FilmCritic entries tagged "x-men: the last stand"

John Scalzi on Scifi

John Scalzi - Does Your Favorite Sci-fi Movie Do Right by Its Female Characters?

by John Scalzi on Jul 28 2010
John Scalzi - Does Your Favorite Sci-fi Movie Do Right by Its Female Characters?
Have you ever heard of the Bechdel test? It's a test, popularized by cartoonist Alison Bechdel, that asks three questions of movies:

1. Are there at least two women characters in the film?
2. Who talk to each other?
3. About something other than a man?

If a film fulfills all three, then it passes the Bechdel test. If it doesn't, then it doesn't. The point of the Bechdel test, among other things, is to note that even here, in the twenty-first century, the role of women in film is very often to be support for the male roles or to keep the story and audience focused on the male protagonist. Whether that means something to you or not is really up to you, but, as a creative person myself, I do find it an interesting test to apply to my own work.
more »

See more in:

Top Ten

Classic Ten - They Came Back From the Dead

by Ashley Shaw on Oct 21 2009
Classic Ten - They Came Back From the Dead

In horror movies, people have come to expect the bad guy to return from the dead. It's pretty much a given -- especially in this era of infinite sequels -- that Freddy will somehow find his way back. However, rising from the dead isn't always just for cheap scares. These are ten movies in which a character you think is gone and forgotten shows up to exact one last scene of awesomeness.

t2-125.jpg

10. The Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Schwarzenegger's Terminator is truly the gift that keeps on giving. You can crush him, disassemble him, melt him -- and he just keeps coming back. Unfortunately for Sarah Connor in Terminator 2, his return is an unwelcome surprise. Sure, everybody knows now "he'll be back," but that initial shocker keeps him on the list at number ten.

clue-125.jpg

9. Mr. Boddy (Tim Curry), Clue (1985)
It's only fitting that a character named Mr. Boddy should end up as the first dead body in Clue. While all the other victims manage to stay dead, in a shocking reveal at the end of the movie, it's revealed that Mr. Boddy was never actually a corpse -- the man everyone thought was Mr. Boddy was really Mr. Boddy's butler. His butler! This technicality keeps him low on the list, but still kicking at number nine.

more »

See more in:

Features

If the Academy Awarded CGI Performances, the Oscar Would've Gone to...

by Ashley Shaw on Jul 9 2009
If the Academy Awarded CGI Performances, the Oscar Would've Gone to...

As computer animation evolves, the line between acting and drawing grows increasingly blurred. Should Edward Norton or the animator get the credit for the emotional range of the Hulk? Can you separate Andy Serkis from the LOTR animation team when evaluating Gollum? Yet if history is our guide, none of the most breathtaking performances in this year's big releases (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, A Christmas Carol and Alice in Wonderland) will get the kudos they deserve. In an effort to right that wrong, here's a history of movies with great CGI performances worthy of greater recognition.

hulk.jpg

The Incredible Hulk (2008)
Edward Norton's moments as the monster in The Incredible Hulk were aided hugely by CGI which allowed the scrawny white actor to morph into a giant green Norton look-a-like. In contrast to Ang Lee's Hulk (2003), this version seamlessly blended motion capture, key frame animation, phosphorescent paint and strobe lighting to capture a wide range of human emotions, not just rage. It's the most effective Hulk seen so far on screen -- big or small. (Sorry Lou Ferrigno!) As such, it may have been the most underrated performance of last year.

spider-man-3.jpg

Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Spider-Man's villains are some of the coolest examples of how far CGI has come. Topher Grace's Venom and Thomas Haden Church's Sandman might not quite rank with Heath Ledger's non-animated performance in The Dark Knight, but the manic grin grafted on Grace's face was still pretty amazing. As to Church, his most memorable scenes were those which found him half acting and half sand. Sure, he was nominated for an Oscar for Sideways (2004), but here he's pretty impressive too when embodying a massive tornado.

beowulf.jpg

Beowulf (2007)
Just three words are needed to justify Beowulf's place on this list: Angelina Jolie naked. Jolie was just one of many CGI-ed actors in this movie but she alone emerges as its star. Why? Well, months before this flick hit theaters all anyone could talk about was her naked bod, even if it was just a cartoon. However big a flop Beowulf turned out to be, in it, a golden Jolie emerged from a pool and seduced mankind yet again in a completely different form. That's worthy of some sort of an award, isn't it?

more »

See more in:

Scifi

Catwoman's Villain Meets Her Match for Lame Superpowers

by Nick Nadel on Dec 16 2008
<em>Catwoman</em>'s Villain Meets Her Match for Lame Superpowers

To say that superheroes are living in a golden age on the silver screen would be perhaps an understatement. You can hardly go to the movie theaters these days without running into yet another offering from the pages of comic books. But not all offerings are created equal -- indeed for every web-slinger or billionaire in an iron suit, there are superheroes and villains with powers that just don't quite get the job done. We don't love these modern-day Don Quixotes any less -- their shortcomings in fact endear us to their plight, whether it's good or evil. Here's a look at four characters who've dared to tilt at windmills.

Invisible Boy - Mystery Men (1999)
Despite being a glorified "League of Losers," most of the Mystery Men have powers that actually serve a purpose. Blue Raja (Hank Azaria) is the master of cutlery, while Bowler (Janeane Garofolo) hurls a mean bowling ball. But Invisible Boy (Good Burger's Kel Mitchell) pretty much just gets naked. You see, his invisibility only works if no one, himself included, is looking. It's a decent joke -- and he has several in the movie that make his character worth watching -- but as far as real superhero work goes, Invisible Boy's contributions are just that.

more »

See more in:

Scifi

Who's Next For X-Men Origins? Vote Now!

by Nick Nadel on Nov 18 2008
Who's Next For <em>X-Men Origins</em>? Vote Now!

While fanboys drool over Marvel Films' now daily headlines (Captain America has a director! Kenneth Branagh's giving Thor an Elizabethan accent!), everyone has plum forgotten about Fox's X-Men Origins franchise. But it's time to bring back the buzz. Next May's Wolverine looks promising, if for no other reason than Sabretooth is no longer played by a professional wrestler. Then there's Magneto, the ideal choice for Origins in that the character's background as a Holocaust survivor is cinematically compelling, and his origin dovetails nicely with Professor Xavier's. Indeed, as recent reports have confirmed, the movie (co-written by The Dark Knight's David S. Goyer) will delve into Magneto's early days with the X-Men founder, and is certain to feature cameos by other young mutants.

But beyond Wolvie and Magneto, do any other mutants deserve a solo outing? To answer this question I've teamed up with the editors at ComicMix to offer you the top five future Origins contenders. Take a look, then throw in your two cents. Your vote could finally give America the Banshee film it deserves.

more »

See more in:

On DVD

X-Men: The Last Stand

by Sean O'Connell on Jun 3 2006
DVD Release Date: April 21, 2009
X-Men: The Last Stand

Rated by critics:

Rated by users:

Rated by you:

We've witnessed, this summer, how fresh blood can rejuvenate a franchise entering its third installment. Weeks ago, Paramount handed the Mission: Impossible keys to J.J. Abrams (Alias) and clicked their heels when the inventive television director breathed new life into...... more »

See more in: