planktonrules

"Thunderbolts*" is the newest Marvel Universe film and I was lucky enough to see it before most others, as I was in Hollywood during its premier at the El Capitan Theatre. There are many surprises in it...especially at the end...and Marvel fans should be very happy with the surprises as well as the rest of this film. All I know is that the theater was abuzz by the time the film ended and we all got to see the costumes worn by the actors in the movie.

This story picks up after the Avengers are no more and there are no heroes left...supposedly. Instead, the film concentrates on the 'losers'...those who aren't exactly heroes and are generally disliked. However, the evil head of the CIA has plans on killing them...as her using these misfits sure won't help her image now that Congress is ready to take action against her. But there is one more tool...an unexpected one named 'Bob'. Who is he and how do these misfits all fit together? See the film.

This is a very good movie...and I generally dislike superhero films because there have been so many. But this one seems fresh, well acted and a bit cheeky at times...and is sure to make the uber-fans happy. Well made and fun.

I think several genres have been way overdone, such as superhero films and vampire movies. After all, after a while it feels like if you've seen one, you've seen them all. However, "Sinners" proves there are exceptions...and in this case they've come up with a dandy vampire pic because it is so different and original.

At this point, the movie is in its second week as the #1 movie in the USA...so I don't intend to do a lengthy review...as there are soon to be tons of reviews. What I will say is that the film has a great soundtrack with some nice old jazz and the acting is quite good. My only complaints are minor...it's NOT a film for kids or families due to the violence level and sexuality in the movie..though because it's rated R, you'd have an idiot to show it to small kids! Still, it's a nice change of pace for a relatively tired genre.

I tend to cut independent and documentary films some slack when it comes to CGI. After all, the films aren't high budgeted and you need to make some allowances for this. However, there is a bit of CGI in this film which is terrible...so terrible it looks like it was made in 2000 or earlier. It's a shame, as the CGI scenes weren't really needed...but you can't help but be taken aback by how primitive they are.

That being said...this is still a very good documentary. Its purpose is to discuss two major problems the Great Lakes faced back in the 1950s-60s...sea lamprays and alewives...two saltwater species that somehow made it into the freshwater lakes. Most of the film is about the lampreys and their devastating effect on lake trout and, to a lesser extent, Whitefish. How the US and Canada eventually managed to reduce their numbers and create a better fishery is the subject of the movie. It does not, by the way, talk about the polution in the lakes (which has also been significantly reduced) or the state of fishing apart from salmon and trout. You'd never know it, but the yellow perch, smallmouth bass, and walleye in Lake Erie, for instance, are doing extraodinarlily well. But I am not faulting the film...in the time they had they had to pick what to focus on most. These are other success stories that other movies can address.

Overall, it's a very good movie...well made and surprisingly interesting. And, a rare case where fisheries have made HUGE rebounds thanks to technology and a lot of hard work.