DEADPOOL

Twentieth Century Fox

Rated R

Running Time: 108 Minutes

Click below to watch a movie trailer of Deadpool from YouTube.
 

In Twentieth Century Fox's Deadpool, God's Perfect Idiot, mercenary superhero Ryan Reynolds goes after a British villain Ed Skrein who nearly destroyed Reynolds life and face and kidnapped his fiancee, the hot chick, Morena Baccarin.

THIS IS AN R RATED MOVIE - DO NOT BRING YOUR KIDS as there is graphic violence and big boy curse words throughout the movie, as well as sex and nudity. This is a different kind of superhero story, and was always intended to be an R movie. Although, surprisingly there is not as much sex and nudity as I was expecting given the hype that I was exposed to. But there is genuine love that grew between Baccarin and Reynolds and in a sense this is the driving force behind the movie. Most of the graphic violence comes from Deadpool's use of his katana swords. What's great is that computer generated graphic test footage was incorporated into the movie and not just used as a gimmick to sell the movie to the studio.

Based on the Marvel Comics character created by Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicienza, and as of February 2016, is released 25 years after his first appearance in New Mutants #98, the Merc with a Mouth Deadpool is an antihero with moral ambiguity who constantly breaks the "fourth wall" and talks to the audience as he goes about fighting the bad guys looking for Skrein and Skrein's henchwoman Gina Carano/Angel Dust. While the movie is marketed as a comedy - there is a lot more drama in the movie Deadpool than I had expected, similar to the movie Ted which also was a comedy but had a lot of drama to that movie. Most of the drama dealt with Baccarin's relationship with Reynolds and his developing cancer. This is a tour de force performance for Reynolds, especially as he had spearheaded the making of the movie.

The first half of the movie goes back and forth between the present day of Reynolds searching for Skrein so that Skrein can cure Reynolds of his disfigurement, and the origin story of former special forces operative Reynolds/Deadpool - who was trying to find a cure for his terminal cancer. After the movie gets caught up, Deadpool is a fairly straightforward superhero film.

With the creation of Deadpool by supposedly the same secret organization who created Wolverine - at least in the comics - both characters have mutant healing factors. With the promise of a cure, and abilities most men would only dream of, Deadpool's creation cured his cancer - but permanently disfigured him and messed up his relationship with Baccarin. The movie Deadpool is basically the eight X-Men film to be done - especially with a CGI character Stefan Kapicic as Colossus, as well as having a moody teen Brianna Hildebrand as Negasonic Teenage Warhead as the only two X-Men shown in the movie that is trying to recruit Deadpool. This is also the first X-Men related movie where Wolverine does not make an appearance. Wolverine was originally supposed to have a cameo, but was cut from the movie. Pictures of Hugh Jackman, who played Wolverine, however do appear in the movie. The movie also has no relationship to the previous Deadpool appearance in the movie X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Deadpool's elderly blind woman roommate Leslie Uggams and Deadpool's best friend T.J. Miller were also good in the movie.

For Stan Lee fans, a gratuitous cameo is in the middle of the movie in a strip club.

There are two after credits scenes, which teases Deadpool 2 - with a major X-Men/Deadpool character to be introduced when it gets made. I am also looking forward for Monica Baccarin to becoming the mutant Copycat in a future movie, which was sort of teased in that Baccarin played a lot of roles. Both the opening credits and the closing credits of Deadpool are very creative and are indicative of the type of movie Deadpool is, as well as the music for the opening credits and the closing credits.

The movie broke several box office records for an R-Rated movie, including the first R-Rated movie to open above $100 million at the US Box office. This is especially of interest as Deadpool was made on a smaller budget than a regular superhero movie.

Rated R for graphic violence, graphic language, sexual situations, nudity, and drug use. Running time: 108 Minutes.

Click below to watch an R-Rated review of Deadpool from YouTube.



Click below to watch the comic movie trailer of Deadpool from YouTube.



Click below to watch the romantic movie trailer of Deadpool from YouTube.



Pancho
All people smile in the same language.

Follow us on Facebook: Pancho's Movie Reviews

BIG HERO 6

Walt Disney Pictures

Rated PG

Running time: 102 Minutes

Click below to watch a movie trailer of Big Hero 6 from YouTube.



In Walt Disney Pictures Big Hero 6, Hiro/Ryan Potter has his invention stolen and used for evil by a man in a kabuki mask, so Ryan/Potter uses his brother Tadashi/Daniel Henney's robot Baymax/Scott Adsit to stop him.

Based on the Marvel Comics superhero team by Man of Action, and mainly draws from the mini-series where Wasabi and Fred first appeared. Big Hero 6 is the 54th Disney animated feature and is the first Disney animated feature film to feature characters from Marvel Entertainment and gave special thanks to Marvel - although this movie is not part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As much as I wanted it to be part of the MCU, Big Hero 6 is not part of that universe.

Set in the hybrid metropolis San Fransokyo, a combination of San Francisco and Tokyo, Hiro/Potter is a punk robotics expert engaging in robofights. Older brother Tadashi/Henney, trying to get Hiro/Potter off the streets, takes Hiro/Potter to his robotics lab at his university The Institute of Technology where Hiro/Potter meets his friends Go Go/Jamie Chung, Wasabi/Damon Wayans Jr., Honey Lemon/Genesis Rodriguez, and mascot Fred/T.J. Miller - as well as Baymax/Adsit, an inflatable soft robotics huggable personal health care robot that Tadashi/Henney created to help people. Tadashi/Henney's teacher, Professor Callaghan/James Cromwell gets impressed with Hiro/Potter. Hiro/Potter wants to go the nerd school and designs his own robotics project for the annual exhibition so he can get an invitation to the school. Soon, a man in a mask steels Hiro's/Potter's project and Hiro/Potter and his nerd friends, with the help of Baymax/Adsit, form a superhero team and go after the masked man to get answers.

The geek/nerd in me liked the fact that the characters are all geniuses. This is a positive portrayal for education for young people, especially when Hiro/Potter says that he has to get into this nerd school. I have had nephews and nieces enter robotic competitions, so the robots, especially penguin waddling Baymax/Adsit, were also cool to me. I also like the fact that Hiro/Potter is the first biracial lead in a Disney animated film. Hiro/Potter's invention for the annual exhibition reminds me of the Power Ring from Green Lantern where the only limit is your imagination. While yes Big Hero 6 is a story of a boy and his robot Baymax/Adsit, the movie is much more than what the trailer commercials that most people have seen as part of the marketing campaign portrays. Visually the animation style of the movie reminds me of Japanese manga with a Disney feel. Big Hero 6 is the first Disney animated film to be adapted into a Japanese manga.

For Stan Lee fans, there is a portrait of him in Fred's/Miller's house and some of the audience reacted positively to seeing that scene. I also liked that Fred/Miller's dialog was mostly improvised by comedian Miller.

Of course, being based on a Marvel comic, there is an after credits scene at the end of the movie. I think that this was the best after credits scene that I have ever seen of any movie, Marvel included. There is a special credit at the end of this scene. Those few in the audience that had stayed behind during the credits music for this scene applauded. Being part of a comic book series, I would not be surprised if there were a sequel or even a series of movies to Big Hero 6 in the near future with further adventures of this superhero team.

Big Hero 6 is the first animated Marvel film to be released theatrically via Walt Disney Animation Studios. This is also the first Disney animated feature which shows the studio logos in the beginning, and the main title, the closing credits sequence, and the studio logos at the end, as well as the first to have "Created and Produced at Walt Disney Animation Studios, Burbank, California" at the end. It is also the first WDAS feature to use Disney's Hyperion Rendering system for light shining through a translucent object like Baymax/Adsit's covering.

In the beginning of the movie was a short feature from Walt Disney Animation Studios, Feast.  This was a cute short about hungry Boston terrier dog Winston and his master James. Feast  was nominated for an Annie Award for Best Animated Short Subject at the 42nd Annie Awards.

I also saw this movie on the day that the trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens premiered, on Black Friday 2014. At the end of the trailer the audience applauded. One guy behind me said, Again! Again!

Click below to watch another movie trailer of Big Hero 6 from YouTube.



Click below to watch a final movie trailer of Big Hero 6 from YouTube.



Rated PG for violence. Running time: 102 Minutes.

Pancho
All people smile in the same language.

Like us on Facebook. Pancho's Movie Reviews

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 2

DreamWorks Animation

Rated PG

Running time: 102 Minutes

Click below to watch a movie trailer of How to Train Your Dragons 2.



In Dreamworks Animation's How to Train Your Dragon 2, Hiccup/Jay Baruchel and his dragon Toothless map the unexplored lands and territories, when they come across an insane dragon conqueror called Drago Bludvist/Djimon Hounsou - as well as someone from Hiccup's/Baruchel's past.

This is the second movie in the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy Executive Produced, Written, and Directed by Dean DeBlois, and based on the How to Train Your Dragon book series by Cressida Cowell.

This is one of those rare movies that I think is actually better than the original movie. The story is bigger and more open than in the first movie as Hiccup/Baruchel explore the area surrounding the island of Berk from which he is from. The characters from the first movie have returned. Hiccup's/Baruchel's father Gerard Butler, as well as characters Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T.J. Miller, Kristen Wiig, and the friends have grown in the reported five years since the events of the first movie and are young adults now. Hiccup/Baruchel grows even more as the movie develops, especially when he meets Valka/Cate Blanchett. Hiccup/Baruchel's scenes when flying with Toothless were awe inspiring to watch. It helps that there was the Dreamworks Dragons TV show that aired in-between the release dates of the two movies which had showed how the dragons were being integrated into the Viking island of Berk, including running dragon games. After watching the TV show, it is not such a culture shock when watching How to Train Your Dragon 2 from the story of the original How to Train Your Dragon. The animation of How to Train Your Dragon 2 is quite involved too as the movie depicts the various new dragons and massive battle scenes, which reminded me of World War II battle scenes.

I think of all the movies that I had watched over the Fourth of July weekend, How to Train Your Dragon 2 was the best movie for me story and entertainment-wise. This movie was a lot of fun. I loved at how family motivated the movie is with Hiccup/Baruchel and how emotional the movie was for me as a result. Even Toothless seemed to become part of a family when they discover the new world of dragons. I will admit that I had cried when I watched this movie, as the movie was that powerful toward the end.

One thing that did bother me - and it should not bother me as this is an animated movie, so they were not hurt - was of how the sheep were used in this movie. I kept thinking of The American Humane Association. This is an animated movie, and how the sheep were used were funny and reminded me of the Wallace and Gromit movies - but how the sheep were used would have been disturbing in a live action movie and I had to keep reminding myself that this is an animated movie and thus not real.

The final movie in the trilogy, currently titled How to Train Your Dragon 3, is scheduled for release on June 17, 2016.

Click below to watch another movie trailer of How to Train Your Dragon 2.



Click below to watch the featurette movie trailer of How to Train Your Dragon 2.



Rated PG for violence. Running time: 102 Minutes.

Pancho 
All people smile in the same language.

Follow us on Facebook. Pancho's Movie Reviews

TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION

Paramount Pictures

Rated PG-13

Running time: 165 Minutes



Click below to watch the movie trailer of Transformers: Age of Extinction.


In Paramount Pictures Transformers: Age of Extinction, Mark Wahlberg finds a broken down semi-truck - which turns out to be the Transformer Autobot Optimus Prime/Peter Cullen.

In this sequel to Transformers: Dark of the Moon, the film takes place four years after the invasion of Chicago. Using new characters, struggling inventor/mechanic and single father Mark Wahlberg is trying to make money for himself and send his daughter Nicola Peltz to college with his inventions, when Wahlberg tries to restore a broken down semi-truck that he had bought with his partner T.J. Miller's money. Wahlberg soon discovers that the truck is Autobot Optimus Prime/Cullen - and that secret CIA government agents Titus Welliver and Kelsey Grammer are searching for them, along with bounty hunter Transformer Lockdown/Mark Ryan.

Directed by Michael Bay and Executive Produced by Steven Spielberg, story-wise, I think this is the best of the Transformers movies. While Optimus/Cullen feels betrayed by the humans, due to Grammer's machinations of getting rid of all Transformers after what had happened to Chicago, this movie is really about the love of father Wahlberg and his daughter Peltz. But like all of Director Michael Bay's films, the movie is twenty minutes too long as far as the action at the end is concerned. As it it, Bay says this is the longest film in the series. I just wanted to get on with the story instead of watching all of this fighting and destruction. I was feeling sleepy because there was no story to keep me interested. As usual I got confused as to which Transformer was which during the final battle scenes as they all look alike. As a result - as much as I wanted to care who was who, I did not care. I cared more for Wahlberg was firing an alien gun. It is curious in that there seemed to be more collateral damage and bystander refugees in the international China scenes than in the American scenes.

While Autobots from previous movies have been destroyed, the movie does introduce new Transformers - including Hound/John Goodman, Drift/Ken Watanabe, and Crosshairs/John DiMaggio. There was also a logical reason for the new Transformers that are introduced that transform into cars and other things, not including Stanley Tucci's man made Transformers, which Optimus/Cullen brought about which goes all the way back to the Creators. This logical reason, and that Optimus/Cullen was leading them, made the introduction of the new Transformers really special for me.

The 3-D was awesome throughout the entire movie. Usually the 3-D in movies is bad as it is just a conversion, but I noticed the 3-D throughout the entire movie - most notably when dust motes are flying around. Even in ordinary scenes, you could see the depth of the scene as Bay shot 60 percent of the movie in IMAX 3-D. The 3-D actually made me flinch a couple of times as things flew out at me.

Hasbro and Paramount Pictures have stated that here are talks of a fifth and sixth installment in the Transformers series. As of the 2014 July fourth weekend, Transformers: Age of Extinction has earned $201.3M overseas. This makes the movie the highest-grossing weekend for a film.

Click below to watch another movie trailer of Transformers: Age of Extinction.



Rated PG-13 for violence and language. Running time: 165 Minutes.

Pancho
All people smile in the same language.

Follow us on Facebook, Pancho's Movie Reviews