liggins14 Reviews

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

Great follow-up to Man of Steel

[7/10 · 26 March 2016]

The only problem I had with this movie is that the trailers gave away too much! It's Batman V. Superman....people were going to see it. Why reveal Wonder Woman's entrance and the presence of Doomsday? The element of surprise would have made the film much more enjoyable. Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, and Gal Gadot (who I initially thought was too skinny, but she looked great) all acted very well. The opening perfectly connected this film to MoS, and I thought it was an excellent sequel. I absolutely loved Batman's fighting scenes, especially when he takes out 2 dozen thugs in a warehouse. Lex Luthor had to grow on me, but by the end I was sold on his psychosis. The action at the end of the movie was off the charts.

Man of Steel (2013)

Similar to Batman Begins

[10/10 · 17 June 2013]

Potential spoilers. I've seen all the Superman movies and cartoons...collected the comic books growing up. I absolutely loved this interpretation of the character! It follows the same format as Batman Begins...Bruce Wayne started out wandering other countries to find his true calling; Clark Kent wanders the country in search of his calling. Batman Begins used flashbacks to Bruce Wayne's past to tell the back story...same with Man of Steel. Batman forged an alliance with Gordon in Batman Begins to fight crime; same with Superman and Lois Lane in Man of Steel. It was a nice twist to see her discover his true identity early in the movie. When he transformed himself into the traditional Clark Kent we all know and love at the end, I got goosebumps. When Lois gave him that knowing look at the Daily Planet because she knew his real identity, it reminded me of the smile that Gordon gave Batman at the end of "Begins" when he said he'd never have to thank him. One outstanding origin movie.

The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

Spider-Man v. The Amazing Spider-Man: "Amazing" wins by a knockout

[10/10 · 6 July 2012]

Both movies are great for their times. And though I enjoyed both, I liked "The Amazing Spider-Man" a bit more. Why? Better acting, more gritty and realistic feel, better special effects. This movie benefits from learning from the many movies that came before it: Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Iron Man, etc. Andrew Garfield nails Peter Parker with his outstanding performance, and Emma Stone was gorgeous as Gwen Stacy. While I had to stretch my imagination a bit to see Kirsten Dunst as a supermodel/actress, there was no stretching with Emma Stone. I enjoyed the retelling of the origin from the vantage point of a new director. Definitely not a rehash. The web swinging and fight scenes totally knocked it out of the park, especially in 3D.

The biggest negative to me was the costume...should have stayed closer to the comic book classic. Yellow eyes, really? A stripe on the side of his pants? Redesigning the spider logo was fine, but I would have pretty much left it at that. Otherwise, highly enjoyable and recommended.

The Avengers (2012)

A gift to comic and action fans alike

[10/10 · 7 May 2012]

One word: Excellent. I've collected comic books on and off for many years, including The Avengers. This movie nailed the feel of the best of them. The characters were great and true to form...Stark as the arrogant genius; Cap as the straight-laced leader; Thor as the mythical demigod; Banner as the tortured scientist with a beast inside him; Black Widow as the super spy martial artist with a dark past; and Hawkeye as the super marksman. The great thing about this film is how different they are and how they play off each other, but come together for the common good to defeat Loki and save the world. Loki, by the way, was outstanding as the merciless villain. I love the way that the movie felt like a sequel to each of the Marvel films that came before it. No ensemble superhero movie has been done better...X-Men 1 and 2 were great, but essentially centered on Wolverine as he interacted with the team. This one centers on no less than 6 characters, and they all get pretty equal billing. This is a must see and gift to comic and action fans alike.

Iron Man 2 (2010)

Incredible sequel and good set-up for "Demon in a Bottle"

[10/10 · 10 May 2010]

I really don't understand what people were expecting, looking at some of the negative reviews. This sequel gives you everything that was great about the first film and then some. Better action, more humor, more characters, and more Easter eggs leading into the Avengers movie. It delves further into Tony Stark's character, showing that his arrogant public persona is a ruse...behind the scenes, he's scared to death because the artificial heart he created is slowly poisoning him to death. He begins drinking heavily, which is leading up to a "Demon in a Bottle" sequel; comic book fans know that I'm talking about a key Iron Man story line that helped define the character. I loved Scarlett Johansen as the Black Widow...her one action scene was awesome. The two major Iron Man/War Machine fight scenes beat the action sequences in the first film. The final scene was much better the first movie's finale. I can't wait to see Captain America, Thor, and the Avengers movies!

The Book of Eli (2010)

A film that you must watch twice

[10/10 · 17 January 2010]

I only write reviews for movies that I really hate or really love, and "The Book of Eli" definitely falls into the latter category. It's an intriguing tale about a man in post-apocalyptic America walking west to deliver an initially unnamed book. The fact that he's been doing so under the most bleak of circumstances for 30 years is a testament to his strong faith and determination to complete the task. The movie has a good amount of action...Eli can handle himself and takes down any of the deranged lunatics who try to get in his way in crowd pleasing fashion. The core of the movie occurs when he stops at a small town ruled by Gary Oldman's evil character and his merciless motorcycle riding thugs. The ensuing confrontation is yet another test of Eli's faith. The movie contains a surprise ending that will make you say, "WTF"??? and is absolutely impossible, but makes you think back over the entire film and want to watch it again. Denzel Washington, as Eli, is outstanding and he exhibits the amazing charisma he brings to all of his roles. The movie is well cast, and it was great seeing the fine Jennifer Beals ("Flashdance") on the big screen again. The Hughes Brothers are excellent directors, and I love the diversity of their body of work, from "Menace to Society" to "From Hell". This is a movie that I will be seeing again.

Watchmen (2009)

Deep Meaning

[9/10 · 19 March 2009]

I never read the graphic novel and ended up seeing the movie twice because I enjoyed it so much. The second time I caught the nuances I missed the first time around. This movie was truly thought provoking with its "Who's Watching the Watcmen?" theme and questions about the meaning of life itself. The meaning of life question was really embodied in the character of Dr. Manhattan, who was so powerful that he evolved to the point where mankind was less than nothing to him. He had a great line to Ozymandias, "the world's smartest man", at the end: "The world's smartest man is no more a threat to me than its smartest termite." Ozymandias takes extreme measures to save mankind, such as giving people cancer, killing a former teammate, and obliterating 15 million people and framing Dr. Manhattan in order to "save billions"! This begs the question raised in the beginning of the film: Who's watching the Watchmen? Who was he to judge which lives could be sacrificed to save mankind? Dr. Manhattan raised even deeper questions: If mankind did get wiped out, would the universe care or even notice? I recommend this for people who enjoy thought provoking movies and not just mindless drivel like the Fantastic Four or Transformers. There's plenty of action (Rorschach was my favorite character)...I would call this movie a cross between the Matrix and Sin City.

The Dark Knight (2008)

Two Face Surprises

[10/10 · 18 July 2008]

I tried to see the midnight show at a nearby theater. It was sold out on all 5 screens at the theater I went to, 30 minutes early. I saw it the next day. The Joker was awesome as I expected him to be, after watching the trailers and reading the reviews. The real surprise for me was how excellent Two Face was in the movie; I hadn't seen his disfigured face prior to the movie, and he looked AWESOME! Straight out of the comic books, and his transformation from Harvey Dent's white knight to murderous monster was chilling. And believable; you can see his evolution throughout the film. The incident that pushed him over the edge would have challenged any of us to stay on the straight and narrow. Much better than Anakin Skywalker's turning to the Dark Side in Revenge of the Sith. I recommend seeing this movie whether you're a Bat Fan or not.

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

Less Cheesy than Spider-Man 2

[9/10 · 7 May 2007]

I see all the complaints about this movie being too cheesy...what kills me are the people who make this claim and say that they loved Spider-Man 2!!! Remember in 2 after Petey lost his powers how he was walking down the street to the tune of "Rain Drops Keep Falling on My Head"??? His lame attempt at poetry to impress MJ??? The elevator scene where he revealed his suit "rides up in the crotch"??? If that movie wasn't cheesy, I don't know what is. But I still liked it overall. On to SM3...I thought it fit perfectly with the other 2 movies and picked up right where 2 left off. I was not surprised at the "Bad Peter" bopping down the street scene because the cheese bar had already been set in SM2. I thought that scene was funnier than anything in 2, as well as the bar dancing scene. The action was much better and more frequent in this one...you don't have to wait for the big scenes like you did in 2 (specifically, the train scene in 2). My only complaints: Why doesn't Sam Raimi let Peter keep his mask on for just one movie??? We get the point--Petey's the man under the mask. But why must he either get his mask taken off or have it torn in half every other scene? It's supposed to be a "secret" identity. Second, where was his spider-sense in the movie? That early warning tingling is a major part of his powers, and my complaint in the first two was that he didn't use it enough. In this one, I don't recall him using it at all. All in all, though, an excellent blockbuster with great action, acting, and special effects. Go Spidey!