Tag / zoe saldana

by Jaime Rebanal

Avengers: Infinity War – Review

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There are many stories being told within Avengers: Infinity War and I think that happens to be the best way for something of this sort to be shown to the screens because it gives every character what’s needed in order to create an emotional resonance with its viewers. In the past ten years, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been telling individual story after another but have always been dependent on one another in order to form something of a larger scope and as all stories come together to form one singular Avengers story. The ambition is clear enough from how all of these characters established by their own entries are coming together once and for all, so the question to be asked is how does the film live up to the scope it promises? It’s a step up from both the last Avengers film and the Russo brothers’ last Marvel film, but I feel hesitant to go beyond saying it pays off completely after the Marvel Cinematic Universe has only recently released their two most interesting films since the first Guardians of the Galaxy.

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by Jaime Rebanal

Guardians of the Galaxy – Review

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I think it would be clear enough that I’m not a fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This was perhaps a prime factor regarding why my own opinion of James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy had turned out more favourable than my general opinion of their output and after having gone without seeing it since its theatrical run, it was nice enough to find that it still remained as strong as it did. With this and Captain America: The Winter Soldier, 2014 has proven itself to be the strongest year for the MCU because their offerings then didn’t end up feeling like they were constricted by the grating formula to which Marvel has been sticking to over all the years, which was really refreshing to have found for films that have carried their name. This freedom was what the MCU had needed after all these years and James Gunn only utilizes it in the best manner.

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by Jaime Rebanal

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – Review

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For once I found myself skeptical of a Marvel Cinematic Universe film because the first Guardians of the Galaxy actually proved itself to be something that stood out amidst the rest of the crowd because it surprisingly happened to be one of only two films thus far from them that I really liked (the other being Captain America: The Winter Soldier). Naturally, the thought of a sequel would actually be met with warmth compared to the rest of their output but skepticism would also rise in regards to what it would end up turning the film into, and to some extent it’s what I got as always from the most typical MCU film. As promised from the return of James Gunn as writer and director another vibrant and colourful film would come back like the first but perhaps sticking to the same schtick that the first one carried only wore out the charm it had, at the film’s very worst moments.

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by Jaime Rebanal

Star Trek Beyond – Review

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I’m not a huge Star Trek fan personally. I was always rather indifferent to the series (even though I admittedly quite love The Wrath of Khan) but when the series hits its highest points, it’s usually rather interesting what pops out. With Star Trek Beyond I was admittedly rather skeptical because I was not particularly fond of J. J. Abrams’s takes on the series and now with Justin Lin behind the camera, there were only two things that I could expect knowing that a radically different approach were going to be made with the series. Either it could go down the path to which Lin chose to suit the Fast and the Furious films (which I’ve never been to fond of) and in turn head down a much worse route or bring a kick of energy to the franchise that could grab my interest. Thankfully, Star Trek Beyond leaned toward the latter, even if it suffers what the previous reboots suffered through at the same time. Continue reading →