thor ragnarok

Review: THOR: RAGNAROK Is The Absurdist Action Comedy The MCU Needed!

Let’s begin this review with a wildly speculative statement: Thor was NOBODY’S favorite Avenger. Despite the impressive charisma and costume destroying physique of Chris Hemsworth, the character just never clicked. His solo movies fell firmly into Marvel’s B-material and his presence in the Avengers films was overshadowed by everyone else on the team (except Hawkeye). This put Marvel in a position where they had nothing to lose by going a little crazy. So when the studio hired celebrated Kiwi director Taika Waititi (What We Do in the Shadows), it seemed like an idea just crazy enough to work. Not since Iron Man 3 has the studio thrown caution to the wind and put a film in the hands of an auteur director. A series of online shorts featuring the misadventures of Thor and his roommate Darryl made us realize there might be more to the character than we realized. Thor: […]

THOR: RAGNAROK Gets A Glorious Final International Trailer

Lee B. Golden III

Hope remains for all things Akira-related with the most recent spurt of optimism welcomed by the possible addition of director Taika Waititi into the mix. As it stands, his touch on the property wouldn’t likely be very distant and equally characteristic of the tone and texture we’ve been acquainting with in the various trailers for his next big feat, Thor: Ragnarok which opens on November 3. It’s an exciting time for comic book fans and for an equally rousing spectacle with actor Chris Hemsworth starring opposite Cate Blanchett as the villainess Hela. Tom Hiddleston, Mark Ruffalo, Tessa Thompson, Karl Urban and Jeff Goldblum make up the remainder of the cast for the film’s release in all its dazzling, nostalgically tethered fantasy action glory with Avengers: Infinity War arriving next year as well. Comic Book released an exclusive international trailer which you can view below. It’s the final trailer so take […]

WB Pictures Brings Taika Watiti To The Negotiating Table For AKIRA

Lee B. Golden III

Years of rotating may have finally come to a halt for the revolving door of directors in the wake of the longstanding live-action development of hit 1982 manga and Toho’s subequent ’88 OVA, Akira. Its prospects now reportedly lie with current talks between Warner Bros. and director/actor Taika Waititi with the goal of making two films centered on three installments of Kodansha’s six volumes series. Created by Otomo Katsuhiro who shephered the 1988 feature film from Toho, the story centers on two members of a biker gang, childhood friends Kaneda and Tetsuo, living in post-apocalyptic Neo-Tokyo who find themselves embroiled in government corruption and secrecy when a military experiment turns Tetsuo into a psionic madman. Akira is long considered a staple of Japanese science fiction, cyberpunk and action entertainment culture, in addition to adding to much of Otomo’s acclaim as one of the most prolific innovators in the world of […]

THOR: RAGNAROK Invites More Buddy Comedy To The Superhero Hype In The New Comic-Con Trailer

Lee B. Golden III

Marvel’s trajectory on the big screen has only ever gotten cooler these days, and especially with director Taika Watiti at the helm on Thor: Ragnarok. The film debut a second trailer for the comic-con crowd in San Diego over the weekend and subsequently online and while it wasn’t the only Marvel movie to peek out from behind the curtain, if the first trailer from April hasn’t sold you by now, perhaps this one will earn your favor. Beyond that, my hands are tied. In Marvel Studios’ ‘Thor: Ragnarok’, Thor is imprisoned on the other side of the universe without his mighty hammer and finds himself in a race against time to get back to Asgard to stop Ragnarok—the destruction of his homeworld and the end of Asgardian civilization—at the hands of an all-powerful new threat, the ruthless Hela. But first he must survive a deadly gladiatorial contest that pits him […]

THOR: RAGNAROK Reacquaints Old Enemies And Frenemies In The First Teaser Trailer

Lee B. Golden III

If there’s one thing you have to commend Marvel for doing, is keeping their end of all things film such good fun no matter how much people pine for something R-rated or family-friendly. At best, they’ve maintained quite the balance on all ends with thrilling action and storytelling with a cohesive narrative that keeps things nonetheless grounded in the whirlwind of fantasy we’re immersed in. That is now something we get to test out with director Taika Watiti at the helm for his current delivery with Thor: Ragnarok with Chris Hemsworth back and donning a slightly more dapper hairdo to accompany the beefcake Asgardian appearance. Joining in on the fun is the ceremonial return of Marvel familiar’s Tom Hiddleston as Loki and Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk once more, with actor Karl Urban on the villain end of things as Skurge and Cate Blanchett in the seething role of Hela, […]

SILVER SABLE And BLACK CAT Are Officially Advancing At Sony

Lee B. Golden III

Sony Pictures is officially tackling properties, Silver Sable and Black Cat for a feature-film production according to THR. Christopher Yost who helped scribe the upcoming Thor: Ragnarok is now penning the script with Matt Tolmach and Amy Pascal producing for a hopeful Fall start date. The news comes more than two-and-a-half years since Sony Pictures first announced the effort to bring a female-centric Spider Man title about. A number of things may have factored into why this probably didn’t take shape almost sooner, notably Sony and Marvel ultimately forging a partnership to reboot Spider-Man for a welcome entry into the MCU which now sees actor Tom Holland in the forthcoming Spider-Man: Homecoming. Silver Sable (a.k.a. Silver Sablinova) was launched at Marvel in 1985, created by Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz. Skilled in weapons, hand-to-hand combat and strategy, she leads the Wild Pack, a group of mercenaries whose m.o. is to […]

Marvel Confirms Urban, Goldblum For THOR: RAGNAROK

Lee B. Golden III

The omission of Thor from the roster of the Russos’ Captain America: Civil War surely leaves some curious as to what happened to the Asgaardian protector of Earth. Rest assured, that will all be explored when Marvel’s Thor: Ragnarok releases next year, and with director Taika Waititi at the helm. Waititi’s latest assignment for Marvel comes amid some terrific prospects earned at Cannes this past week with his latest adventure comedy, Hunt For The Wilderpeople selling out to terrirories worldwide. Taking this to mind on top of a litany of wins and nominations as a filmmaker over the years, it’s fine knowing this film is in good hands, and especially with regard to its cast otherwise confirming favorites like Jeff Goldblum, and the man who continues to be the face of hope for all things Dredd in the years to come, actor Karl Urban. More from Marvel: Two-time Oscar®-winner Cate Blanchett (“Blue Jasmine,” […]

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THOR: RAGNAROK Antees Up The Destruction With Mark Ruffalo's Return As 'Hulk'!

Lee B. Golden III

Actor Mark Ruffalo‘s last appearance in Joss Whedon’s Avengers: Age Of Ultron, took a peculiar turn at the end. At any rate, fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe are bound to find out soon enough with Ruffalo officially returning to the role of the “always angry” Bruce Banner (a.k.a. Hulk) in Thor: Ragnarok. Chris Hemsworth is leading once again with Taika Waititi directing from a script by Craig Kyle and Chris Yost which will ultimately focus on the gist of the title meaning “the end of all things”; you’ll probably know what that means if you follow the comic series, otherwise you can chalk this one up as another opportunity to watch Thor and Hulk smack each other up or defend Asgaard as heroes back-to-back. Tom Hiddleston will be returning as Loki along with NBC series Blindspot star Jaimie Alexander as Lady Sif and other cast pending for November 3, […]

Taika Waititi Is In Talks To Direct THOR: RAGNAROK

Lee B. Golden III

November 3, 2017 is the day the Marvel Cinematic Universe finally meets “the end of all things” for the forthcoming production of Thor: Ragnarok. The MCU has been consistently stirring excitement among fans who have been following the movies and Netflix shows with Marvel’s own Kevin Feige stepping in and out to lend his fruitful opinions about what lies ahead on both ends. For now though, we still have a couple of trilogies to finish with Captain America: Civil War looming for next year in May along with Thor: Ragnarok with Chris Hemsworth returning to star, no less. As slow as things have been to develop though, we finally have a director in talks with Green Lantern (2011) co-star and What We Do In The Shadows helmer, director Taika Waititi in the chair, ultimately beating out Reuben Fleischer. Jaimie Alexander, fresh off to a successful start as a kickass lead in […]

Marvel Announces New Dates For Nine New Films!

Lee B. Golden III

The on-going war for bragging rights continues as Marvel and DC continue to duke it out, toe-to-toe, neck and neck for ultimate live-action comic book TV and film glory. DC is currently in the running following its most recent productions of productions for Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice, as well as the developing TV universe between current shows like Gotham, Arrow and The Flash, and upcoming teleivison properties like Titans, Supergirl and Krypton. Of course, Marvel wasn’t going to let all that slide, especially after having just announced what it has in store for their cinematic universe at least twice in the past month. So on Tuesday, they held an epic event to shut down all epic events (at least for now), and it’s safe to say thay the fans are happy (seriously, I think one of them shit their pants – their words, true story). On that note, […]