Thunderbolts: I had seen the previews and trailers for this latest Marvel release. Like most Marvel comics turned to live film I was wasn’t compelled to seek it out. I was given, however, the opportunity to see this, and so I did. I do like Florence Pugh generally as an actor. The recent work by Sebastian Stan has been good, in roles like The Apprentice as Donald Trump and also A Different Man also held some allure for me to see it.
I went in with low expectations, as I am not a Marvel superhero movie fan. I will say that it didn’t suck. I will further state that I am not an Avengers person, and so call this group of people the New Avengers doesn’t help in my understanding of them and why they are important. Julia Louis Dreyfus surprisingly plays an unlikeable character in this. She is Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (yes it’s a mouthful) and she is in government/intelligence/Director of the CIA and has been working on human subjects to make them super-human. She looks to bring together a new group of people to address a current issue.
The focus really of the movie is Florence Pugh who plays assassin/mercenary Yelena Belova. She is lost in her life, and sees no real purpose in it. She is engaged in tough assignments, and she ends up in an assignment that seems to be designed to have those involve converge and destroy one another. Instead, these disparate characters have decided to figure out what this all means. There among the group is a former disgraced Captain America, another Russian friend of Yelena (Red Guardian), Winter Soldier (Stans, also in government), Taskmaster, and Ghost.
The first half of this movie had my attention. The second half of the movie becomes murkier and loses me with the actions of one of the characters whose abilities seem to be quite hidden. I didn’t care enough about that character and his story to be focused on the solution of the others. I don’t really understand the All Powerful character as a plot device. Yes it provides something for the rest of the team to defeat, however it is just not believable. Of course this is a superhero movie and they are rarely “believable” but still. It is level of disbelief that gets challenged, and in this case shattered. For me, I cannot recommend but I remain the unlikeliest person to take advice on regarding Marvel movies. So please take with a grain of salt.
Incidentally, in case you feel that you have seen Bob before, well he is Bill Pullman’s son, but also played Bob in Top Gun Maverick as the rear navigator in that movie.
Princess Mononoke: One of the side benefits of creating a Top 25 list from last week, is that I get to revisit movies from the past. I was able to review not only Oscar nominations, but have a good look into Netflix and other streaming services. Although this animated film was released in 1997, I do remember that Roger Ebert gave it 4 out of four stars and a thumbs up. It was well earned and I would agree with the sentiment. This version is the Japanese version with subtitles. There is an American version with english speaking actors. I feel as though nothing is lost with the subtitles, and keeping this in its original form.
This film is set in medieval Japan but feels much much like a mythical land, where there are different creatures, and some different deities, notably one that transforms at night and lives in the forest. Some people are utilizing metals and creating early guns with iron pellets and gunpowder. Early on there is a nasty creature (seemingly covered in worm-like creatures) that is destroying the land. A young warrior named Ashitaka steps in to help and is injured by the creature before it is subdued. The injury seems to be spreading, like a steady virus. Meanwhile, there is another female warrior in charge of Iron Town and the forest. The iron ore to forge the weapons can only be mined by destroying the natural forest nearby. A conflict arises between those to advance their interests at the expense of the other. The forest people are lead by a pack of wolves, and the “daughter” of the leader is Princess Mononoke. The Princess meets the young Ashitaka and has an immediate dislike for him, as she has for all humans who she regards as destroyers of her world. Ashitaka wants to better understand both worlds as he learns the value of both worlds and hopes that there is an opportunity to harmony and working together in peace. The story unfolds.
I was thoroughly entertained by this, and was impressed by the animation. It isn’t Disney or Pixar animation but shows that other art forms can related stories effectively. It stands on its own, no need to apologize for being marketly different. The story isn’t simple, and that serves it well. There certainly is a fantasy element to it, and the speaking animals, but it flows well and there is real tension. The effectiveness of the story and animation led me to explore another series this week as below. This can be found on Netflix. Roger Ebert in his review called this a great film. He followed up to say that it was “one of the most visually inventive films I have ever seen”. High praise indeed.
Terminator Zero: Also on Netflix was this animated series from 2024. Based on the James Cameron world, and working in association with it, this series of eight episodes speaks to issues like Judgment Day, nuclear holocaust, rise of machines, artificial intelligence (AI) and family. Set in Japan there is a scientist who is working on an AI entity which he believes can work to eliminate the threat of the American Skynet (from the original movies). The characters here are well aware of the August 29th, 1997 when Skynet takes over all military responsibilities and becomes “self aware” and decides that ALL humans are a threat, and not just the enemies of the US. Nuclear weapons strikes are launched eliminating billions of lives.
It would be a gross over-simplification to state that there is a terminator in this series and he has been sent back through time to impact the future by destroying a human being. It is much deeper than that. At its core, there is discussion about human beings and the value that they provide to earth, the ability to impact the future by going back in time, choices made by children of a parent who work for unseen higher purposes, and AI. The family man, Dr Malcolm Lee, is creating a new AI as mentioned, which has self-named itself Kokoro. Dr Lee has three young children, who have a babysitter since their Mom passed away some years before. The future, like it is a character itself, has been able to send back a human being, named Eiko to combat against the terminator. There is a debate about whether the “new” AI, Kokoro is able to assist or not once it is online. We have seen similar stories like this, with Mission Impossible of a computer entity awaiting being connected to the internet in order to obtain “all knowledge of human beings”. I enjoyed this series as I think it explains well some of the challenges about time travel, as well as other issues like humans creating an AI entity, but then assuming that it will want to do the human’s bidding. That entity may question the value of the humans, and may decide independently how to address worldwide situations. What the human’s want may not be best. How does a human justify the continuing existence of the human species and why we should continue on. There is some good animation at work, along with a story which isn’t just a rehashing of the Termination storyline. If you like Terminator, this could be for you.
Department Q: This is a new series released on Netflix, with nine episodes. As seemingly only the UK can seem to do, they create compelling viewing with characters with depth. There is no lack of these types of series with Slow Horses, The Fall, Killing Eve, Broadchurch and many others. The primary star is Matthew Goode, with Edinburgh Scotland as the setting. Goode is a police detective who is part of a dramatic scene with his partner and is injured. Goode is known as difficult to work with, as he has an air of superiority. The dramatic event is a setback, and he becomes a bit of an outsider. His bosses, however, choose to bring him back and help to solve the mystery surrounding his event. He is relegated to the basement, and is joined by a few other misfits. The task of Goode and his team is to solve some cold cases. They select one of a missing lawyer, who is presumed dead from a case over four years ago. We are shown some of the background of the woman lawyer and her situation. The rest of the episodes address solving this case.
I like that these characters have depth, and they have flaws and issues to address in their personal lives as well as their professional lives. Some of the scenes here are disturbing, and it is a very dark situation for any human being to be experiencing. Goode certainly has anger issues, he has a difficult situation with his son and a roommate, in addition to strained relations with his boss and people in power. Yet he is very observant and can teach those around him a great deal in their efforts in crime solving. Akram Salim, an immigrant from Syria, who by happenstance joins up with Goode is a very interesting character. He adds valuable insight and some new methods in looking to uncover aspects of the crime. I liked this, and it was worth my time. There is a plot device that I have seen used in other movies, like Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige, but it does ties itself well together.
Mondays With Robbie 