Holy Mjolnir

Chris Hemsworth

While I found Kenneth Branaugh's Thor to be a messy and rather silly entry in the Avengers films, Australian hottie Chris Hemsworth proved to be a rather perfect Thor and I actually enjoyed his performance in Marvel's The Avengers.

This November, Thor and Hemsworth are back in Thor: The Dark World. Directed by "Game of Thrones" director Alan Taylor, the movie re-unites Hemsworth with human love interest Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) in a story about a dark entity which threatens both Earth and Asgard (Thor's home world). 

Combining Norse mythology with modern Superhero comics, Marvel's comics place Thor in the body of disabled med student Donald Blake, who discovers his godhood almost by accident. The movies ignore this part of the origin story, much to the dismay of loyal Marvel fanboys. Personally, I'm more of a DC guy and really don't care about Thor's origin story, But a hot Aussie in as little clothing as possible? I'm there!

Here (via) is the trailer for Thor: The Dark World:

I know Marvel has several gay Supes in their stable. Too bad Thor isn't one of them. And too bad we have yet to see one in any of their films.

More, anon
Prospero

Retro Review: Five For and Five Against "The Avengers"

The Avengers

Like many Americans, I had off today for Labor Day. Not so coincidentally, Disney and Marvel re-released The Avengers to the big screen for one week on Saturday. Because I missed it the first time around (I was a little busy), I decided to take advantage of the day off and see the movie all my friends seemed to love. Armed with the AMC gift card my sister wisely gave me for my birthday, I went to my favorite AMC for the 11:35 AM show (all movies before Noon at AMCs in my region are just $6.00 - Score!).

I am assuming most of my regular readers have already seen it, so I'll once again borrow from my buddy Sean and do a "Five For/Five Against" review.

FOR:

5. Joss Whedon. A true fan-boy, the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer; "Firefly;" "Dollhouse;" Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog and Cabin in the Woods hit a double homer with a funny, exciting script and spot-on direction. Sure, there are a few plot holes. Just how did Loki escape the abyss? How exactly did Thor return to Earth? Where the heck did the Hulk land so he could make it back to NYC so quickly and just how did Banner and Thor know to go there, in the first place?

4. Chris Evans. I could watch that man read a phone book, as long as he did so with his shirt off. Woof!

3. Robert Downey, Jr. Those bedroom eyes are just the start. As in both of the previous Ironman movies, Downey is simply terrific as the wise-cracking super genius superhero with a super ego. He totally deserves the top billing he received.

2. They finally got The Hulk right. Mark Ruffalo was nothing less than wonderful as Bruce Banner and it was great to see the Hulk actually modeled after the actor playing Banner, complete with hairy torso. I do hope Ruffalo gets his own stand-alone Hulk movie (preferably with Whedon at the helm). He certainly deserves it.

1. The FX. I deliberately chose to see The Avengers in 2D and I think many of the effects would have been ruined in 3D. Not once did I think "Oh, that's great CGI." I just thought, "Oh, that was awesome!"

Easter Egg Bonus: At the very end of the credits, we're treated to a very funny (and practically silent) scene of the team eating at the Shawarma place Tony Stark talks about near the end of the movie. The perfect way to humanize super-humans.

AGAINST:

5. Jeremy Renner. I just don't get it. He's not particularly attractive (that nose!) or especially talented. I kept thinking that any thirty-something actor could have done as well or better as 'Hawkeye.' He does have nice arms, though - I'll give him that. And I don't know why early posters showed him wearing a mask, since he doesn't do so in the movie.

4. Manhattan Mayhem. Yes, it's been 11 years, but seeing  Manhattan skyscrapers collapsing still made me a bit uncomfortable.

3. SPOILER ALERT: The Death of Agent Phil Coulson. Really? The underrated Clark Gregg has been a favorite of mine since his turns as Michael Casper on "The West Wing" and Richard Campbell on "The New Adventures of Old Christine." I can't wait to see what he does with Leonato in Whedon's modern dress version of Much Ado About Nothing (a play very dear to my heart). I actually gasped when Loki literally stabbed him in the back.

2. Agent Maria Hill. I love Cobie Smulders on "How I Met Your Mother." Here, she was just meh. But I blame it on the role, rather than Smulders. Again, any attractive thirty-something actress could have played the part just as effectively.

1. Thanos. This little-loved Marvel villain is apparently behind Loki's attempt at conquering Earth, as seen in the first Easter egg after the main titles. I can't imagine how Whedon will work the death-loving monster into The Avengers II, though I'm certainly willing to give him the chance.

Regardless of its minor flaws, The Avengers is still an enormously entertaining movie and fans of the Superhero genre will not be disappointed. I certainly wasn't. ***1/2 (Three and a Half Out of Four Stars).



More, anon.
Prospero

Do Over: Hot Super Edition.

Let's try this again, shall we? This post's original title was "Supers Hot" but after the great Firefox Fail of 2011, I tweaked it.

This weekend sees the first of three in Marvel's Avengers saga, Thor. Relative newcomer Chris Hemsworth stars as one of Stan Lee's odder Supers, in that he is neither human nor alien, but an actual Norse god trapped on Earth. My only associations to the character are the 70's Saturday cartoon version and an astonishingly young and gorgeous Vincent D'Onofrio in Adventures in Baby Sitting, which leaves me actually looking forward to seeing what a director like Kenneth Brannaugh does with material that is probably among the more absurd Super Heroes in the Marvel universe.

Marvel also has another specimen of male perfection in Captain America: The First Avenger. Starring the stunnningness that is Chris Evans (above) as Steve Rogers/Captain America, a 90 lb weakling who forgoes Charles Atlas and volunteers for a secret military experiment to create a Super Soldier Ironically, there's an iconic cover featuring Cap punching Hitler in the face. And if I remember, weren't Addie and Hermie actually trying to create a race of Ubermensch ? Anyway, Captain America has been since WWII and has almost as long a history as Superman. Like many comic book Supers, Steve Rogers is no longer the Captain in the current version of the comic, having been replaced at least once, but I couldn't tell you by whom. Hit-or-Miss director Joe Johnston has his work cut out for him in tying in a character from a different era into the set-in-the present Avengers. Of course, I've had my eye on Evans ever since his debut in Larry Cohen's ridiculous but thoroughly entertaining Cellular, which also starred My Obsession. Evans just gets better and better... and his acting has improved, as well... (rimshot). Watch this while I go cool off:

And Marvel competitor, DC isn't sitting out the summer. The also stunning Ryan Reynolds is Hal Jordan, aka Green Lantern. After an alien crash lands on Earth, Jordan finds himself in possession of a mysterious ring and lamp, which the dying ET in the UFO says chose him. Hal has been designated arth's Green Lantern, one of thousands throughout the Universe. The mostly green-screen and CGI movie also stars Peter Sarsgaard; Mark Strong; Geoffrey Rush and Tim Robbins. 

Reynolds may not be the best actor in the world, but he's not terrible. And I know lots of folks who could spend hours just looking at him.... Too bad the costume is CGI, too. Then again, Ryan in real tights might just be too much to handle in a mature and respectful manner. The latest trailer makes Green Lantern look pretty a-frickin-mazing:

And while not exactly a comic book hero, pulp writer Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian has been resurrected in the form of Pacific Islander Jason Mamoa, who could be rocketed to stardom (like Conan's first portrayer who went on to something... um...I want to say politcal? Conversely, he could be starring in his one and only major studio film. 

Mamoa was on "Baywatch," I guess. He had bad dreds, from all the pictures I could find. And he wasn't nearly as big. There's something about the shape of his eyebrows that bothers me, but they may just be enhanced for "barbaric" effect. And of course, it's not like they would be a deal-breaker, if you know what I mean. Mamoa's amazing body certainly looks more natural than the former Governor's did in the same role. Of course, 10 minutes with Mamoa's trainer would in all likelihood literally kill Uncle P. And then where would all of you be left? Sigh...

I hope you watched all those in Full Screen. And I hope you all realized that this Summer is the kind of summer gay fanboys dream about...

More, anon.
Prospero

I'm Tho Thore!

That's Riccardo Fachetti's Frazetta-esque painting of the Norse deity Thor defeating the Ice Giants with his hammer. It is from him that we get the word "Thursday" and also the Marvel comic of the same name. Tho why am I tho thore?

For about three hours today, the trailer for the new movie starring Aussie Chris Hemsworth (glimpsed briefly as James T. Kirk's doomed daddy in last year's Star Trek) was up for viewing all over the web. Directed by Kenneth Branagh (yes, Hamlet*; Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and the underrated, noirish reincarnation thriller Dead Again), Thor also stars Natalie Portman; Anthony Hopkins; Idris Elba; Stellan Skarsgard; Rene Russo; Clark Gregg and Colm Feore in yet another superhero origins tale, all leading up to Marvel's gigantic, multi-hero epic The Avengers** in 2012. It has been removed from every single site I searched. "Removed at request of copyright holder," was the most common message. And it sucks, because I really wanted to share it with you.

Interestingly, the trailer starts with what I've just noticed is a sort of Marvel meme: our hero (or more often, villain) is seen escaping from being strapped down to a hospital-type table and taking on several doctors, nurses, orderlies and/or assorted paramilitary type behemoths. It then moves on to Asgard, where King of the gods Odin (Hopkins) is seen exiling Thor to Earth for treason. And Branagh's vision of Asgaard certainly appeared spectacular, with soaring golden towers and lots of sparkling Nordic armor. Thor must prove himself a hero on Earth before he can regain his father's favor (and throne).

The Mighty Thor was not a major character in my super-hero canon; I was more of a DC Justice League kind of boy. I knew Thor existed, but he wasn't one of my favorites. My best memory of the character is his pseudo-appearance in the '80's comedy Adventures in Babysitting.

The now-removed Thor trailer was pretty danged awesome. I hope you had a chance to see it. I'll post it as soon as it's available again. Just the sight of Hemsworth's exposed pelvis was enough to make me want to see it -- I know... TMI, Uncle P.

I'm seeing Dinner for Schmucks tomorrow with D. You can expect my review. Personally, I think it looks friggin' hilarious. Plus, it has Paul...

And since I can't seem to get enough Paul lately, here's a silly little thing he did with the also underrated (and gorgeous) Famke Janssen:

Damn, that man is boy-next-door gorgeous and hilariously talented! I hate him! I want him.!I hate him! I want to be him... (no, not really - just me; as famous, gorgeous and talented as he is, with him on my arm -- Hey! A boy can dream, can't he?).

And finally, I have had confirmation that I will be directing for Shakespeare '70 again this fall, though with a rather different kind of play for me. It's Caryl Churchill's Top Girls, a play ostensibly about women making their way in a man's world. "But Uncle P, what would you know about that? " Well, I think I can relate, as a gay man who has had to make his was in a straight world, I certainly understand the feeling of being treated as a 2nd class citizen and the things I've done and sacrificed in order to not only survive, but also to thrive in an overwhelmingly hostile environment.

Of course, as with any good piece, it's about so much more than that. Churchill is probably best known for her 1982 Obie-winning play Cloud Nine. It is the first time Your's Truly will be directing an all-female cast, and the first time in 5 years that I'll be directing a play without D in it. It's a complex and fascinating piece and with the right cast, has the potential to be phenomenal. I haven't felt this challenged by a piece since the last time I directed for them, but Q is once-again my producer/right-hand and I think together we'll make something extraordinary. We always seem to. One of the five billion and four reasons I love her so much.

Well, enough stream-of-conscientiousness for tonight. I had a rough one last night (a long story for another post, someday -- maybe) and I'm very tired. I really wish I could have shared that trailer with you. Maybe this will make up for it:

More, anon.
Prospero

*Featuring some truly odd casting and the great Jack Lemmon's most deer-in-the-headlights film performance.

**The cast of Joss "Buffy/Firefly/Dollhouse" Whedon's film was introduced at last week's ComiCon in San Diego, to what was reported to be rabidly positive fanperson response. I'm also breathlessly awaiting for Ryan's Green Lantern, but that's just me...

TTFN
Uncle P