My thoughts:
Logan: Pretty good, but overlong (the 2016 Mel Gibson flick
Blood Father is
pretty much the same movie, only fifty minutes shorter), and I personally will always be disappointed that the peaceful family in the second act isn't that of a reformed Liev Shreiber's Victor Creed. Also, why do they check into a high-rise hotel in the middle of a city, leaving a bullet-riddled limo with the valet, rather than checking into a random motel, other than to set up an action scene? And did we
really need a stock British baddie? (No.)
Wonder Woman: The indisputable most
important superhero movie of the year, but as a movie taken strictly on its own merits, it's a so-so, overlong mashup of
Captain America: The First Avenger and
Thor 1, with a terrible action climax. (
Professor Lupin is the natural form of Ares, the Olympian God of War? Are you freaking
kidding me?!) Also, the script does a disservice to history by willfully implying that WW1 Germans were basically Nazis, not to mention sweeping all the Olympian gods into a mass grave, and then making Ares a generic Satan (complete with a random Garden of Eden vision) in a transparent sop to Christian audiences.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: Tons of fun, and the most visually striking of all these, as well as the whole MCU. Granted, the humor is a bit forced at times, and the third act villain's motivation/action climax isn't the most inventive, but altogether its a terrific time.
Spider-Man: Homecoming: Another thoroughly enjoyable movie. (But, what happened to Peter's black eye from the airport battle? And just what was up with the dates?) I especially liked how it entirely avoided Manhattan, and loved the surprise cameo at the end. That said, the action climax, while entirely adequate, wasn't the greatest.
Thor: Ragnarok: This one gets my vote. Again, the humor is pushed a bit too much in certain moments, and Thor doesn't always feel like the same character he was before, but the whole thing is so funny and energetic that its biggest flaws feel like nitpicks. Banner/Hulk and Thor share first-rate banter, the action is great, and I really enjoyed its treatment of Loki. This was my personal most anticipated flick since
Days of Future Past in 2014, and it didn't disappoint one bit.
Justice League: This movie apparently deserves a $1.50 Redbox rental, not a $15 theater ticket; ergo, I haven't yet seen it.
Wonder Woman is not only 2017's best superhero film, it's probably the best superhero film since Superman '78 (the latter being basically the Beatles of superhero movies: everything that comes after is just competing for second place).
Amazing. Every word you just said was... something I respectfully entirely disagree with.
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