• Tag Archives Sam Liu
  • Canister X Movie Review #81: Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009)

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    Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009)
    Written by Stan Berkowitz
    Directed by Sam Liu
    Runtime 67 min.
    4.5 out of 5

    The Man of Steel has been framed for the murder of Metallo.

    Now on the public’s radar as a wanted man, Superman must team up with his greatest ally—and closest friend—Batman, to clear his name and show the public what really happened the night Metallo died. But before he can do that, he must survive an onslaught of superheroes and supervillains alike, all of whom have come to cash in on the bounty for his capture.

    Meanwhile, a giant kryptonite meteor is on a collision course for Earth, making things even worse for the Man of Steel who has no way to stop it, especially since the President of the United States, Lex Luthor, wants to destroy it himself with nuclear missiles.

    Will the Earth survive and will Superman restore his good name?

     

    This movie, based on the graphic novel by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness, Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, is a comic book fan’s dream come true. Not only does it feature all of comicdom’s two most popular icons, but also a super supporting cast consisting of Power Girl, Captain Atom, Major Force, Black Lightning, Starfire, Katana and a host of other familiar faces, including, but not limited to, Captain Cold, Mr. Freeze, Bane, Lady Shiva and a ton of others.

    The story is solid, simple, but enough to really showcase each character: Superman as the one who doesn’t kill; Batman as the disgruntled detective; Lex Luthor as the glory-seeking, power-mad President—it totally works. The pacing was bang on and not once was I bored. Even the humor was in-step with the rest of the movie and didn’t come across like jokes from left field. Case in point, the giant robot in the end would’ve come across as goofy had not an explanation been given for the way it looked.

    There was a good give-and-take between Batman and Superman in this flick, too, both in their banter with one another, their approach to doing things, and also in saving each other’s bacon. Sometimes it seems that whenever the two team up, it’s always Batman that saves Superman. It was awesome a balance was finally struck between who helps who and when.

    I’m a huge fan of Ed McGuinness’s rendition of Superman and to see that they mimicked that art style in this feature made this fanboy happy. His Superman is big and strong and powerful. His Batman is top notch, too, same with the other characters.

    Of course, having Superman voiced by Tim Daly and Batman voiced by Kevin Conroy only adds to it as these guys were the voice talent behind these characters on their respective animated series. I really wish they would’ve been used for all the animated movies, but sadly that’s not the case and, of course, there’re different behind-the-scenes reasons as to why that is. Regardless, each actor captures each character perfectly, their tone, inflections and presentation reflecting the hero they’re supposed to portray.

    Superman/Batman: Public Enemies was one of the early feature-length DC animated movies and still holds up to this day as a classic.

    Highly Recommended.


  • Canister X Movie Review #63: Planet Hulk (2010)

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    Planet Hulk (2010)
    Written by Greg Johnson
    Directed by Sam Liu
    Runtime 81 min.
    3 out of 5

    An ancient prophecy. An exiled hero. One battle after another.

    Hulk has been banished into space by the Illuminati. The reason? He’s simply too dangerous, too powerful and too unpredictable. Upon landing on the planet Sakaar, Hulk is taken captive and is forced to compete as a gladiator for the people’s entertainment. With no choice but to fight, Hulk must battle his way free, and not only for himself, but for an entire kingdom under the rule of an unpleasant emperor. Is Hulk the one foretold to come to usher in an era of peace?

     

    I don’t know, man. This flick wasn’t really my thing, to be honest. It was a kind of Star Wars meets superhero thing that, while kind of interesting, didn’t really thrill me as a superhero fan.

    But first, the pluses:

    Loads of action. Hulk is fighting people pretty much all the time in this movie, and not only simply fighting them, but having to struggle against those nearly as powerful as himself. You don’t often see him doing that.

    The sci-fi aspect was different and by having the story not take place on Earth, you got to see something that isn’t presented all too often in superhero flicks and/or cartoons.

    The minuses (for me):

    Hulk was the smart Hulk in this movie. Not the genius-level one, but he formed complete sentences, had genuine feelings, and wasn’t a big ball of rage like in Hulk vs. I’m a fan of the latter. I like the Hulk-smash Hulk. Not quite stupid, but certainly simple-minded, and an all-out force of meta-nature. Seeing him pretty much be a big green human wasn’t really my thing. I know others like that version of Hulk, which is fine, but I like the other one better.

    The pacing was slow as well, with flashbacks that seemed to bog it down versus add to it. I know why they had them, but they didn’t really add to the tale and those scenes could’ve been simply mentioned versus shown.

    Art’s subjective, but the cartooning style of this flick wasn’t up my alley. Whatever. It’s a minor point.

    Wish I could say more about it, but this Hulk outing didn’t grab me like The Incredible Hulk or Hulk vs.

    However, if you’re a Hulk fan, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it for that reason, and if you like the more intelligent Hulk, you’ll have a good time for sure.


  • Canister X Movie Review #49: Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (2010)

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    Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (2010)
    Written by Dwayne McDuffie
    Directed by Lauren Montgomery and Sam Liu
    Runtime 75 min.
    5 out of 5

    The superhero known as Lex Luthor travels from a parallel Earth to ours and summons the help of the Justice League to take on the Crime Syndicate, an evil version of the JLA from his own Earth. Agreeing to help him, the Justice League travels to Luthor’s Earth and takes on the Crime Syndicate, pitting the likes of Superman against Ultraman, Wonder Woman against Superwoman, the Flash against Johnny Quick, Green Lantern against Power Ring, Martian Manhunter against J’edd J’arkus, Hawkgirl against Angelique, and, soon enough, Batman against Owlman.

    In a true case of looking in a mirror darkly, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths is a super heroic and super villained thrill ride that gives you two Justice Leagues for the price of one!

     

    Such a simple premise but such a cool story. Why not have the JLA face themselves from an alternate reality? Who would win? If you’re fighting someone every bit as powerful as you are, would someone come out on top? What if they thought like you? Talk about playing with one’s shadow.

    There’s superpowers galore in this movie as each hero gets to take on their counterpart and show what they are fully capable of. More so, you get to see what our beloved JLA would be like had they taken other paths in life as the similarities and differences between them and the Crime Syndicate are explored.

    A bunch of other heroes make an appearance in this flick as well, guys like Aquaman, Black Canary, Red Tornado (a personal favorite), Firestorm (another favorite), and more. Kind of a throwback to Justice League Unlimited in that way.

    Don’t be fooled, though, as this movie is more than just a superhero/supervillain slugfest. It gets into the deeper issues, the big one being about choice. In the context of the movie, if every choice we make spawns an alternate reality where the alternate choice(s) was also made, do any of the choices we make ultimately matter?

    This movie is smart, interesting, and grabs you from the get-go. The action is top notch, the animation is ultra sweet, and if these direct-to-video DC Universe movies have proven anything, it’s that they know how to make a good Justice League flick. I can’t wait until they transfer that same know-how to a live action Justice League movie. Can you imagine how awesome that’ll be?

    Anyway, back to this one. This is such a good movie and is a must-have on any superhero fan’s movie shelf. You not only get DC Universe’s all-stars, but the all-stars of a parallel universe as well. Like I said above, definitely a two-for-one ticket and definitely worth checking out.


  • Canister X Movie Review #41: Hulk vs (2009)

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    Hulk vs (2009)
    Written by Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
    Directed by Frank Paur and Sam Liu
    Runtime 78 min.
    4.5 out of 5

    Two short films, one explosive movie!

     

    Hulk vs Wolverine: Logan (Wolverine) is called in to a small town that the Hulk just ravaged in an effort to track down the beast and stop him for good. However, once the two meet, they go head-to-head and battle to the finish. Different phases of the fight trigger certain flashbacks for Wolverine and he remembers bits and pieces of how he came to be and his history with Weapon X (who also shows up).

     

    This part of the movie is all-out-hey-bub-come-get-some craziness. Wolverine lets it rip and him and Hulk go at it like no one’s business, definitely making this segment the more exciting of the two in terms of action. I mean, Hulk really smashes and showcases his raw power and strength and, I’m telling you, there’s no holding back.

    Putting Wolverine up against Hulk was a smart move because here you got this guy who’s tough as nails, has a healing factor, and has an adamantium skeleton—and claws!—that make him near invincible. On the I-can-take-some-serious-damage level, Wolverine is right up there.

    I also appreciated how they had him slice into Hulk versus just having the two slug it out. Frankly, Wolverine’s punches against the Hulk wouldn’t him take him far, if anywhere at all. Have him start cutting the Hulk with his claws—and with them being adamantium, they can do that—now Hulk finds himself in some serious jeopardy if he’s not careful.

    Storywise, this one was the weaker of the two, but getting a brief overview of the Weapon X program and Wolverine’s creation is a plus for fans. Besides, Deadpool is in this and who doesn’t love that?

     

    Onto . . .

     

    Hulk vs Thor: Loki transports Hulk to Asgard while the city is no longer under Odin’s protection thanks to his annual Odinsleep. By separating Bruce Banner from the Hulk, Loki removes the restraint on the Hulk and unleashes the green beast against the unsuspecting Asgardians. Thor steps in to stop the Hulk from breaking in and destroying the city. The two battle it out in the realm eternal and only one can be the victor.

     

    Straight off, the storytelling of this one was much more complex than the Hulk vs Wolverine segment. I appreciated that and liked how Thor was dragged into this battle as opposed to him just trying to get back at Hulk for something or simply seeing who is the strongest.

    Sticking Hulk in the realm of Asgard as opposed to having the story take place on Earth changes things up for those of us not used to Hulk fighting in that kind of arena. Throw some complex emotions and Hulk’s inner turmoil into the mix by way of honing in on Bruce Banner, and you got a good Hulk story.

    This one focused more on Hulk in that regard whereas the other one seemed to focus more on Wolverine despite this movie titled as being Hulk-centric.

    The battles on Asgard were almost as good as the Hulk vs Wolverine ones, but not as awe-inspiring. I did like, however, Hulk going up against multiple opponents in this as he took on the Asgardians.

     

    The movie as a whole—I wish they’d do a live action version or something similar if they ever do a follow up to The Incredible Hulk. To have Hulk not just have the army on his tail but also other powerful superheroes would make for an exciting flick.

    You never know.

    Hulk smash!