Marvel unveils 2016 release to be...

Make way for the third installment of Captain America!

Marvel has had an untitled 2016 slot reserved for quite sometime now. Many speculated it to be a Doctor Strange movie or potentially another Iron Man. We now have confirmation that Captain America 3 is set for theaters in May 6, 2016. There is still an untitled Marvel project slated for May 2017, so it is very possible Doctor Strange is still coming to the big screen. There is still a summer 2016 date open as well.
This comes in the wake of overwhelming positive reviews, so far, of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Early screenings have yielded reviews saying it is captivating, thrilling, and has an incredibly strong plot. It seems that Captain America could be taking the cake away from Thor and Iron Man a little bit. Captain America: The Winter Soldier hits theaters in less than a month on April 4th.

And just in case you didn't catch it, this release date puts it directly head to head against WB's Batman vs Superman project which shifted from 2015 to 2016 a few months back. Now the heat is on to see which date changes first because it is very unlikely these will stay in direct contention. Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has already said he won't budge on the release, so this is a smart move by Marvel to put some more sweat onto the brow of WB and DC Comics.


Marvel still has the jump on WB/DC seeing that the next film from WB isn't set until 2016 and we will be getting a total of four Marvel films in that time. Those films being Captain America: The Winter Solider, Guardians of the Galaxy, The Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Ant-Man. Add the third Captain America and that is five films against one. Unless a surprise project involving other Justice League members surfaces, Marvel wins once again.

Guardians of the Galaxy - Trailer Premieres

I just have to say that this trailer put the biggest smile on my face. It is so James Gunn, I love it. Marvel, thank you for giving this man a chance. I think this looks great and I cannot wait to see it. It's a bummer we don't have voices for Rocket Raccoon and Groot yet, but I can wait.  

Guardians of the Galaxy opens on August 1st.

Vin Diesel officially joins Guardians of the Galaxy

It has been rumored for months now, but we finally have confirmation that Vin Diesel will be playing Groot in Guardians of the Galaxy. He joins Chris Pratt, Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana, Michael Rooker, and Lee Pace. Guardians of the Galaxy is being directed by James Gunn and is set for release on August 1, 2014.

If you aren't aware, Groot is a highly intelligent tree-like alien. Groot will be voiced by Diesel as he is assumed to be full CGI along with Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper). Originally, Groot was interested in capturing humans for experimentation, but after being destroyed by both termites and the Hulk he was captured by S.H.I.E.L.D. and made part of the Guardians team. Groot was also a warrior in the battle against Thanos, so he is an important aspect of this movie.

Thor: The Dark World - Review

Thor struggles to defeat an enemy neither Asgard nor Odin can overcome while attempting to balance his reunion with Jane Foster and impending rise to the throne in Thor: The Dark World.


To go more in depth to the synopsis:
A long-standing war is brought to Asgard as Malekith, the leader of the "extinct" dark elves, seeks to try and reclaim the Aether, a powerful weapon kept in Asgard's weapons vault. Malekith attacks Asgard as Jane Foster wanders into an alternate dimension in the UK and obtains an unknown source of Aether. During this event, Heimdall notifies Thor that Jane has disappeared from his watch, so Thor returns to Earth and swoops her to Asgard with him. They soon learn that Malekith is after the Aether and will follow no matter where they attempt to keep or hide Jane. Thor winds up turning to his warrior friends and his untrustworthy brother, Loki, to defeat Malekith and the dark elves once and for all.


Now... I want to start by saying this movie was very, very well done. It has a very different theme than Thor did and was a lot more eventful. Thor fully embraces his birthright and is much more aware of his responsibilities as the future King of Asgard as well as the downsides to the throne. I also thought despite the darkness to the overall plot, it balanced humor very well. It was serious, it was funny, and it was very well balanced. And yes, there was a Stan Lee cameo.

As far as acting goes, I think a lot of the roles were switched in comparison to the first movie. Thor was far less arrogant and seemed to embrace his responsibilities more. Chris Hemsworth handled that very well and it shows how in control of the character he is. Tom Hiddleston was great, as always, and Natalie Portman also showed her control of Jane Foster as she had a bit of a different tone in this one as well. Instead of being awestruck over Thor she was a bit defensive but still longing. Her character was definitely left open for at least one more movie. I do have to say that I think the one who dominated this movie was Christopher Eccleston as Malekith. He was just fantastic to watch and very menacing. Definitely a great villain actor.
The shift in directors probably was for the better now that I have seen both movies. Initially when it was announced that Kenneth Branagh wasn't going to return for The Dark World a lot of people had mixed reactions. Some loved that and some hated it. I think Alan Taylor did a fantastic job and brought a new evolution to the characters that was very necessary. It is important to establish these characters outside of The Avengers, and Taylor was very successful.
One more thing to mention here before I get into spoilers is the visual effects. I think this one had some of the best visual effects in a Marvel movie thus far, obviously excluding The Avengers. Asgard is beautifully rendered and the attack for the Aether was handled well, too. I also didn't think the Aether was too cartoonish either. It maintained fantasy but was a pretty good reality borderline.

As the Marvel Cinematic Universe currently stands, here is my list:

1. The Avengers
2.  Iron Man
3. Thor
4. Thor: The Dark World
5. Captain America: The First Avenger
6. Iron Man 3
7. The Incredible Hulk
8. Iron Man 2


And now it is time for spoilers, boys and girls. If you haven't seen Thor: The Dark World I would encourage you to not spoil it for yourself and come back after you have seen it.

You were warned.



Last chance.



Seriously.

Glenn Close is the newest addition to Guardians of the Galaxy

Glenn Close has been added to the cast of Guardians of the Galaxy as the Head of Nova Corps. It's basically the Nick Fury of the Galaxy universe. Actors being eyed to join Close at the moment are John C. Reilly, Ken Watanabe, and Hugh Laurie.

Guardians of the Galaxy is being directed by James Gunn (Slither) and will hit theaters on August 1, 2014.

Marvel Phase One Blu-Ray set to be released in 2013

Remember that Marvel Cinematic Universe Blu-Ray box set we were supposed to get like 3 months ago? The one that was going to be released in the Tesseract briefcase?

If you don't then you will be pleased to know it will finally see the light of day April 2, 2013.
If you do then you know why this is such a "finally!" moment. We were supposed to get this box set around the time The Avengers was released back in September, if I remember correctly, and it was indefinitely delayed because the company who made the briefcase didn't approve for Marvel to replicate it and sell it. So in short, they sued Marvel which ultimately halted the set. But we are set to get the box set just before Iron Man 3 is released next year and to make up for the delay Marvel is including sneak peeks of Phase Two including Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and Guardians of the Galaxy.

Personally I am not paying over $200 for this seeing that I already own all the Phase One movies, so I look forward to watching the sneak peeks on YouTube like many others.

EDIT: Here is the original posting I did on this story back in September.

Thanos confirmed for two Marvel Phase 2 films

If you saw The Avengers you know Thanos appeared in the mid-credits scene. There was a lot of speculation as to where Thanos would show up in future Marvel films. There is now confirmation that Thanos will appear in two Marvel Phase 2 films; Guardians of the Galaxy and The Avengers 2.

I assumed/guessed Thanos wouldn't appear sooner than Guardians of the Galaxy and I am happy to see that I was right. People were trying to say he would show up as early as Thor: The Dark World and that was a mistake, imo. Thor already has a lot of villains and introducing a big villain like Thanos that early would have been dumb. 

Guardians of the Galaxy is set to be released on August 1, 2014 and The Avengers 2 is set for May 1, 2015.

RUMOR: Viggo Mortensen to join Marvel?

A new rumor has surfaced regarding Thor: The Dark World. Rumor has it, according to this Twitter account, that Viggo Mortensen (Lord of the Rings) is in talks for an unspecified role in Marvel Phase 2. The rumored role? Doctor Strange.
Marvel has been working on a single movie for Doctor Strange for the past couple of years and Collider suggests that he could appear in Phase 2 and have his own movie for Phase 3, a phase which they feel is inevitable.

If you know nothing about Doctor Strange here is a basic biography for him:

"Born Dr. Stephen Strange, a world-renowned but selfish neurosurgeon who only cared about wealth from his career. A car accident damaged his hands, shattering the bones. The damage and subsequent healing however, effectively ended his ability to conduct the surgery as he had before since his hands now tremble uncontrollably. Too proud to take on a teaching job, Strange desperately began the search for a cure to restore his hands, consulting various doctors, homeopathic treatments, and traveling around the world to remote regions for exotic cures, all to no avail.
Having completely exhausted all funds and reduced to homelessness, Strange is left to performing back alley medical procedures for cash. Depressed and still searching for a cure, Strange locates a hermit called the Ancient One who refuses to help because of Strange's selfishness, but senses his good side which he attempts to bring to the surface. He fails but Strange's goodness does show itself when he discovers the Ancient One's disciple, Baron Mordo, attempting to kill the old man. After Strange selflessly thwarts Mordo (who becomes Strange's most enduring antagonist) he is taught the mystic arts.
As the Ancient One's new disciple, Strange encounters the entity, Nightmare, and a number of odd mystical foes before battling his eventual arch-foe: Dormammu, a warlord from an alternate dimension called the Dark Dimension."

Given the information we have on Doctor Strange I wouldn't be surprised to see him surface at some point in Phase 2. However, I think shoving him into Thor: The Dark World would be overkill. The film already has two villains (3 if you count Loki) and I think that would be a little bit too much. If they are going to throw Doctor Strange into Phase 2 I would prefer him in Guardians of the Galaxy.

Also bear in mind that this is just a rumor. There will be and has been no shortage of Marvel casting rumors so don't take anything too seriously. The only reason this has broken out of its shell is because the Twitter account that hinted the news was right about Falcon being added to Captain America: The Winter Soldier and that Sebastian Stan will return as Bucky/The Winter Soldier.

ABC orders S.H.I.E.L.D. television pilot from Marvel

The ABC television network which is owned and operated by Disney has ordered a television pilot from Marvel Comics, also owned by Disney, revolving around S.H.I.E.L.D. (aka, Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate). There is no information of how the show would tie into the movies, if at all, or what characters would be used but it has been ordered and will happen.

It is also said that The Avengers writer/director Joss Whedon has been tapped to co-write the pilot and possibly direct. Collaborating with Joss is his brother Jed Whedon and Jed's wife Maurissa Tancharoen. Joss Whedon is involved with The Avengers 2 along with several future Marvel projects for Phase 2, so I guess they figured why not add a television show to the platter.

I think this could be really cool, but I do also think there is such a thing as there being too much Marvel going on at one time. I also would like to see how they would get big name characters like Iron Man, Thor, or Captain America on an ABC television show when they have their own respective Marvel films. We will see how this one unravels. I am very intrigued.