"Daredevil" Netflix Series

     Matt Murdock, lawyer by day and crime fighter by night, is the most unlikeliest superhero, mostly because he just so happens to be blind. Ever since an accident that happened when he was a boy where he was blinded by toxic chemicals, his other senses have been intensified to a superhuman degree. Growing up in Hell's Kitchen, one of the roughest places in New York City, Matt feels that justice must be served, whether through the law, or by more direct means. This path that he takes; however, has made him the enemy of an organization that threatens to destroy him and everything he holds dear, including his city. Now he must fight both as Matt Murdock, the lawyer, and as the Daredevil in order to save the entire city.
     Created by Drew Goddard, this first season stars Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock/Daredevil, Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page, Elden Henson as Foggy Nelson, Vincent D'Onofrio as Wilson Fisk, Toby Leonard Moore as Wesley, Rosario Dawson as Claire Temple, and Vondie Curtis Hall as Ben Urich. This was a fantastic season that had you on the edge of your seat the whole time. They even made Wilson Fisk someone you can sort of relate to, and that is tough to do even under the best of circumstances. I can't wait to see where else Marvel will put Daredevil in their Cinematic Universe.
      Alright, here is the low down on the other shows Marvel will be releasing through Netflix, and also how they all connect. Daredevil was the first part of a series Netflix is contracted to do for Marvel called The Defenders. The Defenders are all superheroes based in Hell's Kitchen New York and will most likely follow after the events of Daredevil. The second show in the series will be "A.K.A. Jessica Jones," a private detective with some superpowers all her own, including superhuman strength and durability, plus she has the ability to fly! Personally I can't wait to see how they are gonna integrate her abilities into the show. That show is scheduled to come on Netflix sometime in December of this year, though that date could still change depending on when filming and post-production wraps up. The next show after that one will be based off the character Luke Cage who will be making appearances in A.K.A. Jessica Jones. A little side-note, in the comics universe Luke and Jessica are married. There is no specific air date for this show but will most likely be released around this time next year. Finally to round the quartet of heroes from Hell's Kitchen we have Iron Fist. Another side-note, Iron Fist is best friends with Luke Cage in the comics. To top all those four shows, Marvel will then have all four team up in show called The Defenders, which, as of yet, has no release date.
     Also, for all those who are way out of the loop, there is this thing called the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Right now we are in Phase 2 of the Universe which will end with the Ant-Man movie out this summer. To make sure you are up to date on the ever expanding order, here is an OCD list for your viewing and watching pleasure!

Phase 1
- Iron Man (2008)
- The Incredible Hulk (2008)
- Iron Man 2 (2010)
- Thor (2011)
- Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
- The Avengers (2012)
Phase 2
- Iron Man 3 (2013)
- Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013- )(Season 1 Episodes 1-7)
- Thor: The Dark World (2014)
- Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013- )(Season 1 Episodes 8-16)
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
- Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013- )(Season 1 Episodes 17-22)
- Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
- Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013- )(Season 2 Episodes 1-16)
- Marvel's Agent Carter (2015) (Season 1) (Technically follows right after first Captain America)
- Marvel's Daredevil (Season 1) (it ties into the cinematic universe but was made to stand-alone)
- Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013- )(Season 2 Episodes 17-19)
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (May 1st 2015)
- Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013- )(Season 2 Episodes 20-22)
- Ant-Man (July 17th, 2015)
Phase 3 (What we know for right now...)
- A.K.A. Jessica Jones (December 2015)
- Luke Cage (2016)
- Captain America: Civil War (May 6th, 2016)
- Doctor Strange (November 4th, 2016)
- Guardians of the Galaxy 2 (May 5th 2017)
- Untitled Spider-Man film (July 28th, 2017)
- Thor: Ragnarok (November 3rd, 2017)
- Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (May 4th 2018)
- Black Panther (July 6th, 2018)
- Captain Marvel (November 2nd, 2018)
- Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 (May 3rd, 2019)
- Inhumans (July 12th, 2019)
                    -- The End-- (for now)

     Daredevil is one of those shows that make you realize all over again why Marvel is the best at what they do. They know how to keep a diverse audience interested, and with the all the expansion their universe is doing, you can be sure their will always be something new and exciting happening with them. A word of warning to any of you who have an aversion to violence, this show has a lot of realistic fight scenes and deaths, which means a lot of blood.... It's a great show with an amazing story, but don't give yourself nightmares if you're squeamish at all. For all those of you looking for something a bit darker and with more life-like stuff happening, you should definitely give this show a shot! I would give this series a 9.5 out of 10! If you have Netflix and 13 hours to kill, you should most definitely binge watch this show! It's 13 episodes of non-stop action and suspense. 
    
      I know I haven't posted in a while.... But from now on, whenever I get the chance I will try to post a review on something! Be on the look out for my next post by liking my Facebook page!

Peace,
Jake

"The Amazing Spider-Man"

     Peter Parker is just a normal, everyday, geeky teenager who is just trying to figure out his life. While he lives with his Aunt May and Uncle Ben and loves them dearly, he still wants to figure out why his parents left him with them and never came back for him. When he finds out that top researcher Dr. Curt Conners at Oscorp worked with his father, he sneaks into Oscorp and winds up getting bitten by a genetically modified spider. This bite gives him all the powers of a spider. But it's only when tragedy hits that Peter finally understands what it takes to be a hero.

     Directed by Marc Webb, this film stars Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy, Rhys Ifans as Dr. Curt Conners/The Lizard, Denis Leary as Captain Stacy, Martin Sheen as Ben Parker, and Sally Field as May Parker. I loved this movie!! I was so excited for this reboot, especially after the debacle of the third Sam Raimi Spider-Man film.

     Now there was some confusion about whether or not this was a continuation of the last three films... It is not. This is a reboot. Meaning that the past three films have nothing to do with this one or any of the subsequent ones. After watching this one I went back and watched the original trilogy, which I loved when it came out, and then it hit me that the original trilogy is not really that good after all. Tobey Maguire has to have made Spider-Man one of the whiniest superheros ever. Thankfully Andrew Garfield went away from the whiny teenager, and stuck more to the nerdy and awkward Peter Parker of the comics. I feel like Andrew really embodies the traits and characteristics of Spider-Man better than Tobey did in the Sam Raimi Spider-Man's. I'm not trying to discredit the original trilogy, but these new movies are shaping up to be much much better than them.

     Sadly Spider-Man is owned by Sony, which means that we will not be seeing Spider-Man, or anything affiliated with that property in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Same thing with X-men and now Deadpool which are owned by Fox. I really love what these companies have done with these franchises, but I really wish they were back under Marvel so they can add them to the ever expanding Universe and then they can do something like the "Civil War" comic series! I would absolutely love that!

I would rate this film a 8.5 out 10! I will be reviewing The Amazing Spider-Man 2 next week so be sure to check it out next Sunday! Make sure you follow me on Twitter and like my Facebook page!

Peace,
Jake

    

"Guardians of the Galaxy"

     What do you get when you combine an 80's loving mercenary, a green alien who is the perfect killing machine, a genetically enhanced raccoon and his friend who is a talking alien tree, and a no-nonsense tattooed alien out for revenge? You get the Guardians of the Galaxy. The most unlikely superheroes you'll ever meet in space. They come together through necessity, and who would have ever guessed they would be able to save a planet, never mind save themselves. When Ronan the Accuser, a Kree radical decides to destroy the planet Xandar, a stronghold in the defense of the Galaxy,  he hopes to break the tenuous treaty between the Nova Corp. and the Kree. In doing so he enlists the help of Thanos and his two "daughters" to help him find one of the Infinity Stones that would allow him to destroy the world just by touching it to the planet. Now the rag-tag team of the Guardians must put aside their differences and help save the world before they lose everything.

     Directed by James Gunn this film stars Chris Pratt as Peter Quill/Star Lord, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax, Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot, Bradley Cooper as the voice of Rocket, Lee Pace as Ronan, Benicio Del Toro as Tanaleer Tivan/The Collector, Michael Rooker as Yondu Udonta, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Glenn Close as Nova Prime, and Josh Brolin as Thanos.

     This was an amazing movie! One of my favorite Marvel movies! I thought the Avengers cast melded together nice, but this movie takes it to the next level. The actors did an amazing job, and the different personalities they all brought to the characters were out of this world good.(pun intended) One of my favorite scenes has to be where they were trying to figure out a plan and then an argument ensues because the one plan they have wasn't good enough! It reminded me of the many
"conversations" me and my siblings would have during one of our many band practices. James Gunn did a marvelous job bringing this movie to fruition. There is somewhat of a fine line you have to walk in order to bring these movies across without them looking cheesy. I mean a genetically altered raccoon, or a talking alien tree could look very silly if you don't put them in the right light. I think he was more than able to walk that line, and make them some of the coolest heroes to come out of the Cinematic Universe to date!

     Alright lets talk about end credits scene that got everybody who was not born before the 80's wondering what the heck is a duck doing there and why is he drinking a cocktail.... That was Howard the Duck. The star of his own movie back in 1986, this was actually Marvel's first big budget film. Costing over $35,000,000 to make and with little to show for it this film bombed at the box office and practically ended the career of Willard Huyck. Surprisingly George Lucas was the executive producer on it. Having him at the end credits was merely a nod to what came before and got me and the other nerds like me excited to see another character from the classic era of Marvel brought to justice on the big screen. This does not mean that Howard is going to get another stand-alone film, but it could mean we might see other cameo appearances from him in future Marvel films.

I would rate this movie a 10 out 10!! From the box office numbers I'm guessing most of you have already seen it, but for all those who haven't what are you waiting for! You are missing the best movie of the summer. Make sure you like my Facebook page and follow me on Twitter!

Peace,
Jake

P.S. If you want to read my other Marvel movie reviews here are a few links to them.
"X-Men: Days of Future Past"
"X-Men: First Class"
"Captain America: The Winter Soldier
"Captain America: The First Avenger"
"The Wolverine"
"Thor: The Dark World" part 2
"Thor" part 1
"Daredevil"
"The Avengers"
 

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"

     In New Orleans on November the 11th, 1918 a boy is born with all the looks and the problems of an old man on his death bed. This boy is named Benjamin Button and he has a remarkable oddity that as he gets older he actually get younger. Almost as if he lived his whole life backwards. It's a story about love, loss, pain, joy, or simply put, it is a story about life.

     Directed by David Fincher, this film stars Brad Pitt as Benjamin Button, Cate Blanchett as Daisy, Taraji P. Henson as Queenie, and Julia Ormond as Caroline. This has to be one of my favorite films, and I know I say that a lot, but I have a lot of movies in my favorite films list! The combination of Brad and Cate is just brilliant! They really have a lot of chemistry on-screen.

      When this movie first came out I was not very interested in it. I heard a lot of good things about it, but I just didn't get into the hype. I decided to put this on my long, long, long list of movies that I want to watch, and finally I got around to watching it. I was so mad at myself for not wanting to watch it in the first place, because as I said before, this turned out to be one of my favorite films. Usually I don't listen to critics, because 8 out of 10 times their idea of a good movie doesn't do it for me. This just happens to be one of those rare times where I actually agree with the critics who liked it.

     This film took me on an unexpected emotional roller coaster. I became so invested in the characters lives. Needless to say by the end of the film I was feeling very emotionally strained! I loved it so much though! I love it when a movie takes you by surprise with how good it is, especially when you had low expectations for the film. To me, it makes the whole movie that much better!

I would seriously suggest you all watch this if you haven't seen it yet! I would rate it a 9.5 out 10!
I'm back! I will start doing a blog every Sunday when I can! Hope y'all had a good Summer! Make sure you follow me on Twitter and like my Facebook page for movie news and links to the latest blogs!

Peace,
Jake

"Inkheart" by Cornelia Funke

      Meggie, a bright young girl, lives alone with her father Mo, who is one of the best bookbinders ever. When Meggie was young, Mo would always read aloud to her and her mother Resa, but one night as he was reading a book called Inkheart, strange things started happening. Unbeknown to him, Mo has a special gift which allows him to read characters out of a book and bring them into reality, but this gift comes with a heavy price. Every time he reads aloud and something comes out, something also must go into the book. On that fateful night, Mo read three characters out of the book the evil Capricorn and Basta, and the skilled fire-eater Dustfinger, but for that Resa was sent into the book. Nine years later Capricorn is set on destroying all copies of Inkheart, and also wants Mo so that he can read more things into reality. Meggie finally discovers her father's secret and together with Dustfinger and her Aunt Elinor, they fight to stop Capricorn from putting the world in chaos and shadow.

     The book is written by the acclaimed German author Cornelia Funke. The movie is directed by Iain Softley and stars Brendan Fraser as Mo, Andy Serkis as Capricorn, Eliza Bennett as Meggie, Paul Bettany as Dustfinger, Helen Mirren as Elinor, Sienna Guillory as Resa, and Jim Broadbent as Fenoglio. The book is absolutely fantastic, but the movie is stuck in mediocrity, because of all the cuts they had to make from the book.

     I actually saw the movie before I read the book, and at first I though the movie was amazing and I loved all the characters, but then I read the book and I was totally blown away by the detail of characters and the intricacies of the plot. In the end, the book was so much better with better plot twists, a grittier storyline, and it definitely didn't have the boring happy ending that it had in the movie. It is regrettable when a good book is brought into the movie realm, and all you get is a movie that barely delves into meat of the real plot. 

     Now this is not to say that Inkheart the movie is bad. Far from it actually. I loved the casting job they did! Each character was perfect for their role! Andy Serkis is brilliant as always! I mean if he can play Gollum, he can play anybody! Helen Mirren fit exactly what the role called for and Paul Bettany brought the anguish and pain to Dustfinger just like the book. Jim Broadbent brought Fenoglio to life with his awkwardly charming humor! My only real problem with the movie is the change in plot! Now I realize that there had to be cuts made to the book so that it didn't end being a four hour long movie, but there just some things you don't cut out. I don't care if it's a two part movie, as long as it sticks to the book as much as possible.

     Most movies that are based off of books fail to bring across the depth and personalty of the book. To name a few that stuck pretty closely to the books: The Hunger Games, The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter. To name a few that failed even worse than this on at sticking to the book: Beautiful Creatures, Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Eragon, and Percy Jackson! I still have yet to watch Divergent and I haven't read the book yet either, so I will wait to pass judgement. Two of the next possible book to movie translations I'm really looking forward to is Ransom Rigg's book Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, which will possibly be translated into a movie by none other than Tim Burton himself. The second one is James A. Owen's book Here, There Be Dragons which has the possibility of either being a TV Show or movie, and James is in talks with the Lord of the Ring's producers for that! 

     I would give the book a 9.5 out 10 and I would give the movie a 6 out of 10! Make sure you follow me on Twitter and like my Facebook page!! Thanks for reading!

Peace,

Jake

    

"Snowpiecer"

     It's A.D. 2031. Life on earth has become nearly extinct, because of a failed attempt to cool down the earth and stop global warming. All those who are left alive are on a massive train called Snowpiecer, which traverses the earth in 365 days, and is now home to the remnants of human society and culture. The train has two classes the rich, who are all at the front of train with all the luxuries that money brings, and the poor and destitute, who are left to suffer in the tail of train. Curtis, a well respected man in the tail of train, has had enough of being treated like scum by the people in the front of train. He leads a revolution, with one goal in mind.... fight to the front of the train. Along the way he must counteract all that Minister Mason and the people of the high class throw at them. Sacrifices must be made, and Curtis is prepared to do whatever it takes to bring order and justice to the inhabitants of Snowpiecer.

     Directed by Joon-ho Bong this film stars Chris Evans as Curtis, Kang-ho Song as Namgoo Minsoo, Tilda Swinton as Minister Mason, Jaime Bell as Edgar, John Hurt as Gilliam, Ed Harris as Wilford, and Octavia Spencer as Tanya. This film really took me by surprise! I was expecting a mediocre post-apocalyptic sci-fi movie, but this definitely is not the case with this movie.

     This movie was actually released August 1st of 2013 overseas, but wasn't released in the U.S. because of a conflict between the director and The Weinstein Company. The owner of The Weinstein Company, Harvey Weinstein, wanted twenty minutes cut from the film and also wanted opening and closing monologues added to it. Joon-ho Bong would not budge and eventually Harvey Weinstein caved in and allowed a limited release in America. However, the popularity and buzz surrounding the film is causing the film to get a wider release with 150 theaters picking up the film.

     Snowpiecer is based off the French graphic novel series Le Transperceneige by Jean-Marc Rochette. Joon-ho Bong, a native South Korean, brought together actors from all over the globe, and this is his first English speaking film. I really loved this movie, and I can't wait to see it again! It was such an interesting and different story line! If you get the chance to see it, I would highly recommend it!

     I would give this film a 9 out 10! Make sure you follow me on Twitter and like my Facebook page!

Peace,
Jake

"Gravity"

     Dr. Ryan Stone, a genius medical engineer, is on her first shuttle mission to install new components to the Hubble Space Telescope. Along with her is veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski, who is commanding his last space expedition. Things turn bad quickly, when the Russian's destroy one of their satellites. This sets off a debris storm that destroys everything in its path, including Kowalski's ship killing everyone aboard except for Matt and Ryan. They are left to drift in orbit with no way to contact Earth, and with only 90 minutes before the debris storm slings its way around again.

     Directed by Alfonso Cuarón, this film stars Sandra Bullock as Dr. Ryan Stone, George Clooney as Matt Kowalski, and the voice of Ed Harris as Mission Control. I was really spellbound by this movie! I had heard so many great things about it, but I didn't believe it till I actually saw it for myself.

     Sandra Bullock was amazing in this role! She carries the entire movie with her emotionally gripping character, and, of course, George Clooney brings his character to life with his usual charismatic attitude. With only two actors in this movie, I was skeptical on how they would keep it interesting without the use of a lot of dialog. I was not, however, disappointed as they had some great scenes with Sandra Bullock's character Ryan and George Clooney's character Matt. The visual effects in this film were simply astounding! I was captivated from start to finish, and was kept on the edge of my seat for most of the film. The sheer enormity of the scenes was breathtaking, and there were parts where you felt like you were spinning out into space with the character.

    This film won 137 awards, which includes seven Oscars, two of them being the Oscar for Best Achievement in Directing and the Oscar for the Best Achievement in Visual Effects. I believe this movie to be well worth these accommodations. If you haven't watched it yet, you should totally go do that... like now!

     I would give this movie a 9 out 10! Thanks for reading and make sure you come back next week for a new blog post!! Make sure you are following me on Twitter, and go like my Facebook page for some more nerdy and awesome stuff!

Peace,
Jake