Monday, May 25, 2015

CALEB RAVES REVIEWS "THE AVENGERS AGE OF ULTRON"

Director-Joss Whedon

 LAST LOOKS


Finally the pinnacle of all action super hero movies has returned. The first Avengers broke the box office all the way to becoming the third highest grossing film in cinema history. Comic book movies have really taken over the movie industry lately and have dominated in ticket sales. You have to give credit to the Marvel/Disney regime for presenting the Avengers in a cool and innovative way. One they give each Avenger hero their own movie, to tell each individual story and also The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D television show also gives another glimpse inside of the organization as a whole. As far as presentation Marvels Avengers are leaps and bounds ahead of their competition leaving other genres such as DC comics scrambling to throw together a franchise as good and successful as theirs. Huge hits such as Iron Man 3 and Captain America Winter Soldier has kept the genre fresh as of late. Marvel has done a great job of not giving us viewers too much to get fatigued but just enough to keep us wanting more. So lets see if Marvel can Avenge their title as top super hero movie franchise.

 THE BREAKDOWN


Tony Stark and Bruce Banner activate a dormant program that will help save humanity however things go haywire forcing all of the Avengers to reassemble to battle the evil Ultron. Ultron is a villain who has the power to recreate himself over many times and is hellbent on destroying Earth.

STYLE POINTS


Of course there were so many awe inspiring effects in a movie of this magnitude. Damn the story sometimes you go to a theater just for the pure excitement of witnessing visuals you couldn't even imagine. Some of the spots that stuck out for me were,

Scarlet Witch hitting the avengers and going back up towards the door


Hulk turning back to David Banner


The futuristic look of the agents of shield headquarters.


Blur focus as the Avengers attempt to lift Thor's hammer


Speed through and slow motion of Ultron getting hit Mind control Ultron vs Ultron


 Nose Candy


"Sometimes exactly what I want to hear is not exactly what I want to hear"-David Banner


"What if aliens rolled up at the club and couldn't get past the bouncer?"-Ironman


 "I miss the days where the weirdest thing science ever created was me."-Captain America


"Im just a guy looking for a needle in the worlds biggest haystack."-Ironman


"When the world starts to settle god throws a stone at it we have to evolve"-Ultron


"If you get killed walk it off"-Captain America


"Human beings are fearful and in need of protection. But then that fear can inspire them to do great things" -The Vision


"He's multiplying faster then catholic rabbits!" - Nick Fury


"Everyone creates the thing they fear. Men of peace create engines of war. Avengers create invaders. Parents create children, that will supplant them"-Ultron


"This is exactly what I wanted all of you vs all of me!"-Ultron


ROLE PLAY-Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany, Hayley Atwell, James Spader, and Samuel L. Jackson.


In an ensemble cast as huge and with as much star power as this movie possessed it is often difficult for everyone to get their proper time to shine. I think Avengers definitely attempted to humanize the characters this go round. I think giving an inside look into Thunderhawk's family was a nice touch. Although the budding relationship between The Hulk and The Black Widow did seem odd and out of place. I maybe being picky but I don't think Tony Stark was not as witty and had as many punchlines as in previous movies. The Scarlett Witch and Quicksilver were cool characters but to me did not add that much to the film and weren't really necessary. Of course Samuel L Jackson was great and cashed in on another movie as he is fortunate enough to never have that well dry up. Hands down I think the best performance goes to James Spader as Ultron. I thought he had a great villain outing and had some really good dialogue. I can't say enough about the writing as there were an array of memorable lines in this film.


Missing Person Alert Where is Low Ki!


MONEY SHOT


A lot of epic fight scenes to choose from the Hulk vs Iron Man and Captain America vs Ultron on a moving bus. But I'm going with multiple Ultrons vs The Avengers main battle. Basically all of the over the top sequences and cool effects you would expect from any super hero movie. But this one was just as sweet. The only problem with the scene was after all of the incredible fight visuals beforehand this one kind of seems like a repeated scene.

FINAL TOUCH


Director Joss Whedon claimed he had a difficult time making this movie because he struggled with trying to top himself from the first Avengers. I think he far more exceeded expectations with this film. Really this was an awesome experience. The only thing about this film is that I feel at times it focused too much on character development to set up for the next film. Never the less Avengers Age of Ultron does not disappoint with epic fight scenes, stunning visual effects and funny moments. Marvel raises the bar again with a super powerful cinematic experience!

-CALEB RAVES

Saturday, May 9, 2015

CALEB RAVES REVIEWS "FLOYD MAYWEATHER JR. VS MANNY PACQIOU"

LAST LOOKS

Finally the fight of the century between 2 of the best pound for pound fighters is finally coming to fruition. This generations thrilla in minilla will finally take place May 2nd 2015 and the world coudn't be anymore in a frenzy. For the longest it seemed as though this fight would never happen. After Pacquiao refused to take a blood test and ultimately sued Mayweather in 2009 the odds of this bout actually occuring decreased dramatically. There was also the added tension between the two as Pacquiao won fighter of the decade and Mayweather voiced his disapproval. With multiple reasons putting the fight in jeopardy, both men began to move on to other opponents and began to criticize each other publicly. This is a battle of two fighters with with different agendas. I don't think Mayweather was ducking Pacquiao contrary to popular belief I just think Mayweather wanted to wait until the opportune moment for him in order to generate the biggest pay day possible. I must say I dont know if the allure of this fight is still as vibrant as it once was a few years ago. Seeing Pacquiao get knocked out took away that cloak of invincibility he once possessed. Also with both combatants getting older many wonder if they would be able to perform the way they were capable of a few years ago. Pacquiao regained his dominance over the past year. The stars alligned one night in Miami with the two at a Heat game where they were both in the same place at the same time and they were finally able to put aside all of their differences in order to make this dream fight a reality. You have two fighters that couldn't be any more different. You have the flashy and boastful Money Mayweather against the humble and reserved Manny "Pac-man". All of these combustible elements the clash of the titans that was 6 years in the making is finally upon us. 


THE BREAK DOWN


A star studded event as celebrities from Jay-Z and Beyonce to Michael Jordan to Andre Agassi and Donald Trump have all found a way to be up close for this once in a generation affair. What a scene to have this much star power under one roof at one time. 


Jamie Foxx then sang the national anthem out of tune but his charisma more then covered up for it.


Great video package on both fighters prior to the bout I think this set the stage for people who are not casual boxing fans to get an inside glimpse of what all the hype is about and the magnitude behind this historic confrontation. 


Pacquiao is out first as he walks out with Jimmy Kimmel and takes a selfie. Simple but effective. I think Manny is business as usual as I dont really think he cares how he comes out but how well he performs. Pac man comes out to a strong ovation. The media is not even attempting to be bias as majority of them are Filipino and are expressing their admiration for Manny. During the fan vote Manny won by a considerable margin as I think it is evident that he is the fan favorite as also I think people enjoy rooting for the underdog. 


Out next is Mayweather. You have to be one bad ass fighter to look tough walking out with Justin Bieber and Burger King. Interesting Burger King would allign themselves with Mayweather with all of the controversy surrounding him but from a marketing standpoint was brilliant. Mayweather is known for having these outlandish over the top entrances and does not dissapoint here. Mayweather enters to a sea of boos but I think he really does not mind being the villian in the bout as long as he is getting paid.


Round 1-The bell rings, here we go the wait is over. Both competitors feel each other out to start. Mayweather wins first pretty convincingly Pac looks extremely frustrated. 


Round 2- Mayweather takes second Pac tries to land a bunch of offense at the end to no avail. Mayweather has great defensive tactics here. 


Round 3- Pac goes all in on a left as he knows that this is the only way he can win. Money begins holding. Another good ending for Pac as he takes round 3 with his aggressiveness


Round 4- Pac starts to get busy as he connects with a huge left. Mayweather starts to defend he nails a few jabs but not enough as Pac evens it up at 2-2


Round 5- Mayweather is back with a great combination however round goes to Pac. Floyd keeps saying "nope" as if he is not getting hit. Admitting is usually the first step 


Round 6-See round 5 


Round 7-Mayweather starts jabbing all kind of ways then Pac connects with another hard left. 

Quiet round 7 but Mayweather takes 7 for me. 

Round 8-Mayweather takes the next round as he prevents Pac from doing any major damage this is very close big connects from both guys here.


Round 9- Floyd lands and holds good at keeping Pac from doing anything in this round too.


Round 10- I'm going with Manny I think he had Mayweather in the corner for some good hits. Pac is trying to to be aggressive but cant nail the ones he needs. 


Round 11- Floyd goes in on a jab flurry. This one goes to Mayweather though. Pac is clearly frustrated as I think he is now starting to realize that this is over. 


Round 12- Last round to me goes to Mayweather nothing special in this round this fight should go to Mayweather easily.


Your winner Floyd Money Mayweather Jr. 


NOSE CANDY


Pacqiou-"I thought I won the fight"


Mayweather "Nope!" 


FINAL SCORE


And just like that, it is all over. After all of the media attention, after all of the promotion after 6 damn years that was it. Honestly I I don't think the fight was bad. It was not more than I personally expected. I do feel however the general population were disappointed because of unreal expectations wanting to see a "down goes Frazier!" Knock out moment. You know who is not disappointed? Floyd Mayweather who took home 140 million for winning this fight. At the end of the day its not about if you people want refunds because you paid to see it and I think that's good enough for the money team. "Don't fuck with the money team!" I got an indoor pool and an outdoor pool... don't get me started where is Ray J when you need him. Honestly its not about who ever won or lost because Mayweather fought a strategic plan and executed to victory. Pacquiao failed to make the necessary adjustments and was completely dominated in the second half of the bout which led to his demise. Mayweather did his job he showed up he won and he got paid. No really Mayweather got paid. So whats next? Mayweather has stated how he plans on retiring after his next fight. Things began to take a turn for the worst when Pacquiao stated he had a shoulder injury that prevented him from competing to the best of his capability. This whole thing has turned ugly now with Pac man getting hit with a major lawsuit for not saying anything about the injury prior to the fight. At this point how difficult it was to put together the initial bout, I can't imagine the formula it will take to put together a rematch. I actually enjoyed the fight. I thought it was actually very entertaining but with the aftermath Floyd Mayweather Jr vs Manny Pacqiao will probably be remembered as more of a nightmare then a dream fight.




-CALEB RAVES