Why "Avengers: Age of Ultron" was a Major Disappointment

Avengers: Age of Ultron was a major disappointment to me. I want to say it was a failure of a movie, but that is a little too strong for what I feel. I was just...disappointed.

Sigh. Perhaps it was the massive hype before the movie was released. Perhaps it was the unnecessary romantic subplots. Perhaps it was the lack of character development. Perhaps it was the badly developed villain. In any case, it was just lacking in the crakalacking, if you know what I mean.

Allow me to give a more detailed review, though. I mean, it wasn't all bad. I enjoyed it the first time, more or less. I just wish it was more...marvelous. (SEE WHAT I DID THERE OMW I AM THE FUNNIEST PERSON AHA AHA AHA)

Naturally, expect spoilers. I won't even warn you past this point.

Avengers: Age of Ultron
Overall rating: Three stars

Before the Movie:
"IM SO EXCITED WHO WILL DIE I KNOW SOMEONE WILL DIE I JUST KNOW IT OH PLEASE DONT DIE CAPTAIN AMERICA I WILL CRY MY HEAD OFF WITH YOUR BROKEN SHIELD AND JUST STOP THE CAR I CAN'T IM GOING HOME"

During the Movie:
"Yas.....YAS...........YAAAAASSSSS.....wait. What? Wait, Hulk and Natasha? No. Please no. Omg....no. WHy. HWY ANM I NHERE>. HWY> . I can't no. stopppppppppppppp.

"Okaaayyy I have to get over that. Focus on the move. CLINT FARMER. Yas Tony/Steve conflict. YAS THIS IS no. Why? WAIT WHY ARE THEY SPENDING HALF AN HOUR FIGHTING THE HULK????????? LIKE WHAT is Ultron just twiddling his thumbs while this is happening?! THERE IS A VILLAIN TO FIGHT PEOPLE A REAL LiFE PROBLEM oh for pete's sake.

"Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch! Finally!.................okay so I guess they are side characters obviously......are they going to speak?............IF I DIDN'T OBSESSIVELY RESEARCH MARVEL STUFF I WOULDNT EVEN KNOW THEIR NAMES RN THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE. WHERE IS THE DEVELOPMENT THEY ARE EMPTY SHELLS.

"Where is Ultron even. I've seen him like twice through the whole movie and he said some cool lines, chopped an arm off and...what? That's like it. But okaaaayyy...I'm sure he'll do something cool in the end.

"He did not do something cool in the end.

"Why is Thor in a pool with Dr. Selvig.

"Why.

"I'm so confused.

"I just want Bucky.

"They didn't even mention Bucky.

"*slightly bored*

"Aaaaaaaand Quicksilver died. Of course he did. They had to have some sort of emotion in the movie. But, surprise! I'M NOT EVEN EMOTIONAL BC HE DIDN'T EVEN SAY FOUR LINES."

THE PROBS

The Hype
The hype that was built up for this movie was humongous. When I first saw the trailer with the creepy "Got No Strings" song in the background, I was flipping out for weeks. I was sure this was like, the end of the Avengers altogether. Between Cap's broken shield, all the dead Avengers, etc, I was ready for the apocalypse. What I got was a robot with a cool voice sauntering around quipping back and forth, taking over the internet (and doing nothing with it), and overall just being a bit of a nuisance.

PLUS, IT MADE ME SO MAD THAT BASICALLY THE WHOLE TRAILER WAS TONY'S STUPID DREAM. LIKE, IT MADE IT LOOK SO COOL LIKE EVERYONES DYING GUYS LOL THEN NOPE. JK. IT'S JUST A DREAM. NOTHING REALLY HAPPENS AT ALL IN THIS MOVIE.


The Romantic Subplots
They. Have. Ruined. Natasha. Romanoff.

NATASHA ROMANOFF DON'T GET SAPPY.

NATASHA ROMANOFF EATS SAPPY FOR BREAKFAST WITH HER CEREAL OF NAILS AND BLACK COFFEE.

Like, really? REALLY?! What even possessed Joss Whedon to put that pairing together? Of all the pairings that could happen...that was just...the worst. Just...no. Like, sure, Clintasha was kinda a blah thing, like everyone secretly knew it wasn't gonna happen (THOUGH IT WOULD HAVE FULFILLED DREAMS), but I mean, Natasha and Steve was pretty cute! I wouldn't have minded them! JUST NOT HULK AND HER. WHY.

Not only that, but one of Natasha's main character traits was how strong she was. Sure, she had her issues of "red in her ledger" and such, and she felt guilty, but I mean...SHE'S NATASHA ROMANOFF. She gets over it. And she do NOT. NEEd. NO. MAN.

All rage aside, there was no real buildup for it either. When it happened, I was practically thrown off my chair.


Lack of Character Development
Wait, what's that?

Oh, it's all the character development AOU didn't have.

Basically, AOU had a whole bunch of characters but only focused on developing about three or four of them. And none of those were the newly introduced characters.

Tony's development was all fine and good. In fact, I loved how they explored his little PTSD thing. I have already discussed my disgust with Natasha and Bruce's development. They developed Clint as well, which I had a love/hate relationship with (my Clintasha ship...down in flames). Even Ultron was moderately developed, I guess (though I still have trouble figuring out his motives and plans. It seems like he kept switching everything up on us). However, the issue was with the new characters, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver.

In short, they basically were not developed at all.

We learned almost nothing about these twins, other than they're twins, Scarlet Witch is 12 seconds older than Quicksilver, and that they obviously have a strong bond. However, other than VERY BASIC personalities (Surprise! Quicksilver is a fast-paced, slightly goofy, catchphrase-wielding speedster!) we don't learn much about them. Which leads to Quicksilver's death and how VERY UNEMOTIONAL it was. The only reason I was upset was because Hawkeye was upset. Which made me upset. Because I luv Hawkeye.

Quicksilver's death was not impactful or shocking because we hadn't learned enough about him to really care about him. If we don't care about him, we won't be too sad to see him go. It's just kind of a "oh that's a shame" deal.


The Villain
Take a moment to sit down and ask yourself this question: What did Ultron really DO? Sure, he roughed up a few thugs, blew a few holes in Avenger's tower, almost destroyed the world...this is all pretty big stuff, but honestly, it's nothing previous Marvel villains haven't done before. What I wanted to see was something different. Obviously superhero villains have to have big goals (destroying the world, per say). In fact, you could say nearly every villain has the same goal: to destroy either the hero or the world.

For example, Loki, in the first Avengers, wanted to rule the world, and killed 80 people in three days PLUS destroyed New York, arguably one of the most important cities on earth, culture/commerce/population/etc. wise. He was Thor's brother; there was immediate conflict do to his relationship with an Avenger. He killed Coulson. He mind-washed Hawkeye.

The Winter Soldier, for another example, "killed" Nick Fury, the head of SHIELD, nearly killed Captain America himself, and aided in bringing down SHIELD as a whole. Hydra destroyed a SHIELD HQ, had Nick Fury killed, murdered various SHIELD agents, took over and destroyed SHIELD...

In short, the stakes were higher in the olden days, people. What were the stakes in AOU? We had Hulk destroying a city (honestly nothing new and immediate), Ultron was gonna blow up the world (nothing new), and a character we barely knew got killed. Um...boring.


Honestly, I could go on and on and on about how disappointing this movie was to me. Don't get me wrong, it was a relatively good movie, but compared to other Marvel movies...this was not Joss's best work.

So, what did you think of AOU? Liked it? Hated it? Have an opinion you want to share? Comment below or tweet me on the sidebar!

One Last Time Q & A Quiz

**NOTE THE HOBBIT SPOILERS AHEAD**

SO APPARENTLY SOME BEAUTIFUL PERSON STARTED A CHAIN BLOG POST ABOUT THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES MOVIE??? AND DIDN'T TELL ME UNTIL RIGHT NOW?!?!?!??! SO YEAH I WAS TAGGED BY MY LOVELY FRIEND ANGIE ZOE OVER AT THE RANDOMNESS OF A TEENAGE WRITER BLOG!!!!!! AND I THANK HER KINDLY FOR THAT.

So as for any thing there are rules...so I shall post them.

Rules:
1. You must be tagged in the Q & A quiz.
2. You must tag and notify at least three other bloggers.
3. Answer the questions to the best of your abilities.
4. You must have seen The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies to be tagged/take the quiz.


With all that being said, here starts the quiz.


1. How did you see the movie and how did you get involved with Tolkien in the first place?
I was introduced to Tolkien's universe when my parents finally allowed us kids to watch those three movies they were so crazy about. Of course, I totes fell in love with Aragorn. As for the Hobbit movies, I didn't get to see the first until it came out on DVD, and same for the second. However, for BOTFA, I literally dragged my family out to see it in theaters opening night. And cried. A lot.

2. Who are your three favorite characters in the Hobbit?
Easily Thorin, Fili, and Bilbo. I hated Thorin more and more throughout the movie series, but he really redeemed himself during the last movie (THAT AND I MAY OR MAY NOT BE OBSESSIVELY COMPULSIVELY ATTACHED TO RICHARD ARMITAGE FOR SOME REASON TO THE POINT WHERE I LISTENED TO HALF AN HOUR OF HIM READING LOVE POEMS. IT'S NOT CREEPY). Fili I always liked, and Bilbo I love because he is Martin Freeman and he is THE BEST BILBO that could EVER Bilbo. It's AMAZING. Like, he was born to play this role. That and Bilbo is super sassy and funny and cute. :3

3. Did you cry in BOTFA, and if you did, what scenes and how hard did you cry?
I have never ever cried during a movie ever...so I can't say I did cry during BOTFA because I just...don't...cry during movies...at all. However, what made me inwardly cry was Fili's death and Thorin's death. Mostly Thorin's death though...mostly because of his dying speech. And when Bilbo tried to comfort him by showing him the eagles, even though Thorin had already died. When people do that (ahem Peeta with the shapeshifter in Catching Fire ahem) I always inwardly lose it.

4. Were the deaths compelling to you, and if so, why?
Okay. Let me just start at the beginning.

Fili's death was "compelling," I suppose, even though it was quick. I mean, that's how deaths are in battles. You can't linger too long, you have to move on and keep fighting and save other lives. I was disappointed that Kili didn't linger on it though. I would have liked to have a reaction out of him. (Thorin's broken breath of death was quite moving though.)

I hated Kili's death. It was way too overdramatic and just...why. Why was Tauriel even there...I mean I liked her but I didn't like her and Kili. She ruined the whole Durin family triangle of awesome. They should have died together but they didn't and...eugh. Tauriel got in the way.

Thorin's death was perfect, even if how he actually died was stupid. YOU SHOULD HAVE JUST STABBED THE ICE THORIN. YOU SHOULD HAVE STABBED THE ICE.

5. Overall, were you satisfied with the movie as a whole?
Yes. Just yes. As a whole, it was wonderful.

6. Describe the movie in one word.
Painful.



As for my three nominees......I literally don't think I know anyone who blogs and watches LOTR. So...yeah. Sigh. I'll just...yeah. Comment and I'll tag you if you watch LOTR and blog!

Movie Review: Thor 2 The Dark World

O_________O ............

*deep breath*

*hold it*

*hold it*

*...*










*scream uncontrollably*

*roll on floor*

*make a fool out of yourself*

*embarrass yourself*

*cry*

*cry some more*

*finally, you die*

Thor 2, people.

Or.....is it........

YEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

Okay. So, this was the best movie of the year. That I have ever seen. This year. And it DEFINITELY tops many of some of my favorite movies. Like...it's up in the top five here, people.

Yeah. So. Go see it. Or something. It's totally worth three hours or whatever. I mean who even cares about that. I don't. So go.

QUALITY:

5 out of 5 stars

This. Movie.

This movie.

THIS. MOVIE.

It looks real. Everything looks real. It's creepy. In Asguard (or however you spell that, IDC, DEAL WIT IT), it looks real. Even though it's totally animated. In the Dark World...I literally just noticed just now that I thought about it that it was animated. It looked real. The effects were AAAHG. I mean, at one point there was this monstrous spaceship crashing into the ground, and I went outside after the movie and I was like, "Heyyyyy, where's all the spaceships?!" I have NO QUALMS about the special effects.

But with movies today...hardly anything has bad special effects anymore anyways. ;)

CHARACTERS:

4 out of 5 stars, except for Loki, who gets 23 out of 5

The characters in Thor are great, but lets face it. They're not Captain America, or Batman Begins worthy. In my opinion, Thor himself is a bit of a dunce. I mean, in the best way possible. I like the guy and all, but...where's his motivation? Other than his I-just-met-you-and-I-love-you girlfriend?

I don't want to bash them because they ARE good. 4 out of 5 good. But not 5. Thor and a lot of the other Asguardians (...) just seem brutish and dim most of the time, warriors through-and-through. Maybe that's what Marvel was trying to accomplish, to make Loki's character all the more...unique.

Loki, on the other hand....WOW. This movie totally cleared up a ton of motives, desires, and relationships in Loki's life. It made me go from, "Wow, he's a good villain" to near full-fledged fan-girl "IF THEY KILL LOKI I WILL HUNT DOWN MARVEL AND DECIMATE THEM UNTIL THEY CANNOT BREATH THEIR BREATHS ANY MORE OHMYGOODIES I WILL NEVER LEAVE THE THEATRE IFTHEYKILLLOKI I WILL JUST SIT IN MY MISERY AND BANG MY HEAD UPON THE BUTTERY POPCORN FLOOR AS I STARE INTO THE DISTANCE WITH TEAR FILLED EYES AND WAIT FOR JUDGEMENT DAY TO TAKE ME HOMEOHWHYOHWHYOHWHYYYYYYY"

...

Okay, maybe not NEAR fangirl...

Either way, Loki's character was developed incredibly throughout this movie. He was, to quote something my mom read on the internet, "Hamlet amongst thugs." (Or something like that.) OH IT WAS JUST SO GOO-HOO-HOOD!!!!

I can't say anything else for fear of giving something away....

STORY:

5 out of 5 stars

The story involves the fantasy of Asguardian (...) legend, as did Thor with the frost giants. In this movie, it is dark elves. While...I don't recall, I could be wrong...I don't remember any specific motive for the villains, but it was one of those so-awesome-no-thought-is-needed story lines. A lot of inter-dimensional ripping of the time stream and such, metaphorically speaking. I love how it combined medieval elements with space-age warcraft and such. A really great mix of themes, and they did it well, and ended on a HUGE cliffhanger.

THAT CLIFFHANGER.

THEY REALLY EXPECT ME TO WAIT ANOTHER THREE YEARS FOR THE NEXT LOKI-THOR-THEMED MOVIE TO COME OUT. THEY'D BETTER NOT. BECAUSE IF THEY DO THEY HAVE ANOTHER THING COMING TO THEM.

ACTING:

4.5 out of 5 stars

Of course, Tom Hiddleston stole the show with his Loki acting, with Anthony Hopkins as Odin next in line. I find Chris Hemsworth's acting, like I said, brutish and thoughtless...maybe it's just because I've never seen him act in anything else and I can just see him acting as Thor all the time. <:} Either way. Natalie Portman has unfortunately become, to me, one of those people who act in so much that they just start to act the same in ever picture. Like Nicholas Cage. But still, no qualms about acting.

OVERALL REVIEW:

4.7 out of 5 stars

But I'm rating it a 5 anyways. :)

BEST. MOVIE EVER.

YYYYEEEEAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

Till next time,

P.S. CORRECT ME ABOUT ASGUARD!!! SOMEONE PLEASE!!!! I'M JUST...TOO...LAZY...TO LOOK ON....WIKIPEDIA.....

#the pinnacle of human depravity /\ /\ /\

Percy Jackson: Book vs. Movie

I'm going to do this for real. I just want you to know now that I am not one of those readers who hate  movie adaptions of books because they aren't EXACTLY like the books, nor am I one of those watchers who hate the books because they aren't EXACTLY like the movie. I am one of the in-betweeners. The only book/movie adaption I absolutely hated was Eragon.

So. With no further ado, I begin my study of the movie/book adaptions of Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief.

PERCY JACKSON: THE LIGHTNING THIEF

I enjoyed both the movie and the book, but I must say that I enjoyed the movie more than the book.

...Are you over your initial shock? Let me explain.

For one, I made a massive mistake. You see, my sister read all of the books and had just borrowed the second series's first book, The Lost Hero, from the library when I finally said, "Okay, fine, let's see what this is all about." So, I downloaded The Lost Hero onto my Kindle Fire.

It. Was. Amazing.

I was so shocked and enthralled that the books were this good that I immediately downloaded The Lightning Thief with great anticipation. But when I started reading it, I was disappointed. Wait a minute, I thought. This isn't nearly as good as that second series book. What's going on here?!

I then realized that Rick Riordan was writing from a twelve-year-old's point of view. Thus, logically, writing the book for a twelve-year-old audience.

You see, as the series progresses, Percy Jackson gets older (approximately a year every book, so far as I know). I didn't know this in the beginning. I just assumed he was about the same age as he was in the movie, fifteen or sixteen.

Since the book was written for a younger crowd, it didn't appeal to me as well as the movie did. But know that I enjoyed the book!


BOOK VS. MOVIE: STORYLINE

I was actually pleasantly surprised that the movie had about the same storyline as the book. Other than the placement of the battles (as in the hydra battle, the Medusa thing, Lotus Casino, etc.), the whole pearl-teleportation thing (which me and my sister both agreed they played out better in the movie), and of course the shortening of the book to fit in movie time, the plot was basically the same. They left out some scenes (I would have liked to see Percy in St. Louis on the arch, falling into the river), but I thought the movie was pretty good in its own little way. More action-packed, less time for resting like in the book, where you have action, rest, action, rest.


BOOK VS. MOVIE: CASTING AND CHARACTERS

Logan Lerman as Percy Jackson in
Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief

PERCY JACKSON: I thought Logan Lerman played an awesome Percy. The only qualms I have with him is that he doesn't really seem that ADHD. You can sort of tell he's a little hyperactive, but not exactly ADHD. Otherwise, he played Percy well, except for the ADHD and the slight lack of quippage. I mean, the Percy in the books is ridiculous. But maybe they did that on purpose.

Now I heard from one girl I met that "LOGAN LERMAN IS TOO OLD!! FOR GOODNESS'S SAKES, PERCY'S ONLY 12! HEL-LOOOO!!!" But the reason they made Percy 16ish is so, like I mentioned above, the movie would appeal to a larger audience. I understand how this would get some readers angry, but personally I would much rather watch a 16-year-old fight dragons than a 12-year-old. It just wouldn't seem real.

Alexandra Daddario as Annabeth
Chase in Percy Jackson:
The Lightning Thief

ANNABETH CHASE: I've heard all sorts of arguments about Annabeth.

• She's not blonde.
• She's not as scary as the real Annabeth is.
• She's not blonde.
• She doesn't act like Annabeth.
• She's not blonde.

But I give the directors credit, because they at least tried to make Alexandra blonde in the second movie.

Anywho, the point is, though Daddario didn't play the best Annabeth Chase, I though she definitely played a kind of Annabeth Chase. After reading the book I realized what others were talking about, how Annabeth in the movie wasn't as scary as Annabeth in the book. In the movie, she plays up the wise girl more than she does the fighter-strategist type. And personally, I always imagined Athena as a dark-haired person. Plus, Daddario looks like a very wise person (those eyes kill me).

But yes, she is nothing like Annabeth in the book, and I must admit the movie would probably be more interesting if Annabeth was calling Percy "Seaweed Brain" and threatening him with a dagger all the time.

Brandon T. Jackson as Grover
in Percy Jackson: The
Lightning Thief

GROVER: In book terms, Grover stunk horribly.

He looks nothing like Grover. He acts nothing like Grover. Overall, he is not Grover.

But I LOVE THE MOVIE GROVER. And I HATED the book Grover.

So I'm totally okay with them changing him up. Scaredy-cat Grover drove me crazy in the books and it was just seriously annoying. But in the movie, he was one of my favorite characters.

Jake Abel as Luke Castellan in
Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief

LUKE CASTELLAN: Jake Abel was an amazing Luke, Son of Hermes. He had the looks exactly: mischievous, sly, the required "tall, handsome, short-cropped sandy blonde hair, blue eyes, an athletic and muscular build, and a sneaky look". And he did awesome with the acting. I have no complaints against him, other than I'm really sad as I always am that he [spoiler]. And that he lacks what would have been a really epic dragon scar on his face.

BOOK VS. MOVIE: "TONE AND FEEL"

The book had a very playful and kiddish tone to it, which I enjoyed with Percy's youthful point of view. The movie was much more mature, not holding true to the book but, again, in its own way achieving excellence.

OVERALL:

TRUE-TO-ITS-ROOT-NESS: Though the movie wasn't true to the book in some aspects, it did better than some book-to-movie adaptions that I have seen (*coughcoughERAGONcoughchoke*). I enjoyed the book and the movie separately, but compared, I personally liked the movie better. (Wow. I hope no one kills me for that...)

BOOK: The book is better for young people between the ages of 10-14. Not for us mature, boring 17-year-olds. Still, it's a good relaxing read for older teens, more humor than epic battle scenes (though there are some in there). Definitely worth reading. Do not not read this book. You must. The storyline is just so imaginative. I am so jealous sometimes. All the time. I cry at night.

MOVIE: The movie is aimed more towards older audiences, so for those who just can't get into the book but still want to know about the demigods, the movie provides an accurate representation of the book's world. Individually, I enjoyed the movie thoroughly. At first I thought it sort of fast-moving and low-budget, but once I saw the first part (the two times I saw it I always missed the first 30 minutes) I really understood the situation. Thus allowing me to enjoy the film better.

So what do you think about the Percy Jackson movie vs. book? Do you like the movie? Book? Do you hate me for liking the movie a little better (just a little)? Voice your thoughts!

Top 7 Best Anti-Heroes of All Time

Who doesn't admire those awesome, dark, powerful people who do all the wrong things for the right reason, or vice versa? Maybe that's why we have such an awesome lineup of anti-heroes. Let's see which one's made this month's list...MWAA HA HA HAAA...

(I love deciding the fates of someone else's characters on my badly planned on-the-spur-of-the-moment posts...)

This was actually really hard for me to come up with for some reason. I had a lot of trouble finding ten  anti-heroes to put on this post. So, unfortunately, I had to stick with only seven characters to stick on here. So please forgive me for any obscure and/or not-really-anti-heroes anti-heroes. It was a toughie. I can't say why but it was.

1. JACK SPARROW

Pirates of the Caribbean (movie series)

Perhaps the most famous character of the modern world. (And obviously for good reason too. "I've got a jar of dirt! I've got a jar of dirt!)
("Ah yes. I love those moments. I like to wave at them as they pass by.")
(...Staying focused now.)


2. SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG
Sonic the Hedgehog (video game series)

Let's face it. Shadow's the man when it comes to anti-heroes. (Who PS is way cooler than Sonic.) He is like, the definition of anti-heroism. His best friend is killed and he seeks revenge for her, but ends up saving the world. Now, you can find him blowing up bad guys with G.U.N.


3. SAMANTHA SHAW
CBS's Person of Interest (TV show)

Okay. So, Sam is some sort of government agent who's BFF gets shot on a mission gone bad. She goes all CIA agent on the guy that killed him, thus doing good by being bad. She's...yeah. She's awesome. In a complicated kind of way...you'd really have to watch the show to truly understand.

4. AXEL

Kingdom Hearts (video game series)

He's just trying to get his best friend back. It's just coincidental that the entire world depends on Roxas's non-existance. And that has nothing personally to do with Axel. Right?

5. LUKE CASTELLAN

Percy Jackson and the Olympians (book and movie series)

Again. One of those characters who are iffy on the anti-hero scale. But I certainly wasn't going to put him on the villain thing. Because frankly I wouldn't mind overthrowing Olympus myself.

"Where's your helmet?... No helmet? ...You're dead."

*long pause*

"...I'm messing with ya. Laugh a little."

(...Sorry. Focusing on focusing on staying focused.)

6. MURTAGH

Eragon (movie, book series)

(Sorry, awkward GIF, but it was the only one I could find.)

Murtagh is tricked into believing that he is doing something truly good for his land, when in fact he is fighting against what he thinks he is fighting for. Luckily he [spoiler] and [spoiler] at the end.

7. HAN SOLO

Star Wars (movie series)

One of those heroes who care only about the reward. He don't give a hoot for humanity, as long as he gets his dough. And that's cool with us viewers, apparently.

Movie Review: Epic

Looks like a really, really, REALLY cool movie, huh?! I WAS SO EXCITED TO SEE IT!! My parents bought this movie last night and I nearly freaked out. We stayed up late to watch it.

It lived up to all of my expectations...up until the middle...and the end.

It wasn't a bad movie, don't get me wrong. I loved it! It was very imaginative and SO well animated. They payed such attention to the little things and I love that! But...the story line was lacking.

My first impression was: WOW. Very cool. I loved the animation and the thought put into all of the little details, like the leafmen jumping super high because they're small, and all of that super cool stuff. But during the middlish-endish, I sorta was like...is this it? I mean, is this the whole movie? There has to be more to it than this.


QUALITY:
5 out of 5 stars
This is one of the best-quality movies I've ever seen, up there with Rise of the Guardians. The animation is superb. The attention the animators put into the details of the leafmen, from freckles to leaf-veins and little hairs on the stems of flowers, really knocked my socks off. I loved the animation style, how everything was all glowing and beautiful in Moonhaven and all foggy and dark in the Boggan lands. It definitely lived up to my expectations in this category. The battle scenes, BTW, were amazingly cool. Plus, the creativity involved in the details of this movie was incredible.

CHARACTERS:
3.8 out of 5 stars
I'm really not sure how to rate the characters of this movie. The characters were well-thought out and I had no problem distinguishing personalities between characters. But they weren't very well developed through the movie. For example, Nod was a total rebel, and he never really had a defining moment to accept help from others. And MK struggled with all the small-people abilities for the whole movie, and suddenly at the end she started flying hummingbirds with no problemo. There were a few well-developed secondary characters, though; we all agreed Ronin and the Queen were the greatest characters in the movie. Despite this, I'm giving them an almost-four star review for characters because of the inconsistent development of the two main characters.

STORY:
2.5 out of 5 stars
The story lacked. I thought it did, anyways. It was a very simple, straightforward storyline, with hardly any twists or surprises, which left me sort of disappointed. I was really expecting this AWESOME movie with a storyline that kept me on the edge of my seat. I don't know if it's just because it was made for smaller kids or what, but the story was a "bare-minimum story". Unfortunately, I was disappointed in the storyline. At the end of the movie, I was blinking at the screen and saying to myself, "That's it? That's the end? But...but...? What about mortal injuries? Deaths? WHAT DID THE HERO LOSE?! NOOOOOTHING!!!! THERE'S NO ARC TO THIS STORY!!!!" But it was still a story, and followed all of the rules of storytelling, so it wasn't unbearable or anything. It had a plot, just an incredibly simple one.

ACTING:
4 out of 5 stars
I thought all of the voice actors did a very good job. No one really stood out more than the other; my least favorite voice actor was probably Josh Hutcherson as Nod, but maybe because I just don't really like him anyways. The best was either Beyoncé as the queen or MK's dad (don't know his actor). He did a really good job.


OVERALL AVERAGE STAR RATING:
3.8 stars out of 5

I would probably give it a 4 anyways, just because of how entertaining the movie is for it's details and animation.

So, what are your thoughts on Epic? Did you like/hate it? What would you rate it?

Top 10 Best Heroes of All Time

I'm sure this post won't go without some disagreement. But I write it still.

And just know that I am truly, really, yes, yes, yes doing this from a completely honest writerly standpoint. I am not picking favorites. No I'm not. And if I am, it's because my favorites are the best. ;) No really, I will be as honest as possible.

Now. Anyways. Here are the top ten greatest heroes of all time (from local media that I have personally seen and stuff).

P.S. I will be following with a top villains, supporting characters, "anti-heroes", and damsels in distress. HEE HEE HEE... >:} Also, none of these are in any particular order...I consider them all equal in heroic attributes.

TOP TEN HEROES OF ALL TIME:

1. HICCUP
How to Train Your Dragon (movie)

Despite his father's obvious disapproval of all of..."this" *gestures to all of Hiccup*, Hiccup still manages to come across as optimistic. He makes the best out of his worst qualities, which turn out to save his village (and earn him a seriously cool best friend *eye point to Toothless*).

2. MEGAMIND

Megamind (movie)

One of the only good guy bad guys I've ever seen. He deserves this.




3. PRINCE CASPIAN
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (movie)

Despite his people's hatred of Narnians, Caspian willingly learns about them and listens when they protest against the Telmarines. He then proceeds to fight against his own people. That takes guts, people.

4. JACK FROST

Rise of the Guardians (movie)

(saw that one coming, didn't you?)

Jack Frost has all the qualities of a truly interesting hero. Paired with his flawed nature and several profound failures in the movie, you truly learn to respect him. Click here for a full analysis on this character.




5. CAPTAIN AMERICA/STEVE
Captain America (movie)

Steve (aka Captain America) is one of the most moral and awesome heroes I know of (yes, even though he's a Marvel person...). He loses everything (literally everything, even his own time period) and is still this AWESOME hero. How cool is that. Too cool. That's how cool.

6. WRECK-IT RALPH

...Self-explanatory.

Another one of those bad-guys turned good. Ralph turned into the goodest good guy there ever was. I mean, he became a little girl's hero. It doesn't get any better than that.

7. ROXAS

Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days and Kingdom Hearts II (video game)

Not technically a "hero", I guess, but still. He gives up his existence to make sure another kid stays alive to fight the evil in the universe.

8. BRUCE WAYNE

Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rises (movie)

Yup. His parents die, he loses it, gets slapped by his girlfriend and sent to a bad guy training camp, saves his sanity, rescues his worst enemy, and heads off to become the world's greatest superhero. Doesn't get any better than that. Doesn't matter what happens to Bruce, he always keeps his eye on Gotham's safety.




9. ROBIN HOOD

Doesn't matter how you paint the picture, it's always generally the same; Robin kills someone he didn't mean to kill and gets himself branded an outlaw, yet goes out into the woods and makes good out of the worst.

10. PRINCE DASTAN

Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (movie)

He loses his dad and his brothers turn against him, and still he is determined to clear his name and save the kingdom. Classic hero story.

So, did I miss a one? What are your favorite heroes? What do you like about the heroes listed?

Heroes, Protagonists, and Jack Frost

Psst.

Can I tell you a secret?

No, right now.

Yeah, like, before my computer runs out of batteries and I have to go to bed!

(*cough* Actually I should really already be in bed...but my dad hasn't given the order yet... >:})

(Especially since I think I'm coming down with the cold circulating throughout our two-bedroom condo...)

(Anyways.)

No, I only have 18% left, you have to come right now!

Okay. All settled? You may want to sit down. This could knock your socks off.

For real this time. You ready? Okay. Here goes...

I have serious character envy.

There, I said it! The secret is out! I, who treasure and adore my characters, with all their little flaws and occasional rebellion, and their cute little perfect features (perfect for me, anyways), ENVY another character...one I did not create!

Ooohhwwggg...I'm so ashamed...

Here's the whole story. You know I have this whole 'affair' with the Dreamworks movie Rise of the Guardians? Well...I watched it today. It was probably my fifth time I've ever watched it. And around that time I start to really take apart the movie and its characters. And I am seriously jealous of Jack Frost.

Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm sure you read that little blurb on my author blog about "I. Love. Jack. Frost." I'm sure you caught wind of my animation romance with the complexity and awesomity of Jack Frost. But you have no idea how deep that character goes.

First, I'm going to have to ask you to watch the movie. Yeah, I know, it wasn't exactly a BLOCKBUSTER HIT or anything, but it is a super good movie. Especially if you're artsy like me. The story is awesome and the animation is INCREDIBLE. The facial expressions always get me...I could watch Jack and Santa Clause talk about their center all day... No seriously, you can tell everything Jack is thinking in that scene from the way his face moves, I swear.

Anyways. Off-track and distracted by the late night hypers. Ahem. So, go to your local Redbox and pick up the movie, dust it off, and stick it in your Blu-ray player. No, it has to be Blu-ray. No Blu-ray?! What, do you live in the twentieth century or something?! FINE, use your DVR...sheesh.

...Watched it? Good! Now I can blurt out all the secret stuff about Jack Frost.

Okay. Here's why Jack Frost is such an awesome hero.

1. He has flaws. *Gasp!* I know! Heroes aren't supposed to have flaws, right?! Nope, wrong! Heroes should ALWAYS have flaws, weaknesses, and things that make them tick. Haven't you ever come across a protagonist in a book that you just hated because he was too...good? Jack Frost can't be seen by the children of the world. He has a bad weakness because he's doubtful of himself. He feels like he can't know who he is unless he knows who he was before he was Jack Frost. That. Is. AWESOME.

2. He has fears. And it's not just because of the Boogie Man. Jack has always been afraid of never being believed in. He's afraid of never knowing who he was. He's afraid of himself, in a way. It's sooooo easy to make a hero perfect. (I have on many occasion...ahem...) But lots of people don't realize it's the flawed, fearful, messy characters we love the most because we sympathize with them. We feel their pain, because we aren't perfect. (I guess that's why I never liked Superman... Always had things going for him with the super strength, the invincibility, the laser eyes... I think the whole kryptonite thing is in his head, too, because, um, wasn't his PLANET made out of kryptonite?!)

(...Don't answer that, I know literally two things about Superman.)

(He's super and he has a dog named Krypto.)

(Another weird thing. Name a dog after your greatest weakness.)

(...Losing track. Sorry.)

3. He has desires. Jack wants more than anything to be noticed by kids. His greatest wish is to figure out why he is who he is. Why did the Man on the Moon pick him to be Jack Frost? What is so special about him? These desires drive Jack into the adventure. They keep him going when the going gets tough. When life hands him lemons, he looks at his goals and desires and squeezed those lemons right into his eye sockets just to feel the stinging flames of victory. And that, my friends, is the mark of a true hero that us readers can say, NOW THAT'S SOMEONE WORTH ROOTING FOR! HE'S NOT JUST FLYING BY THE SEAT OF HIS PANTS, THERE'S MOTIVES BEHIND THOSE DECISIONS!

4. He makes mistakes. When Jack gets distracted and abandons his team to search for his past in Pitch Black's lair, he makes a big mistake and ruins Easter, resulting in him being cast out from the Guardians. Now, this is something I have trouble with: letting my heroes fail. As writers, we want our heroes to succeed! We want them to get the girl and fly off into the sunset on a cherry red Mustang GT 500! We don't want to see them stuck in a snowy wasteland being tempted by the villain. But in order to make a believable and sympathizable (is that a word? I just used it. Loud and proud and no one will notice, that's what I always say.) character, we must let our babies experience life. In real life, things aren't easy. They come with hurt. Bad choices have consequences. It's just hard to fit that all into a character who still seems so awesome.

5. He still manages pure awesomeness. Grace under pressure. That's a hero's motto. Or it should be, anyways. Despite his faults, Jack still strives in his own little way to become a better person. He wants to help the kids of the world, and he wants to help the Guardians. Realizing that he'll do whatever it takes to accomplish that takes guts. The guts of a real hero. See, heroism isn't all about the cape and the sword and the cool quips. A hero has to get his hands dirty or he'll just end up like...like...Superman. Too good for his own good. And that is not something we writer's want, right?

Right. NOW GO OUT THERE AND GO TO BED, NOW THAT YOU HAVE LISTENED TO ME RAMBLE ABOUT HOW MUCH I LOVE JACK FROST!!!

(Wow...I managed to write that all and still have 12% battery left! Yippee me! That was like...speed blogging...oh yeah, if there was an Olympic sport called speed blogging, I'd SO win.)

(But if it came to staying on subject...yeah, that's a whole different matter.)

;)

Good Movie List/Reviews

I LOVE MOVIES. There I said it. The bookish writer loves her a good movie. I admit. Movies really Prince of Persia or Rise of the Guardians just sets me right off into writing mood. Movies are one of my main sources of inspiration. So, here are some of my favorite movies of all time. See if these get your creative juices flowing!
get my creative juices flowing, I tell ya. A few scenes of


Rise of the Guardians
Dreamworks

The Guardians is possibly my favorite movie of all time. This movie is an animated piece of artwork. One thing Dreamworks holds over Disney, in my opinion, it attention to the details. I am always amazed at the amount of depth each Dreamworks character's expression holds. (Oh, BTW...I. Love. Jack. Frost.)


Batman Begins
Warner Bros. Pictures
(WARNING: SPOILER AT THE END OF THIS REVIEW)

Okay. About Rise of the Guardians being my favorite... Yeah, I'm a serious Batman fan. As in, I have Batman keychains, Batman pens, Batman t-shirts, and I've watched an entire Batman series (okay, so that's not too unusual, but you get the idea). And this is the best of the series (from what I've read on Wikipedia, that is...). Christian Bale rocks Bruce Wayne, and Michael Caine is the perfect Alfred. It also includes Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson, and several other well-known actors. And any movie with Morgan Freeman and Liam Neeson in it HAS to be good. *SPOILER START* I would watch the other two movies, but I got so attached to Rachel that I don't think I could stand watching her die in the second one... *SPOILER END*


Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl
Disney

I love how they managed to mix humor, adventure, action, and that haunted-house quality all in one movie. And Jack Sparrow, too. I drew inspiration for Rhett Hawke from this movie (in case you haven't already caught on to that... ;})


Prince of Persia: Sands of Time
Disney

Okay, I do get tired of all of the colorless sandy landscape after a while, but this movie boasts in awesome action and seriously cool characters (Prince Dastan and Tamina, anyone?). The storyline is amazing, to boot.


Oz the Great and Powerful
Disney

I watched this movie last week and loved it. The story has tons of twists and the actors are all very good. The animation of Oz was BEAUTIFUL and looked real. Very good movie, though a lot of love scenes... :(


Tangled
Disney

Yeah, I watch Tangled. Rapunzel rocks, okay? Lovin' the soundtrack.


Lord of the Rings Trilogy
New Line Cinema

The best fantasy movies out there, though can get gory at times (for the little ones...there is a reason they are rated PG-13). Filled with awesome actors (Hugo Weaving plays a mean Elrond, and don't get me started on Orlando Bloom's transformation into Legolas), and of course based on some of the best books of all time, they're sure to put the spark back into your imagination.


Other good movies include:

• How to Train Your Dragon
• The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, and The Dawn Treader
• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
• Brave
• Wreck-It Ralph

I have an entire gigantic folder full of DVDs, but those are my favorites.

Thanks for listening!

~Anastasia Cross

P.S. GO BATMAN!!! And Jack Frost. ;-D