In Training

     Like any Fine Athlete with a big event coming up, I am training. I'm training for The Avengers. So in my training, I am re-watching the movies leading up to The Avengers. It's demented and sad, yes, and it is the way I roll. I finished Iron Man this morning before work. I expect to have Captain America finished on monday. I will be updating this post with thoughts from each movie as I go along.

• Iron Man- I think my favorite scene in the movie is the scene with Pepper and Stane in the office, where she is copying the drive. Bridges is so casually sinister, so cat and mouse, that he just blows me away. Second favorite is the scene in Gulmira where Iron Man makes his debut. there is not much to it, in terms of action, but it's a feel good scene- he saves the kids father

updates to come as I watch

Update 1:

• The Incredible Hulk- I had never seen this one before, largely because of the first Hulk movie, where it seemed the writer and director had a name (Hulk) and a color (Green) but no actual knowledge of the character or origin-but I digress. this one was fun. I would own this one if I found it at the right price, the relationship between Betty Ross and Bruce Banner was almost mother/child in some scenes, which was interesting. A lot of sly nods to the TV show back in the late 70's. Norton makes a  good Banner, trying hard not to lose it and turn green and nasty.

Update 2:

• Iron Man 2 - I think watching it this time, I was most pleased by the performances of some of the Supporting Cast- Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko- man, he can commit to a role, and he makes a great baddie. I love the interplay between Tony Stark and the three S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, Nick Fury, Phil Coulson, and Natasha Romanoff , who are completely unimpressed by him, and in fact treat him as something of a pain in the butt. Best line: If you try to escape, or play any sort of games with me, I will taze you and watch "Supernanny" while you drool into the carpet.(Phil Coulson). I also think I like the Don Cheadle Rhodey more than Terrence Howards portrayal, but that could just be the way the character was written for the second movie.

Update 3:

• Thor - I love Thor, think the casting is great- Anthony Hopkins makes a perfect Odin, Tom Hiddleston an excellent Loki. The design of Asgard is beautiful to look upon, and otherwordly without being too out there. As a comic fan versed in Thors story, I am able to see the subtle nods to his comic history (Donald Blake M.D.) and where it all fits together. My only Fear for this movie is that the script doesn't cover enough for a non-fan to really get a grounding in what's going on, yet at the same time, the conflict between Thor and Loki is Basic, easy for anyone to understand who ever envied a brother. There is a lot played out for laughs, and Coulson is back(above), and always great on the screen

Update 4: Final Update

• Captain America-The First Avenger- I can't heap high enough praise on this movie. As a lifelong Captain America fan, I feel that they did the story just right. They took what could have been campy or corny or just plain bad and made it noble and proud without hammering it into you. I have not talked a lot about the leads in these movies this go-round, focusing instead on the supporting cast, but Chris Evans...just nails it. He takes the character seriously, even at times where the character can't take himself seriously(seeing his performance selling war bonds as resembling that of a trained monkey) He plays the character as smart, dedicated, observant and brave, even before the application of the super-soldier serum. Backup performances by Stanley Tucci and Tommy Lee Jones are perfect, and Hugo Weaving makes a perfect Red Skull. Above all of these fine performances, though, the Director captures the atmosphere superbly, and splendidly ties the past into the present, making this movie the one that ties all of the others together. Note the Symbol of the Strategic Scientific Reserve, versus the S.H.I.E.L.D. emblem.

We also get to see Howard Stark, father of Tony Stark, when he was not the cold, distant man Tony remembers but was a lot more like Tony himself. We get to wonder what took the fun out of him