MOVIE - Avengers: Infinity War

PG-13 (2:36)

Wide release 4/27/18

Viewed 8/5/18, the last week on the big screen, at the cheap theater in Harrisburg (Colonial Four, I think)
IMBd:  

RT Critic:  83    Audience:  91
Critic's Consensus:  Avengers: Infinity War ably juggles a dizzying array of MCU heroes in the fight against their gravest threat yet, and the result is a thrilling, emotionally resonant blockbuster that (mostly) realizes its gargantuan ambitions.

Cag:  4.5 It was really, really good

Directed by Anthony Russo, Joe Russo

Walt Disney Pictures

Robert Downey, Jr; Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson; Benedict Cumberbash, Don Cheadle; Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Zoe Saldana, Chris Pratt, Josh Brolin; Paul Bettany, Peter Dinklage

My comments:    A REALLY good movie, though I'm not sure how to take the ending.  What will come next?  What CAN come next?  So much humor, and of course a lot of action.  The special effects were quite amazing, and I loved seeing so many of the Marvel characters making an appearance (it must have cost a small fortune to make).  How do you make a movie like this?  The list of credits was incredible - I wonder how many people it took to create this?  Names just roll and roll.....and so much of the audience stays because they know there'll be some sort of scene at the very end of them.  And there was.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  The mad titan Thanos (Josh Brolin) begins his hunt for the most powerful objects in the universe, the Infinity Stones, in Marvel Studios' highly anticipated Avengers: Infinity War. With the Space Stone, given by Loki (Tom Hiddleston), and the Power Stone, Thanos sends (Ebony Maw, Cull Obsidian to retrieve the Time Strone from Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), sends Proxima Midnight, and Corvus Glaive) to retrieve the Mind Stone from Vision (Paul Bettany). Meanwhile, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) meets up with Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and sorcerers Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Wong (Benedict Wong). With help from Peter Parker (Tom Holland), A.K.A. Spider-Man, Stark and Strange join forces together and agree to stop Thanos. In space, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) also joins forces with the Guardians of the Galaxy, Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Drax (Dave Bautista), Rocket (Bradley Cooper), Groot (Vin Diesel), Mantis (Pom Klementieff), and Gamora (Zoe Saldana), the daughter of Thanos who warns Thor of his power. Thor travels away to defeat Thanos with Rocket and Groot while the other Guardians join forces with Stark, Strange, and Parker. In Wakanda, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and his team, Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Falcon (Anthony Mackie), Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), War Machine (Don Cheadle), and Bruce Banner to protect Vision and the Mind Stone in his forehead. With protection given from King T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman), A.K.A. Black Panther, and his Wakandan army, Thanos will come for everyone to destroy half the universe.

MOVIE - Captain America: Civil War

PG-13 (2;26)

Wide release 5/16/16

Viewed 9/25/16 (Happy Anniversary!) at Century Gateway

RT Critic: 90   Audience:  90
Critic's Consensus:  Captain America: Civil War begins the next wave of Marvel movies with an action-packed superhero blockbuster boasting a decidedly non-cartoonish plot and the courage to explore thought-provoking themes.

Cag:  4 - liked it a lot
Directed by Anthony & Joe Russo

Walt Disney Pictures

Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, 

My comments:  Very glad I got to see this before it left the big screen!  Many of the Marvel characters - some I don't even know - come together and then split into two factions: Captain America's side (wanting the Avengers to stay an independen's s organization, choosing what problems to take on themselves) or Ironman's side (wanting to sign a treaty that will allow the world governments to be the starting off place, deciding when they'll be needed).  It was actually a lot of fun - particularly near the end when Spiderman and Antman were enlisted!  No Hulk in this one.  Fighting, especially the "big one" near the end, wasn't too boring because there were not real good guys vs. bad guys - it was Avengers against each other without hatred and trying only to stop, not maim or kill.  Super long movie.  Enjoyed it.

RT Summary:  Marvel's "Captain America: Civil War" finds Steve Rogers leading the newly formed team of Avengers in their continued efforts to safeguard humanity. But after another incident involving the Avengers results in collateral damage, political pressure mounts to install a system of accountability, headed by a governing body to oversee and direct the team. The new status quo fractures the Avengers, resulting in two camps-one led by Steve Rogers and his desire for the Avengers to remain free to defend humanity without government interference, and the other following Tony Stark's surprising decision to support government oversight and accountability.

MOVIE - Chef

R (1:55)

Limited release 5/9/14

Viewed Friday 5/23/14 Last Day Of School!

RT Critic: 87 Audience: 87

cag:  4.5 Liked it more-than-a-lot

Directed by Jon Favreau

Open Road Films

Jon Favreau, John Leguizamo, Sofia Vergara, Bobby Cannavale, Dustin Hoffman, Oliver Platt, Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson

Rotten Tomatoes Summary::  Chef Carl Casper (Jon Favreau) suddenly quits his job at a prominent Los Angeles restaurant after refusing to compromise his creative integrity for its controlling owner (Dustin Hoffman), he is left to figure out what's next. Finding himself in Miami, he teams up with his ex-wife (Sofia Vergara), his friend (John Leguizamo) and his son to launch a food truck. Taking to the road, Chef Carl goes back to his roots to reignite his passion for the kitchen -- and zest for life and love.

My comments:  What an absolutely delightful movie!  The overriding theme is about a father-son relationship.  The young man who plays the son, Percy (Emjay  Anthony) was terrific.  And what a great cast of characters!  It was a delight to see all the cooking, chopping, delightful food presentations. I loved that so much of the plot was centered around the social technology phenomena that is ruling our current world.   It was a long movie, (maybe just a tiny bit too long?) and totally enjoyable.

Movie - Ironman 3

PG-13 (2:20)

Wide Release 5-3-2013

Viewed with Sheila at ElCon on Memorial Day, 5/27/13

RT Critic: 78%  Audience: 83%

Cag:  3.5/Liked it at least three times more than Ironman 2!

Directed by Shane Black

Walt Disney Pictures

Robert Downey, Jr., Don Cheadle, Gwyneth Paltrow

Disney Intro:  Marvel's "Iron Man 3" pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy's hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

My comments: As I said above, I liked this installment SO much more than the 2nd.  It was funny - lots of tongue-in-cheek comments by Robert Downy Jr. - the story was quite easy to follow, and the amount of fighting, though a lot, did not seem to overwhelm and take over the movie like the Avengers and IM2 seemed to.  Other than freezing my butt off in the theater, it was a very enjoyable couple of hours (and it didn't seem to be over two hours long!).

MOVIE - The Avengers

actually:  Marvel's The Avengers
Definitely an action-packed flick
Wider release May 4, 2012
Viewed Saturday, June 2, 2012 at El Con - by myself
PG-13 (2:22) The last half hour lasted a looooong time....
RT:  93 Critic, 96 Audience
cag:   Liked it/3
Director:  Josh Whedon
Walt Disney Studios

Bring together Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.), The Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Captain America (Chris Evans), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and head-of-the-world's-peace-keeping forces Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), pit them against evil, power-hungry Loki (terrifically acted by Tom Higglesworth) and you've got lots of brawn, plenty of brains, and quite a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor as well as a rollicking, action-packed adventure.Throw in Clark Gregg as non-super-hero-human Agent Coulson and even a one-minute comedic spot by Harry Dean Stanton as a security guard with Bruce Banner/The Hulk and you've got wonderful actors and pleasant surprises. The story builds really well, showing first the need for super-hero help, then building the Avengers team, trying this and that to thwart the bad guys, then the full-out battle.  I loved the first 3/4, found the last 1/4's fighting to be tedious, but that was, I guess, to be expected.  It was pure entertainment.  Robert Downey, Jr. continues to be my hero, and I was quite enthralled by the acting of Tom Higglesworth. His smurky, mocking grin was so right-on! (It also  didn't help the enjoyment of the end of the movie when the 100-oz. of liquid I'd consumed just prior to and during the first 3/4 of the flick was starting to become a bit excruciating.....)