Tuesday, July 25, 2017

From MadCap's Couch - "Castlevania" (Season 1)

A show review? I thought that would never happen again after Netflix took off Sliders and I became far, far less than inclined to ever review Supernatural ever again. But it seems that just when I think I'm out, Netflix drags me back in with a Netflix original Castlevania series. Based on Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse, but with an art style reminiscent of Symphony of the Night, my favorite game in the whole Castlevania series (that I've played)? I couldn't resist that, could I?

And now, four episodes later, I really, really wish I had.

Let me go ahead and get the things I like out of the way. The animation is phenomenal. It follows on from the art style of Symphony of the Night as I said before and it definitely shows. The voice acting is good. Beyond good, actually. Richard Armitage does a great voice for Trevor Belmont in particular, showing in the The Hobbit trilogy that he has the gravely voice that makes for an excellent vampire hunter.

And now...into some gripes.

The music is composed by Trevor Morris of Dragon Age: Inquisition fame and...none of it is memorable or indicative of Castlevania in any way. None of the music from the games is heard! At all! Though that may be because of the lack of truly awesome moments worth of epics like "Vampire Killer" or "Bloody Tears" as I'll get to in due course.

Another reason this is a full Season 1 review instead of the individual pieces? There are only four episodes as I mentioned above and they're all about twenty minutes a piece. It's bad when the Telltale Guardians of the Galaxy game I've reviewed the first two episodes of a few weeks ago have a greater length than four episodes of this. So, without further adieu...with spoilers to follow beyond this point.

Episode 1: "Witchbottle"
A young woman named Lisa is either brave or stupid enough to march into Dracula's castle in order to learn how to drop science. Sometime later, she's burned at the stake by the Catholic Church because we haven't seen enough of the Catholic Church being dicks in fiction.

Seriously, they've proven more than enough in reality that they aren't on the level. Let's make some new villains, screenwriters.

However, Dracula and Lisa were married and Dracula is understandably rather pissed about the fact that they burned his wife at the stake and...rather generously gives them a single year to leave the area or suffer a terrible fate. They don't, so he kills them all.

Or, if you don't want to read all that: The Catholic Church were dicks and Dracula did nothing wrong. Because, honestly, he didn't.

When Satan tells you to move or die, you move!

Episode 2: "Necropolis"
We are finally introduced to Trevor Belmont, a layabout drunk who runs around in clothing that bears his family crest. The Belmonts apparently having been exiled from Wallachia for reasons that don't exactly pan out because it's the Middle Ages and the Catholic Church are dicks.

Are you seeing a recurring theme here?

But this episode really highlights the main problem with the series as a whole - a lot of talking. A frankly outrageous amount of talking. I'm fully aware that exposition has to get out, but the show itself seems to be built up entirely around just getting out exposition.

The writer of Castlevania is Warren Ellis, who some of my readers will know for his comic book writing (particularly the "Extremis" storyline of Iron Man that was developed into Iron Man 3) and video game writing (Dead Space).  Was he just in a rush with this? If so, I find it hard to believe since this has been in development hell since around 2008.

C'mon, dude. You can do better than mountains and mountains of exposition. That would be like writing paragraph after paragraph of insane rants on an internet blog about geeky B.S. that nobody cares about! Who the hell would want to read that?!

But besides that first paragraph, the only actual thing that happens is Trevor getting to another town where he is given crap by the Church and given an ultimatum to leave, and meeting with a group called The Speakers after saving the Leader, eventually agreeing to enter the catacombs beneath the city to find their leader's granddaughter.

Episode 3: "Labyrinth"
Trevor enters the catacombs and finds a cyclops in what is literally the first Castlevania-esque moment since the first episode. It's a good fight and there had been a few action scenes before to solidify Trevor as a combat badass before, but this is literally the first one where he takes on a monster rather than another human.

Definitely have been getting a Castlevania: Colonial Marines vibe with all the human vs. human fights...

But yes, it's good even if it is surprisingly short. In slaying the cyclops, Trevor releases the Speakers' leader's granddaughter Sypha Belnades from being a stone statue for all eternity. And then, we descend into more talking about the Speakers and their missing "Lost Soldier" who is apparently the only one who will stop Dracula, before the Church starts to come down on the Speakers because of the lie that they're responsible for the plague of Dracula because witchcraft and not anything to do with Christian hypocrisy.

Once again. Anyone? Theme? Do you feel the anvil hitting your head yet?

Episode 4: "Monument"
And now we finally get to something even vaguely Castlevania related. It's here that the show actually shows that it could be something fantastic...and it's a fight between a bunch of townsfolk and demons after Trevor outs the Church for their part in Dracula's mass slaughter in Wallachia.

...at this point, I'll take what I can get.

And it's a good fight, using bits of Castlevania lore to their advantage such as the use of holy water and Sypha's magic. It's only after the fight that we get more and more into the games themselves as Trevor and Sypha have to navigate a deeper part of the catacombs in order to find the Lost Soldier...who is revealed to be Alucard, the son of Dracula and Lisa. What follows it a fantastically choreographed fight that shows Alucard to be a badass where it took Trevor four episodes...and I'm still not very convinced.

But in the end, yes, the three of them band together once Alucard is convinced of their intentions of killing Dracula. And...the season ends.

All that build up. All that exposition. All that distinctive lack of things Castlevania-y...and then it's over. Luckily, it has been renewed for a Second Season with eight episodes instead of just four, so we'll likely get more. Hopefully, they'll work on what has gone horribly not good for the first season as I've described here.

1. Cut down on the exposition. We don't need so much and we don't need to know everything right away and have it repeated over and over again.

2. More monster fights. We have all of two. And they're in the last episode. I don't know anyone who comes to Castlevania to see the Belmonts fight other humans.

3. MUSIC! I cannot stress what a big part of Castlevania that was completely left out of this and it's a major let-down. They were able to use the designs from Symphony of the Night and follow (for the most part) the story from Dracula's Curse, so why didn't the music make it in? Why? WHY?!

If you have Netflix and you want to get into it, go for it. Just be ready for more talking than there is actual monster hunting in a show that is based on a series of games that is literally all about monster hunting.

Castlevania is now on Netflix from Federator Studios, Powerhouse Animation Studios, and - of course - Netflix.

For the latest from the MadCapMunchkin, be sure to follow him on Twitter @MadCapMunchkin.

Monday, July 24, 2017

MadCap's Reel Thoughts - "Ladyhawke" (1985)

If you're a new reader of my blog or you're completely unaware of the fact, I'm a big fan of the sword and sorcery genre, be it in films, books, video games, or whatever else have you. I'm also a big fan of Eighties movies and the cheesiness inherent in most of them. This film, Ladyhawke, has a great deal of the later with very little of the former. Oh, it certainly shows that it's from the Eighties what with a very out of place soundtrack that uses synthesizers in what should be a Medieval European setting, but it isn't as if the characters suddenly run into the band playing their instruments during a sequence or anything of the sort.

Also, for a sword and sorcery story...there isn't much sorcery.

Let me unpack this a bit. The tale takes place in the Middle Ages in that one area of France where everyone somehow has British accents. A thief by the name of Philippe Gaston (Matthew Broderick) is breaking out of an impossible to escape from prison, pursued by some guardsmen sent after him by the dreaded Bishop (John Wood), Philippe finds himself saved by the uber-badass and possible ancestor of Miles Teg known as Etienne of Navarre (Rutger Hauer).

Both we and Philippe learn over the course of the story that Navarre was betrothed to a woman named Isabeau (Michelle Pfeffier).  However, Isabeau was of such beauty that all who looked upon her fell in love with her...even the Bishop. When he learned of their union, he seethed with anger and called upon the Devil himself to curse them both. For the rest of their days, they would be apart. During the day, Isabeau taking the form of a hawk and at night, Navarre becoming a wolf.

Always together, eternally apart.

And Philippe's part in the tale? As he escaped from the city, Navarre reasons that he can help him sneak into the city in order to kill the Bishop and break the shared curse. The best part? The film actually delivers entirely on its premise. More than that, it actually is able to craft a believable, complex, and tragic love story between two characters who share, all told, about five minutes of screentime combined.

That's right, Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfeffier share all of two scenes together, and it still works.

The film also, for the major plot point of the transformation between human and beast, doesn't have any scenes that show the transformations besides a single one that drives home the hopelessness of their existence and really helps to build on the romance subplot.

There is fantastic acting all around to help the believability as well. Rutger Hauer plays a total badass hardened warrior on a mission who will not be dissuaded. He is desperate to be free of his curse and to free his beloved from the same fate. There is a surprising amount of chemistry between him and Michelle Pfeffier for them only sharing two scenes together, which is a testament to the acting talent of both of them. It's an onscreen romance that works better than many I've seen in film or television. It's well developed, built upon in almost every scene with the plot being centered around it, and the two of them make it believable.

And then, of course, there's Matthew Broderick. He's absolutely phenomenal and Philippe is one of the funniest characters in all of fiction. Every single scene - and I mean it. Every. Single. Scene. - he's in, he steals it. Philippe's continuous struggle in trying to be good for the Lord (in monologues, no less) are an absolute stitch and he serves also as a silver-tongued messenger between Navarre and Isabeau during their switches in what are some genuinely heartwarming moments.

Really, the only critique I can give him is his slipping accent, but that's easy to look past. At least he's attempting to do an accent instead of pulling a Kevin Costner.

This film is magnificent and I would happily enjoy it again any time. It is the very height of excellence and, yes, by the end of this film, you will believe a lady can hawk.

...yes, Richard Donner directed this. It was either that or a "What a guy, Gaston!" joke. Be grateful.

Ladyhawke is brought to us by 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros.

For the latest from the MadCapMunchkin, be sure to follow him on Twitter @MadCapMunchkin.

Tuesday, July 11, 2017

MadCap At The Movies - "Spider-Man: Homecoming"


Spider-Cap!
Spider-Cap!
Does whatever a Spider-Cap does!

Flails his hands! Everywhere!
Sometimes wears,
Underwear!

Look out!
He's got some bad B.O.!!!

Spider-Man Homecoming is now in theaters from Marvel and Sony.

For the latest from the MadCapMunchkin, be sure to follow him on Twitter @MadCapMunchkin.