Marvel

Spider-Man: Far from Home - 3/5

Sure, there’s fun action and it’s great to see Mysterio on the big screen. Unfortunately, the editing is so choppy that the scenes feel like they’re jumping around. There’s not really anything new in the plot, but instead it’s just another Spider-Man story. I don’t know how they made such interesting content as boring as they did, but somehow they managed it. It’s not that it’s bad, it’s just not up to the Marvel standard.

Closest comparison: It’s somewhere between Thor (2011) and The Incredible Hulk (2008).

Setting: Road Trip
Plot: Superhero
Tone: Standard Action

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) - 4/5

I love this movie for its underlying message of being a good person, and the way it cements the character of Steve Rogers so firmly that he remains unchanged for the next 6 films. At least three different actors all deliver scene-stealing performances, and the use of special effects here is kept well in hand. Some of the directing and editing could have been better and as a result some aspects that could have pushed this movie over the edge to a 5/5 were lacking, like the fact that Red Skull doesn’t really get an iconic pose/image/shot or the needless complication of the ‘Kissing the Secretary’ scene. Nevertheless, this remains a very strong entry into the litany of Marvel movies.

Closest comparison: It’s like Letters from Iwo Jima by way of The Rocketeer.

Setting: War
Plot: Super hero
Tone: Adventure

Thor (2011) - 3/5

This is Marvel’s first attempt at mashing up two different genres, and all things considered it works really well. The action is quite good, the story is solid, and the CGI is fine, kept in dark environments as needed. The Shakespearean dialogue is essential to the core of the Asgardian characters, evoking the sense of royalty with ease and meshing perfectly with the ‘royal drama’ nature of the plot. And no review would be complete without mentioning the Dutch Angles that are just everywhere in this movie, but only work well about half of the time.

Closest comparison: It’s the bisection of the line between He-Man and K-Pax, but with much better production values.

Setting: Fantasy
Plot: Super hero
Tone: Action Comedy

Iron Man (2008) - 4/5

Not only is this a solid character piece and action movie, but it also laid the foundation for the next 20 Marvel movies, even overcoming the problematic Incredible Hulk that was released a month later. It showcases great action and character moments with witty dialogue that has held up very well over time. The plot with the villain is slightly more convoluted than it needs to be, and the villain himself was only good, not great. That coupled with a lack of depth beyond the scope of the film itself are all that keeps this out of the 5/5 spot.

Closest comparison: For some odd reason it works out to feel like Behind Enemy Lines by way of Mission Impossible (1996).

Setting: War
Plot: Action
Tone: Super hero

Captain Marvel - 2/5

There’s not a lot to redeem this movie. It seems to confuse ‘mean’ with ‘funny’, and does so repeatedly. The main character is unlikable and arrogant, which is a bad combination. Ben Mendelsohn steals the show, which is how badly the writers portrayed Sam Jackson’s character. The action scenes are dimly lit and shake around like the camera man is afraid he’ll miss something; that combined with choppy editing makes them a jumbled mess. The skrull make-up is phenomenal, though, and the plot turn is actually not half bad. The tone was very different from other Marvel movies and felt much more like J.J. Abrams’ Start Trek movies, so if you like those movies you’re in luck.

Closest Comparison: They tried to make Wonder Woman, but made Green Lantern instead.

Setting: Sci-fi
Plot: Action
Tone: A messy mess of Superhero, Action, and Comedy

Click here for ThinkySushi’s in-depth analysis

Ant-Man and the Wasp - 4/5

This movie is a comedy and I think it's hilarious. Not all the jokes land, but they recover quickly from those that don't. Luckily, even if the humor doesn't work for you there's still enough of a movie to make it worth watching. They've taken the criticisms from the first movie about the villain to heart, and the antagonist here is character driven with a nuanced relationship to the heroes. Lots of popcorn-crunching spectacular fun to be had and beautiful, colorful visuals, though the issues with physics persist from the first movie. All in all, it's even better than its predecessor and definitely worth a watch.

Deadpool 2 - 4/5

The self-aware crassest superhero delivers again on everything we expect. If crass humor and ultraviolence don't bother you then you'll have a blast with this film. It's just about as good as the first one and in my opinion better in several regards, like better action scenes and more flushed out treatment of the villain(s). Surprisingly good performances where you least expect them with a few dashes of cameos for the fans. But you already knew whether you were going to see it before you read this.

Avengers: Infinity War - 5/5

This film has all the great cross-over action scenes we've been waiting for. Each character gets a time to shine and dialogue that fits them well. If you haven't seen all of the other movies leading up to this I think most of it will still make perfect sense, but you'll miss some quips and inside jokes. Also, be aware that while this film is mostly fun there are some much darker moments, including a torture scene. All in all, though, the film is certainly worth the hype.

The Punisher (Netflix, 2017) - 4/5

It's ultraviolent and there's too much sex, but ultimately it's all used very powerfully to tell an intense but good story. A few great twists and one exceptional episode in particular make it rise above the lesser Marvel Netflix crossovers. I rank it just below Daredevil (Season 1) and just above Luke Cage. If you can stomach the violence, definitely give it a try.

Black Panther - 4/5

The design in this movie is awesome; it's a pleasure to look at. It's Guardians of the Galaxy-level colorful (if not more), and the costume design is some of the best Marvel's ever put on screen. The fight scenes are choppier than they needed to be, but they're not bad. The message is solid and well delivered, which is difficult to do in such a shaky social and political climate. It's a relief they took the high road.

Thor: Ragnarok - 3/5

Mileage may vary. The action is awesome, but only some of the humor worked for me. The visuals are stunning, but much of the plot only pays off mildly well. It's not a bad film by any means, but it's only 'fine' when it could have been 'great'. It's candy, not meat and potatoes. It's fun, flashy and fleeting.

 Honestly the fact that the trailers ruined so much of the movie was very disappointing to me. There's like 20 minutes of build-up to "who is Thor going to fight?", but that was in the first 20 seconds of the trailer. And for as amazing as many of the costumes were, Valkyrie's costume was one of the worst I've seen in any super hero movie. Who thought "You know what's a badass color? Taupe."

Spider-Man: Homecoming - 5/5

Tom Holland is my new favorite Peter Parker. I'm glad they went back to a high school spiderman, and I think updated characters worked really well. The design on the Vulture was inspired, and I loved all the changes they made to the character because they made them for all the right reasons. Ultimately, I think I would give it a 4.5 out of 5, but since I don't do half points there were a few things that bugged me about the movie. They didn't cash in on some of the stuff they set up, and it would have been a really good payoff. Also Aunt May is pretty bad. But all in all, excellent movie, and I definitely recommend it.

Originally I gave this movie a 4/5, but over time the issues with Aunt May fade into the background of how great the rest of the movie is.

Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 2 - 3/5

First off, the good: lots of beautiful visuals and some great character moments with tertiary characters. The opening sequence is fantastic, and if the whole movie was like that it might have been a 5. Unfortunately, most of the humor in the film is mean-spirited, which for me is intolerable. And for a movie that is relying largely on the humor it's just painful.

Logan - 5/5

First off: it's ultraviolent, it's sometimes depressing, there one 2-second "gentlemen, avert your eyes" blip, and there's lots of swearing. But it's the best movie I've seen in a while, and it's certainly the best X-men movie to date. And the little girl is awesome!
It's a very emotional and emotionally mature movie that takes its subject matter seriously and delivers on the payoff in heart-pounding, tear-jerking realism.

Doctor Strange - 4/5

It was visually impressive, lots to like about the story, acting, etc. A few ways they break the Show Don't Tell rule are mostly what keep it from being truly great. There is an incredibly inventive fight scene at the end and don't forget to stay for 2 scenes after the credits.