After the 3-week absence from Thursday Movie Picks series, Sinekdoks finally returns. The theme for this week is quite actual—in conjunction with the early release of Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron. So, here comes Superhero Movies.
In case you, fellow bloggers, wanna participate; this series is powered by Wandering through the Shelves Blog and the details of it can be seen on this page.
For the last decade, there have been a lot of superhero movies and, obviously, franchises released by studios. However, appreciation towards superhero movies has always been low; critics regard them merely as studios’ money-mining or blockbuster wrappers. Seemingly, this sub-genre is a bit out of class; although, I always believe that this sub-genre is a revolutionary step for cinema to expand itself. Who knows in years this genre will be the leading powers in award season for the contribution to visuals and, perhaps, story-telling.
But, here comes my picks for this week.
01. The Dark Knight (2008)
Batman Begins (2005) was always a perfect setup for the new Batman trilogy initiated by Nolan. It’s responsible for toning the titular superhero to the darker side of the genre—and more, gave Batman a quality that made him more vulnerable but realistic—the quality of being an ordinary man.
Yet, The Dark Knight was the peak of Nolan’s excellent plot for Batman. The conflict was lethal and complex, the action packs was brilliant, but the highlight was the villain. There’s no villain as complex as Ledger’s Joker, by far. That’s enough to make The Dark Knight, a perfect prototype of superhero movies to follow.
02. Watchmen (2009)
It was always visually beautiful and striking as it is presented in a dark, dim atmosphere that brings sorrow for the whole film. Watchmen might be difficult to follow with such pace, but how Snyder crafted the narrative structure and filled it with sufficient amount of political and social conspiracy was a perfect deal (to compensate the complex structure). However, I always loved Watchmen for its treatment to the superheroes not as an absolute figure of saviors.
03. Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (2008)
Such a vibrant superhero comic book and Guillermo de Toro’s vision of it was a perfect combination. Hellboy 2 works well as a sequel and as an art exhibition. The set designs, the costumes, the make-ups and all the art directions were as imaginative as it can be. This film set a high bar for superhero (or anti-hero) franchises of similar origins in terms of details and Doug Jones.
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Well, that’s my picks for this week. Care to hit the comment?
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