Monthly Archives: April 2015

Dragon Age Inquisition Review

dragon age inquisitionIf there’s one thing that Dragon Age Inquisition does especially well, it’s world building. While the first game in the series, Dragon Age Origin, felt like “Tolkien for Adults,” Inquisition seems to model its world and lore a bit more after George RR Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” series. Different races and factions have deep, complex histories, with their own myths and legends, and very different accounts of how certain events occurred. When it comes to the various religions and supernatural forces that make up the Dragon Age world of Thedas, all of it is presented with uncertainty. Like the giants and children of the forest in Game of Thrones, it is unclear to the majority whether or not these things actually existed or are simply stories.

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Gone Girl Review – Playing with Genre

gone-girl_c99723(Because Gone Girl has been out and available for some time now, I will be talking spoilers in this review. Also, because this review skews toward a broader discussion of genre, I am including it as a “review” and a “deep end” piece)

Six months after its release, I have finally gotten around to watching David Fincher’s Gone Girl. During that time, it had been nigh-impossible to avoid spoilers altogether (Neil Patrick Harris even spoiled his own death during the Oscars), but I did my best, and it ultimately paid off. Much of Gone Girl’s success comes not only from its twists and turns, but from how surprisingly early they come. Each major twist reshapes the narrative, as well as the genre.

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Avengers: Age of Ultron Review

the-avengers-age-of-ultron_zGf6N1(The top portion of this review will not contain spoilers. However, if you have seen the movie or would like to hear a few more specifics, I will go into details below. That section will contain significant spoilers)

In a way, Avengers: Age of Ultron is the Iron Man 2 of the Avengers series. It makes a lot of the same mistakes as IM2 did, primarily by trying to stuff in too many plot elements and sequel set-ups for the movie to come together as a cohesive whole. You can feel Joss Whedon stressing out over the movie, as more and more things get piled on while he tries to wrangle a decent Ultron film out of it. I counted at least ten different stories and new character/place introductions in the first half hour alone.

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The Fast and Furious Evolution of a Franchise

furious-7_rrN3huFurious 7, the most recent entry in the Fast and Furious series, was released on April 3rd. At the time of this writing, it has already earned more than $800 million worldwide. While this number will likely be eclipsed in the summer by such heavyweights as Batman v Superman and The Avengers: Age of Ultron, $800 million is no small amount. In fact, if we’re considering international gross rather than domestic alone, Furious 7 has made more money in two weekends than nearly any film in all of 2014, including Guardians of the Galaxy, American Sniper, Mockingjay, Captain America, and The Lego Movie. The only two films I can find in 2014 that Furious 7 has not eclipsed globally are the final Hobbit movie and Transformers 4, and neither reached $800 million after only two weeks. The Fast and Furious franchise can now consider itself one of the most lucrative in the world.

So how, exactly, did this happen? How did a $38 million car racing flick featuring a bunch of barely-known actors turn into a global phenomenon? I may have some insight into that. My fiancee Reba and I had not been following this series. Aside from each having seen one full film in the franchise and a handful of scenes, we decided that we were woefully under-prepared for the juggernaut that is Furious 7. So, to get ready (and prepare for the complete Marvel marathon on April 20th-21st here),  we decided to catch ourselves up on every single film in the series over a single weekend.

What follows is my account, as a Fast-and-Furious-newbie, of the merits (or lack thereof) of each individual installment, as well as a tracking of the series’ evolution from mid-budget racing series to Michael-Bay-grandiose action franchise. You’re welcome. Continue reading The Fast and Furious Evolution of a Franchise