Loki, is a familiar villain to those who saw him give Thor a hard time last year.  He stands as the villain this time around where all the Avengers need to assemble to stop his madness.  I think he was a lot more effective this time around.  When I first heard that Loki was taking the mantle I was a little apprehensive at first but was pleasantly surprised at how conniving he was.

I was really impressed with the Hulk this time around.  Even though I would have preferred Edward Norton for continuity's sake, Mark Ruffalo did a really good job.  I think a lot of the humor that the Hulk presented really balanced this film and gave it a lot of the lighter moments it needed.  I also have to say, Hulk is a beast.  Man, that guy is strong.

When it comes to my recommendation, "The Avengers" could very easily be the greatest comic book movie ever.  This film is easily an addition to the Essential Collection.

Battleship

***SPOILER ALERT***

"Boom."

That was the sound made when "Battleship" bombed at the box office back in May.  Since then I anticipated seeing this film hoping that I would be one of the people who didn't hate this movie.  Of course I didn't hate it, but I didn't really like it either.

I believe there are a lot of people that could be at fault for the failure of this movie.  First are the writers for their failure at writing a cohesive plot that made any sense.  There was an awkward time jump after the title sequence that left out material I felt would have helped the story had it stayed in.  In fact, my biggest complaint was the very beginning.  I think they should have cut that out and stuck to the story of Alex Hooper after he joined the Navy.  I was totally confused when we jumped from this guy, with long hair, and no regard for the law, trying to impress a girl and not wanting to be in the Navy.  Then the film just jumped to Alex being deep in a romance with said girl, a high and tight haircut and being an Officer in the Navy.  It didn't sit well.

I blame the director for the poor comedic timing.  Most of the humor, especially toward the beginning was out of place and just fell flat on me.  There was a blonde kid, played by Jesse Plemons, that had some really awkward comedic moments with Rihanna.  He just came across as a punk.

Lastly, I blame Universal Studios for sheer lack of time to make this movie.  I felt if more time was spent on this film that it could have been a much better film.  I saw a lot of potential in this movie, but just like Alex Hooper, the studio was unaware of it's potential and just slacked off.  If this film was released a year later, I felt it could have been a great film.  After all, most of the world's greatest films took a long time to make.  At several points I felt like this film strived to be something deeper and I wish that it had obtained that depth because it would have been great.  I can't help but feel this was a film that would've been held better in the hands of Jerry Bruckheimer or Michael Bay.

"Battleship" wasn't all bad though.  The special effects were really good.  In ways I feel that if as much time and money that were spent on the special effects had been spent on the plot we could have had a really good film.  It's just such a shame thinking of how good "Battleship" could have been if only it would have come together a little better.  If you're in a social situation and want to show off some really good high definition, this film is a great option and you can watch it without having to pay too much attention to it.  If it's depth you're looking for my recommendation is to skip it because Universal Studios, you sunk your "Battleship." 

Pokemon - Arceus and the Jewel of Life

***SPOILER ALERT***

During Generation IV, Pokemon released their films in what is commonly known as the Time and Space Trilogy.  The first was "The Rise of Darkrai" and the second was "Giratina and the Sky Warrior."  "Arceus and the Jewel of Life" is the final film in that trilogy.  Released at the time when Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver were on the horizon the film included a lot of the new Sinnoh Pokemon as well as those seen in the Johto region.

I do have to admit that I feel this film is the weakest of the three in it's trilogy.  Arceus is a beast though.  To this day it's still a Pokemon that can hold it's own extremely well and is banned in most competitions do it's brute strength.  Arceus is pretty much the Pokemon equivalent to God.  He created all Pokemon and the world in which they roam.  In this film, Arceus makes a deal with Damos to help restore a dying land.  He lends Damos part of his being to help regain the land to it's former beauty.  But when Damos fails to return the Jewel of Life it causes Arceus to explode in a rage.  The creator of all Pokemon is not one you want to mess around with.

Seen briefly in this film as well is the legendary Pokemon Heatran.  A favorite amongst many Pokemon trainers.  Although I've never really found great use for it I can't deny that it is a Pokemon that can definitely hold it's own as long as you don't stomp your feet too hard.  Due to it's double weakness to ground, if the ground moves in the slightest way Heatran will fall victim to it.

When compared to the other "Pokemon" films, I find this one to fit in with the other ones somewhere in the middle.  It's not a great film, but it is alright.

Supernatural Season 6

***SPOILER ALERT***

 "Supernatural" has come a long way since the days of the yellow-eyed demon.  Sam and Dean have slain said demon and even averted the apocalypse.  Their latest endeavor, keeping the door to purgatory closed.  In a move that can only be described as retconning, it is discovered that when demons die they don't go to hell, they go to purgatory.

The season started with Sam returning, sans soul, from hell where he was trapped with Michael and Lucifer.  Also returning with him are various members of the Campbell clan.  Sam returning from hell without his soul has caused him to become different in many ways.  It seems a conscience is something that is part of the soul because Sam was quite the reckless person without it.

About halfway through the season Dean makes a deal with Death to get Sam's soul back.  This was my favorite episode of the season as it had Dean play the role of Death for twenty-four hours.  Alas, Death returns Sam's soul but builds a 'wall' to keep him from remembering his time in hell.

The second half of the season ditched the Campbell storyline in favor of a story with Castiel and Crowley trying to open up purgatory with the 'Mother of All' getting in the way.  The season ends with Castiel becoming God.

The 'cliffhanger' at the end of the season wasn't as intense as some of the past seasons, in fact it felt kind of awkward.  I miss the early days of "Supernatural" when the show wasn't as silly as it is now.  I think the whole apocalypse story of seasons four and five has left a void in the story because it was such a big deal.  Anything else is nowhere near as dire. 

Every season a couple of episodes are made as satire episodes.  This season had an "X-Files" themed episode and one that had Sam and Dean entering the lives of Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki, the actors portraying Sam and Dean, where "Supernatural" is a TV show.  The "X-Files" themed episode was alright but I really didn't like the Jensen and Jared one.  I thought it was self-serving and it felt real cheap.

Even though the days of "Supernatural" at it's best are long gone, it's still a great show more often than not.  My recommendation is to own it.

Captain America: The First Avenger

***SPOILER ALERT***

Everytime I watch "Captain America" I gain a greater appreciation for it.  As the last film released before the much anticipated "The Avengers" this film did a lot to get the audience ready for the film that would follow a year later, although the cost would be having this film stray from it's mythology.

Out of the all the characters that form the Avengers, I find Steven Rogers to be my favorite.  He's humble and brave, everything Captain America should be.  Watching him grow from this little guy to the rough Captain America was an amazing transformation.  I find the use of special effects to "shrink" Chris Evans to be astounding.  For those who don't know, Chris Evan is at his true height and weight after the experiment.  They combined his acting as well as the use of someone who is not a "fit" to make Steven Rogers prior to the said experiment and the result is remarkable.

The greatest caveat with this film however is that you very much need to be in the mood to watch this movie.  It is a period piece with a superhero thrown into the mix.  When the plotline moves into the future it does cause a lot of major issues with the story arc of the series being that the Captain America comics all take place circa World War II.  If a sequel should transpire, the powers that be are going to have to come up with a solution.  Although I'm willing to bet that it'll be the same stories told in the present, which could be a great thing for this franchise.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has had films that haven't been up to par as I believe "Captain America: The First Avenger" is.  For those in the mood for both a period piece and superhero film you definitely have to Own it. You definitely have to be in the mood for Nazis too.

Thor

***SPOILER ALERT***

A year before "The Avengers" was to hit theatres, Marvel released "Thor."  A film that not only raised the anticipation for the movie but far surpassed it as a movie.  When I compare all the films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, "Thor" always comes out on top.

What makes "Thor" such a great movie to me is that it possesses a successful blend of key ingredients in story telling.  The comedy doesn't make it cheap, the visual effects and action don't take away from the story and the story stands on it's own two feet. 

Thor, in many ways, is different than your average superhero in that he really isn't one at all.  He comes from another realm and is pretty much a prince of that realm, Asgaard.  He comes to earth after he is banished on the basis of his pride getting in the way and causing a war behind the Asgaardians and the Frost Giants.  The villain of the story, Loki, is my favorite kind of villain.  One that you are unaware of in the beginning.  As the film progresses his greed grow to suit his own needs thus fulfilling his villainous journey.

The CGI produced to illustrate Asgaard as well as the Frost Giants planet was incredible.  When watching this film I find myself satisfied just looking at the eye candy.  As a rare Hollywood treat, this eye candy is backed up by an incredible story that is worthy of the Essential Collection.