Dispatches from the Popcorn Stadium: Captain America: the Winter Soldier

Somehow, a miracle has happened and I have seen a movie and written a review for it a semi-timely manner. I actually had the pleasure of viewing Captain America: the Winter Soldier in theaters on Friday. I knew I'd probably procrastinate in writing this review so I actually wrote down my major talking points on a piece of paper. Score one for organization!

Marvel Studios/Screenrant.com

The second installment of the Captain America movie franchise certainly delivered on the hype generated from the trailers. As opposed to being a true superhero movie where the action is focused on Captain America kicking ass in the name of Freedom in all his costumed glory, the film felt more like a spy thriller. Steve Rogers, the man out of time himself, finds himself working for S.H.I.E.L.D. (the security force behind the Avenger's Initiative, headed by Director Nick Fury) and questioning his place in this new generation of military involvement. The movie has a darker tone overall to what we're used to with the Marvel Movie-verse experience, in large part due to the fact that a good portion of the film lends itself to uncovering plots and motives.

Dispatches from the Popcorn Stadium: Thor: The Dark World (EDITEDx2)

PREEMPTIVE EDIT: I fixed Tom Bombadil's name, so don't fret you Bombadiliacs. Just be glad I didn't cut his part out entirely.
I'VE BEEN MAKING AN ASS OF MYSELF EDIT: I should have been paying more attention to getting the correct title for the movie. Interesting enough, I did get it right the last time I referred to the movie's full title.

The big move studios are in the middle of a period of transition, one that we haven't seen since the death of the old studio systems in the late 60s and early 70s. The implosion of the DVD market, thanks mostly to the proliferation of Netflix and other streaming services, has left the large companies that own them looking for the next viable business model. For right now, this appears to be chasing the markets abroad. This international focus can be thanked for plenty of the ills of movies today, especially the emphasis of recycling of plots and franchises over developing new stories. Remember this when you watch the fourth reboot of Spiderman in 2019, the six part Adventures of Tom Bombadil series in 2021-2026, and the four hour, $1 billion dollar movie based upon "Hungry, Hungry Hippos" in 2022*.