Reviews@24Panels: IRON MAN 3 (2013)

More a follow-up to The Avengers than a sequel to Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3 picks up some time after the events of Joss Whedon's 2012 blockbuster. Genius billionaire playboy philanthropist Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is having trouble dealing with the emotional aftermath of the events in The Avengers while mysterious terrorist The Mandarin (Ben Kingsly) is taking credit for a series of bombings. Meanwhile, handsome scientist Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) -- who has a history with both Stark and Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) -- seeks a partnership with Stark Industries.

Reviews@24Panels: THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (2012)

Calling The Dark Knight Rises ambitious is an understatement. Christopher Nolan’s final chapter in the Dark Knight Trilogy is epic in length, far-reaching in scope, complex and literary in its themes. Picking up eight years after the events in The Dark Knight, Batman has not been seen since the night Harvey Dent died. Yet, a new threat emerges in Bane (Tom Hardy), a terrorist determined to overturn the social classes of Gotham and make the wealthy confront their sins. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne is coaxed out of a self-imposed exile by sexy cat burglar Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway). Plus there’s stuff involving beat cop John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and wealthy industrialist Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard).

Reviews@24 Panels: X-MEN: FIRST CLASS (2011)

The opening of Bryan Singer's X-Men (2000) signaled its intentions as a weighty and serious comic book film, especially compared to the frivolousness the Batman franchise of the 1990s had become. That film's prologue, showing a young boy in a concentration camp being separated from his mother, is particularly effective and rather shocking. Matthew Vaughn’s X-Men: First Class opens exactly the same way – Vaughn painstakingly recreates the scene from Singer’s film right down to the camera angles and editing. It’s a bold, curious move and its intentions aren't exactly clear, but with it Vaughn's prequel essentially reboots the franchise (Preboot? C'mon people, help me out).

Reviews@24 Panels: X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE (2009)

While on hiatus from the X-Men series at large, 2009 saw the release of the ridiculously titled X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a spin-off and prequel (Spinquel? Prespin? Let's coin a term for this, stat!). The film, as the title suggests, provides Wolverine’s backstory at length, dealing primarily with the events that led him to be the adamantium-claw wielding anti-hero we've come to know and love.

Reviews@24 Panels: X-MEN: THE LAST STAND (2006)

[Sadly, I wasn't able to attend the recording of the episode dedicated to X-Men: The Last Stand, so here's my review.]

Some nights I am still haunted by the squandered potential of Brett Ratner's X-Men: The Last Stand. Some point their finger at The Matrix sequels or the Star Wars prequels as the biggest disappointment of our generation, but I am inclined to give that distinction to Ratner's entry in the X-Men franchise. Given the huge momentum built by the first two films, a third X-Men film had the potential to be something as great as 2012's Marvel's The Avengers; the sheer amount of missed opportunities in The Last Stand absolutely mind-boggling. When original series director Bryan Singer jumped ship to helm Superman Returns, Marvel – in what can only be described as a ballsy, spite-fueled move – hired yes-man director/professional douchebag Brett Ratner (the Rush Hour films, Red Dragon) and rushed The Last Stand into production.

Reviews@24 Panels: X2: X-MEN UNITED (2003)

The X-Men franchise hit its stride in 2003 with the sequel X2: X-Men United. Again directed by Bryan Singer, X2 is one of those rare sequels that builds on the framework of the first film and out-does its predecessor. Singer seemingly identified the weaknesses of 2000′s X-Men and fixed those problems, while taking everything that worked with the film and broadening the scope. Like Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan before it, X2 makes good on the promise of the original (indeed, the film recalls The Wrath of Khan on more than one occasion - but perhaps more on that another time).

Reviews@24 Panels: X-MEN (2000)

[To sort of piggy-back on the episode of X-Men: The Last Stand, I thought I would go back and revisit all five of the X-Men films.]

The X-Men comics have long been one of the most politically-charged series, giving the film franchise the potential to do the same. Released in 2000, Bryan Singer's X-Men focuses on the origins and introductions of a handful of characters familiar to comics readers: Professor X (Patrick Stewart), Magneto (Ian McKellen), Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), Rogue (Anna Paquin), Cyclops (James Marsden), Storm (Halle Berry), Jean Grey (Famke Jannsen), among others. The plot of the film hinges on a plan by Senator Robert Kelley (Bruce Davison) to enact a Mutant Registration Act, whereby mutants are to be publicly identified or “outed,” if you will. Professor X and Magneto have opposing approaches on the advocation of mutant rights, echoing Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

Reviews@24 Panels: SUPERMAN II (1980)

[While we break for a week from talking about Superman's animated adventures, James drops his two cents on Superman II.]

The production history of Superman II is a long, troubled, and oft-storied one: Originally, director Richard Donner shot the majority of Superman II during principal photography of Superman (1978), but deadlines and a sky-rocketing budget forced the production to switch gears, so the first film could be delivered for a Christmas '78 release. After that film's success, feuding between Donner and the producers led to the director's dismissal before he could return to complete the second film. With the firing of Donner, producers Ilya and Alexander Salkind brought in director Richard Lester (who had helmed The Three Musketeers [1973] and The Four Musketeers [1974] for them) to finish Superman II. However, Gene Hackman didn't return out of respect to Donner, and after a lawsuit the Salkinds didn't want to pay Marlon Brando again (which explains Susannah York's appearance in some crucial scenes). And to make matters worse, Lester didn't even use th majority of Donner's footage. Despite these seemingly-detrimental strikes against it, Superman II is a remarkably coherent, entertaining film. It's held up well, and is still one of the best sequels to a superhero movie.

Reviews@24 Panels: CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER (2011)

Ever since that tag on the end credits of 2008's Iron Man, the so-called Marvel Cinematic Universe has been building towards the big team-up film The Avengers, and Joe Johnston's Captain America: The First Avenger is the final stop before that film's summer 2012 release.

The primary action of Captain America occurs during the height of the U.S.'s involvement in World War II. Steve Rogers (Chris Evans, formerly The Human Torch from Fantastic Four and its sequel) is small, asthmatic, and weak, but by golly, does he love the good ol' U-S-of-A. So much so he's attempted to sign up for service overseas no less than five times, and each time rejected because he's, well, small, asthmatic, and weak. At the funnest looking fun fair this side of Disney World, Rogers meets German emigrant scientist Abraham Erskine (an always welcome Stanley Tucci), who selects the young lad for a "super-soldier" experiment. The experiment is a success and Rogers becomes insanely buff and strong, yet, after a German spy infiltrates and kills Erskine, he becomes relegated to a cog in the propaganda machine selling war bonds, now dubbed Captain America. While doing a USO show in Italy, Cap leads an unsanctioned mission to rescue captured soldiers. Here the Army learns of the Red Skull's plans for World Domination. Can Cap and his ragtag squad of colourful personalities save democracy?

Reviews@24 Panels: PUNISHER: WAR ZONE (2008)

The few times I read Punisher comics in my youth I thought, "Gee, that Newman from Seinfeld would make a great Microchip." And y'know what? He does. Casting Wayne Knight as Microchip - the Punisher's friend/ally/technology whiz - is one of the few things the third attempt at a Punisher film gets right. 

Reviews@24 Panels: GREEN LANTERN (2011)

[James weighs in with his thoughts on Martin Campbell's Green Lantern! This review is based on the extended cut, so adjust expectations accordingly.]

For the last decade, Marvel Comics (and by extension, Marvel Studios) have really embraced adaptations of comic books. We’ve seen adaptations from the top-tier, like the Spider-Man and X-Men franchises, down to bottom rung with 2005′s Man-Thing. Essentially, the cinemas have been ruled by Marvel; 2011 alone saw three films from Marvel (X-Men: First Class, Thor, and Captain America: First Avenger). DC, on the other hand, have yet to make such a significant impact on the big screen. Sure, Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008) have earned the most critical acclaim of comic book films, but they’ve had trouble successfully translating other characters to the big screen (see Catwoman [2004], Jonah Hex [2010]). And, sadly, it looks like this trend continues with Martin Campbell’s Green Lantern.