Cinema Mishmash

Here is a sure indicator that a movie franchise has gone too far: when the latest installment, despite the spectacle of its explosions and special effects, is more or less a bore. That is, sadly, the state of things in the X-Men department. By the look of things, the film has left the caretakers of [...]

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Until I saw the first trailer and read the initial reports about Watchmen, I knew nothing of what I now understand to be the most popular of all graphic novels. So I am not one of these “fanboys” we keep hearing about. However, I am a fan of the cinematic adaptation of comic books, and what [...]

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Director Guillermo del Toro is a long way toward establishing himself as one of the greatest contemporary storytellers, and this sequel to his 2004 comic book adaptation solidifies his ability to bring his distinctive visual and narrative style to commercial ventures as well his more personal projects. If there is indeed now a Hellboy [...]

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While Spider-Man 3 may have smashed budget and opening weekend box office records, I am afraid it also trampled my high expectations, as unrealistic as they may have been. While the notion of a revelatory comic book franchise sequel may sound absurd, I submit that Spider-Man 2 was exactly that. I think even those who [...]

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I had Superman Underoos. There, I’ve said it. No, there’s more. I loved those Superman Underoos. By some magical twist of fate, my mother was given a pair of red snow boots one Christmas before I was born, and we had a red bath towel, so I didn’t just have Superman Underoos. I was Superman. [...]

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