So now I'm moving onto one of the other genres that I've grown up with, and in some ways I feel has grown up with me, which is Sci-Fi, as I'm pretty sure one of the first films I ever saw was Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, the first part of the greatest franchise that has ever been created and some of the only films I could watch over and over again.
Now I say I feel that the genre has also grown up with me because I remember watching Sci-Fi films as a child that were aimed at my age, and as I grew up I found films of the same genre that were maybe a little bit darker and more aimed towards me, and that's the great thing about Science Fiction, there's always a film aimed at a different age audience, so being in my late teens is pretty good for getting to see Sci-Fi, especially this year with Prometheus coming out, as Alien is one of my personal favourite films of all time, purely because of it's unpredictability of when you're actually going to get to see the alien, some of which was present in Prometheus, especially a scene that partly resembled John Hurt's incredible chest burster part in the original film. Though Prometheus certainly had some faults that maybe didn't make it the greatest film ever, but it's still worth a watch. And as I sit here typing I realise an advert for the release of the DVD has just been on, so I best not go into too much detail into my view on the film as that will be a review in the not so distant future.
Being a geek and a nerd I also enjoy watching various film spin-offs from TV shows, and there's no better example of this than Star Trek, and I don't mean the 2009 J.J. Abram's epic, I'm talking Wrath of Khan with Will Shatner, as well as newer films with Patrick Stewart leading the crew of the Enterprise in Star Trek: Nemesis. Personally I believe some of the Star Trek films are some of the best films ever made, but don't cast me out for saying this, as my only reason is that there's such a vast range of Trekkie films that they all have something different about them that make them so enjoyable, some are deadly serious, some have brilliant elements of comedy, and some even have the best action sequences in the history of film, well, maybe not that far, but they're good enough.
But it seems I'm making Science-Fiction sound too geeky for what it really is, and they're not all that geeky, but the main focus of this post is the geeky side of Sci-Fi and why I enjoy them so much, and so I'm going to end this post here and revisit the more popular side, featuring films such as Back to the Future and Action Sci-Fi films, featuring Armageddon and Total Recall, so if it sounds like something you'd like to read about be sure to come back here soon and hopefully I will have gone round to doing so.
See you soon.
Friday, 28 September 2012
Thursday, 27 September 2012
Comic Book Movies - Continued
So, in my last post, I ended on talking about how I enjoyed the darkness shown throughout Nolan's Batman trilogy, but I think the main note that I've hit on about why I enjoyed them is the villains, which also applies to why I like the comics and, even more, the two Batman video games, Arkham Asylum and City, and it's all thanks to the vast amount of villains that pose different and difficult threats to Batman, with my favourite being Bane, just because so many of the previous villains are psychological villains that Batman ends up finishing them through a quick fist fight, whereas Bane seems to be the best of both, and at one point is the victor.
But I am starting to feel that I'm spending too much time on DC and Batman so may have to do a single post dedicated to DC at around the time that Man of Steel (the new Superman film) arrives.
And so I'm moving on to the other big comic book movie producers, Marvel, who are definitely at the lighter end of the scale compare to the darker space that DC's movies tend to dominate. In a way the Marvel films have previously meant a lot more to me because they are the films I grew up with all my life, with the memories of going to see Spider-Man and The Hulk still quite fresh in my mind, though they aren't particularly my favourite films, but they really introduced me to the world of film and comic books. And the background of the main characters always seemed to connect with me, they were all people who have never really felt part of their society who know deep down that they have something everyone else can benefit from, and I think it's that sort of hope that keeps the characters going that helped me in some rough times.
So now I want to take some time to delve into the more independent films, and don't worry, this will be short as I can't really think of that many independent superheroes who have had their own films. The main one that springs to mind and most people would know is the 2011 Green Hornet film, starring Seth Rogen, which is maybe not as good as some of the other superhero movies, but still has it's merits for being funny, action packed and occasionally gory, with a decent storyline running throughout keeping the film going.
Now I've decided I've written quite enough for this post and may have to write a follow up for another comic book post, and this weekend coming looks like it'll be a rather boring one and after receiving an Avengers Assemble box set it looks like that'll be what I'm going to be watching all weekend, so it may end up being my first ever movie review on here.
There probably will be another post before that time, though, so feel free to come and check my blog tomorrow where I'll be ending my posts on comic book films for now and move on to the next genre.
Hope to see you soon. Matt
But I am starting to feel that I'm spending too much time on DC and Batman so may have to do a single post dedicated to DC at around the time that Man of Steel (the new Superman film) arrives.
And so I'm moving on to the other big comic book movie producers, Marvel, who are definitely at the lighter end of the scale compare to the darker space that DC's movies tend to dominate. In a way the Marvel films have previously meant a lot more to me because they are the films I grew up with all my life, with the memories of going to see Spider-Man and The Hulk still quite fresh in my mind, though they aren't particularly my favourite films, but they really introduced me to the world of film and comic books. And the background of the main characters always seemed to connect with me, they were all people who have never really felt part of their society who know deep down that they have something everyone else can benefit from, and I think it's that sort of hope that keeps the characters going that helped me in some rough times.
So now I want to take some time to delve into the more independent films, and don't worry, this will be short as I can't really think of that many independent superheroes who have had their own films. The main one that springs to mind and most people would know is the 2011 Green Hornet film, starring Seth Rogen, which is maybe not as good as some of the other superhero movies, but still has it's merits for being funny, action packed and occasionally gory, with a decent storyline running throughout keeping the film going.
Now I've decided I've written quite enough for this post and may have to write a follow up for another comic book post, and this weekend coming looks like it'll be a rather boring one and after receiving an Avengers Assemble box set it looks like that'll be what I'm going to be watching all weekend, so it may end up being my first ever movie review on here.
There probably will be another post before that time, though, so feel free to come and check my blog tomorrow where I'll be ending my posts on comic book films for now and move on to the next genre.
Hope to see you soon. Matt
Wednesday, 26 September 2012
Comic Book Movies
So, I've decided that I'm going to introduce to you one of my favourite genres to begin with, and there's no type of film I love more than sitting down and watching some form of comic book film, whether it's a bright character such as Spider-Man or Green Lantern, or into the much darker side of them, Nolan's Batman, Spawn or Punisher for example.
*And just so you know, there may be some spoilers in here*
Now as a self confessed comic book geek I can't helped but love any form of superhero movie, even when Green Lantern came out in 2011 and people said it was awful I still gave it a watch and I even quite liked it. Admittedly some parts of it seemed rather silly, but it was just like the comic book, a man who can create anything with just his mind, so it was good enough.
But I certainly believe that through the last 10-20 years superhero films have become a lot better than they previously were, actually not better, but more popular, meaning the film industry's much more likely to make more of them. For example I recently acquired a copy of a Captain America film from 1990, and I have to say it's really worth a watch, it follows just about the same plot as the newer version except it's set in the present day (1990). It was a flop when it came to the box office, only being released in the UK and gaining $10,173 gross after having a budget of $10,000,000. But really I believe that this is down to the fact these sort of films weren't popular back then. But thanks to likeable actors such as Robert Downey Jr. and Christian Bale, and the rest of the great casts, these films have become so massive.
That's not to say that previous films of the genre haven't been great. No-one can have a chat about great superhero films without bringing up Tim Burton and Michael Keaton's Batman from 1989, which seems to have been denied it's greatness thanks to the bad bunch of sequels that followed it's success. Personally Batman (1989) is one of my favourite films because it is almost as dark as Nolan's trilogy, but still has the camp style from Adam West's years in the cowl.
Also the fact that I've spent years flicking through the pages of comic books and am aways happy to see them on the big screen. I think the easiest way to give an example is to use the God of all comic book stories, Batman: Knightfall, a story in which a Mexican Titan using Luchador from Hell, Bane, wreaks havoc upon Gotham, and when Batman faces him, he picks up the masked vigilante and breaks his back over his knee, a scene of which has been recreated by Nolan in his final instalment of his trilogy, The Dark Knight Rises. For me it brought back memories of getting to the last page Knightfall and my jaw dropping instantly, and I found the exact same thing happened when I saw TDKR for the first time, I just couldn't believe Nolan would put that in, not that I'm complaining, I thought it was the greatest thing I'd ever seen, and I'm not saying I don't like Batman and wanted to see it happen, but it was the iconography this showed and how to-the-comic the trilogy could be that really made me think about how much of a good movie it was, and how sad it was that it was Nolan's final Batman.
Now as I read through what I have written so far, I feel it's a little too much for one post, so I may have to carry on with my view on the Comic Book Movies in my next post, where I'll be looking into the Marvel side of life and the more independent films, and maybe a little bit more on DC and it's villains also.
So for now, stay safe and I hope to you'll be back soon.
*And just so you know, there may be some spoilers in here*
Now as a self confessed comic book geek I can't helped but love any form of superhero movie, even when Green Lantern came out in 2011 and people said it was awful I still gave it a watch and I even quite liked it. Admittedly some parts of it seemed rather silly, but it was just like the comic book, a man who can create anything with just his mind, so it was good enough.
But I certainly believe that through the last 10-20 years superhero films have become a lot better than they previously were, actually not better, but more popular, meaning the film industry's much more likely to make more of them. For example I recently acquired a copy of a Captain America film from 1990, and I have to say it's really worth a watch, it follows just about the same plot as the newer version except it's set in the present day (1990). It was a flop when it came to the box office, only being released in the UK and gaining $10,173 gross after having a budget of $10,000,000. But really I believe that this is down to the fact these sort of films weren't popular back then. But thanks to likeable actors such as Robert Downey Jr. and Christian Bale, and the rest of the great casts, these films have become so massive.
That's not to say that previous films of the genre haven't been great. No-one can have a chat about great superhero films without bringing up Tim Burton and Michael Keaton's Batman from 1989, which seems to have been denied it's greatness thanks to the bad bunch of sequels that followed it's success. Personally Batman (1989) is one of my favourite films because it is almost as dark as Nolan's trilogy, but still has the camp style from Adam West's years in the cowl.
Now as I read through what I have written so far, I feel it's a little too much for one post, so I may have to carry on with my view on the Comic Book Movies in my next post, where I'll be looking into the Marvel side of life and the more independent films, and maybe a little bit more on DC and it's villains also.
So for now, stay safe and I hope to you'll be back soon.
Monday, 24 September 2012
Quick Update
I decided to read through what I've written so far and I was starting to feel that I was rambling on without any of what I'm taking about going anywhere.
That's why I've decided that I'm going to give my opinion on one genre in each post, so for my next blog I may start with horror followed by a post about sci-fi, and so on until I've gone through all the genres I can think of.
I hope that because of this it will be able to give you a better understanding of why I say the things I say when reviewing a movie, because there are genres where I love them too much that I could never call a movie of that genre bad (unless it's the Green Lantern, of course) and others genres I really don't like where I wouldn't be abe to understand how it could be a good film.
But you never know, through doing this I may find out I like some films that I would normally say I would never watch, and that's part of the experience of doing this blog.
So I hope that there are some people out there reading what I have to say, and I hope you come back to read a couple more of my posts as I'm planning on beginning to start with my more to-the-point blogs in the next few days.
Hope to see you then. See you later
That's why I've decided that I'm going to give my opinion on one genre in each post, so for my next blog I may start with horror followed by a post about sci-fi, and so on until I've gone through all the genres I can think of.
I hope that because of this it will be able to give you a better understanding of why I say the things I say when reviewing a movie, because there are genres where I love them too much that I could never call a movie of that genre bad (unless it's the Green Lantern, of course) and others genres I really don't like where I wouldn't be abe to understand how it could be a good film.
But you never know, through doing this I may find out I like some films that I would normally say I would never watch, and that's part of the experience of doing this blog.
So I hope that there are some people out there reading what I have to say, and I hope you come back to read a couple more of my posts as I'm planning on beginning to start with my more to-the-point blogs in the next few days.
Hope to see you then. See you later
Sunday, 23 September 2012
A Little Bit More
I thought I'd do another, hopefully shorter, post just to give a better feel for what movies I'm into, giving a bit of insight into what genre most films I'll review will be, and to be perfectly honest there aren't many genres I don't like, so just about any film will get reviewed.
Of course it's hardly likely I'll be reviewing some form of rom-com. Quite frankly I can't stand most of them, because don't they just follow the same plot line: boy meets girl, they fall in love, something bad happens to this blossoming romance and they can't see each other any more, then five years later they bump into each other somewhere and end up getting married. Oh, and they all have Hugh Grant in them, I think that's how they go.
So my favourite movies are comic book hero films, with the film topping the list at the moment the recently released Batman: The Dark Knight Rises (which will be reviewed at some point in the future). Those sort of films just seem to have something I love so much, and I've never been able to put my finger on what it is, and hopefuly this blog will help me, it's probably because I'm destined to be some sort of hero, but we'll find that out at a ater date.
So although my favourite genre is that of comic book legends, my favourite film isn't one of these, but Armageddon (Michael Bay, 1998) which I hope will aso get reviewed soon in the future, but I truly love this film mainly because it has so many different story-lines happening in the space of two hours, and it's also my "sick day" movie, whenever I'm ill I just place the disc in the DVD player and I'm entertained, honesty, I could tell you every line of the film through and through, sounds sad, but personally it's just a film that connects with me for no reason.
I hope to do another blog soon more about the personal side of Matt Johns. To anyone out there any feedback would be appreciated, am I boring, entertaining, speaking endless drivel? Don't be afraid to tell me :D
Of course it's hardly likely I'll be reviewing some form of rom-com. Quite frankly I can't stand most of them, because don't they just follow the same plot line: boy meets girl, they fall in love, something bad happens to this blossoming romance and they can't see each other any more, then five years later they bump into each other somewhere and end up getting married. Oh, and they all have Hugh Grant in them, I think that's how they go.
So my favourite movies are comic book hero films, with the film topping the list at the moment the recently released Batman: The Dark Knight Rises (which will be reviewed at some point in the future). Those sort of films just seem to have something I love so much, and I've never been able to put my finger on what it is, and hopefuly this blog will help me, it's probably because I'm destined to be some sort of hero, but we'll find that out at a ater date.
So although my favourite genre is that of comic book legends, my favourite film isn't one of these, but Armageddon (Michael Bay, 1998) which I hope will aso get reviewed soon in the future, but I truly love this film mainly because it has so many different story-lines happening in the space of two hours, and it's also my "sick day" movie, whenever I'm ill I just place the disc in the DVD player and I'm entertained, honesty, I could tell you every line of the film through and through, sounds sad, but personally it's just a film that connects with me for no reason.
I hope to do another blog soon more about the personal side of Matt Johns. To anyone out there any feedback would be appreciated, am I boring, entertaining, speaking endless drivel? Don't be afraid to tell me :D
A New Hope (and Start)
Right well, not really sure what someone's supposed to put in their first blog but I'm just going to go in this direction of just introducing myself a bit better than I have in the describe yourself box.
My name's Matt, a sixth former at a Tunbridge Wells grammar school, taking Media Studies, Psychology, Sociology and Spanish. My main interest of these four is the first, Media, I love nothing more than watching movies, at my school I'm known as the movie guy, if there's a question about a movie, whether it be who directed it, who starred in it or even the year, it's highly likely I would know the answer. And so I want to bring my knowledge into blogging.
But I'm not saying that as a blogger I want people to ask me questions about movies, that's not really what I'm getting at, but I'm going to review movies, hence moviematt0109.
I know it's one of these subjects hundreds of bloggers write about on a daily basis, but i really feel I have something that's quite new and different to most, I mean, I'm only 17 so I'm more or less just being introduced into the world of movies as I can't even see 18's (though I have seen quite a lot of them).
I don't really believe I'll start reviewing straight away either, I want to try and get a feel for writing on a blog first, so introducing myself just a little bit further, I want you, the audience, to understand who I am so I don't sound like a stuck up child when talking about movies.
And I'm not just going to review the newest of films, any film I see I'm happy to review, so if you're out there reading this and you find where I'm coming from interesting, I hope you may come back to read more of what I have, so for now, see you later.
My name's Matt, a sixth former at a Tunbridge Wells grammar school, taking Media Studies, Psychology, Sociology and Spanish. My main interest of these four is the first, Media, I love nothing more than watching movies, at my school I'm known as the movie guy, if there's a question about a movie, whether it be who directed it, who starred in it or even the year, it's highly likely I would know the answer. And so I want to bring my knowledge into blogging.
But I'm not saying that as a blogger I want people to ask me questions about movies, that's not really what I'm getting at, but I'm going to review movies, hence moviematt0109.
I know it's one of these subjects hundreds of bloggers write about on a daily basis, but i really feel I have something that's quite new and different to most, I mean, I'm only 17 so I'm more or less just being introduced into the world of movies as I can't even see 18's (though I have seen quite a lot of them).
I don't really believe I'll start reviewing straight away either, I want to try and get a feel for writing on a blog first, so introducing myself just a little bit further, I want you, the audience, to understand who I am so I don't sound like a stuck up child when talking about movies.
And I'm not just going to review the newest of films, any film I see I'm happy to review, so if you're out there reading this and you find where I'm coming from interesting, I hope you may come back to read more of what I have, so for now, see you later.
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