Shazam is far from a perfect movie, but it is a perfect depiction of the character that bears the same name. The heart, humor and innocence that made Billy Batson a unique character is present throughout the entirety of the film, and they fit well with the main theme of family. Zachary Levi and Asher Angel do a great job of bringing Shazam to life, and while the film’s comedy is unsurprisingly its biggest strength, the serious moments are right behind that. Billy’s personal journey is full of touching moments and brings about a heartbreaking scene during the film’s climax, and those who expected only jokes will be pleasantly surprised. That said, anyone who expected even a few impressive action moments will be left disappointed. Further, like just about every origin story the villain is bad, with Doctor Sivana falling completely flat as an antagonist and serving as a means to an end rather than being a strong character in his own right. These two flaws combine and become a real issue in the film’s final act, as the few good moments it offers don’t go nearly as far as they should. At the end of the day, though, Shazam’s strengths manage to outweigh its flaws. It isn’t as strong as some of the recent superhero films to release in theaters, but Shazam’s sense of fun is refreshing. It holds absolutely nothing back and gets just as campy as a Shazam book would. The result isn’t a must-see movie for casual moviegoers, but it’s something that will likely leave DC fans satisfied.
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For a deeper, spoiler-filled review, read on!

During the first twenty minutes of Captain Marvel, I was honestly a bit worried. While it was far from bad, everything in the film’s opening felt rushed in comparison to the other films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There was no time to breathe between scenes, with Carol Danvers (only going by Vers at the time) jumping from location to location constantly. Thankfully, however, that pacing doesn’t remain a problem and fades away as soon as Carol makes her crash landing on to Earth. From that moment onward, it’s smooth sailing, and Captain Marvel delivers on everything that it should.

Carol’s journey is an excellent one, and Brie Larson does a tremendous job of showing her character’s development through the performance. Her chemistry with the cast, particularly with her best friend Maria Rambeau and a much younger Nick Fury, is as great as can be and leads to plenty of well-acted character moments. Captain Marvel manages to be extremely cosmic like Guardians at the beginning and end of the film, yet incredibly grounded like Iron Man for the entirety of the second act. It’s a balance that seems hard to pull off, but the writers and directors did so in a way that seemed effortless. On top of that, the movie is incredibly clever. The Skrulls, the antagonists of the film, are used very well and handled in a way that even the most hardcore of Marvel fans will be surprised by. Ben Mendelsohn is excellent as their leader Talos, as he and Goose the cat carry out some of the funniest moments in the movie. The tie-ins to the greater MCU are entertaining and make the film feel like a true prequel, while never coming off as forced or annoying. The 90s soundtrack and references are fun, Carol’s hero moment is memorable, and the main post credits scene succeeds at building up hype for Avengers Endgame. Captain Marvel hits every note that an MCU film is expected to hit nowadays, and for those like myself who don’t mind the origin story format, it’s an absolute blast that's worth seeing in theaters.

For a deeper (spoiler-free) review, read on!

​After decades of being made fun of, Aquaman was reimagined in Justice League. The stern blonde King of Atlantis was nowhere to be found, with a rebellious and loud new version of Arthur Curry in his place. Love or hate the change, this new version of Arthur has been positioned as the DCEU’s Aquaman. With that in mind, we can assume some of the goals for the Aquman solo film were to further change public opinion on the character, and to prove that this different version of Arthur was a wise decision. Luckily for viewers and fans, it does both of those things, as one of the best things about the movie is the titular hero himself. Arthur is consistently funny and likable, providing a great contrast to the typical Atlantean royalty. His fight style is unique and extremely entertaining to watch as well, and the well-shot action scenes do an outstanding job of showing that off. Further, his relationship with Mera and the clear chemistry between the lead actors stops this from being like the first Thor movie, as every moment Aquaman and Mera share is a blast to watch. The movie is not without its flaws, however.

While they look great, the villains don’t come close to being as intriguing as the heroes and remain very one-dimensional antagonists from beginning to end. The film is also as formulaic as a superhero movie can be, and every twist can be seen coming ahead of time. Rather than being issues contained to part of the movie, they persist throughout the entirety of Arthur’s adventure to become King, and the problems do hold the movie back from being something special. Regardless, Aquaman is a good movie that is worth a watch in theaters. It may not be perfect, but its strengths do outweigh its flaws. Atlantis is visually gorgeous, the heroes are excellent, there are plenty of laughs and the action is awesome.

It certainly isn’t at the level of Infinity War, Black Panther or Into the Spider-Verse, but that’s okay; Aquaman is still a quality film that prioritizes fun over everything else.

For a score and a full review (with spoilers), keep reading!

It is no secret that Marvel animation has been lacking for years, falling far below the bar set by DC’s consistently great animated films. Since the success they found in the 90s with X-Men and the original Spider-Man series, the only legitimately great piece of Marvel animation has been the short-lived Spectacular Spider-Man series. Into the Spider-Verse has changed that.

The film offers a brilliant take on the origin story of Miles Morales, as well as a memorable version of Peter Parker that feels new, something that is hard to pull off after decades of storytelling. Every other spider gets time to shine, and there could not be a better place for them to do so than in this film thanks to the mind-blowing animation. Backed by a fitting soundtrack and featuring some stellar voice acting, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a must-see. The film is clearly aimed at hardcore fans since every scene has fan service, but Into the Spider-Verse is so well-made that even those who know nothing about the web-slinger can enjoy it. This is exactly what Spider-Man movies, and superhero movies in general, should strive to be.

For a deeper review (with a few spoilers), keep reading!

​With the original four episodes of Castlevania being widely praised as the best video game adaptation thus far, there has been plenty of hype around the followup season. While the short but sweet original run worked as a prologue that introduced the characters and set up the story, this season fully delves into the grim world and makes great use of its eight episodes. Both the protagonists and antagonists receive an amazing amount of development, and every action scene is clever and intense. With beautiful animation and stellar voice acting, this series does just about everything right. Though the third season’s antagonist is underdeveloped compared to the rest of the characters, Castlevania’s second season is a masterpiece. From hardcore fans to newcomers, this is an easily digestible show that deserves a watch.

For a full review (with spoilers), read on.

​I enjoyed the first season of Iron Fist more than most, but there was no denying that it was deeply flawed. The writing was cheesy, the villains were weak, fight scenes fell flat, and all the flaws came together to make for a boring show and a boring lead character. Danny Rand fared a bit better in The Defenders, but he still wasn’t reaching his full potential. Questions soon came up as to whether it was Finn Jones as an actor that was holding Iron Fist back, but I never saw it that way. Still, Iron Fist was running out of chances. Thankfully, things finally took a turn for the best when he made his cameo in Luke Cage. With better writing, Danny seemed confident, relaxed, funny and badass. He might not have had the costume, but he finally felt like the Iron Fist from the comics that everyone was dying to see. That episode had me excited to see more Iron Fist, and it proved that the character was worthy of another chance.

So, here we are; Iron Fist season 2. Are things better this time around or does the sophomore season prove just as lackluster as the original? Read on to find out!

​Taking place in between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War, Peyton Reed and the rest of the creative team behind Ant-Man and The Wasp had complete freedom when it came to how to tell this story. The result is a fun and heartfelt film that feels more family friendly than any other MCU entry and places the focus on its female lead rather than its male one. In many ways, this pays off, as Evangeline Lilly is wildly charismatic as The Wasp, and her goal in the film is personal rather than world-ending. Plenty of the humor lands, and while there aren’t many fight scenes, they’re all well-choreographed and fun to watch. The villain is surprisingly interesting, too. While it’s great that the movie focuses on The Wasp, its title implies that its other hero has a big role too. That... isn’t really the case, as with a few tweaks Ant-Man could have been left out of the story altogether. With the movie being a personal journey for The Wasp and Hank Pym, Ant-Man joins much of the cast in the sense that he never feels necessary for more than bringing laughs. Ant-Man and The Wasp is a good movie, but this is a big issue that stays from beginning to end.

For a full review (with spoilers), read on!

​It’s been well-over a decade, but the sequel to Pixar’s phenomenal film about a family of superheroes is finally here. Even with such a long wait and a tremendous amount of hype having been built up over the years, Incredibles 2 delivers in every way. The animation is some of Pixar’s very best, with the action scenes being intense and gorgeous. Every joke in the film lands, with Jack-Jack stealing the show in terms of big laughs. While all the members of the Incredibles get a chance to shine, focusing on the return of Elastigirl makes for a well-paced and well thought out movie. Incredibles 2 is a near-perfect film that works for all ages, and it’s an absolute must-see on the big screen.

For a deeper, spoiler-packed review, read on!

When Solo: A Star Wars Story was first announced, there was a general confusion as to why it was happening. It didn’t seem like a necessary story to tell, as it would be impossible for it to escape from being predictable. On release, that belief has proven true. Solo is fun and entertaining at times, but unbelievably predictable from beginning to end. While many of the actors are great in their roles, nearly every new character is killed off in ways that are anything but interesting. Due to this, Solo amounts to being nothing more than an okay film. If you aren’t a huge Star Wars fan, it’s fine to give this one a pass and catch it on Netflix down the road.

For a Spoiler-Filled Review, read on.

​While the inaugural season of Luke Cage was solid, it saw a steep drop in quality after the early exit of Mahershala Ali’s Cottonmouth. This season, the writers had to go an entire season without the excellent-but-underused villain and prove that the show could survive without the character. Thankfully, they did just that. The cast is given good material to work with, and they take it a step farther with their great performances. Supporting characters like Misty Knight and Shades get interesting subplots, and Bushmaster, the new antagonist, is particularly brilliant. Most importantly, though, Luke Cage himself is more interesting here than in his previous appearances. While it does suffer from having too many episodes and more than a few slow scenes, Luke Cage season 2 is still a must-watch for Marvel fans.

For an in-depth and spoiler-heavy review, read on.

With the Venom trailer having been released a few weeks back and plans for Spider-Man villains like Black Cat and Morbius to get their own movies, Sony’s Marvel universe is coming whether we want it or not. I’ve always been a member of the latter group, as the prospect of a universe based on Spider-Man’s villains just isn’t that appealing to me. Yes, the characters are incredible, but they’re mainly incredible because of Spider-Man and the relationship they have with the iconic, friendly neighborhood hero. Without him, the universe just cannot work. The movies will fall flat, and the universe will crumble before it comes close to reaching a big payoff moment, just like Amazing Spider-Man failed to end its trilogy and introduce the Sinister Six. Further, these movies remove possibilities for villains to appear in the MCU alongside Tom Holland’s brilliant version of Spidey.
 
That said, I still think there’s a solution to the problems. There is something that Sony can do to fix this universe before it even begins, and to win over even those like myself who don’t like the concept... ​

In basically every way imaginable, Deadpool 2 is what you expect it to be. The action is fast and gory, the humor is as crude and fourth-wall-breaking as it can get, and the cast is just as lovable as they were in the original. It’s a sequel that doesn’t try to be anything but a Deadpool movie, and it finds success because of that. Ryan Reynolds and the rest of the team behind the film saw what people loved about the character, and they turned it to 11 for this movie. While that move does lead to a few missteps here and there, it’s a choice that ultimately pays off and leads to a sequel that is on par with its predecessor. For fans of the character, this is a must-see.

* For a more spoiler-heavy look at the movie, read on *

When embarking on the journey that was the 18 movie rewatch of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I had more than just Infinity War preparation in mind. I wanted to find out, definitively, how each movie ranked for me. In this article, I’ll be sharing a list for every phase, building up to the ultimate 18-film list at the end. Take a look at my list, and be sure to share yours afterwards!

When comparing the third phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to the previous groups of movies, it’s hard not to be impressed. When Civil War dropped, Marvel Studios began a hot streak and they haven’t stopped since. Every movie in Phase 3 is excellent, with the introduction of new heroes like Doctor Strange and Black Panther, as well as the return of Marvel’s biggest star: Spider-Man. There is so much greatness in this group of movies, and I’ll be talking in detail about what makes them so great to me in this article. ​

The second phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was filled with some of the highest highs and lowest lows of all the movies. The “weak villain” problem became an epidemic here, infecting the majority of the phase. Still, the MCU persisted, and it’s here that Kevin Feige and the rest of the minds behind the universe began to take risks and establish their style. Today, I’m taking a look at each movie in Phase 2. Why not join me?

10 years ago, Iron Man released and changed comic book movies forever. It planted the seeds for a series of movies that would sprout into a universe full of classic moments and blockbuster successes. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is incredible. It has taken the characters from the books we read as kids and translated them perfectly into excellent live action film after excellent live action film. I started watching and loving these movies when I was a kid, and as an adult, I couldn’t be happier with the fact that I’m still doing the same. With Infinity War closing in, I started a rewatch of the entire MCU. I’ll be talking about each movie from Phase One in this article, comparing my original score with my current one and explaining why the numbers have/haven’t changed. Give it a read! ​