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Editorial: What Can DC Learn From Marvel

With the recent release of Justice League, DC has proven what a lot of film fans have known for a long time… they aren’t that good at this cinematic universe thing. They’re actually pretty bad at it, they’re not quite at Dark Universe levels but they’re certainly not the gold standard that they want to be. They want to be Marvel, they want to be able to throw out Movie after Movie after Movie and get critical praise out the wazoo for every single one but they can’t, and they won’t until they learn the lessons that Marvel got right from the start. Lesson’s I’ll now just state explicitly so DC can copy my notes and pass this cinematic class.

NOTE: I’m spoiling stuff for Justice League, Batman V Superman, Civil War, The Avengers 1&2, Agents of Shield and Buffy the Vampire Slayer… it’ll make sense soon.

Also, tiny bit rusty at these so apologies if it’s not good.

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Cherry Pop

Released 22nd September

Seen 30th November

Cherry Pops.jpg

Directed by Assaad Yacoub
Written by Nick Landa
Produced by Wolfe Releasing
Starring Lars Berge, Mayhem Miller, Detox Icunt, Bob The Drag Queen, Allusia, Tempest DuJour & Latrice Royale

There is a very small genre of films that revolve around a drag queen. Classics like The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert or Too Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Numar are big high points in the genre but there are other great films like Victor Victoria, The Birdcage, Some Like It Hot or Tootsie. Drag is a great topic for a film but you know who very rarely get’s to star in these kinds of movies? Actual drag queens. Since we now live in a post-Drag Race world, someone decided to fix that and god bless them for it.

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Goodbye Christopher Robin

Released 23rd November (Australia)

Seen 29th November

Goodbye Christopher Robin.jpg

Directed by Simon Curtis
Written by Frank Cottrell Boyce & Simon Vaughan
Produced by DJ Films & Fox Searchlight Pictures
Starring Domhnall Gleeson, Margot Robbie, Will Tilston & Kelly Macdonald

A few days ago I reviewed The Man Who Invented Christmas which took the story of how Charles Dickens wrote one of the most beloved stories of all time and intercut it with the very story he wrote to create a comedic exploration of how a writer creates his story. Goodbye Christopher Robin has a slightly different idea in mind… namely, it want’s to rip your still beating heart from your chest and make you suffer from a serious case of the feels.

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Daddy’s Home 2

Released 23rd November (Australia)

Seen 27th November

Daddy's Home 2

Directed by Sean Anders
Written by Sean Anders, Brian Burns & John Morris
Produced by Paramount Pictures, Gary Sanchez Productions & Huahua Media
Starring Mark Wahlberg, Will Farrell, Mel Gibson & John Lithgow

According to Merriam Webster the term ‘Patricide’, derived from the latin patricisa, means “One who murders his or her own father” or “The murder of one’s own father”… just a suggestion that every character in this film might like to take on board.

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leebutler Action, Review, Thriller

American Assassin

Seen 30th September

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Why do these movies start with “American” when the country of origin is really non-essential to the plot? Big movies with this title thing include American Pie… then American Psycho… then American Hustle, American Sniper, American Honey, American Gangster, American Mary, American Me, American Pastoral, American Ultra, American Graffiti, American History X, American Satan, American Beauty, American Made, American Wedding, American Pop, American Violence, American Hero, American Reunion, American Fable, American Gigalo, American Heist MY POINT IS ENOUGH WITH CALLING THINGS AMERICAN (NOUN)!… so, American Assassin

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leebutler Action, Adventure, Animation, Comedy, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Review, Sci-Fi, Thriller

The LEGO NINJAGO Movie

Seen September 23rd

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First there was the Lego Movie, and it showed everyone that you could create a piece of art using a licenced toy that was actually good. Then came Lego Batman, which showed you coulde play around in multiple established universes and still tell your own story. Then there was Ninjago… it was a movie.

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