1977 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier

It's quite something to take a character that's uninteresting on paper as Captain America, and have him be one of the better film franchise's in the Marvel universe.  I was surprised how much I liked this first one, and I have to say this newest entry blew my mind a little.  First, it's just a solid film - it's funny, it's smart, and it's got some kick-ass action sequences going on inside of here.  But secondly, and this is a MASSIVE SPOILER.  I couldn't help but watch the whole time thinking "Man, are they just destroying the world of their new TV series with where they're going with this story???".

What I love about the Marvel universe is how each film builds upon the last.  It's smart from a branding position because you feel like you can't miss anything (though I have to admit I'm not big on the series - I'll check in now that I see how they cross-over.).  The series working how it does is almost like a huge budget TV series in a way - where you've for Scarlet Johanson playing support in several different films, building upon previous outings.  I love it.  I for one am super excited to see where this team takes us next.

1927 - What's Your Number?

Here's the pitch - it's about a woman whose been around the block and reads an article that essentially tells her if she sleeps with one more guy she'll end up alone - so she enlists the help of her equally slutty and handsome roommate to help track down her exes to see if what of them is it.  And is what follows predictable?  Absolutely.  Is it entertaining?  It is, actually - largely in part to Anna Faris and Chris Evans being delightful as per-usual.  There's also a really lovely marriage vow sequence between Faris' sister's character that really makes the film something meaningful and leaves it off with a really lovely little theme.
This film isn't the best thing since sliced bread, but it's a fun little comedy that doesn't waste your time and actually packs in a few laughs - not something I can say about most rom-coms.

1871 - Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

I've seen this film a few times, and I always think that distance will make me like it more - but I can't separate it from the books as much as I would like.  Here's the thing - I dig this film - I appreciate what a visual feast it is, I like the tone.  The cast is a who's who of a lot of my favourite actors.  My beef is the heart of it.  It's…. missing.  The big difference between this and the comic is that the comic takes place over the course of, I believe, two years.  This takes place in, maybe a week or so.  So the story is richer in the book and more about how hard it is to be in a relationship.  And I like Mary Elizabeth Winstead as an actor, but she plays Ramona Flowers as far too indifferent to make me invest in any way in the relationship.  

I'm absolutely sure that I'm too hard on this film, 'cause it's a shitload of fun - but there was a heart to the books that really spoke to me and my own experience with relationships - and mores than the awesome fights and quirk, that's what I wanted this film to nail.  Alas.  It's still a ball of fun, and a beautiful shout-out to Toronto.  If you haven't seen it you should just because there's almost nothing else like it.

1727 - The Avengers

I was getting pretty excited about this film the days leading up to its release.  I've been following all the lead-up and previous films.  I mean, it's a tremendous plan and very smart the way that Marvel has gone about building their universe.  You can only imagine what they'd be doing if they still retained the film rights to all of their characters.  It becomes slightly difficult to combine the reality-based world of Iron Man where regular people use machines to be super, and then something like Thor where it's something else entirely.  That said, I think this worked and the tones blended together nicely.  It's hard to juggle that many stories and characters, but Whedon does it and with grace and style.  Each character works very very well and builds on what we've seen before.  It's nice seeing Tony Stark comfortable with Pepper Potts, and cracking wise on the side.  It's awesome to watch Captain America turn into an actual leader of his dysfunctional group.  It could be that Hulk was my favorite of the whole bunch though.  I loved Ruffalo as Bruce Banner, but I thought that the choices they made with Hulk were inspired. Lots of great stuff there (although his shift wasn't well explained...)
If I have a complaint it's that I felt like waaaay too much time was spent on that ship in the sky.  I swear we spent well over half the film in that location and it made the film feel a bit small because of it.  I don't envy the Marvel team as they go back to the stand-alone films to lead up to an Avengers sequel.  Once you've put the bar so high, how do you do a stand-alone justice?  And how do you explain why these guys (or some of them) aren't just always helping the others out?
Of all the solo films coming up, the one I'm hoping for most is a Hulk film starring Ruffalo.  I'd line up for that one.

1715 - Captain America: The First Avenger

I had to finally see this before Avengers launches into theatres in a few weeks.  I'm not sure why I missed this when it first came out.  It's a fun adventure flick and it hits all the right notes.  As much as it's a superhero film, it never felt like it was gimmicky or shlock - which it easily could have been.  I like how it lampooned the iconic image a bit.  I love how this one, more than any of the other Marvel Studios films, felt really integrated into the rest of that world. 
I guess my only thought on this is I'm not sure what a sequel to this film would be… It's hard to think of a better foe for him than Red Skull - the next logical step is The Avengers, but how do you continue the franchise after that… will be interesting to see what they've got up their sleeves. 
So far I've been pretty impressed by the lead up to the Avengers with this, Thor, and the Iron Man films (does the latest Hulk film count?  Is that just a re-casting - or are they rethinking the backstory as well?).  I'll do my best to be there opening weekend.  The comic nerd in me is kind of excited.