X-Men: Days of Future Past Second Viewing

I watched X-Men: Days of Future Past, again! Believe it or not, I have never seen a movie twice in theaters, until now. One of my objectives while watching Days of Future Past again was to determine if my opinion has changed whatsoever from my perfect 10/10 original score from my original review. After my second viewing analysis, my original opinion is most definitely reaffirmed. I could not find a single aspect of the film that did not work or was flawed. The characters received ample development, the plot is incredibly tight, with the time-travel logic being near perfect, and the performances are superb, particularly James McAvoy, who should be nominated for an Oscar. It is still one of my all-time favorite films, with a time-travel element that is one of the best explained and portrayed in a movie. 

Long story short, Jacob and I promised our friend Jackson that we would go see the movie with him if it would ever come to the local theater. Since it took so long to come, Jacob and I ended up seeing it out of town, but it finally came to the local theater, so we saw it again. With the exception of two kids, who were actually quiet, we indirectly knew the people in theater, so that was interesting. Have you seen X-Men twice in theaters? Have you seen it at all? If not, what are you waiting for!? Please comment below and let me know. Also, sorry for not replying to every comment, as you might know, my arm is bothering me badly, so I can't type with it.

This is my desktop background!

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Avengers: Age of Ultron New Set Photos

New set photos for Avengers: Age of Ultron have been released in Entertainment Weekly, and I have the pictures here. My overall impression is that the new costume designs are awesome, and I have my comments below each picture.

The cover for Entertainment Weekly gives us our first look at the main antagonist, Ultron, played by the brilliant James Spader. While the cover does not show a lot of Ultron, it does show his robot soldiers, which are blue, whereas Ultron is red. Also, you may notice that Captain America is the new secondary face of the Marvel Universe, with The Winter Soldier outdoing The Dark World at the box office.

What's up with Cap's face? Something looks weird with the boxiness of his jaw. Otherwise, his new costume is a cool blend of the one from The Avengers and The Winter Soldier. Thor's new costume has a cool look as well, although it is not a lot different than the Dark World one.

 Hawkeye's new winter costume is cool, especially the jacket.

The Science Bros return! Tony and Bruce are back baby, oh yeah! 

Black Widow's shorter, more functional, hair returns, and it is more than welcome. Widow's look from The Winter Soldier was cool, but her Avengers' costume is most definitely my favorite. In addition to the hair, Widow is said to have more powerful electric stinger for her suit, which you can see with the red gauntlet.

Looks like a party at the new Avengers Tower/Mansion! Everyone's looking sharp, and Thor is apparently present since his Hammer is on the table. To a lot of people's surprise, Don Cheadle is present. So does this mean he will get to suit up with the rest of the them in the movie?

Not much to say other than "In Whedon We Trust."

This is essentially the same picture that Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch that was released earlier in the year. Considering how utterly amazing Quicksilver was in X-Men: Days of Future Past, it is going to take a lot for Whedon to top Bryan Singer's version.

While I did not notice this initially, Grace Randolph from Beyond the Trailer noted that Captain America's costume features an Avengers "A" on the shoulder pad, and Cap is, again, right behind Iron Man, instead of behind Thor.

What do you think of the set photos? Please comment below and let me know.

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Underrated Music: Ip Man

Underrated Music returns with some epic music from Kenji Kawai. In the majorly under-viewed Asian Cinema epic, Ip Man, Kenji Kawai's score is suitably epic with sweeping tracks like the one below. The score contains a quality that is not found often enough in modern Hollywood cinema, as well as some classical Asian qualities. It reminds me of older orchestral themes from John Williams combined with the brilliant work of Joe Hisaishi and even Fumio Hayasaka.  

Below is another excellent track from Ip Man's soundtrack that may sound somewhat familiar, but it is no less powerful.

What do you think of the music? Please comment below and let me know.

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Doctor Who Actor in Star Wars

Christina Chong has been cast in a small role in Star Wars: Episode VII. She is best known for a minor role in the Doctor Who episode "A Good Man Goes to War," 24: Live Another Day, and playing Dr Sarah Witney in the TV series Monroe (haven't heard of it before). She is also the female lead of the upcoming Halo: Nightfall TV series. Movie news has been slow recently, so that is about all for today. Sorry everyone if I have not replied to comments lately. If you remember, my arm injury is preventing me from typing very much, or at all some days. Fortunately, I have had enough reviews and other posts for to post during my absence. 

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Double Features: Ghibli and Disney Paired by Jamie

Hey, it's me Jamie again! I love animation and I've recently watched a lot of the Studio Ghibli movies, so this has post idea has been at the forefront of my mind the past few weeks (thank you to James, who helped me discover the company and get into it!) Every once and awhile there's enough time for a double feature, so that's what this list is for. Five sets of movies I would watch together on a lazy day.

Before we begin I did want to say one thing: It would be very easy to write a post all about comparing the big names in animation; Disney vs Dreamworks, Dreamworks Vs Pixar, and Ghibli Vs Disney. I mean, we've all done it at some point I'm sure. However, I sometimes get tired of having to pick sides. All the big names have good and not-so-good films, so do I have to pick who I think is best or who I like best every time I discover a new studio?! No, I don't. So, today I wanted give you five Studio Ghibli films paired to Disney films and not pit them against each other. If you're here for me to say which is better, you're not going to find that here today.

Book Adaption: Ponyo and The Little Mermaid

I find it fascinating that these two movies are different versions of the same story. They're both very different from each other, but I find that makes it more interesting to compare. The Little Mermaid delivers a conflict driven plot while Ponyo is almost a bit more of a slice-of-life with the fantasy element, they both give interesting renditions of Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid. Between the two, I do personally prefer Ponyo as the animation was crazy gorgeous in that movie, but The Little Mermaid features Ursula the sea witch, who is among my top ten most favorite Disney villains of all time. (If you want, you can also call this Ocean Adventures and throw Finding Nemo into the mix if you really really want.)

The Whacky and Weird: Spirited Away and Alice in Wonderland

I feel as though being on drugs must be similar to living in one of these worlds. Personally, I didn't click with either of them, but when I was creating this post there was no way I wasn't going to pass up a chance to pair these two. Spirited Away was plain weird but in a intriguing sort of way, I'll admit. And it did win an Oscar. :) Alice in Wonderland was weird-borderline-creepy. But, I could totally see myself watching these on a funky day where they could be very complimentary. Some quick pros: they both feature female leads, never ending, interesting side-characters, and interesting fantasy worlds. So, not bad. Just weird.

Children's Adventures: Castle in the Sky and Peter Pan

For our little ones or siblings--or even just the child within us--I have a couple of great adventures here. Studio Ghibli's first film (if you're not counting Nausicaa) and Disney's magical Peter Pan delivers the youthful spirit of adventure in different ways that both work. Castle in the Sky has a more 'kiddy' feel than some of their other movies but it's a good, fun type of 'kiddy' feel--with airplanes, pirates and magic--it's one I wish I'd gotten to see growing up. Peter Pan has a more timeless feel to it but still about a few kids who's world just got a bit bigger, also with pirates and flying and magic. :) I would definitely watch these two with my seven year old brother sometime myself.

Teeny Tiny: The Secret World of Arrietty and A Bug's Life

I know, A Bug's Life is a Pixar movie, but how was I NOT going to pair these up?! Worlds we thought we already knew--ant hills and our own homes--are looked at from a completely different angle in these films! The Secret World of Arrietty was my first Studio Ghibli film and I absolutely loved it. It's not an adventure with an epic conclusion or anything, it simply makes a familiar world feel very magical and fascinating. And as to A Bug's Life; I'm one of the people of thinks A Bug's Life is underrated. It delivers miniature adventurers on a grand scale, even if the formula has become overused. I just really like the perspective of the world we're given in both these films quite a lot. 

Heart-Tuggingly Timeless: My Neighbor Totoro and Bambi

Honestly, there are few animated films that can match what is My Neighbor Totoro, with one of the most perfect displays of sisterhood that I have ever seen in film and the simple magic of childhood. However the same could be said for Bambi, with it's steady gaze over the forest's most dearest creatures and their lives growing up. Both are tenderhearted tales, filled with genuine "my heart is smiling!" moments and beautiful animation that really help set their worlds up on two strong feet. Don't get me wrong, they're very different from each other; but they both deliver steady, timeless storytelling that should live on for ages to come.

I love animation dearly; I didn't get to grow up with very much of it, so I'm still trying to get my fill even now!  If you've reached the end of this post, you probably like animation too! You can get to know me better over at my blog Through Two Blue Eyes sometime if you'd like. Thanks for reading and I'll see you next time!

~Jamie

Thanks Jamie for another wonderful guest post!