I've been preparing for this moment for a long time. This past week I've been gearing up on all things Marvel. Anything that takes place in the MCU is up for grabs. I began with The Incredible Hulk, continued on with Iron Man 2, followed by Thor on Wednesday. Two hours before the premiere, I screened Captain America: The First Avenger in my dorm. I also made sure I was caught up on all current episodes of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. At 7:00 on the dot, Myself and three other friends strolled in through the doors of Theatre One, fully prepared for something amazing. We could never have been prepared for what we saw.
In what was possibly the most eventful and unexpected installment of the Marvel Universe, Captain America: The Winter Soldier has proven that not every movie needs a Loki or an Iron Man to be entertaining. We've passed the shadow of the Avengers my friends, and boy is it bright out here.
I knew I loved Cap 2 the moment I heard the first few notes of Alan Silvestri's Captain America theme from the first film resonate throughout the theatre in the opening scene. One of the things I've worried most about the Phase 2 universe is that Marvel is using a single composer (Brian Tyler) to do all their films. Nothing against Brian Tyler, but like consistency with my music from film to film, and I wanted to keep the composers from all the first installments. How lucky for me was it that I discovered that Henry Jackman, (Kick-Ass, X-Men First Class, Captain Phillips) would be doing the music for the movie. He kills it with the score as he has in the past, keeping the beautiful orchestral chords of Silvestri's themes form the first movie for the general scenes, while using his own personal touch of chaotic electrical music for the action sequences. They fit perfectly. You hear that Marvel! Rehire this man!
But the score was only the first piece an the incredible puzzle that was Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Action, thrills, comedy, awe, and sheer heart stopping moments were what kept my eyes glued to the screen as I gasped with the audience at every insane reveal. Insane is most definitely the right word. Having speculated about this movie for months, there were more than enough shocking moments during the 2 hour 16 minute runtime that were so baffling that I had to rack my brain to find a single clue as to when they could have hinted at this outcome, only to come up dry. I was so engaged in the film, I never once got up to use the restroom.
This a movie set in the MCU, the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This was a collective project set up in early 2005 by the head of Marvel Studios; Kevin Feige. The idea was to create an entire fictional universe set in films and television series all interconnecting to form one giant world that isn't necessarily under one exact title. The Winter Soldier is the ninth cinematic installment of the MCU, which also takes place between episodes 16 and 17 of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. It's incredible what the minds at Marvel Studios have cooked up, not to mention unprecedented in the history of cinema. No such collaboration between producers and property ownership has ever been even attempted before, which I find baffling.
I'd like to take a moment to explain very CLEARLY that there is a difference between Marvel and Marvel Studios. Marvel is just the banner which huge movie powerhouses plaster on their films that are based on Marvel comic book source material. Marvel Studios is a specific group that produces the MCU. Different studios own the rights to different comic book franchises. They are currently as follows;
1. Sony (Columbia) - Spider-Man and all associated characters from "The Amazing Spider-Man" comic book series
2. Fox - Fantastic Four, X-Men, Silver Surfer
3. Disney's Marvel Studios - MCU, (Iron Man, Hulk, S.H.I.E.L.D., Thor, Captain America, Doctor Strange, Daredevil, Hawkeye, Falcon, Black Widow).
4. Warner Bros. - DC comics, (Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Green Arrow, Aquaman, The Flash, Cyborg).
It's more than a simple misconception that the MCU wasn't planned out. I know a great deal of moviegoers who don't take Marvel Studios films very seriously, and only pick and choose certain installments that interest them. Certainly that is their prerogative of course. The majority of people who saw the Avengers had never seen a single Marvel film up until that point. Many had only seen Iron Man. Even this I get; the Avengers was designed to be a movie for all audiences. There is however something I don't understand; why those people who only saw The Avengers suddenly believe they can go in and watch all the sequels and understand what's going on. Which is why before seeing any of the Avengers films, I make sure that the previous installments are fresh in mind. This is the advice I give to all those intending on seeing Cpt. America this weekend or next. It seemed from the trailers that they were marketing it as just another superhero flick. This is most definitely not that.
We open on Cpt. Rogers (Chris Evans) jogging around Washington, continually passing by Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie), an Afghani War vet who accepts Rogers into his life as a fellow former soldier with nowhere left to go. It's been two years since the Battle of New York, and Earth has slowly but surely moved on. Steve works for S.H.I.E.L.D. now, trying to make his way in a world vastly changed from the one he left behind seventy years ago. We see a to-do list of his at one point; on it includes items such as "learn about the Berlin Wall", "Moon Landing", and "Star Wars". While it may seem to others he's trying to move on, he still needs S.H.I.E.L.D. to give him purpose, until he finds one of his own.
After a routine rescue mission retrieves a flash drive containing encrypted data on "Project Insight", S.H.I.E.L.D.'s new global security program, the good soldier's life is once again turned upside down by the shocking death of a friend, murdered by a mysterious assassin whose dark intentions have something to do with the drive. Along with Agent Natasha Romanoff, "Black Widow", (Scarlett Johansson), Cap takes to the shadows, uncovering dark secrets many considered to be buried now revealing themselves. Disconnected and on-the-run from the very government he was sworn to protect; Captain Rogers faces stakes higher than ever before, and must suit up and save the day, even as his fragile world begins to crumble around him.
There are so many great things to be found in this high profile sequel, it's so difficult to narrow them down to just a few fine points. Samuel L. Jackson shines in this one, as he tends to do. Cobie Smulders is once again pleasantly surprising as Agent Hill. Besides that, the camerawork is impressive, the fight scenes are brutal, (when things get hit....they get hit hard), and cameos! Cameos galore! Some from the Marvel world, some not. A lot of television actors too, all in one feature. Within the third act alone we got appearances from Revolution and Community alone.
This isn't just Avengers 9. This isn't just another "Superhero movie". This is "The Winter Soldier", a 70's political thriller disguised as a comic book film. It's also a sequel to one of my favorite superhero movies of all time. And now I've seen both, and if I were to give any kind of advice, it'd be this; watch the first one again. It's THAT important. Make it fresh in your minds, as fresh as can be. There are so many events in this movie that are directly caused by events in Cap 1, you really need to backtrack. Trust me, it's worth it.
Prepare to be blown away.
Yours Truly,
Cole Silver
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Trailer
Alright. So I want to first get this out in the open. I've never seen TMNT. Not a single TV episode, comic, movie, or any of that. When I was a kid, Thomas the Tank Engine was all the rage, and if I ever heard of those remarkable turtles, they were from fans who usually didn't talk to me. We were of separate worlds they and I.
The only contact as a kid that I recall was two things;
One, the ice cream. When I was a wee little tot I used to dwell on 5220 Fenn Road. I don't know who lives there now, so I'd appreciate it if you didn't egg their house, because frankly, I'm really just too busy to write apology letters. In my preschool and kindergarten years I remember the days when the ice cream truck came around, and there it was, the frozen green head of a TMNT, waiting to have my tongue lick up all its dyed unhealthy ice. I remember getting one once, I don't remember the mask color, (purple?), but it's eyes were most definitely grape flavored.
The second thing I remember about the legacy of those damned turtles was the theme song on Saturday mornings. Or maybe it was Wednesday afternoons. Among all the vague theme songs to shows I never saw, (Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century, X-Men, Doug, any of the Power Rangers Spin-offs), I also recall a somewhat catchy tune from the 2003 version of the show. It went something along the lines of;
"One! Two! Three! Four! TURTLES! Mutant Chain Reaction... TURTLES! They Live Underground... TURTLES! They Like No Others! One! Two! Three! Four! TURTLES!"
I mean for a kid, I'm sure that was freaking amazing.
That's all I knew! That's all I'd ever bothered to know, until I learned various details about the series a few years back. Here's all I know from THAT.
There's an evil ninja named Shredder, real name Oroku Saki, leader of the villainous Foot Clan. They're some of the bad guys. The Turtles lived in the sewers and were trained by a sensei named Splinter. Their names are Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Leonardo. The usual human protagonist is a reporter for Channel 6 news named April O'Neill, she's got some wise-cracking Cameraman, there's a secretary character at Channel 6, and they have a boss named Burne Thompson. Also, some guy named Casey Jones, who wears a mask.
There was a show in the 80's that was really popular, the 2003 version which I heard the theme song of as a kid, four movies in the 90's, a 2005 or 06 animated movie called "TMNT", and apparently some new series with Mae Whitman as April O' Neill.
That is literally everything I know about the franchise.
So we've got this new trailer out for a 2014 reboot by director Jonathan Liebesman, Produced by Michael Bay and starring Megan Fox as April O' Neill.......and I think it looks great.
I've been called many things, an optimist being one of them, "not a fan of the show" being another. But in the end, it really doesn't matter. Here are the raw facts; #1 it wasn't directed by Michael Bay. Might it look that way? Sure. But he doesn't make the trailers. An external company in charge of marketing makes these things to get an audience, and in the very least sense most people are now thinking about the movie. Buzz has been generated because of this trailer, which I must say is the most conversation I've ever heard regarding a trailer alone in a hell of a long time.
But to regroup, this movie isn't directed by Michael Bay, it's made by Jonathan Liebesman, and while he doesn't have a perfect track record, he did make Battle: L.A. (A brilliant film), and Darkness Falls, which is probably one of my favorite horror films. He hasn't yet gotten a true chance to prove himself, and I expect him to do what Marc Webb did with the Amazing Spider-Man, and give us a fresh take on these apparently beloved characters.
Secondly, It's only a trailer. Hell, it's only the FIRST trailer. There's so much more to come guys, don't you worry. To those who might say "It'll only make things worse!" I say that if you don't like the way it looks, don't see it. Ignore it, no big deal. Just don't go, and keep loving your turtles the way you've been loving them! And also, don't watch further trailers that'll only make you more angry about the situation.
Thirdly, and I think most importantly, it might be good! A different take never hurt anybody. I tried to think of a scenario, but all the movies that have ever disappointed me were never so drastically different from the norm that I didn't at least UNDERSTAND the direction. I may not have been a fan of Green Lantern for example, but I at least see what they were trying to do. Often times, fresh angles make movies incredibly unique, no I'm not talking about Transformers. I'm talking about the way found footage changed the horror genre, you know, before the technique became overused. I'm talking about Christopher Nolan's gritty Batman reboot. I'm talking about when people heard Michael Keaton would be playing Batman, they thought it was a joke, and then it turned out fantastic. We've been wrong before.
Granted, not everything has sold me on this movie yet. Generic military foot soldiers in black, the typical "Your father was involved in something shady" plot device, the turtles being freakishly huge...plus so far, no real reason as to how and why Ninja culture has anything to do with genetic experiments. Kind of random to someone unfamiliar with the TMNT world.
But I have faith. Faith in the idea of a fresh new director on the scene, faith in the incredible talent of William Fichtner. Faith in little attention to detail like April's famous yellow coat. I even think Megan Fox might be good, because apparently I'm the one person on Earth who thinks she can act. While she's need been Angelina Jolie good, she's most definitely light years above Kristen Stewart.
In fairness, I'm sure me not being a fan will mean my words will fall on the deaf ears of an enraged fan base, but I felt for my first post here in Silverland, I should address a pressing issue in the world of moviegoers. Bottom line; if it's not your cup of tea, don't see it, and stop badgering the point about how "terrible" you're "sure" it's going to be. We can't be sure of anything, after all, it's the internet. The World Wide Web of lies. You never know what's really going to happen next, and even if you think you do, the world has a funny way of pulling tricks.
I hope you all have a great day, and have a Spectacular Tomorrow!
Yours Truly,
Cole Silver
The only contact as a kid that I recall was two things;
One, the ice cream. When I was a wee little tot I used to dwell on 5220 Fenn Road. I don't know who lives there now, so I'd appreciate it if you didn't egg their house, because frankly, I'm really just too busy to write apology letters. In my preschool and kindergarten years I remember the days when the ice cream truck came around, and there it was, the frozen green head of a TMNT, waiting to have my tongue lick up all its dyed unhealthy ice. I remember getting one once, I don't remember the mask color, (purple?), but it's eyes were most definitely grape flavored.
The second thing I remember about the legacy of those damned turtles was the theme song on Saturday mornings. Or maybe it was Wednesday afternoons. Among all the vague theme songs to shows I never saw, (Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century, X-Men, Doug, any of the Power Rangers Spin-offs), I also recall a somewhat catchy tune from the 2003 version of the show. It went something along the lines of;
"One! Two! Three! Four! TURTLES! Mutant Chain Reaction... TURTLES! They Live Underground... TURTLES! They Like No Others! One! Two! Three! Four! TURTLES!"
I mean for a kid, I'm sure that was freaking amazing.
That's all I knew! That's all I'd ever bothered to know, until I learned various details about the series a few years back. Here's all I know from THAT.
There's an evil ninja named Shredder, real name Oroku Saki, leader of the villainous Foot Clan. They're some of the bad guys. The Turtles lived in the sewers and were trained by a sensei named Splinter. Their names are Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Leonardo. The usual human protagonist is a reporter for Channel 6 news named April O'Neill, she's got some wise-cracking Cameraman, there's a secretary character at Channel 6, and they have a boss named Burne Thompson. Also, some guy named Casey Jones, who wears a mask.
There was a show in the 80's that was really popular, the 2003 version which I heard the theme song of as a kid, four movies in the 90's, a 2005 or 06 animated movie called "TMNT", and apparently some new series with Mae Whitman as April O' Neill.
That is literally everything I know about the franchise.
So we've got this new trailer out for a 2014 reboot by director Jonathan Liebesman, Produced by Michael Bay and starring Megan Fox as April O' Neill.......and I think it looks great.
I've been called many things, an optimist being one of them, "not a fan of the show" being another. But in the end, it really doesn't matter. Here are the raw facts; #1 it wasn't directed by Michael Bay. Might it look that way? Sure. But he doesn't make the trailers. An external company in charge of marketing makes these things to get an audience, and in the very least sense most people are now thinking about the movie. Buzz has been generated because of this trailer, which I must say is the most conversation I've ever heard regarding a trailer alone in a hell of a long time.
But to regroup, this movie isn't directed by Michael Bay, it's made by Jonathan Liebesman, and while he doesn't have a perfect track record, he did make Battle: L.A. (A brilliant film), and Darkness Falls, which is probably one of my favorite horror films. He hasn't yet gotten a true chance to prove himself, and I expect him to do what Marc Webb did with the Amazing Spider-Man, and give us a fresh take on these apparently beloved characters.
Secondly, It's only a trailer. Hell, it's only the FIRST trailer. There's so much more to come guys, don't you worry. To those who might say "It'll only make things worse!" I say that if you don't like the way it looks, don't see it. Ignore it, no big deal. Just don't go, and keep loving your turtles the way you've been loving them! And also, don't watch further trailers that'll only make you more angry about the situation.
Thirdly, and I think most importantly, it might be good! A different take never hurt anybody. I tried to think of a scenario, but all the movies that have ever disappointed me were never so drastically different from the norm that I didn't at least UNDERSTAND the direction. I may not have been a fan of Green Lantern for example, but I at least see what they were trying to do. Often times, fresh angles make movies incredibly unique, no I'm not talking about Transformers. I'm talking about the way found footage changed the horror genre, you know, before the technique became overused. I'm talking about Christopher Nolan's gritty Batman reboot. I'm talking about when people heard Michael Keaton would be playing Batman, they thought it was a joke, and then it turned out fantastic. We've been wrong before.
Granted, not everything has sold me on this movie yet. Generic military foot soldiers in black, the typical "Your father was involved in something shady" plot device, the turtles being freakishly huge...plus so far, no real reason as to how and why Ninja culture has anything to do with genetic experiments. Kind of random to someone unfamiliar with the TMNT world.
But I have faith. Faith in the idea of a fresh new director on the scene, faith in the incredible talent of William Fichtner. Faith in little attention to detail like April's famous yellow coat. I even think Megan Fox might be good, because apparently I'm the one person on Earth who thinks she can act. While she's need been Angelina Jolie good, she's most definitely light years above Kristen Stewart.
In fairness, I'm sure me not being a fan will mean my words will fall on the deaf ears of an enraged fan base, but I felt for my first post here in Silverland, I should address a pressing issue in the world of moviegoers. Bottom line; if it's not your cup of tea, don't see it, and stop badgering the point about how "terrible" you're "sure" it's going to be. We can't be sure of anything, after all, it's the internet. The World Wide Web of lies. You never know what's really going to happen next, and even if you think you do, the world has a funny way of pulling tricks.
I hope you all have a great day, and have a Spectacular Tomorrow!
Yours Truly,
Cole Silver
Introduction
Hello America! Or whatever corresponding country you're reading this from. If you've found this blog, chances are you either know me, are about to know me, or have known me at some point. As an added bonus, maybe I know you back! It is a small world, or so they've been telling me. I really wish they'd stop, I mean let's face it, it's kind of redundant information at this point, I mean look at the facts; we all know the world is incredibly large and contains billions of people. I'd find an exact number but I'm too lazy to look up incorrect information on the internet.
If you've survived the above paragraph, congratulations, you've made it to round two, where I attempt to introduce myself to people who probably already know who I am. Cole Silver they call me. That's Silver, with an S and an I and so forth. I'm going to get this out of the way and tell you guys that's not my real name, it's a nickname developed out of high school. Back in Sophomore year, I created a facebook account to talk to a girl I met in Florida, and instead of using my real name, I chose to use a pseudonym because I'm interesting like that! The Cole part is very real, and if you're still curious about the Silver, I got it from quite the famous book. Let's see who can guess on 3! On your marks! Get set! Treasure Island. oh sorry, spoilers.
In any case, I moved to St. Charles Illinois prior to my Junior year. Upon my arrival, people I met had no other name to call me by, and so they just continued to call me Cole Silver after my trusty facebook page. I really just have no real reason to correct them. Still thinking....nope nothing. So it looks like you'll be calling me Silver too if you intend to follow this little blog of mine. While we're on the subject, let's talk business shall we?
Without boring you with too many superfluous details that I just do not have time for right now, I am a filmmaker. Be afraid. of my movies. In the future. or enjoy them, that would be great. Movies have been a part of my life since I was old enough to interpret meaningful conversations, which believe me happened at a staggeringly early age. Life simply never caught up with me, and ever since I first saw what could possibly have been anything from Star Wars to The Hunt for Red October I have been working slowly up the ladder of the film world until eventually, (presumably, hopefully?) I achieve some kind of success.
I have been told for far too long to create a blog, god knows who'll even read this, but what the hell! You only live once! Or twice, if you're James Bond. Or Harry Potter, I mean technically he, well, you know....spoilers.
So here I am! Beginning what may very well be a failed experiment in this chapter of my life. BUT, if you choose to follow me on Silverland, I will be posting movie reviews, book reviews, TV series reviews, general thoughts, and perhaps more specific things on all of the above. If there's anything specific anyone would like to see my thoughts on, send me an e-mail, comment, or contact me somehow, I'd say this is my first blog, but, (this likely being my only blog), I think the phrase "I'm new to this", clearly applies better.
To all of you out there who've found me, I hope you stick around, you may enjoy what you find.
I hope you have a great day, and a spectacular tomorrow!
Yours Truly,
Cole Silver
If you've survived the above paragraph, congratulations, you've made it to round two, where I attempt to introduce myself to people who probably already know who I am. Cole Silver they call me. That's Silver, with an S and an I and so forth. I'm going to get this out of the way and tell you guys that's not my real name, it's a nickname developed out of high school. Back in Sophomore year, I created a facebook account to talk to a girl I met in Florida, and instead of using my real name, I chose to use a pseudonym because I'm interesting like that! The Cole part is very real, and if you're still curious about the Silver, I got it from quite the famous book. Let's see who can guess on 3! On your marks! Get set! Treasure Island. oh sorry, spoilers.
In any case, I moved to St. Charles Illinois prior to my Junior year. Upon my arrival, people I met had no other name to call me by, and so they just continued to call me Cole Silver after my trusty facebook page. I really just have no real reason to correct them. Still thinking....nope nothing. So it looks like you'll be calling me Silver too if you intend to follow this little blog of mine. While we're on the subject, let's talk business shall we?
Without boring you with too many superfluous details that I just do not have time for right now, I am a filmmaker. Be afraid. of my movies. In the future. or enjoy them, that would be great. Movies have been a part of my life since I was old enough to interpret meaningful conversations, which believe me happened at a staggeringly early age. Life simply never caught up with me, and ever since I first saw what could possibly have been anything from Star Wars to The Hunt for Red October I have been working slowly up the ladder of the film world until eventually, (presumably, hopefully?) I achieve some kind of success.
I have been told for far too long to create a blog, god knows who'll even read this, but what the hell! You only live once! Or twice, if you're James Bond. Or Harry Potter, I mean technically he, well, you know....spoilers.
So here I am! Beginning what may very well be a failed experiment in this chapter of my life. BUT, if you choose to follow me on Silverland, I will be posting movie reviews, book reviews, TV series reviews, general thoughts, and perhaps more specific things on all of the above. If there's anything specific anyone would like to see my thoughts on, send me an e-mail, comment, or contact me somehow, I'd say this is my first blog, but, (this likely being my only blog), I think the phrase "I'm new to this", clearly applies better.
To all of you out there who've found me, I hope you stick around, you may enjoy what you find.
I hope you have a great day, and a spectacular tomorrow!
Yours Truly,
Cole Silver
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