Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

Jurassic World: Dominion (2022) is exactly the movie you'd expect. If you love dinosaurs and the Jurassic Park franchise, you will love this love letter of a film addressed specifically to you. If you fall more on the critical side of things, valid or otherwise, you will have the usual feeling that beyond the grand spectacle, the 'math ain't mathing' in the film. Either way, the film is the big, bombastic action-horror thriller finale that everyone is expecting.

The [SPOILER-Free] story of Jurassic World: Dominion is that the humans never learned from their mistakes from the previous films, science is still running amok, and the world is paying the price. The dinosaurs released in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) have entered the world's ecosystems, creating an ecological disaster. Biosyn, the shady company that tried to steal embryos in Jurassic Park (1993), is handling the global relocation of the dinosaurs. Apparently, being unilaterally appointed by the U.S. Government. This seems a bit tone-deaf for a 2022 film, but on-brand for the self-importance of American corporations and their fans. Not to be outdone by the mistakes of previous films, Biosyn creates a brand-new ecological disaster. The new ecological disaster on top of the wild dinosaurs for nebulously evil and corporate greed feels unnecessary. From a storytelling perspective, it’s a plot device to get our main cast and the dinosaurs all in one location. After all, that’s what we came to see, dinosaurs chomping down on people. Why the filmmakers felt like the dinosaur relocation and Biosyn’s corruption were not enough, is puzzling, but ultimately inconsequential. The motivation and plot are done well enough for suspension of disbelief.

Bringing the cast to the dinosaurs consumes the first half of the film. Thankfully, there are action sequences to temper the slower beginning. However, there lies another potential flaw in the film. Since the release of the Jurassic Park requel, Jurassic World(2015), the films began integrating more action-thriller tropes, and these have had mixed reactions from fans. The feeling of Jurassic World: Dominion is a big summer action blockbuster, with many sequences following the ‘rule of cool’, rather than realistic outcomes for human-dinosaur combat. There are explosions, gun battles, hand-to-hand combat, motorcycle vs raptor races, and dinosaur-kaiju style battles. These action tropes compete with the horror of wild dinosaurs. These action sequences also blur the line between Chris Pratt’s roles as Owen Grady and Starlord (Guardians of the Galaxy). Even Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard) has picked up some action heroine moves that were entertaining to watch. But, your mileage varies on if these action tropes are good or bad for the franchise.

Author: Nathanael Molnár, originally published [4/26/2020]

It was Friday, April 26th, 2019. I was sitting in the AMC Dolby Theater, my friends on either side of me. Everyone in the theater was buzzing, excited. A couple of people walked in with light-up arc reactors pinned to their chests. The lights came down, and the iconic Marvel Studios theme blasted through the theater. The audience cheered; everyone was giddy and ready for what we had all been patiently waiting for since May 2nd, 2008. Avengers: Endgame, the fulfillment of the promise of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

It’s strange to think that Endgame came out a full year ago. I’ve been a fan of the MCU from the very beginning. As a life-long comic book fan, following the unfolding and the blossoming of this entire cinematic universe has been truly magical. It’s something that I’m still surprised we get to see and enjoy. I believe the MCU redefined the comic book movie genre. Comic book movies existed before the MCU and were successful before it. However, under the meticulous leadership of Kevin Feige, the MCU gave us something radically different (current list of all MCU films 2021).

It brought to life the long-form storytelling of comic books, the character arcs that span years, and the meshing of different worlds. In the medium of film, the MCU captured the feeling of reading comic books spanning decades, following characters in their own stories, and then following them into their larger team-ups. Sure, there were the X-Men movies that revitalized the genre when Batman & Robin had essentially killed it. Spider-Man brought whimsy back into the genre, and Batman Begins established realism. It was the MCU that brought consistent continuity, long-form story arcs, and a balance of bombastic spectacle action and genuine character growth and development.

As successful as the MCU became, as popular as The Avengers or Guardians of the Galaxy or Black Panther became, the entirety of this 22 movie experiment hinged on its conclusion. If the MCU didn’t deliver a satisfying conclusion to what this entire thing had been building towards, everyone would have walked away disappointed. Sure, we would still revere the individual films we loved, but the MCU as a whole would have far less significance if Endgame had dropped the ball. On April 26th, 2019, Endgame not only did not drop the ball, but it delivered for fans so much that it went on to become the highest grossing movie of all time!

There are so many interwoven stories, themes, character arcs, timelines, and dimensions! In order to keep track of the MCU films and figure out what to watch when, here’s a list of those that have come out – 29 as of now — as well as what's coming up in the next few years. Included are related articles and Incluvie score (and a fun 1.5 minute TikTok).

The concept behind Thunder Force sounds exactly like what the superhero genre has lacked: diversity. On a deep level, this genre lacks female superheroes that are not sidekicks. When I say diversity, however, I also mean normal people—not Scarlett Johansson, Chris Evans, or Henry Cavill. Even with more heroines receiving their own solo installments such as Wonder Woman (2017), Captain Marvel (2019), and this year's Black Widow (2021), a superhero film with two women front and center (Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer) that do not fit the standard Hollywood mold sounds refreshing. When a friend informed me of not only the premise but that it was streaming on Netflix, I eagerly launched the streaming app.

Like a giddy schoolgirl, I felt as if I was opening a gift of change. Admittedly, the opening drew me in: two social outcasts who meet on the playground, establishing the foundation of not only their connection but who they would become in the world. That world is one filled not with superheroes—but villains. The catch? The villains and superheroes are one and the same. Labeled as "miscreants," the superheroes are destructive in nature, resulting in the murder of Octavia Spencer's parents when she was a child.

Even while writing this description, it sounds unlike a movie with a Hollywood budget. There was hope that this film would represent social outcasts and anyone who has never felt represented on screen.

This female-led comedy attempted to harness both the comedic prowess of Melissa McCarthy and the stunning intensity of Octavia Spencer to drive a plot that failed to reveal itself by the end of the film. The casting of Octavia Spencer alone had convinced me if the plot fell short, her performance could at least carry the film. This was a short-lived conclusion.

The opening scene that initially drew me in became predictable and trite, but I still wanted to give the set-up credit—this was a time to establish the bond between the two main characters. Following the conclusion of the opening scene, I couldn't help but think the set-up was all wrong. The first major event that took place on the playground was the junior version of Lydia (Melissa McCarthy) saving Emily (Octavia Spencer) from a bully. Que the white savior. This established an imbalanced power structure for the character development going forward. Emily should have saved Lydia in this scene.; which would not only send the progressive message but be a proper inciting incident for the rest of the film. In actuality, Lydia should have been the sidekick, as the film struggled to support itself with her as the lead. 

As you watch, you peel back layer after layer to find that it is much more than a comic book action movie about a bunch of supervillains forced together into a Special Ops “Suicide Squad.” Yes, it is about that (and the movie has all the action and gore to show for it) but it’s also about family, the struggle of the disenfranchised, and, most interestingly, American imperialism. While the film somewhat succeeds in addressing these topics with nuance and care, James Gunn’s obsession with violence, gore, and shallow comedy bogs the movie down, often directly contradicting those more serious subjects. Overall, though, I have so much admiration for this movie, despite its flaws. Spoilers ahead~

As many of us know by now, James Gunn excels in writing character-driven stories and the “found family” trope, as evidenced by the success of Guardians of the Galaxy and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. So, it’s no surprise that the characterization in The Suicide Squad is fantastic. Every character feels fleshed out and has an emotional arc. 

The characters that made the cut are in essence — girls that kick butt, challenge stereotypes/gender norms, and are just in general, great characters to begin with. Who says a girl can’t have some spunk?

Matilda is a special girl with telepathic powers and a brilliant mind for her age. She frequently stands up to her ruthless principal and parents with both her smarts and psychic abilities.

Few characters from the video game culture are as revered as Sonic. The first Sonic game was created by Sega in 1991, and immediately began to compete with Mario in sales and popularity. The Sega Genesis era Sonic games were masterpieces of gaming, and sealed Sonic as a video game icon forever. The scrappy blue hedgehog, the blue blur, has become a mainstay of pop culture since his inception.

Let’s go ahead and get the elephant out of the room. The last minute re-design of the Sonic character after the trailer’s massive backlash was a game changer. Pun not intended. Everything about the Sonic design was baffling. It’s hard to gauge if humanity would have survived the one-two punch of enduring Sonic and Cats, but the re-design of Sonic honestly salvaged what is a decent movie.