2008 Summer movie reviews, part 1 of who knows...

Iron Man. Awesome. Go see it. Again, if you already have. Top-notch from beginning to end. Loved all of the little (and not-so-little) references alluding to the comics and future movies. Here's hoping for the Mandarin in 2010!

The Incredible Hulk. Not quite as awesome. It's been a while since I saw the 2003 Ang Lee version, so I pleasantly forgot all of the daddy issues going on in that one. This, however, I felt was just a series of CGI and special effects fight scenes loosely tied together. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, considering all Hulk really do is smash. I suppose I just kind of feel that it felt a little more...hollow. The opposite side of the spectrum than the first movie. Still, it's nice to see that the movie is about the Hulk, and not creepy Nick Nolte.

Kung Fu Panda. To be honest, I kinda wanted to see this, but I wasn't completely sold on it. So it was great that it turned out better than I expected it to be. It moved along at a fairly good clip, which I expected for a movie geared more for children.

What struck me most about this movie was how much of 2D animation elements (including the actual 2D sequence for the introduction) were blended into this movie. It reminded me of most previous 3D animated movies, like Shrek or most Pixar fare, where it was simply that; animated. Those movies were just presented to you, one scene to the next, everyone doing their thing. But Kung Fu Panda included very stylized techniques, with a very strong Samurai Jack flavor. I'm thinking of multiple panels onscreen, overlaid on each other, flipping around, pauses in the action anime-style, stuff like that. I was pleasantly surprised that the Dreamworks team are incorporating different things, which very much fits the style of the movie.

Minor note: I was also surprised how much merchandising this movie has gone through. I don't know, maybe it's just been a while since we've had a property that could be utilized in such a way. I mean, with stuff like Pirates of the Caribbean, Spider-Man, Transformers, and the like, that stuff you kind of expect. And there are the old standbys like Power Rangers and most comic properties. So, here's another one, I guess.

Another note: Concerning the previews. Apparently later this summer is Fly Me to the Moon, about flies that tag along a space mission. I knew beforehand that Space Chimps is also due this summer. Now, I don't know the production companies of these movies off the top of my head, but I know there are now more animation studios besides Pixar and Dreamworks. However, haven't we gotten past the point where these studios need to make too-similar-to-be-a-coincidence movies? There are plenty of ideas out there*, I don't think you need to resort to copying each other to get the leg up on the competition anymore.


(* You know, ideas like Alternate Delusions... ¬_¬)

Labels: Hulk, Iron Man, Kung Fu Panda, movies

posted by Tim at 11:34 PM