Review: Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Pilot)

After the superhuman success of last year's Avengers Assemble (or Marvel's The Avengers in the US), it was inevitable that Marvel Studios would spread their mythology over different mediums, so over the past year they put together a TV spin-off. It finally aired this week, naturally with Avenger's director and geekdom hero Joss Whedon taking directing and co-writing duties. Thankfully it does not wear Marvel firmly on its sleeve, but rather establishes itself as an interesting franchise in its own right.

Narrative is rather vague in the pilot, focusing more on establishing character relationships and the show's overall themes: Highly classified agency S.H.I.E.L.D. seek to monitor and control activities of humans with enhanced capabilities - referred to outrightly as 'Superheroes'. For the pilot, they investigate a hard-on-his-luck, single father Mike Peterson, who shows increasing super strength and agility, to stop him harming others as well as himself. Along the way, new agents are recruited and old ones reassigned.

Coulson: The new face of indoor shades

The episode showed an interesting and commendable sense of overall direction. Despite being set in the world of Marvel, the related superhero films and characters are only lightly referenced. Not even Nick Fury is featured. The most obvious link is Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg), the ringleader of operations and by far the best part of the program (it's not much a spoiler to say he is no longer dead). Not only does he show a dry, yet heartwarming sense of humour, there are moments when he shows intense professionalism and authority, mixed with humanity and concern. You almost feel saddened that he wasn't given bigger screentime in the Marvel movies. The chased superhero Peterson wears no fancy uniform, just a hoodie. CGI elements are impressively minimal (except for a cringe-worthy final shot, but we'll try to forgive that). Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is a show about superheroes, without actually being a superhero show.

The set up ultimately has elements of espionage (Spooks), crimelab drama (CSI) and supernatural drama (X-Files). The script is largely mature while being snappy and fun at the same time. Action sequences, though brief, show impressive stuntwork rarely seen on television. The scenes within the workings of S.H.I.E.L.D. feel fresh and intriguing. These are aspects that successfully grasp our attention.

Unfortunately, at times the writing and direction waver in its tone quite jarringly, as though the studio were unsure how best to approach the superhero elements. It could have taken more inspiration from Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy (albeit with a lighter tone), exploring the identities of superheroes and villains in a believable, real world way. This is done to a small extent with Peterson's rather tragic personal story, but the script feels incredibly self-aware. Peterson, as well as S.H.I.E.L.D recruit Skye, are well aware of comic book archetypes, (which feels odd since they are essentially living in a comic book world anyway), and they both speak as if they are running a commentary on the subject. For example, when he is confronted by a certain authority figure, he claims (word for word), "You are the bad guy, I am the hero." When the origin of his powers are described as a disaster, he states, "No, It's an origin story." These sort of lines and hints pepper the episode, spelling out the themes in such a glaringly obvious and baffling way, as though the audience does not understand basic comic book concepts that have been around for decades (why would you be watching the show if you didn't?).

Being the pilot, perhaps this is just the show's way of establishing itself. However, as much of this talk comes from Skye, it makes her quite frustrating and almost unlikable, when we are clearly meant to feel the opposite. She is however an interesting, multi-layered character with possible potential in future episodes. Two British scientists Jemma and Leo give nothing to the show except their knowledge and conveniently built technology (and a bit of diversity) - hopefully they will actually gain voices. Melinda is the show's combatant. Super-spy Grant, despite being described as having bad people skills, is very engaging and charismatic - it is a shame he is given less screentime than Skye, though all his scenes are well done. It is disappointing that the characters are so hit and miss, despite the character element usually being top form in Whedon's works.

Ultimately, despite its uneven tone, the episode was entertaining and fresh, opening up plots and relationships with future potential. It is a spin off with a strong sense of self, which does not require seeing Avenger's Assemble to understand it (though you should have seen it by now anyway). Roll on next week, and let's hope Agent Coulson does not leave us too soon.

7/10

SyFy and Late Night Shark Attacks

Over recent years, the Syfy Channel's late night monster movies have become something of an urban legend, rising to the surface, the cult of good/bad films. These are of course the films that are not only terrible, they are great at being terrible. They relish in their terrible ways, with horror bordering on slapstick, ridiculous female body shots and excruciating acting. These films are made by committees, with specially chosen writers and actors that have become experts in their field (Asylum Pictures is often the proud perpetrator).

Do not expect a second of quality from this genre. It is the pure essence of dreadful. However, there are times when we may have a craving for something that is a bit bad for us, rather like ordering a deep fried burger while we have been doing well at Weightwatchers.

For some unknown reason, much of the more popular films focus on the jaws of the deep. Here are some of the more interesting shark attack flicks that Syfy have graciously bestowed on us.

1) The Megashark Series

This has included such classics as 'Megashark versus Giant Octopus', 'Megashark versus Crocosaurus' and more recently 'Megashark versus Mechashark'. It is essentially the chronicles of the world's biggest shark. Watch out how between scenes the shark seems to change its size, though its probably not something intentional.

Highlight: Megashark helping a 747 plane land into the ocean. Or rather jumping up and grabbing it in its jaws.

2) Sharktopus
The U.S. military fuses shark DNA with that of a giant octopus, creating the ultimate fighting creature. But what? It escapes? And they can't stop it as it rampages through town (even as it walks about on land)? Count us in.

Highlight: After two ship workers have a badly written discussion on how they would like to die, a tentacle reaches out of the water and pulls one down, who screams "Oh no, not like this!"

3) Sharknado
When the title was announced, the hype grew to such colossal measure that they quickly greenlit a sequel. A vicious storm hits land just as a large number of sharks swim to the shore, resulting in tornadoes that literally throw the animals at the terrified people below. Good job our heroes find a hardware store to find and build their own weaponry.

Highlight: The alpha male of the group slices open a flying shark with a chainsaw to the mouth. He must have been practicing for moments like that.

4) Two Headed Shark Attack
It's double the jaws, double the horror! The title tells you the whole plot, while the action involves creative ways for the shark to eat two things at the same time. Oh look, Carmen Electra!

Highlight: The shark rampaging through hordes of unlikable teens.

5) Ghost Shark
The motherload. A shark is mortally wounded, but brought back to life as a ghost that can appear anywhere there is water. This includes swimming pools, fire hydrants, even a drink cup. I always thought drinking too much water was bad for you...Our heroes must keep dry while seeking supernatural help from a local drunk to send the beast back to the afterlife.

Highlight: Too many to mention, but particular kudos goes to a scene involving a painful trip to the toilet.

On a final note: When my wife found out about Sharknado, she misheard the name and called it Sharkpedo, thinking it was about a maniac who shoots sharks from a torpedo. It actually sounds like she is on to something - Asylum, are you listening? Although the name 'Sharkpedo' does sound more like a film about a shark fetish...

Retrospective: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers!

Unless you have(n't) been living in a cave for years, you would be well aware that the American powerhouse known as Power Rangers has reached its 20th anniversary this year. Better make room for some extra DVD box-sets. 

Hamley's in Oxford Street: A power ranger made from power rangers! Try saying that fast 10 times.

For everyone who grew up in the globalised western world, there are particular treasures that will stay with us. '80s kids were spoilt for choice, with Transformers, Thundercats, and Masters of the Universe to name a few. Power Rangers ruled the '90s, and the Noughties were indoctrinated by Pokemon and its many clones. We watch, we buy, we imagine. It's a magical thing that somehow shapes part of our understanding of who we are. As a kid, these things are important. 

Then there's that awkward moment as an adult when you glance at your childhood franchise in nostalgia and realize that 1) It's actually pretty terrible, and 2) It's actually just a 20 minute toy advert. Why were we so misled, so naive? But then after a while we realize that these points don't actually matter. The franchise was truly special to us back then, so in a sense it will always be special. We can't bring ourselves to badmouth it.

It's interesting hearing people talk nostalgically about Power Rangers. A common phrase is that "The first series (i.e. 'Mighty Morphin') was the best. The rest of them were terrible." This is the power of childhood experience, because if you sit and watch every series you will see that in actuality, they are all basically the same - in our minds, a particular series is supreme. Even today we can ask the same questions as it started two decades ago, such as:

• Why, when the heroes are out of uniform, do they always wear clothes matching their ranger color? 
• Why did the alien monsters attack the same, uninteresting city every week, despite it being the one place they could be beaten by pesky teenagers?
• And by the way, how old were they supposed to be? The show seemed to use the casting director from Grease.
• Where was, you know, the police? Or the military? Or whoever deals with, you know, stuff that is actually dangerous? What would people do if the rangers didn't happen to be there?
• The final part of each episode would include a Kaiju battle between a giant monster and the ranger's transforming robot warrior (you can't hide the fact that the show is actually Japanese). Why wasn't the whole of the city destroyed in these fights? And why didn't the robot warrior (a zord) be around permanently, squashing any incoming monsters with its foot?

At the party, everyone wanted to be the red one.

Despite all this, for many people it is something truly special. The internet is loaded with fansites aimed at a mature audience who are interested in all the mythologies, character backstories, the monsters, and the toys. THE TOYS! Check out ebay for collector's treasures. 

Every fan had their own favourite ranger. Admittedly, when I got caught in an awkward telephone conversation with someone trying to get a monthly charitable donation off me, the long topic of Billy vs Tommy came up (he started it, honest). 

There was also a strange feeling of pride when the message appeared on the screen after each episode, explicitly warning us not to copy the violence we have just watched, because the power rangers were specially trained martial arts experts (apparently because there's a special school for that). In hindsight, it is interesting to hear about the moral panic that swept America concerning how violent we would all become as a result of watching it.
Really, it made us feel like we were onto something daring and rebellious - not only could we rob our parents' savings for the latest toys, we could become furious fighting machines, like miniature Bruce Lees. It was a childhood subculture of rebellion and anarchy, and all we had to do was get up and watch on a Saturday morning. 

Do you have any fond Power Rangers memories, or a favourite ranger? What was your childhood franchise? Let us know, and don't go round kicking each other!


Note: I must clarify the first paragraph before anyone corrects: 'Power Rangers' is American. The program it is based on (and that provides most of the footage) is the much older Japanese show 'Super Sentai'.

Time Travel in the Movies, Part 2

As promised, here is another look at time exploration in the movies - curiously I am writing this in the year 2020, and will email this to my younger self in 2013. The Tokyo Olympics are really heating up...

7) Twelve Monkeys (1995)

Terry Gillian's intriguing thriller is still fresh today and asks for repeated viewings. Bruce Willis travels back from an apocalyptic future to get a sample of the deadly virus and create a lifesaving antidote. Unfortunately for him he ends up at the wrong time, although he does bump into some intriguing and potentially world changing individuals. 

The ending is great, creating a spiralling circle in the hero’s story, while simultaneously leaving a sense of possible closure. 

8) Meet The Robinsons (2007)

One of the more interesting CGI Disney flicks. In a modern day orphanage, a budding child inventor feels unwanted and a failure, until a boy from the future arrives in a time machine to show how great (and eccentric) things will become. The film suffers from too many characters, most of which seem rather insane, as apparently we will all be in the future. 

As a feel-good family film, it has a positive message showing that we can all accomplish great things in life - tissues at the ready.

9) The Terminator Series (1984, 1991, 2003, 2006)

An iconic quadrilogy, recently announced to soon become an (overstretched) heptalogy. The films include grandfather effects, paradoxes and too many plot-holes to mention. 

Despite the action and effects brilliant to behold, the story juggles more and more confusing threads with each film, sinking the overall story deeper into head-scratching chaos. Let’s hope the next trilogy will somehow tie things together.

10) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

A frustrating time paradox saves Harry from death. Harry is saved by a spell cast by a mysterious stranger, then he travels back via a magical trinket, and upon seeing his previous self, knowingly creates the very spell that saved him before. 

Various trials in the film are solved like this, in a way that feels frustratingly lazy and nonsensical. Ultimately in the Harry Potter series, anything can happen, and the key word is 'magic'.

11) Source Code (2011)

Jake Gyllenhaal unwillingly repeats the same 8 minutes over and over again to investigate the location of a train bomb. The process and technology allowing him to do this is barely explained, except with quantum-physical jargon, but it is exciting seeing the many possibilities arising from a small span of time, similar to Run Baby Run or Grounddog Day. 

The story takes some great turns, with Gyllenhaal changing his focus from his mission and trying to escape, as well as amending for past mistakes.

12) Doctor Who (1963-Present)

Sorry, not exactly a 'movie' as such, but the world's longest running science fiction show (50 years in November), a number of TV movies and spin offs (and books, radio plays, and oh you get it...). It seems that every aspect of time travel has been explored brilliantly. Perhaps part of the series’ longevity is in the Doctor's ability to go to any time and place, meaning the scenario possibilities are endless. 

In the past few series, producer Steven Moffat has written some particularly mind-bending episodes: All of time happens at once. Stone angels kill by sending people back to the past, wiping their existence. The Doctor, awaiting his imminent death, sends a message to his previous selves to warn and prepare.

It will be interesting to see how Peter Capaldi tackles the role next year.

Any more suggestions for time travel in the movies? Post your suggestions here...

Film Review: Riddick

Film Review: Riddick

Following the impressive Pitch Black (2000) and the awkward The Chronicles of Riddick (2004), the mythology of Vin Diesel's antihero is given a defibrillator through a gnarly, back to basics tough guy movie. 

I'll get the obvious out the way - from the trailer, this looks like a copy of Pitch Black, so much so that many people have suggested that it is a 'remake' (did they even watch it??). Though it has a similar feel, in that there are some bloodthirsty aliens and a barren desert setting, that's as far as the similarities get. 

While in Pitch Black the film was largely focused on surviving flying shark bats, Riddick focuses on a rival bounty hunter gangs hunting the title character to claim a prize. 

Much of it is a character study, the first, intriguing act showing a sole Riddick surviving in a world of horrors, and the second act displaying his skills of intimidation, stealth and combat. In the third act, when the remaining hunters are forced to cooperate with him in order to leave the planet, it starts to feel somewhat disappointing and cliche. 

This three part structure makes the overall story feel confused, unsure of its own identity - it is a character piece, an action movie or sci fi horror? The disappointment of the third act however is made up for by the two prior. But what happened to the writing?

This is the main gripe with Riddick, as it is hard to find fault elsewhere - performances are all decent, the overall tension is engaging and the look and feel of the alien world is well done. 

But while the trailer suggests survival horror, it is deceptive, as the scenes with the aliens are about as frightening as an episode of Tintin - you never lose the sense that Riddick is in complete control, even when he is saved from a few desperate situations by deus ex machina luck. Riddick himself is the epitome of 'badass', but he is also incredibly blessed with fortune. The ending itself will make you feel like you've only paid for half a movie.

Riddick is a fun and interesting flick with Diesel at his best. Shame about the twists in tone and the awful end.
6.5/10

Time Travel in the movies part 1

Time Travel in Movies (Part 1)

In the brilliant sci-fi flick Looper, there is a memorable scene in a diner, where Bruce Willis' character explains (to his younger self, of course) the concept of time travel as something that is so confusing and baffling it will turn our brains to mush. This dialogue seemed to be the defining point in whether audiences loved or hated the film - many said it was a lazy way of not addressing any loose ends and time paradoxes, as it was saying 'erm, we don't know how time travel works, so we'll make it up as we go'.

Others said it was simply making a real and obvious fact - we don't know how time travel works, so it is a mysterious, intriguing force of change, which we may think we can control but actually we fail. 

This is undeniable. We do not have the technological capacity to travel through time, and (some would disagree through their own 'experiences') surely this gives storytellers scope to write their own rules. I for one get fed up with people saying 'time travel doesn't work like that'. Please, show me how you do it. Sometimes films and novels show it in a way that doesn't make sense, and it can make the story a bit bewildering. 

Here are some time travel examples in film. Possible spoilers alert.

1) Looper (2012)
As already mentioned, Looper simply acknowledges that time travel is difficult to understand. There is an issue of time paradoxes - Paul Dano looks at his hand seeing fingers disappear, followed by limbs, until his life is taken. This is because people have travelled to his past, essentially dismembering and killing his younger self. Why is he still alive to see his body change? Don't know. But it looks cool, and it is terrifying.

Notes appear on older Bruce Willis' arm because the younger self is writing them. Why are they suddenly appearing out of nowhere? Don't know. But it makes a good plot twist. 

Time travel is used as a way of shaping and changing the plot rather than simply changing the scenery or characters.

2) The Time Machine (1960)
The granddaddy of time travel stories. Rod Taylor creates a machine to travel to the future and see what humanity makes of itself. Answer: not much. 

As simple as you can get, because it only goes to the future, avoiding any paradoxes or timeline changes. It is also interesting that the far future is presented as a very simple, rural world rather than one like the world of Lang's Metropolis. The remake (2002) is okay but completely pointless.

3) Triangle (2009)
Here, time travel is so trippy and unpredictable, it isn't even referred to or seen - only its apparent effects. Melissa George is stuck on an empty cruise liner, apparently in the Bermuda Triangle, and is fighting future and past versions of herself and her friends. 

The clever trick of Triangle is that over the course of the film, she starts to see realize she is becoming those future versions, and that she has been those past versions, and though she tries to change everything and stop the mysterious time loops, she ends up causing the very events she is expecting to happen. Absolutely confounding, with a fabulous twist ending (I will not reveal!)

4) Back To The Future Series (1985, 1989, 1990)
A good example when time travel is used for fun and excitement, rather than high-brow brain mush. Doc Brown's scene when he explains alternate time lines with a chalkboard is iconic. It deals with the Grandfather Effect (Mcfly may become his own ancestor...) and time paradoxes (Mcfly and his siblings are bizarrely fading like ghosts because the past is wiping them away!). Mcfly plays Chuck Berry on his guitar, influencing Chuck Berry himself to make the sound, which Mcfly will hear in the present day, and play in the past, and so on (a Grandfather effect for music). 

Time travel is very confused in this trilogy, but it doesn't matter because it is played with tongues firmly in cheek by a brilliantly funny cast.

5) Primer (2004)
This film not only sparked debates about how time travel works, but more commonly, questions such as 'Does this film actually make any sense?' and 'what the hell is going on?'. While films like Donnie Darko and 2001 are made purposefully enigmatic to intrigue us into watching it more and more times, Primer seems to be just bad at storytelling, as so much of the dialogue and action is only character development, and important plot points are rushed over with the odd mumble of words. 

But it does seem to show Time Travel technology in a realistic and fresh way - as something people invent and discover by accident and try to figure out how it works along the way. The acting makes this believable.

6) Donnie Darko (2001)
A brilliant example of a 'cult film'. The plot is mysterious and always intriguing, opening up so many plot lines, red herrings (or are they?), unexplained events and supernatural visitations. You are never quite sure if it is all a dream, inside Donnie's fragile mind or in a twisted reality. 

Time travel seems to happen, but due to the film's nature we are not entire sure. However a friend of mine once described his view of the film's meaning, and though I didn't like it, it seemed to make the most sense. It is basically an 'emo' version of 'It's a Wonderful Life'. Instead of the angel, there is the rabbit. Instead of showing Donnie how much worse everything would be if he died, it shows the opposite - how worse everything would be if he stayed alive. With that knowledge, Donnie stays in his bed awaiting danger. 

It's grim, but fresh. 

More films to come soon...

Film Review: Elysium


The new sci-fi-social film by Neil Blomkamp (District 9) has made a film with similar look and tone to its predecessor - slums, dirt, guns and extreme urgency. Everything feels filthy and unrefined, but this is kudos to Blomkamp and his team, as Elysium's worlds are real, and completely believable. The culture, the landscape, the technology, all fully realized, to make you wonder how far away from reality the film truly is.

It follows factory worker Max (Matt Damon) who has a severe radiation attack at his work, and is given 5 days to live. The only way he can heal is by visiting Elysium, an incredible floating world where the rich live in luxury and reassurance of perfect health. But he will have to literally fight his way up there, because Elysium's inhabitants are very protective of their world and do not want 'ordinary people' messing it up.

If you visit the IMDB forums you will find Elysium has sparked a fiery debate over its main theme - the wealth gap between rich and poor. Posters have written about how they are living well, earning lots of money and have a great job, because they earned it. The movie addresses the wealth gap as corrupt, immoral, and causing mass suffering. Spoilers aside, Elysium is ultimately suggesting that we should not aspire to live like millionaires and celebrities, but appreciate our own culture and background, so the privileges of the upper classes should not be limited to them. This is a brave and bold message, especially as it is the entire point of the film, and not an afterthought. At the final few minutes, some audience members had tears. Elysium will split opinion with its social message, but perhaps this split is revealing the true gaps in our society. Sparking a debate is never a bad thing.

While Damon is solid and believable, we don't seem to learn much about him, except that he has 5 days to live and what he was like as an 8 year old. Jodie Foster, as the film's chief villain, is particularly disappointing. Her script and acting is hammy, like something from a pantomime, although this simply makes her more unlikable. A highlight is Sharlto Copley (also from District 9 and The A-Team), who plays the 'evil henchman' role with such gusto and nasty attitude that he completely steals the film.

If you can withstand over-the-top, sometimes cartoon excess of violence, the film is exciting and well put together, so definitely worth a look.
8/10

Technophobe! available now for ebooks.

There's a Plug going round....

I have recently published an ebook of short stories, that could be described as Soft Sci fi, Weird Fiction, and Suspense. Search for 'Technophobe!' by M. Crawley on Amazon or Kobo stores.

It's cheaper than a sandwich, and in easily digestible bites - please check it out and spread the word if you enjoy. Kudos to our friends the Chapman family for having a particularly frightening looking kettle.
Any comments are appreciated, but they must be nice! (Kidding! All feedback is good...).

More writing will appear over next few months so watch this space.


UK and USA Amazon links:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Technophobe-ebook/dp/B00ECGKZLC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378073972&sr=8-1&keywords=technophobe

http://www.amazon.com/Technophobe-ebook/dp/B00ECGKZLC/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1378073998&sr=8-4&keywords=technophobe

(Also available in Australia, Brazil, India, China, Japan, and many others...)
(Now available on Kobo store...)

#Technophobe!

Finally, a blog! Awesome! Enjoy!

......Posts soon to come!