Fathom Events-Doctor Who: Twice Upon a Time

The second of the two back to back films that I saw as the last of 2017 with The Shape of Water, Fathom Events-Doctor Who: Twice Upon a Time is the first time I went to see a feature through the Fathom content provider that releases special films for a few days. This was the theatrical release of the Doctor Who 2017 Christmas special and while you could have seen it on television during Christmas, I wanted to see what a Fathom Event film is like through something familiar. The special sees Peter Capaldi ending his era as the Doctor by going on an adventure with the First Doctor and ends with the beginning of Jodie Whittaker's tenure as the 13th Doctor with the first female Doctor. Before the special began and after it ended there were special behind the scenes looks of Capaldi's tenure and the special itself. Seeing it cinematically was really awesome and very profoundly satisfying more than seeing it on tv. Watching the interaction between the 12th and 1st and how different the Doctor was when he first started was one of the most fun parts. The strongest scene that is really profound was the 12th Doctor's final speech towards his next self before he regenerates.

Pop Culture Guy episode 38: 5 Minute Reviews

The Shape of Water

One of the last of two films I saw back to back for 2017 as my first double feature, Guillermo del Toro's The Shape of Water is a beautiful look at a very unconventional love story between a mute woman and an aquatic humanoid sea creature with the 1960s Cold War themes as a backdrop that gets between them. The Shape of Water stars Sally Hawkins as Elisa who uses sign language to communicate, Doug Jones as the sea creature through tons of makeup, and Michael Shannon as a government official in charge of studying and testing the sea creature with supporting roles by Richard Jenkins and Octavia Spencer. This is by far one of the best films of 2017 as well as in del Toro's filmography as it's truly majestic and beautiful to watch. There were moments that at first I thought were odd or weird to show when first seeing them until you get to later parts of the film and those earlier parts now make sense. The cinematography, the music, and the attention to detail are all at their best in this Universal Horror meets romantic drama. You believe the love between Hawkins and Jones thanks to their very quiet yet powerful performances. Over all: 100%
2017 top lists so far:
1. The Disaster Artist
2. Baby Driver
3. It
4. Coco
5. The Shape of Water
6. Thor: Ragnarok
7. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
8. Wonder Woman
9. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
10. Logan
11. Spider-Man: Homecoming
12. Professor Marston and the Wonder Woman
13. Blade Runner 2049
14. Dunkirk
15. War for the Planet of the Apes
16. Alien: Covenant
17. John Wick: Chapter 2
18. The Lego Batman Movie
19. Saban's Power Rangers
20. The Foreigner
21. Justice League
22. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
23. Kong: Skull Island
24. Split
25. Kingsman: The Golden Circle
26. The Fate of the Furious
27. Beauty and the Beast 2017
28. Transformers: The Last Knight

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

The third Star Wars film by Disney and the second installment in the new trilogy, Star Wars: The Last Jedi sees Ray meeting Luke and wishing to be trained by him in the ways of the Force while Leia and the Resistance attempt to escape the First Order after destroying the Starkiller Base and not having enough resources to fight back. While the directing, acting, visuals, and action scenes are all really great some of the writing can be a little problematic. Not to say that it's bad, just that while the dialogue is refreshing and every scene is full of great moments a lot of the time it feels like something is missing at some points. All of the past Star Wars films all had multiple stories happening at once over a certain period of time, while with this film there's only two main stories all happening at the most a day or two which feels odd. There's a lot of comedy in this compared to that in The Force Awakens which can work really well but too much happens of it at times. While Rian Johnson does a great job at both directing and writing this installment, one of my biggest complaints is that because he's a fan of Star Wars and mainly the original trilogy in which he grew up with a lot can come of as fan fiction, sometimes good but also bad. The biggest problem that these newer films have is that they rely too much on stuff from the Original Trilogy and try to please too many of those fans. Another problem is that while the film does answer some questions from the previous film, it gives us way too many questions right after and some of the answers it does give just felt unfulfilling and just getting it out of the way. Last Jedi is a fun and fascinating film that has great philosophical moments and a great cast with good chemistry but is hindered by trying too much to satisfy those who grew up with the Original Trilogy and didn't like the Prequels. Over all: 100%
2017 top lists so far:
1. The Disaster Artist
2. Baby Driver
3. It
4. Coco
5. Thor: Ragnarok
6. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
7. Wonder Woman
8. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
9. Logan
10. Spider-Man: Homecoming
11. Professor Marston and the Wonder Woman
12. Blade Runner 2049
13. Dunkirk
14. War for the Planet of the Apes
15. Alien: Covenant
16. John Wick: Chapter 2
17. The Lego Batman Movie
18. Saban's Power Rangers
19. The Foreigner
20. Justice League
21. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
22. Kong: Skull Island
23. Split
24. Kingsman: The Golden Circle
25. The Fate of the Furious
26. Beauty and the Beast 2017
27. Transformers: The Last Knight

Pop Culture Guy episode 37: Even More Comic Books I've Read So Far

The Disaster Artist

In 2003 one of the most infamously so bad it's good films, The Room, was released to widespread laughter and ironic enjoyment. The Disaster Artist, a biographical comedy drama directed and starring James Franco, is all about the making of The Room and the relationship between its director and star Tommy Wiseau and costar/coproducer Greg Sestero. Franco does a phenomenal job at portraying the odd, insane, mysterious, but somewhat likable man who we barely even know even 14 years after his film came out. The biggest performance to look out for is Dave Franco as Sestero as he plays his naiveté and wanting to perfection. Throughout the film we learn all of the crazy and insane things that happened throughout the making of The Room. In a way, this film makes us appreciate the older film due to how Sestero and Wiseau ended up making it by showing their times in Hollywood and attempting to get any job they try but constantly failing. Though there are times where Tommy is fun and full of energy, The Disaster Artist also captures his abusive and at times obsessive personality that makes one question if Sestero just lets people walk around him and is too trusting. Over all: 100%
2017 top lists so far:
1. The Disaster Artist
2. Baby Driver
3. It
4. Coco
5. Thor: Ragnarok
6. Wonder Woman
7. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
8. Logan
9. Spider-Man: Homecoming
10. Professor Marston and the Wonder Woman
11. Blade Runner 2049
12. Dunkirk
13. War for the Planet of the Apes
14. Alien: Covenant
15. John Wick: Chapter 2
16. The Lego Batman Movie
17. Saban's Power Rangers
18. The Foreigner
19. Justice League
20. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
21. Kong: Skull Island
22. Split
23. Kingsman: The Golden Circle
24. The Fate of the Furious
25. Beauty and the Beast 2017
26. Transformers: The Last Knight

Wonder Woman Free Comic Book Day 2017 Special Edition (2017-) issue #1

Wonder Woman Free Comic Book Day 2017 Special Edition (2017-) issue #1 is both my first solo Wonder Woman comic and first comic revolving around the DC Rebirth reboot. This issue once again retells part of Wonder Woman's origin story but focuses mostly on Diana and Steve Trevor's time before they met each other, Diana with her mother and sisters and Steve with his family and friends in  the military. Greg Rucka's storytelling goes back and forth between the two and Nicola Scott's artwork is vibrant and full of great detail and joy. The comic itself really makes you feel hopeful even when surprising dark moments like Diana getting bitten by a snake or Steve's friends dying when they crash happen. Seeing Diana and Steve doing things before they meet is definitely the most powerful moments as they show what their ordinary lives were like before, with the scenes in Paradise Island have a similar vibe to the Wonder Woman movie. Over all: 100%
Top list so far for 2nd set of comics:
1. Wonder Woman Free Comic Book Day 2017 Special Edition (2017-) issue #1
2. Incredible Hulk (1999-2007) #92: Planet Hulk Part One
3. Tate's Not At Comic Con Local Indy Anthology #8

Olaf's Frozen Adventure

As always with any Disney animated film, Coco was preceded by an animated short just as memorable as the film itself. Though one thing that's odd about Olaf's Frozen Adventure is that it's a regular Disney non-Pixar animation project and that it's a bit longer than the usual shorts. However, this small sequel wherein Olaf tries to help Anna and Elsa find a new holiday tradition after the events of the original film. The comedy is on point, the voice acting is perfect with the original cast returning, the story is very thoughtful, and the music is as good as Frozen's. Olaf, himself, can make for a great short protagonist but his over the top positivity and always finding a song in everything can get a little annoying from time to time.