Guardians Of The Galaxy (2014) Is A Charming Renegade Triumph

I grew up around weirdos.

No adolescence is easy. Let's be fair. But having grown up in an area where your options were limited, a good companion was often a lucky break. Being a member of the latchkey kid generation, it was that chance meeting of that other kid from the neighborhood who embraced their oddness that would make for a startling new chapter. Whether we were children of divorce, ostracized for being into "weird" comics, movies, and loved talking about them. Game heads, Ritalin kids, pranksters, mischief makers with a yen for fire. Solace was often found in the presence of buddies who would miraculously understand where you were coming from. And at times, kids who would know a great deal more than you. Childhood was largely populated by what came to be known as the dregs of school society. Many in the upper echelons would know of us, but would sooner not be seen around them. Perhaps living with this tiny, unspoken inkling, that they wished to spend more time around us.

I grew up around weirdos.

Whether they be your classic comic book reading, movie loving nerds, to the kids who grew up ready and willing to play havoc with the cards they were dealt, they were often real, and complimentary to fellow odd souls. Dysfunctional, perhaps. But often dedicated, and understanding in ways many grownups seemed to have long forgotten.

As such, pals and I loved the Drive-in, and early VHS experience. It was a ritual of sorts, not to mention something of a soothing experience, partaking in the ritual of watching something strange. Something dangerous. Something inspiring. While many of the films cannot be claimed to be that of high artistic merit, there was something almost kin about watching said films. They felt renegade, excluded, laughable in ways that perhaps mirrored certain souls. There was something within the realm of the exploitation cheapie that felt like home.

Films can often be seen as windows into their makers. And as such, we can feel the perspective and personality thriving within even the most dysfunctional work. Especially the ones that come together successfully. This is especially true of low budget film. No matter how strange, perverse, or eyebrow-raising, few feelings beat that of a connection between viewer and a functional genre movie,

All of this needs to be stated up front, and without apology before discussing James Gunn's first foray into the big time. That we can at last live in a world where a Troma alumni can be drafted into the ranks of MARVEL's creative circle, and successfully conjure a loving tribute to the outcast in all of us with an unerring indie spirit. Well, it's nothing short of miraculous.

I could go on, and echo many sentiments shared by peers and friends. I could beam about how Guardians Of The Galaxy, is a team-up tale on par with some of the very best tales of the fantastic captured on film. That it is the anti-Avengers, and this is meant in the best complimentary sense. I could rant and rave about how beautifully the cast works together, as well as on their own. Spend time elaborating how much I love seeing Chris Pratt make for a most winning lead whom I wish had more screen time. About how much Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Dave Batista, and Vin Diesel make for an instantly charming team comprised of broken, and lonely souls. How great it is to see Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Rooker in a film of this size. How brilliantly realized the world of the film works, and how nicely it opens of the Marvel canvas in ways never seen before. How Ronan The Accuser(Lee Pace) best represents the nerd that never sees past themselves as an answer to their pain. How the film makes the best possible case for very real nerds (and nerd friendships) in all of comic book cinema. 

About the only criticism that could actually be lobbed at the film, is simply that despite the two-hour plus running time, one couldn't be blamed for wanting more. Well-balanced and unabashed, Gunn's first foray into mega-franchise cinema is a spiritual triumph for the little ones. A validation of the often unspoken majority, even in an era where the term, nerd, seems to have lost all meaning. And this is coming from someone with very little prior knowledge of the source material. It transcends, and speaks to a spirit often ignored by genre cinema. More than this, it's a celebration of outcast families everywhere.

This is Drive-in/VHA cinema at it's biggest, wildest, wooliest, and most sincere. Time to break out the champagne dated 1988. Been a long time coming.

Talkin' Things That Make Monsters Squirm (New Podcast!)

After several months of unwanted dead silence, two thirds of the Combo Attack team reunite for a stammerific breakdown of the summer's endless parade of superhero films! Alain joins me for a last-second recap of what we caught, including thoughts on X-Men:First Class, as well as Captain America: The First Avenger - and we even segueway into talking the latest trailers for next year's offerings. Can the Kaijyu Survive?

Batman: Under The Red Hood (2010) Review

Leave it to the folks at Warner Bros. Animation to heap on the goods when regarding their DC heroes. Especially when it comes to who is perhaps the enduring answer to the grounded superhero mythos, the Batman. Multiple universes have been explored, several major motion pictures, tv series, and comics renditions have been shared to great acclaim, and yet remains one of the few major tentpoles that can remain potent no matter the number of incarnations. Perhaps it is in the symbolism of Bruce Wayne's alter ego that is most integral to fan's cravings. So even if the world of Gotham City has been reinvented, and reinterpreted countless times, the respect for Bob Kane's classic characters remains at an all-time high. Even as the horrors of very real-world crime, and despair begin to encroach onto what was initially considered to be older children's fare, the ever vigilant Dark Knight detective is the material with which even adults grapple with in extraordinarily trying times.

So when the animators responsible for much of the last 20 years of Batman's adventures on television delve into one of the most controversial events in comic history, the result can either be a rousing success, or a flamebait mess waiting to happen, I'm love to say that it is in most ways the former. The daring Bruce Timm produced, Brandon Vietti directed Under The Red Hood is an adult, bleak, and astonishing new addition to the Batman mythology that helps put to rest wrongs on both sides of the page. In many ways a fascinating look into Batman tales of long past, smashed head on into the harsh realm that is the post-Nolan grit of recent years.

The story begins years prior as Batman is unable to save Jason Todd (aka Robin II) in Sarajevo, Bosnia from the ever monstrous Joker, who has been released reluctantly by none other than  Ra's al Ghul.(A story which many may recall being the backbone of one of DC's most infamous moments, 1988 -89's A Death In The Family, which crushingly allowed fans to call in to decide the fate of Batman's reckless second ward. Naturally, his death was a rare event not long forgotten by fans.) It is in this first, unsubtly brutal scene that establishes an entirely new , unflinching tone for the Batman animated franchise. Flash forward to now as the criminal element is quickly being noosed up by a red hooded vigilante with an ultimatum, to rethink their drug & weapon smuggling ways under threat of death. Gotham is familiar with the Red Hood persona, however the goals here seem to be out to control, and possibly eliminate Gotham's burgeoning new underworld. Even Batman is familiar with various versions of the Red Hood, but none of them were nearly as savage, or as thorough. He doesn't even seem to be a criminal, but rather the very shadow of what Batman has always been. A masked wraith, willing to kill to save the world. To go where even Batman fears to tread.

And as the detective along with the help of the ever reliable Nightwing (Dick Grayson, the original Robin), revelations are surely uncovered that will not only haunt Bruce's waking life, but scorch the city as he is run head on into the very nature of Batman's dogmatic codes of virtue. The pressure runs deeper as Gotham's reigning kingpin, Black Mask with increasing panic begins to consider taking a madman off the leash yet again in a last ditch effort to regain control (which many know is often the worst idea imaginable).

To go any further would be a disservice to another exceptional, yet very grown-up look at a mythological icon amidst a radically changing world. Adding punch to this motif, the newly minted cast while clearly feeling their way into such iconic roles, is rooted firmly into this hybrid mixture of Bat eras, and they are often terrific. Bruce Greenwood now dons the cape and cowl with a more internalized confidence that also nicely implies an aging, pain riddled Wayne. Neil Patrick Harris is a truly fun & grounded Dick Grayson, who offers some of the film's much needed levity to the often grim proceedings. Supernatural's Jensen Ackles' Red Hood is both assured, and appropriately tortured in a surprisingly effective performance where it counts. But the biggest transition award goes to John Dimaggio who's more east coast gangster approach to The Joker is startlingly different than his legendary predecessor. While this may sound like faint praise, there is a hugely menacing presence in this film that is integral to the film's finale, and Dimaggio delivers exactly what this version requires. This is a nasty, horrific take on the character that perhaps requires a little adjusting to but is strong in its own right.

Notable support comes from the voices of Jason Isaacs in the role of guilt-ridden crusader, Ra's al Ghul, as well as a fun turn by Kelly Hu as Black Mask's assistant.

It's been a wild ride for Warner Bros. Animation since Bruce Timm's original Batman:The Animated Series took to the airwaves, and Vietti's direction, featuring a script by Judd Winick attempts to merge multiple variations of the Batman universe into a cohesive whole, which naturally abandons sheer grit, and offers a more lyrical aproach to how dramatically their world has changed over the lifespan of the Dark Knight's endless crusade. From the garish innocence of robbing the local museum of modern art, to the scummy junk joints on the outskirts of town, the film features a look at the junction where the childlike wonder of the hero life soon becomes tainted by the desperation of those resilient to law & order. It's this element that takes on truly dark dimensions near the end of the piece where Batman must confront the very inconsistency that has haunted him from nearly the very beginning. Definitely an end result of the immense success of Christopher Nolan's live action films, Under The Red Hood continues to question the very nature of the self-made superhero, as well as the blurring balance between heroism & vigilanteism with relatively effective results.

Scott Pilgrim & The Endless Possibility

There are few things as exhilarating as having a complete set.

And having a roommate who has just taken the plunge, and has responded as well as she has is a definite highlight of a more laid back summer season than usual. To know that O'Malley's long-awaited finale is in the house, a week-plus before Edgar Wright's adaptation is unleashed beyond the Comic-Con crowd. (Which has largely been positive over Twitter. And Drew McWeeny's early review is quite glowing.)

 At the moment, I'm essentially waiting for the roomie to catch up before re-reading, so at the moment, I'm am working off of years of recollection. The comic's impact, for all of its scrappy glory functions as a beautiful reminder of a particular time frame in my own life, and of likely so many others. And as such, the piece works as that bridge between the gears of idle and active. This entire concept is a universal part of Edgar Wright's filmography.(Shaun Of The Dead in my eyes, remains a classic simply because of its own deeper concern with detaching from the womb in a realm packed with overgrown children) Upon hearing of his decision to take on Pilgrim, it was hand  and glove. Few other visualists can nail the hilarity and pain of growing up with such vigor. And even as a larger audience unfamiliar with the snark-biting alterna-hipster world of the comic, the vernacular of Wright and company should help it transcend mere cult status.

As much as I had feared for its box-office chances previously, in a place where INCEPTION can become a runaway success, almost anything seems possible.

Podcast To The People! (Vote, won't you?)

Friends. Readers. Followers All. We're entering a whole new realm for the Kaijyu by diving a little deeper into podcasting, and we need your help! Contrary to what many would vehemently argue as common sense, we have decided to combine the efforts of three often kept separate fandom circles.

a) a lifelong superhero comics fan...

b) the veteran video game lover...

c) the anime/film hand...

We've decided to shoulder the responsibility of placing all three into the fray to see what comes out. Whether it be great or absolutely off-putting is not for us to say at this point. But as old friends, as well as respectively different breeds it only felt right to share these three viewpoints onto a much bigger forum proving (hopefully)once and for all that the three could in fact co-exist, and do so quite well without some kind of figurative bloodbath..

Okay...well, there may be a splat or two...

And this is where you, the readers, come in

We've thrown out some prospective titles for our show, and in the spirit of this all-inclusive concept, we're giving you a chance to vote out a winner! We've whittled a large mass of names into this small selection, and we'd love to see what you think.


The Candidates:

1. Knights Of Mythopia

2. IconoCast


3. Media Brigade


4. Combo Attack!

Be a part of Kaijyu history. Vote in the comments below, or message me at tetsujin@gmail.com !

Love Thy Neighbor,Then Kick his Ass(Kick-Ass 2010 Review)

Call it the price of a questioning nature...

As initially mentioned, with roomie in tow, we ventured deep into Beverly Hills of all places to delve into edu-cultural hot spot known only as the Simon Wiesenthal Center/Museum Of Tolerance. Within the copper-colored walls of the structure were reminders of man's simplest tendency to fear & judge based solely upon first impressions. We are not merely given the guided tour, but are also allowed to wander the darkened halls rife with multimedia screens featuring fascinating insights into mankind's greatest folly, as well as the efforts of those who seek higher roads to understand their fellows. It was both an invigorating refresher course on many of my own personal journeys toward mutual understanding, as well as an interesting study of how things alter with time. As much as I find places like this to be necessary in an age of splintering social revolution, it is also important to consider the very nature of second-hand morality. Perhaps it is merely me, but I become skeptical when faced with a video screen sharing notions of oversimplified rights and wrongs featuring the words of men like Hitler & Stalin. Which isn't to say that the acts of many of the world's greatest tyrants weren't monstrous, but rather than history should also be open to the possibility that as the saying goes, "the road to hell is paved with good intentions."

To sit down at a table in a video room can be an interesting example of what I'd like to call "controlled conditioning", something I'd never considered when discussing this place. At tables, seating in groups of six with voting buttons at your command when asked questions by the woman's voice emanating from the video screen concerning our thoughts on certain matters displayed on video made for an interesting observation. The most prominent that comes to mind when being asked about our thoughts on the many methods of child exploitation in the world today.

We were given four buttons with which to vote with, lettered A - D. Naturally, whatever we voted for would be calculated, and then played back via the screen. When first asked about how many children do we think are sold into slavery every year, the numbers voted for were nearly unanimous. Over 300,000 was apparently correct. But what troubled me was when I'd make my selection, another button on the panel would glow in approval.

Needless to say, I was suspicious. But what did I know? It wasn't as if I knew exactly how these devices worked anyway.

It didn't feel quite so suspicious upon entering what was called "Point Of View Diner" Which was literaly designed like a cross between the soda shop in Back To The Future, and some kind of digital learning facility complete with touch screen renditions of Diner Table Jukebox Selectors. With each attendee, we were privy to the following video which gave us an interesting dilemma done in the style of a local news report...

Prom Night ends horribly when a car carrying high school football star "Chris", and his date, "Melanie". Chris is declared dead at the scene while Melanie ends up with her legs trapped in the vehicle. Worse yet is the younger victim in a car they had collided with, landing 12 year-old, "Danielle" in critical condition. When Chris's mother naturally declares on camera that her son should not be dead, and was an upstanding, model student, which we soon discover isn't true. In fact, Chris has had a history of drinking, and has even shown up to class representation under the influence. Compounding matters is the inevitable death of little Danielle, and the bombshell that a local liquor store , with a history of lenient policies on teenage drinking had possibly sold the fatal rounds to Chris, leading to his mother's onslaught of lawsuits.

Which is what leads us to our central dilemma....To vote in order of responsibility for this tragedy.

The Options:

a) Chris

b) Melanie

c) Chris' Mother

d) The Liquor Store

After a 30 second wait, these were the initial results on a scale of 1 - 4 (1 being most responsible)

4.Melanie

3.Chris' Mother

2.Chris

1. The Liquor Store


Okay....I'm not so sure about anyone else, but I can't help but see this as pretty telling...

Which leads me into all the furor over Matthew Vaughn's taboo-bursting adaptation of Mark Millar & John Romita's ode to costumed anti-heroes , Kick-Ass. As certain critics and folks were inevitably going to raise their pitchforks in protest over the over-the-top violence displayed by not only a fifteen-year-old wannabe superhero, but by a scene stealing, hard-cussing 11 year old junior vigilante with a penchant for blades. It's just one of those things that many of us have always known as anathema to Hollywood. We knew from the moment there was talk of this being made into a film, that noone in town would give this script five pages upon this discovery. It's the kiss of death for your pitch. And yet, there have been instances of this taboo broken in films done outside of Hollywood that have indeed been successful. (Battle Royale, anyone?) Which isn't to say that this can't be seen as morally bankrupt to many. It is something that has long remained a final frontier for genre film, so naturally it took some pretty dedicated collaboration, and outside financing to make this unlikely film a rousing reality. And while it isn't something that even James Cameron would consider, Kick-Ass is here to stay, and has a vital place in the canon of L'Enfante terrible cinema. It is the movie equivalent of good, trashy punk shows; rife with defiance, questionable ideas, and an all out dangling wang in the face of mainstream society.



Which isn't to say that it is in any way a great film, but rather a devilishly entertaining dance with anarchy, with no brakes & even less humanity.

Kick-Ass follows the misadventures of fifteen-year-old Dave Lizewski(Aaron Johnson), as he goes from invisible loser to media phenom when he takes the crazy idea of becoming a homemade superhero to absurd heights. Brutal injuries, and a growing online reputation later, he stumbles across the truly dangerous father/daughter duo of professionals, Big Daddy(Nicolas Cage) & Hit Girl (Chloe Moretz) as they crusade against New York's vicious underworld kingpin, Frank D'amico (Mark Strong). Starting from atypical comic-loving dweeb, to this is no doubt a jarring shift to this boy's life. His previously nonexistent love life is soon thrown for a loop when his school crush begins seeking interest (under misunderstanding that he's apparently a homosexual). The boy's dive into the seedy world of vigilante justice & online heroism reaches an apex when the actions of BD & HG raise the attention of D'amico's brutal crime syndicate. And as imagined by the trailers, what follows is a frenetic, bloody, and irresponsible barrage of film rivaling anything from the salad says of Lloyd Kaufman.

And yet, this is where the film goes from unexpected sleeper success story, to another rote case in going through the motions. My ultimate problems with the film are when Jane Goldman & Matthew Vaughn's script never finds that raw balance that is so necessary for a film this rebellious to truly work beyond its time. And while many of the performances are in fact quite fun (Cage's Adam West-esque pausing are hysterical retribution for years of terribly routine roles), it is the audaciously charming performance of Moretz that devours much of the film. And a 50 million dollar price-tag never conceals the fact that the film feels like a more exploitative take on the superhero film instead of a subversive one. Actions are never as impactful, nor as sharp as they could be given the premise. We see damage, the hint of the psychological alongside the physical, and then *poof*, forgotten in favor of more middling comedy. And while it can be commended that much of Millar's original story is here in all it's wild glory, it never attempts to take it as far as movies can go. In an era where a PG-13 rated superhero film can raise the bar for literacy, acidic wit, and storytelling, Kick-Ass never feels as dangerous as it should.

And yes, I said it should have gone further. Because much like bungee-jumping, dieting, or even drinking, we are a culture based upon challenge. We thrive upon seeking the untouched. And even as kids, it can be said that the contemporary has a yen for the forbidden. This is inherent in the young despite what so many adults would rather have us believe. And no amount of self-blinding is going to undo this. Art,..yes..even trashy art has value in the human experience. There's little to preserve but common sense in a world that is ever changing. At best, Kick-Ass is an alcohol-soaked litmus test for the angry child in all of us, and at worst, an indulgence best served with less sugar & more gray matter.