"The Avengers"

I liked "The Avengers" the first time I saw it. I finally saw it for a second time and enjoyed it even more. I'm still not ready to say it's the greatest super-hero movie of all time. in fact, I will never say that. I will say that I now believe it to be Marvel's best outing. I am again struck by the relationship between Tony Stark and Bruce Banner and how much I love them together and their interactions. Watching it for a second time I was struck by how little of focus there was on Captain America and his acclimation to now living in the future, the role of Thor despite the antagonist being his (adoptive) brother, and the dire peril the Avengers were in at the end. Here we have this epic, climatic battle in which they are sufficiently winning, and then for about 37 seconds they are losing, all hope is lost, before Iron Man saves the day. They hardly give you enough time to recognize, let alone digest, the hopeless nature of their predicament. Despite the flaws this movie has, despite the stereotypical problems Marvel has in all their movies, this movie is just a great time.

PS, Joss Whedon, I heart you!

PPS, I'm not the only one who thinks Chris Hemsworth is yummy, right?

PPS, Could Robert Downey Jr. be the single greatest decision by Marvel? Ever? Of all time?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0848228/

"The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu"

This is meant to be one of those funny indie films with quirky and/or lovable characters and I think that would, for the most part, adequately describe this movie. Think of it as a sort of modern-day "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" but not as funny, not as memorable, and more adult content (definitely some good wholesome, humorous gore). I enjoyed this movie because I'm a fan of H.P. Lovecraft. If you are not a fan, I'm not sure you'd enjoy this movie as much and it's not as if this movie would make you a fan of his writings. It was a fun watch for what it was. I might turn it on to fall asleep to, but not sit down and watch it again or seriously recommend it to many despite my positive level of enjoyment from it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1522262/

"The Trip"

The bad part about "The Trip" is that most of the funny parts are in the trailer. The good part about "The Trip" is that those parts are still really funny and there are still some great parts in the movie that aren't in the trailer. Another bad part about the movie is that it can drag, seem a bit boring at parts, and can lose you on this trek following two friends. Another good part about this movie is the general sense of finding one's place and direction in life, most particularly as far as employment goes (I know, boring, right?), that Steve Coogan "experiences." As one who has struggled and still struggles with this, it was obviously a movie that speaks to my soul personally, and combine that with a pair of funny chaps (see how I used a British phrase for this British movie) and their friendship, comrade, and positive chemistry and it makes for a very enjoyable movie.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1740047/

"Limitless"

I can see the appeal of this movie, especially in our society today where we have this expectation of instant gratification, this sense of self-importance, and some form of entitlement to materialistic things. The fact of the matter is that behind the fun story, flashy camera work, and oh-so-charming Bradley Cooper, "Limitless" is a story about a drug addict who gets all he could ever want instantly under the guise that this is the human body's potential when focused, motivated, and "working hard." Let's just throw away the fact it's his dependency on this illegal drug that allows him to do such and that "working hard" in this movie is defined as putting in long days of work for about two days. But wait! Bradley Cooper is already smart, he had it in him, we all have it in us, this drug just helped him access it, and Robert De Niro is a crazy coot who believes in hard work, experience, and earning what you get, so let us portray him as the bad guy at the end by having him blackmail our handsome lead character who has weaned himself off the drug and still has this gift in him which makes every other choice he made up to this point justified. It's too bad you have to use such a stylish, enjoyable, and enticing package to deliver such silly message. And by silly I mean ridiculous, absurd, and dumb. I understand the entertainment value in such a movie, I myself was entertained. But it's hard to be entertained when this entertainment is a-moralistic at best.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1219289/

"Immortals"

Holy crap! And I thought "Conan the Barbarian" was bad! This movie is like..........really, really, really, really ridiculously not good. It's like "300" but without a single redeeming quality. On a scale of 1 to 10 I give it an punch in the face with dance moves.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1253864/

"Conan the Barbarian" (2011)

What do you call a movie with no substance, no style, an abundance of poor effects, a greater abundance of bad acting, and a few topless women? I'll give you a hint, it rhymes with "Ronan the Librarian."

PS, If you want to see Jason Momoa as a real bad-a (yeah, that's right, this post is rated PG), check him out in "Game of Thrones" as Khal Drogo. Just ignore the fact that he basically gets killed by a small scratch. Oh, spoiler alert.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0816462/

"Raiders of the Lost Ark"

So I watched this cinematic masterpiece, this Hollywood icon, on the big screen for the first time in my life, and you know what? It did not suck one bit!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082971/