The Northman

Inspired by the same Scandinavian legend that Hamlet is based on, The Northman is an epic historical Viking movie from Robert Eggers. Eggers tells the story of Amleth, a Viking prince played by Alexander Skarsgard, who witnesses the murder of his father by an uncle who takes the throne, leading to Amleth vowing to avenge him and rescue his mother. Years later he has been taken by a different tribe of Vikings and has become a berserker taking part in raids and brutal battles. Hearing about his uncle being overthrown and exiled to Iceland, and upon being told of a prophecy that his revenge will come, Amleth sets out to look for his uncle by getting into a slave ship and pretending to be one. Once he gets to his uncle's farm, and with the help of another slave played by Anya Taylor-Joy, Amleth plays the long game to enact his revenge that all leads to supernatural events, long held revelations, lots of blood and gore, and a final battle at a volcano. Being about Vikings, the film has no shortage of brutality, bloody battles, and the absolute muck that the era is known for. All this thanks to both the production design that captures the time perfectly and all of the vast locations shown thanks to filming in Northern Ireland and Iceland. Eggers and his cowriter Sjón managed to envision something that's a combination of beautiful and disgusting. Their writing is crafted so precisely and definitely has the type of twists and turns that Shakespeare was also inspired by. Despite following Amleth and his quest, often it shows us that you don't always agree with it and it isn't a black and white story. The battles and fights themselves never feel like they hold back and show just how brutal a society based on fighting and death can be. Casting is superb as alongside Skarsgard and Taylor-Joy, you get just as strong performances from Nicole Kidman, Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe, and Claes Bang. Other aspects that capture the authenticity of the time period are the astounding cinematography from Jarin Blaschke and the subdued score from Robin Carolan and Sebastian Gainsborough. All the while Louise Ford's work as editor gives us a well paced movie with no overuse of editing for the fight scenes. Epic is an easy way to describe a lot of films that are long and/or involve large battles and set pieces, but The Northman proves you can have the second without needing the first. Over all: 100%

2022 top list so far:

1. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

2. The Northman

3. The Batman

4. Dog

5. Everything Everywhere All at Once

6. X 2022

7. Scream 2022

8. Uncharted

Tintin in the Land of the Soviets

Published from 1929 to 1930, Tintin in the Land of the Soviets is the debut of the iconic Belgian reporter and his trusty Fox Terrier, Snowy, from cartoonist Hergé and published in the Le Vingtieme Siecle newspaper. The story centers on reporter Tintin being sent to the Soviet Union to write about life in the newly formed communist country. Unfortunately for the reporter and his trusted dog, the Soviet secret police intends to kill them at every opportunity the get. Tintin's train gets bombed, and while he survives they get arrested only for them to escape and try any way to get through the communist country, evading the authorities as he meets with the people who are disparaged by them. Eventually, Tintin heads back to Belgium all the while preventing the Soviets from planning explosions throughout Europe's capitals. While I was always aware of Tintin through the animated shows, the Spielberg 2011 film, and other works that pay homage or reference the franchise, this is the first time I've ever read any of Hergé's signature work. I am aware that this is way different from the later entries of the series, having a very quick random events like plot with crude and colorless artwork. Nonetheless it's a fun story with the many outlandish things that happen to Tintin and Snowy kinda endearing and seeing the introductory story is always good so as to see how it eventually evolves. That being said, the writing isn't terrible but it's rather rudimentary and dated, mainly due being made as anti-communist propaganda and portraying the Soviet Union in an over the top way through its corruption and violence. It doesn't help that Hergé, who usually does a lot of research for his works, based most of the writing on a book from a diplomat. Yes, the artwork is a bit crude, not very detailed, and in black and white, but some of that is a bit charming considering when it was made. Some of the Soviet generals have similar looks but Tintin and Snowy's designs still retain their iconic looks despite how early it is for them. For being rushed, it doesn't look that great but it isn't terrible and you can tell what's going on most of the time. Every long running series has to start somewhere, whether with a strong or weak intro, and Tintin in the Land of the Soviets is about right in the middle as though it's fun it's datedness and rushed work is evident. Over all: 98%

Top list so far for 3rd set of comics:
1. Superman: Secret Identity #1 (of 4)

2. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers FCBD 2018 Shattered Grid Special

3. Countdown to Infinite Crisis #1

4. Fantastic Four: Reckoning War Alpha #1

5. Savage Avengers (2019-) #1

6. Action Comics Vol. 1 #800

7. Aliens: Dead Orbit #1

8. DC First: Flash/Superman #1

9. Aliens: Defiance #1

10. Iron Man (2020-) #1

11. Free Comic Book Day 2018: Riverdale

12. Free Comic Book Day 2018: 2000 A.D. Regened

13. DC Universe: Legacies #1

14. Free Comic Book Day 2017 I Hate Image

15. Shang-Chi (2020-2021) #1 (of 5): Brothers & Sisters Part One

16. Champions (2020-) #1

17. Infinite Frontier (2021) #0

18. Green Lantern Vol. 2 #76

19. DC Retroactive: Green Lantern - The 70s #1

20. Star Wars: Doctor Aphra (2020-) #1
21. Showcase (1956-1978) #17
22. Tintin in the Land of the Soviets

23. Werewolf By Night (2020-) #1 (of 4)

24. Free Comic Book Day: Bongo Comics Free For All 2018
25. Free Comic Book Day 2017: Riverdale
26. Marvel Comics (1939) #1

The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

Playing a fictional version of himself, Nicolas Cage stars alongside Pedro Pascal in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. This fictional Cage is one who is dissatisfied with how his career is going due to missing out on so many good roles and a family that he's not very close to. Before he decides to retire, Cage is offered a lot of money to hang out with a billionaire in Spain, played by Pascal, who is a huge fan of his. Once there, he is recruited by CIA agents to help them expose Javi, Pascal's character, as a drug dealer and kidnapper of a politician's daughter. If anyone deserves to portray themselves and deal with all the metaness of their career, Cage is the right pick due to his unique choices in projects, over the top performances, and often odd behavior. Having directed and cowritten with Kevin Etten, Tom Gormican gives a movie that is not only hilarious, but filled with good drama and very emotional moments that digs deep into Cage's method. While Cage is known for playing characters with ridiculous outbursts and yelling like a madman, this movie doesn't rely on that and instead gives us the story of a man dealing with his insecurities and where his career is heading. Plus Gormican gives some really inventive action scenes and some often call back to much of Cage's career. But the film's biggest standout is obviously Cage's performance, both the depressed regular version of himself and the over the top version we expect from him that he often imagines pushing him to go back to what made him popular. There's also Pascal who proves that he can be great in comedy due to his past mostly involving serious dramas. The fact that he himself is a genuine Nicolas Cage fan adds to their strong chemistry and makes the crazy things they go through feel believable. Nicolas Cage is one of those actors who give strong performances no matter how good or bad the movie will be and has played all sorts of characters throughout his filmography, so The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent proves that he will never fade and we'll be seeing more of him. Over all: 100%

2022 top list so far:

1. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

2. The Batman

3. Dog

4. Everything Everywhere All at Once

5. X 2022

6. Scream 2022

7. Uncharted