Month: July 2025

Fantastic Four First Steps is just the latest target

Online, the current bandwagon to jump on is spewing hate for the MCU. Phrases like Superhero Fatigue or MCU is dead are found everywhere you look. And to be totally fair, there is evidence to support that. Lots of evidence. I’m not going to cite the long, extensive list of MCU’s parent company’s failures (except for the Acolyte, which deserves to be shamed at every opportunity). We are all aware of Disney’s skydive sans-chute over the past few years. So, a healthy skepticism is absolutely warranted. It’s earned.

In Defense of Disney (and that ain’t easy)

Thankfully, it seems at least a little hopeful that Disney has finally gotten the hint. The types of content they have been farting out over the past half decade have cost them billions and someone on the higher floors of the Disney Tower of Isengard* finally took notice and changed course. DareDevil: Born Again was good. Mrs Average Dude and I LOVED Skeleton Crew. And I personally thought Thunderbolts was the best superhero movie so far this year. So yes, they’ve heard the siren call of their lost revenue, and that call is too strong to resist.

And that brings us to the long-awaited Fantastic Four First Steps. There are a small army of reviewers out there that have been using the wretched post-Endgame MCU to predict more comic book heresy. Your humbe Average Dude is not one of them. I get why they do it. They’re chasing clicks. Everyone wants to get the latest gossip, and when there’s so much chatter about the decline of Disney, people are gonna click.

Yeah, they dug their own grave, but grace

So sure, mistakes were made and Disney is trying to climb back out of the grave they dug. If you’ve been burned too many times to want to try them again, I get it. I’m not there yet. And I’m for sure not going to hate on their product before I even see it. So I saw it. And guess what? I thought it was pretty good. And especially compared to the tragedy of the 2015 Fant4stic, this movie was amazing. Perspective, people.

Galactus. Finally.

To put to rest all of the doom-criers and nay-sayers, Fantastic Four First Steps was not very woke. Yes, Sue Storm seemed to be the focal point of this team. Sure, Reed was portrayed as more of an egghead than a leader. I wouldn’t necessarily call that wokism. And finally, FINALLY, we get the Galactus we’ve been waiting for since the first FF movie way back in 2005. And they nailed it. Almost. There’s a little too much emotion in the cosmic entity that we grew up with, a little too much pettiness from one who is supposed to be so disconnected that murder on a planetary scale does not affect him. Other than that, they crushed it.

Marvel’s First Family, as the saying goes

As with the comic in its origin, The Fantastic Four are first and foremost about a family. That element came through from the very start and that was satisfying. We can mention the retro-world of Earth 828 (remember that) as being stylishly different and cool. We can ignore that Johnny Storm was as much a brain as he was a ladies man (huh?). And we can overlook that they removed Ben’s classic angst over being transformed into a Thing. We can even tolerate the Shalla-Bal version of the Silver Surfer (never actually called that in the movie). Oh, and lest I forget, the baby playing Franklin Richards was aDORable.

In the end, we got more than the click-bate critics predicted from Fantastic Four First steps. We got a solid, superhero family adventure on a cosmic scale. Not uh, fantastic, but certainly better than we had feared. A good summer blockbuster, nevermind the imperfections from we comic book purists.

So, after a very VERY long wait (because the FF was first hinted at way back in Phase One or Two), I am giving Fantastic Four First Steps a most agreeable 4.3 out of 5, barely edging out Superman but falling short of Thunderbolts. This Fantastic Four will one day be added to the Average Dude movie library, no doubt. Go and see it in a theater and on the very biggest screen. The arrival of Galactus deserves no less.

*The Tower’s name is Orthanc, for you non-LotR nerds out there.

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Jurassic Word Rebirth: Why is this movie getting so much hate?

As always, I keep other reviews at bay until I’ve had a chance to see the movie myself. I broke my rule with Jurasic World Rebirth because, quite frankly, I didn’t expect to watch this one until it made it to streaming. I watched the last one (at a drive in, second feature to Top Gun:Maverick, which I’d already seen twice). Trying to jam the old JP players in with the new JW characters was jumping the shark, and they didn’t stick the landing. Chomp, chomp, chomp.

Big Pharma doing Evil Big Pharma Things

Even so, Jurassic World Rebirth is a whole new chapter that departs from the original and the first reboot. The story is fairly simple…get the dino DNA from the biggest, baddest dinos this planet has ever produced in order to defeat heart disease. Why all the DNA samples from the brontasauruses (brontasauri?), Pteradactyls and whatever the giant thing that ate the other giant thing was in Jurassic World weren’t enough? No clue. But they needed it from the biggest land, sea AND air dinos, and they just happen to live on an island that nobody is allowed to go to. Because death.

We’re not allowed to cast our gaze ‘pon certain people anymore

Enter Zora Bennett (played by someone. Not sure who, because my eyes just weren’t able to focus on them). Zora is a gun-for-hire. Very Black Widow-like, though who can tell for sure, since they were kinda fuzzy when they were on screen. Regardless, Zora reaches out to an old associate of hers from the black-ops world, Duncan Kincaid (played by Mahershala Ali, whose star is on the rise somewhere just south of Jon Bernthal and Pedro Pascal) to help her infil/exfil the dino-island with the goods that will make them both insanely rich.

Along for the joyride is Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey), a very non-military dude who is there for…what? His altruism? As a social conscience? As someone for Zora to protect? Maybe he’s there to point the soldiers towards the biggest land, air and sea dinos because they can find them. Whatever.

Suspension of disbelieve, stretched to titanic lengths

Lastly, we have the Delgados, who are taking a family bonding ocean voyage whose path comes way too close to the no-go zone of dino island. Uuuhhhh…okay. At this point, I am really starting to get the feeling that Jurassic World Rebirth might be as bad as the whispers have porteneded.

I’m at a loss to explain it

But then, something happens that I can’t really put my finger on. If I had to put a name to it, I guess I’d say that I started to get mildly invested in some of the characters. I’m not going to tell you who, that’s for you to find out. I started to wonder who will make it out alive and who won’t. ! started to root for them. Why? Don’t know. But I did, and that made all the difference.

Whoah, whoah. Slow ya roll, Average Dude

This is not to say that Jurassic World Rebirth is going to be on anyone’s list of best movies. Let’s keep it in perspective here. But it DID surpass my expectation, and that is a plus. The CGI was great. The cinematography was on point, above par, I’d say.

So, with just a little bit of a sheepish head bow, the Average Dude is giving Jurassic World Rebirth a 3.1/5. Go in expecting nothing and you will be mildly, pleasantly surprised. Just shove some corn in your face, try not to look at the actress who doesn’t want us to look at her, and enjoy a marginally decent movie in a cool, comfortable theater. Because here in KC, it’s pretty steamy outside.

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Poppycock to you, sirs

You may have heard…Social media is trying to take the story of Superman, a refugee from an exploding planet, and turn it into a political statement on immigration that feeds a narative that America isn’t the greatest country in human history. There is so much wrong with everything associated with that, not the least of which is that it detracts from the event that is James Gunn’s Superman. Whether by plan or accident, the premier of one the most highly anticipated movies of the year has been dimmed by single-minded hate. And that sucks.

So, without any drama or suspense at all, let me tell you that there is no woke in Superman. There is no hidden message about legal/illegal immigration.* In point of fact, you might say that Gunn showed how an immigrant should behave. Respect your new home’s culture. Be productive. Show Gratitude. Give back. Contribute. If every immigrant were as noble and selfless as Kal El, there probably wouldn’t be any immigration problems at all. But I digress.

Getting back on point

That is not to say that Gunn didn’t utilize the current internal turmoil surrounding immigration and foriegn political entanglements. He did, and did it deftly. In short, he didn’t put Supes in a world that isn’t. He put him right in the middle of the world that is, complete with all the division, the biases, the suspicions and corruptions that exist. Not passing judgement or making any statements. He just made Superman a part of the world we live in. And I thought it was masterfully done.

Different from Cavil and IMO Better

Henry Cavill is the physically perfect Man of Steel. I’ll fight anyone saying different. Snyder’s take on him made him less relatable and, as is his way, darker. That is not who Superman is. Or should be. And Superman does not kill. It’s cannon. It can’t be changed. Having him kill Zod tarnishes the legacy of Superman and Henry Cavill. And it ruined that movie for me. That’s what happens when you give the keys to the car to someone who doesn’t know what the car can (or should) do.

Just like Batman and Joker

Corenswet’s version of Superman is more emotive, more relatable, more human than Cavill’s detatched, aloof portrayal. Snyder’s Superman was very aware that he was different and alone. For Corenswet, it was as if he barely realizes that he can live above everything and everyone in this world. Juxtapose that with Hoult’s turn as Lex Luthor, who wants to live above everyone and can’t…while Superman exists. Two sides of a coin. One could rule but chooses to serve, one wants to rule and will server only himself.

Speak of the devil

I don’t want to give short shrift to Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor. I’ll be honest, I had my doubts. Not because of ability. Heck, no. Nicholas Hoult is an amazing talent (he was incredible in ‘The Great’). Luthor is a hard character to get right and Hoult didn’t really fit my mental image of the man. But I was so, SO wrong. He crushed it.

There is one reviewer I watch that was so traumatized by the pure malevolence of the Luthor character that it ruined the movie for him. Not for me. Yes, Hoult’s Lex Luthor was, by far, the most evil Luthor we’ve seen to date. Massive credit to Hoult for that. And it was necessary. To battle the best of us, you need the worst of us.

John Wick would approve

This is as close to a spoiler as I will ever get. There was a moment, a line from Superman, that crystalized his humanity, his courage and his love in a way that no other Superman, no other director, would have even thought to do. For me, it was the moment I’ll remember above all other moments in this movie and it strikes at the very heart of me. Ask me and I’ll tell you.

There’s always a but…

Not to say this was a perfect movie, because it wasn’t. Superman was written by James Gunn, so there is no other place to lay the blame for the single, glaring departure from cannon that troubles me so grievously. I won’t drop it here, but folks, it was bad. SO bad. My only hope is that, in future Superman adventures, we will find out it was all a fake-out, another diabolical twist thrown at us by the quintessential evil that is Lex Luthor. As you already know, your humble Average Dude is nothing if not hopeful.

On Rings, Wings and other Things (like Dogs)

This review could easlily go on to be the longest one I’ve ever given. I’ll do my best to keep my review down. Unlike Kevin Smith’s review. I love Kevin, but that video was nearly an hour and a half long! Sorry, my dude. I can’t watch a review that is 3/4 the actual movie runtime (2h 9m). I don’t have that kind of time.

Anyway, here is the elevator pitch opinion of the rest of the cast, known as the Justice Gang:

Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner Green Lantern did NOT disappoint. Followers of the comic character know he nailed it. If you knew nothing about this GL coming in…you still loved it.

Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl had too little screentime for us to care one way or the other.

Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan) was a little known character that was fun to see. James Gunn clearly likes to showcase little-known heroes (like Creature Commandos). Metamorpho fits in that catagory perfectly.

And Mr Terrific? He had the most screen time but I’m still not sure on if I like him or not. He had a kind of Gamora vibe….no nonsese, I’m always right, short on patience. It worked for Gamora. For Mr T? We’ll see.

And then, there’s Krypto. From first glimpse of him, many of us were hooked. That alone was enough to get butts in seats. We’re such suckers for dogs. Not gonna apologize for that, either. And Superman’s best friend had more than a little to do with this plot. I’ll say no more other thant to say I loved it.

Sorry I couldn’t find any pictures of the kaiju

In the end, I’m very happy to give Superman a high-flying 4.2 out of 5 stars. It could easily have been a 4.5 if not for the aforementioned departure from cannon that is, in my opinion, essential to the Superman mythos. I know Gunn knows the full history of the child from Krypton. I hope he returns that crucial bit of it, proving he respects the history, as well. As for this new version of Superman…he’s relatable, he likes ‘punk rock’ (or mainstream punk), he’s more human than we’re used to. And Krypto is in it. That’s plenty to love.

*Upon further reflection, the Averaged Dude actually DOES see a real-world proverb to the Superman/immigration chatter. It ties in with my one HUGE gripe about the movie and actually accentuates the point that Superman – a refugee immigrant – is doing it right. See you in the comments.

 

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F1 was an unexpected win

The Average Dude was not immediately on-board with going to see F1. In my experience, for every Days of Thunder, there are multiple Speed Racers. As a matter of fact, in my pantheon of worst movies I’ve ever seen, Sly Stalone’s Driven ranks #3. I’m not sure what it is about racing movies that leaves me cold. RUSH had some great performances but still managed to bore me. Ford vs Ferrari, the same. I’m mildly curious about Gran Turismo but not enough to shoehorn it into my busy viewing schedule. But I digress.

Give the kids what they want

On the weekend that F1 was released, the littles were visiting and wanted VERY MUCH for Mr & Mrs Average Dude to take them to see ELIO. And because I am the quintessential Dude, I would never tell them no to a request like that.* We went. They enjoyed it. We enjoyed watching them shove popcorn into mouths. We live for these moments.

So, it seemed like The Average Dude was not going to be able to give F1 a timely review. After all, the new Jurasic Park was coming up. More on that later. Maybe. But during that off-week, I started hearing whispers that F1 was actually quite good. The whispers got louder and became an actual conversation. While I was able to avoid any spoilers (as is my way), I could not un-hear the positive chatter on F1.

Avert your gaze

Stack that next to the also growing chatter that Jurasic Park: Rebirth was a weak cash-grab born of a tired IP (not to mention that I apparently am not allowed to gaze ‘pon the form of ScarJo anymore), I made the call to skip dino-fatigue and roll the dice on Brad Pitt, who rarely disappoints. Sorry for stating the obvious, but dude has Riz in quantum amounts.

Cutting to the Chase

Your humble Average Dude is happy to report that the whispers were on point. F1 was fun little thrill-ride that didn’t slow down for nuthin’, contained very little racey content (other than the actual racey content) and enough off the track story for us to get at least a little invested in the characters. For a 2 h 35 m film, it actually seemed to zip by like a rice-burner in the fast lane.

The synopsis:

F1 is the story of Sonny Hays (a perfect racer name IMO), a washed up Formula one racer that missed his heyday shot at glory when his fearless (re: reckless) driving resulted in a crash that nearly killed him. Sonny bounced around to other racing sports, unable to settle anywhere. In his rear view mirror, Sonny left the wreckage of relationship after relationship, never quieting his restless ghosts.

Cock fighting is illegal

Along comes Ruben Cervantes (Javier Bardem), an old race pal who is now the owner of his own Formula One team and is in desperate need of a driver. Bringing the old rooster into Ruben’s coup ruffles the feathers of nearly everyone, and none more than young cockerel Joshua Pierce (Damson Idris, looking and acting so vintage Eddie Murphy it’s spooky). Egos flare, insults fly, drivers (and cars) crash. But will they also burn?

F1 is a farely well-worn story retold. No surprises, no new ground. Lots of high-octane car action. The pacing of one of the longest movies so far this year might have been pefect. The characters had their own issues and motivations. They maybe could have even fleshed them out a bit more, but whatever. F1 was still a great surprise in a really lean movie year. And at the checkered flag, the Average Dude is giving F1 a very watchable 4.2/5. It’s not Days of Thunder or Talladega Nights or Cannonball Run rewatchable, but it’s a really pleasant surprise none-the-less. Dinos be darned.

BONUS Reviewer

The Average Dude is fortunate in that one of my boys happens to be a serious F1 fan. Not fan like he’ll catch the races on YouTube or a relplay on ESPN. No, my boy will stay up to watch the race live from Abu Dhabi (which happens at crazy times when most rational folks are asleep). So, Average Son – the youngest – was able to shed the light of reality on F1. Knowledge of the sport and the rules dampened his enjoyment of it a bit but didn’t crash it alltogether. So, if you’re a Formula One afficionado, you can still enjoy it. Unless you’re a purist. Then you’re on your own.

*Will there be a review for ELIO? Answer: ELIO was very forgetable. Was it woke? Yeah, it was. It had a non-traditional family, a disenfrachised minority, a galactic socialist society where all were pacifist cowards (the Comuniverse). ELIO was just eye candy for kids that contained subltle woke overtones. There’s your review. 2/5.

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