Black Widow

 

                                Just another day, well technically nighttime I had nothing better to do other than having to sort out my Baseball cards morally putting them back in my card book. Although with all that sorting I had to find something to ignore and mostly try watching. Well thankfully Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow on Disney +, like watching Eternals this was another movie on my Disney + account that was on the continue watching list while sorting out my baseball card collection. Although I had no interest in seeing this movie while back mainly because this came out a year before Avengers: Endgame's release and in all honesty, I found less interest in watching a movie that was set after the events of Captain America: Civil War, so in fairness you can catch my reason as to why I didn't have a full interest in wanting to watch this movie prior to the film’s release. But, as fate would have it moreover needing to put my baseball card collection back in order, I decided to put this movie on.

                                Again, the film is set after the events of Captain America: Civil War, Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) goes into hiding but is stalked by a mysterious assassin with ties to her past. Black Widow soon learns that she needs to go back to the past she left behind and burn it all to the ground.

                                Out of all the Avengers characters from the MCU, Black Widow was indeed one of those characters I cared about, but part of the problem was no doubt that the film was released a year before Avengers: Endgame was released and seeing that her character was killed off, I really didn't have in interest in wanting to watch a movie in which she finally gets her debut movie furthermore knowing her fate. Granted if this film came out during the Phase Three era, I would think differently but, it's already happened so now I can't really say much about the film. I will not say much about Johansson's performance because there's really nothing to say she's a natural and there really no one in a million years that can play the original Black Widow. But what I kind of find laughable is her ability the take her character as a female Jason Bourne where she literally doesn't have any broken bones or legs or the arms, and yes I'm talking about the action sequence in Budapest where she and her sister is outrunning the other Black Widow's and she fell and didn't broke any other bones, granted that wasn't the only one we can also talk about the sequence where she blew up the Black Widow base and she was doing her best Superman flying while outsmarting the Taskmaster. And to be fair my complements I can give to this films credit is the action sequences that were unintentionally funny and especially when you watch something where the Action sequences are just to ridicules moreover doesn't look at all realistic that's when you must chuckle on its utter nonsense. The other problem I also have with the movie as well is that they were using characters from the Marvel Universe that were a complete waste, give you a great example both Red Guardian and Taskmaster, and hearing that there was a Russian Super Soldier is just such disappointing because this would of been a great villain or rival towards Captain America that they could of at least use in the Captain America movies, I mean it would of been awesome if the two of them worked together and fought Red Skull, but know they didn't use him nor had a thought of using him so now this probably the only time will ever see a Russian Super Soldier in any of the upcoming MCU films, so again just a wasted opportunity. And the same goes with Taskmaster, whose supposed to be the assassin that basically fighting a mirror version of the hero's self and this character was as I felt, a wasted opportunity because again he would of made an excellent criminal mastermind where he tries to manipulate the Avengers and the only ones who can stop them where Thor, Hulk and Iron Man, but again I can say so many things on to what would be better to use these characters but in the end there's really no use because the more your brain wants to fix these movies, the more you go insane and that's not healthy. A side from the laughable action sequences and Scarlett Johansson being the only Black Widow in the movie with an English accent and her fellow supporting cast has Russian accents for which again I'm keeping my distance because again if you can fix what's broken, insanity kicks in. But back to topic this is one of those films that it's fine to watch once while you’re keeping your place clean or doing laundry but in all honesty, I don't think I would ever want to watch this film ever again. 

       

A League of their Own: TV series

 

                              Okay, so it was like this I found out Amazon was doing a League of their Own TV show, granted I wasn't really all that interested but my mom was somewhat interested and asked me to sit down and watch the first episode with her. And of course, I did, mainly because I didn't have anything better to do, and this might not be that bad. Unfortunately, after watching the first episode Mom and I called it good, reasons why we both in a sense called a lesbian love story in the works for which makes sense because the co-creator was Bi-Sexual and one of the directors also directed Lesbian films. But the main reason I picked up throughout this show is mostly this was really nothing anything original especially when they made the same scenes from the original film. The other reasons, they crammed so many characters in this show, and I'm assuming they did that because they were not going to be renewed for a second season. And will get to that later. 

                               The show itself is set in 1943, for which begun the formation of the All-Girls Baseball League, almost like the movie, where some of the story line centers on whether this league would last long or not, or will America accept this as Baseball or not, with a bit of a coming out love story if you know what I mean.

                                 Now as a first time viewing a show like this, I didn't mind the whole Lesbian love story for which is where a married woman falls for another woman on the team. And I can tell you the honesty truth it didn't bug me much other than I kind of predicted that would happen because let's be real when you’re in an all-girls baseball league there would be times when you find out you like girls. Okay, enough of my lame comedic jokes (or whatever) as the creator's should do because it's new generations when you can take these kinds of risks, though on the other hand my mom didn't like that for which I understand her reasons because she was a sixties-seventies gal with religious background so in fairness I get where she's coming from. The real problem I have with the show is that they crammed way to man characters in this show for starters they introduced the black female ballplayer way to early and this was 1943, for which yeah I'm pretty sure some of them wanted to try out but the problem is, that we've seen that and really if your planning on doing more seasons wouldn't it make a lot more sense to use that character concept for when they reach the 1947 season when Jackie Robinson broke the Color barrier? I'm just saying if you’re expanding the story of the girl’s baseball league you should at least save that story line or set it in 1947. The other problem I have with it is that the recreate scenes that where just out of the original film, for which sure nobody ever remembers the original movie but I can count at least two scenes where they recreate scenes from the original movie, for which is fine and all because again I'd bet nobody has seen the original movie but in all fairness you should really separate yourself from the original movie and stay more focus in making this your own show. I'm confident that the show alone will be loved by millions in fact it's showing great promise by everyone, but as a show itself I believe that this a lecture for all men who didn't appreciate the women of today nor the women who appreciated the women's baseball. But in all honesty, I'm a man who believes God created men and women equal and so if I really want a lecture I'd go to church and hear what God has to say. So, in closing if you’re in for a show like this I would avoid it but if you loved the original movie, I'd say go crazy.

   

The Harder They Fall

 

                                       This is the second time in my life where I screamed at the TV and said F**K YOU, while watching a movie. Though granted this was by accident. The Harder They Fall is one of those films that has promise of greatness and looks to be intriguing when you watch the trailer and see Idris Elba's face on screen, moreover the Netflix main menu screen. But then you begin to see that this film is not what you think it is and you slowly see that it's not all promising and at times, boring. Now, I'm a huge Western's fan been one my whole life started off with the Great John Wayne classic’s and loved watching any modern-day Western's like 3:10 to Yuma and Django Unchained. But, with this film it seems like the director James Samuel aka The Bullitts has never seen a Western and if he had, he obviously doesn't know what the audience wants when it comes to making a Western movie.

                                       When an outlaw discovers his enemy is being released from prison, he reunites his gang to seek revenge.

                                        It's a real complicated thing to talk about when you’re making a genre that has been around for a long time and is very traditional. I guess what I'm trying to explain is when you make a western you must follow certain laws of what makes a western movie or show work, and one of those examples is to tell the harshness of what makes westerns work, the theme. Westerns often stress the harshness and isolation of the wilderness, and frequently set the action in an arid, desolate landscape. Western films generally have specific settings, such as isolated ranches, Native American villages or small frontier towns with a saloon. Now granted this film has all of these aspects when it comes to making a western story it has revenge story, it provides constant small towns with a saloon's and it has some real life outlaws for which I've never heard of for which I give compliments, but the thing that throws me off about the film is that it’s more of a talking western than it is a traditional western, and sure you can say Quentin Tarantino changed some laws of Western genre but he was a student to Western films he took constant notes on what makes them great. This film is an example of more talk and less action, will lose some of your audience. Though granted there is some action in the film but very few of it, and I didn't realize it until I finally got to the maybe second act (I couldn't tell in all truthfulness) and there was about forty minutes to go, then I started to feel bored with the movie. And it really wasn't just the length of the film, it was also more of the characters making not so smart decisions in situations in which you'd get caught or taken hostage, and that's one of the rare few times I began to question in the films potential. And sure there are some action sequences but there were times I can look at an action sequence and tell that its predictable and the final shootout was a clear example of predictable and this was Outlaw against Outlaw, there shouldn't been any honorable motives among another outlaw there really should be no mercy especially one scene were both gals unload their guns and duke it out, in all honesty I was kind of hoping they would out least just unload their gun on their challenger when they realized they just lost. Now, I'm sorry if I am spoiling details in the ending of the movie but this was one of those twists that threw me out of it, just like Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, where the twist ending seemed stupid on so many levels. So, in the final confrontation of the movie, you'd think there would be a quick draw duel between our protagonist and Idris Elba, but of course we didn't get that, no we just have Elba in a monologue talking about his past and his father, AND THEN he reveals that him and the protagonist of the movie ARE BROTHERS! Which I was like OH HELL NO, moreover screaming F**K YOU, and I'm sorry but it's one of those things I couldn't accept because for starters it was way too late in the movie to address they both had the same father also when you have a final confrontation between the good guy and bad guy you have to have a quick draw duel, that's just simple as that we have to root for the protagonist till the very end but really when it came to this movie I just lost interest in every one of the characters in the movie. I give James Samuel some credit at least he had some good ideas made a good soundtrack, but when it comes to directing and telling a story in the old west, you must have a lot of action sequences and story motives to follow your good guys till the very end, and most importantly "show, don't tell" that’s really one of the golden rules to follow when you’re making a movie like this. I can't say that this was the worst movie I've seen because in all honesty I've seen far worst movies than this, but I would consider this one of the most boring films I've seen, deep down this film has some interesting ideas I like the fact that they have in all-star African American cast but the story itself just falls flat on itself after the first twenty minutes of the movie till the very end.  

      

August Recommendation: Hangmen also Die!

 

                             Well ladies and gentlemen I've finally come back from a long and needed vacation, not just saying it was a well needed day off all the madness around the world, but it was most needed. Though as luck would have it, I've finally took some time in finding some contenders for my August Recommendation, it went down with a horror film about being all by yourself and a World War II film noir, set in Czechoslovakia. Though it was my mom and Dad that got me into this great film noir set in World War II Czech. My Mom through her parents’ history came from a Czech background, with a lot of memories growing up through the years including WWII. So, like every movie guy would do I decided to finally take the time and watch this surprisingly great movie, directed by Fritz Lang, who I need to investigate tells the story of a real-life assassination on a Nazi officer who was an architect on the Holocaust, for which goes to great lengths of one Nazi death but trying to save countless lives of Czech citizens in retaliation.

                            During the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia, insurgent Franticek Svoboda (Brian Donlevy) assassinates the brutal German leader Reinhard Heydrich (Hans Heinrich von Twardowski). Svoboda escapes with the aid of a History Professor Stephan Novotny (Walter Brennan), but Novotny is then captured, along with 400 other Czechs, through the machinations of Nazi sympathizer Emil Czaka (Gene Lockhart). The Czech prisoners are then told that if Svoboda does not surrender, they will be executed.

                            One of the many films that blends perfectly with both World War II genre of film and the darkest worlds of film noir. What makes this film amazing and cleverly drawn, is that there's no good guy in this whole movie though granted the Czech Resistance is the good guy but there using extreme measures in terms of keeping their resistance a secret, moreover Hangmen also Die is more of a survivalist story of fighting a Nazi Regime while hiding in the shadows. To give a little brief history of the film, the movie is loosely based on the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich who was a number two man in the SS, moreover, was the chief mastermind behind the Holocaust though in real life he was assassinated Czech Resistance fighters who parachuted from a British plane in Operation Anthropoid. What also gives this film credit is that it was made during the wake of Heydrich's death during World War II, moreover, is a hand full of movies that show Hollywood not being afraid during that era to tell stories that happened in WW II. Fritz Lang director of the film was born in Vienna, Austria-Hungary around 1890, and lived majority of his life in the waking horrors of what Germany did during most of his life. When he arrived in Hollywood, Lang had been involved in the creation of the Hollywood Anti-Nazi League, for which he made four Anti-Nazi themed films including Hangmen also Die! And with this film Lang does such a great job establishing the world of Occupied Czechoslovakia where there is no reasoning with the Nazi's and even if you go to them, they will make your lives worse than they can possibly make it, during that time. Furthermore, Lang does a good job in not holding back any of the punches when it comes to the Nazi's brutalities in the film moreover does a great job with the third act in a way, I don't want to spoil it for anyone, though all I can say now I'm glad to of watch on of the first of many Fritz Lang's work and now in the hunt for finding more films he's made. I don't want to spoil anymore details about this great film, but it's an amazing gripping tale about having to make huge sacrifices in order to fight a regime that almost seemed unbeatable, and I would highly recommend watching this great film to anyone who’s big in both film noir and World War II films.