Why ‘Deadpool’ is the ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ of this generation

I’m sure you can tell by now that I’ve gotten back on a kick for this movie since I got in on DVD. And it’s nice to take a break from Star Wars for a while. For some reason, it actually has a lot in common with one of my favorite childhood films: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Not the stupid Michael Bay one, but the original from 1990 — which was also kinda stupid, but I love it anyway. But since we can’t have a good Ninja Turtles movie this generation, we’ll have to settle for the Merc with the Mouth instead. So here are my reasons for why Deadpool and TMNT have more in common than you’d think:

#1. Takes place in New York City

I guess that’s not that unique for a comic book film. So does the Spiderman and Avengers movies I believe. But it is a fun coincidence.

#2. Main character(s) transformed by unnatural means

Deadpool is tortured, which triggers his mutation, and the Turtles are transformed by radioactive ooze. Again, standard comic book fare, but this is an exhaustive list.

#3. Pop culture references

Deadpool talks about everything from Batman and Robin to how Liam Neeson might be a bad father in Taken, and the Turtles reference everything from Jose Canseco to Vanna White.

#4. Exists to parody other comic characters

Both Deadpool and TMNT are tongue-in-cheek parodies of famous comic book characters. Deadpool started as a send up of Deathstroke, and the Turtles were just meant to be as bizarre as possible. And yet, both actually managed to become more popular than the things they were spoofing.

#5. Not afraid of swearing

While Ninja Turtles can be still considered a kid’s movie, it actually contains a fair amount of language. Notably the word ‘damn,’ which is said at least three times. For me as a kid, this actually made it seem a tad edgy. Not that I wasn’t used to seeing it in movies, but it just didn’t seem as likely I’d see it there. It would be like hearing cursing from Winnie the Pooh.

And Deadpool is… yeah…

#6. An awesome rap song

#7. Awesome fight scenes

Sure, TMNT is a little less gruesome, but you still have to give them credit for doing some good choreography. Those giant suits can’t have been easy to move around in.

#8. More faithful to the comics than most films

Of course, there’s always going to be a few changes. But by and large, what we got from both movies is pretty close in tone, style, and story of the comics. Though TMNT was also influenced by the cartoon show,. and Deadpool has several different origins in the comics. But I’m just saying, comparatively speaking, it’s a lot closer than even The Dark Knight.

#9. Broke box office records

At the time of its release, TMNT was actually the highest grossing independent film of all time. And Deadpool is now the highest grossing R rated film of all time. Suck it, Jesus.

And lastly…

#10. Nobody wanted to make it

It’s insane, but studios were too scared of both of these properties, despite each of them spawning lucrative merchandising empires. They were sitting on a gold mine for so many years. It took Ryan Reynolds leaking the test footage to get Fox to give them the money, and even when they did, it was only $50 million.  TMNT was made on a shoestring as well.

So that’s all I can think of. Let me know if you think I missed anything.

Why ‘Deadpool’ is Better Than ‘The Dark Knight’

Maybe it’s not really fair to compare these two films. After all, they are completely different kinds of movies. Aside from the fact that they’re both about superheroes (using the term loosely as one is a vigilante with no powers and the other is an anti-hero), they don’t have that much in common. Both are well executed and are effective for what they’re trying to accomplish.

But… ah fuck it. It’s my blog and I can do what I want. I don’t have any dislike towards TDK (though I do think it might be a tad overrated), I just happen to think Deadpool is a better overall film.

Of course, I have to remind you all this is just my opinion. It’s all subjective. So if you think the other movie is better for the exact reasons I’m saying, you’re right too.

And the reasons are:

#1. Keeps the focus on the hero

Let’s be real, if you took the Joker out of TDK, nobody would care that much about it, and it would be Batman Begins. It’s Ledger’s movie through and through. I don’t think most people even remember the plot. And yes, Ledger gave a stellar performance.

But here’s the problem: For a movie about Batman, the worst executed element easily was… BATMAN!

All due respect to Christian Bale, who is a good actor, this movie was not his finest hour (which of course goes to Newsies). His performance isn’t bad  — aside from the lung cancer — it’s just his character isn’t really the focus of the movie. He’s so far overshadowed by Ledger that he almost disappears. Batman is just another pawn in this convoluted plot that Nolan is spinning.

However, Deadpool is about Deadpool. He’s in almost every scene of the movie. I say this is better because it’s way more difficult to achieve. The hero is often the least interesting character in the movie. It’s easy to make The Joker interesting. It’s hard to make Batman interesting, and even harder to make Bruce Wayne interesting. And I don’t think Nolan succeeded — partly because I don’t think he was trying.

You might think a guy who breaks the 4th wall and spews pop culture references would be easy too, but not for a two hour movie. The schtick can get old really fast. For a few people, it did, but by and large the audience seemed to accept it. They knew exactly how to balance the comedy with drama, so you really care about what’s happening. It’s similar to the genie in Aladdin — most people remember the jokes, but it wouldn’t work without those emotional scenes. Since Deadpool had a harder task to pull off, and pulled it off, that makes it better.

#2. The action and violence

While the action in TDK is good, DP really stepped it up a notch. Why? Because it was R rated. And the R rating allowed them to go all out and really show people getting hurt. I’ve talked before about my problems with the lack of violence in movies, but the short version is that what was once PG is now considered R. When you tone the violence down too much, it starts to feel like there’s no consequences for what’s happening.

That said TDK does better than most PG-13 films, and indeed straddles the line very well. I bet this film was just on the line of being R, and they had to negotiate with the MPAA to get it taken down to PG-13.

But because Deadpool had no fear of the R rating, they had total liberty. There’s no feeling of restraint. It’s just pure, unadulterated brutality. I know I may sound like a sadist, but I just think the happy ending doesn’t mean as much without the pain. The lower the lows, the higher the highs. Those torture scenes are hard to watch, but they add so much to the catharsis of the film.

Add to this, I just like the way the scenes are choreographed more in DP. You get the sense that “realism” was the number one priority for Nolan. He really wants this to feel like real people doing real things that are subject to real world physics.

I guess it ultimately comes down to taste, but I’m not really the kind of person who needs my superheroes to be that realistic. Sure, I want them to feel like they have weight, and the things they do to have consequences, but I also want to see people doing things you can’t do in real life. That’s what makes movies fun. DP is heightened. It exists in a world that is not our own. Deadpool knows he’s a fictional character, and his movie knows it’s a movie and plays with the medium of film expertly.

#3. It’s funny as hell

The only real humor in TDK comes from the darkly comedic moments with the Joker. Other than that, everyone is always frowning in this movie. It’s a little depressing. I guess that’s why I’ll always Burton’s version a little more. It still had humor even though it was dark. And I guess you can’t blame them, after both Adam West and Schumacher, Batman’s camp factor was over 9000.

But Deadpool embraced its own silliness. It wasn’t afraid to be dumb. Deadpool is the character that constantly has to remind people that superheroes are kind of stupid. They’re fun, and we love them, but they’re still really silly and not worth being taken as seriously as a religion. And I love it for that.

#4. A love story that works

Do you really care about the love triangle between Rachel Dawes, Bruce, and Harvey Dent?

No. You don’t. If you say you do, you’re lying. When she died, I didn’t give a crap. But when Vanessa was in trouble, I did. In fact, the love story in DP is better than most love stories in all movies. In a world of Edward and Bellas, be Wade and Vanessa.

#5. No pointless subplots

Everything in Deadpool is there to serve the story that they’re telling, and in comic book movies today, that’s getting pretty rare (looking at you, BvS).

The most pointless aspect of TDK is having Two Face and the Joker. We don’t need two antagonists. It completely pulls the focus away from the story we’re telling. Everything in DP was totally focused on telling a good story, not dropping in set ups for future movies. Sure, there were a ton of easter eggs for the fans, but they don’t pull anything away from the story we’re telling. Two Face in this movie was entirely pointless. Should’ve saved that for the third movie.

I’ve heard people complain that Ajax was boring, but I don’t see it. He was menacing and threatening enough to be effective, but not enough to pull the focus away from out hero.

Conclusion

None of this is to say The Dark Knight isn’t well done. I like them both, I just happen to like one a little more.

Until next time!

Why Rey is Not a Mary Sue PART II

In my last post, I  explored the idea of what a Mary Sue is, and how it really doesn’t seem to match up with what we see for Rey other than on the most basic, superficial levels. In the conclusion, I asked if she was simply overpowered. While I basically implied that it’s all a matter of taste what can be deemed plausible — and I very much believe it still is a matter of taste — I also believe that everything we see her do in the film is totally justified by things that have already been established within the universe. So, for people who have to have everything make sense, this post is for you.

DISCLAIMER: I will be using some material that is now considered non-canon as evidence, but it was canon for many years, including under Lucas’ reign. So I’m counting it.

#1. How does Rey fight so well on Jakku?

Simple. She’s lived there for at least a decade, and every single day of her life has had to fend off people who wish to do her harm. Thus, she would have gotten very good at fighting. Claiming this is implausible is like claiming that Kyle Reese from Terminator shouldn’t be able to do the things he does. He’s a soldier from a post-apocalyptic future where every day is spent fighting cyborgs — I think he’d know a thing or two. So it is with Rey.

#2. How does Rey pilot the Millennium Falcon so well?

First, she really isn’t that great at it. She does okay, but she ain’t no Poe Dameron.

Second, in the film, she says, “I’ve flown some ships, but never left the planet.”

Third, in the novel Before the Awakening, it says the Rey spent a lot of her time on the planet finding old ships and figuring out how to repair them. Thus, she has extensive knowledge of how ships work and, obviously, how to fly them. It’s also revealed that Rey came across a Y-Wing that allowed her to play various flight simulators — including Corellians (like the Falcon) — and study other languages, including that of Wookies. This would certainly be useful for dealing with many different kinds of aliens, and explains why she understands Chewie later on in the movie.

I know it seems a bit unfair to have to resort to extraneous material, but at the same time, a film can only do so much explaining. Even without this back story, we still get sense that Rey has a lot of experience even if we don’t know exactly what it is. The first twenty minutes we’re with her is her inside broken ships, so if you can’t figure out she knows a thing or two about them and how they work enough to fly one, you have very poor reasoning skills.

Let’s also keep in mind, Luke’s only qualification for flying an X-Wing was “bullseyeing wamp rats in his T16 back home.” That’s like saying, “I can use Excel, therefore I can hack the FBI.” No, that’s not how anything works.

#3. How does she do the mind trick? Only a trained Jedi can do that!

Actually, no. Here are a few examples of non-Jedi using a mind trick (source).

– Pilot BoShek [not a jedi] used a mind trick, along with residue from the same action by Obi-Wan to escape from four stormtroopers after “borrowing” a landspeeder.

– In 6 ABY, Corran Horn [not a jedi] unknowingly used the mind trick to hide from Stormtroopers during his escape from Lusankya.

– In 12 ABY, Kyle Katarn [was a Jedi, but was entirely self-taught] used the mind trick to get an Ugnaught worker to open a door for him and an Imperial officer to unlock a door.

Okay, so a guy who’s not a Jedi did it (with help from Obi-Wan admittedly), and another guy did it without even doing it on purpose, and another guy apparently taught himself how to do it.

But Rey, someone who clearly has a lot of Force potential, can’t?

I will say these appearances are now not canon, but they do establish precedent that a non-Jedi, or someone not trained by others, can do it. I was always under the impression anyone who has the force can do anything with the force. It’s just the degree to which you are in tune with it. Some are there from birth, like Rey and Anakin, and some take more time, like Luke and Leia. So the degree of difficulty varies from person to person. I don’t see why this is so implausible. Look at all the awesome musicians out there who never had one lesson. Besides, how did the first person to ever do it, do so without being taught? Logic dictates he figured it out on his own.

Thus, Rey doing the mind trick is not outside of what’s established in the universe.

#4. But how did she know what a mind trick even was?

Given that she’s aware of Luke Skywalker — though believing him to be myth — it makes sense that she would have heard various stories about what the Jedi were capable of, including mind tricks. Thus, once she is made aware of her own force potential, she figures it might be worth a shot. If they can do it, she can maybe do it.

Not to mention, the previous scene was Kylo Ren using the force to go inside her mind, which she resisted and went into his mind. It wouldn’t be that hard to put two and two together in that circumstance.

This answer also accounts for how she knew to use the force the call the lightsaber to her in the snow.

#5. How does she fight Kylo Ren so well?

First, she really didn’t do that well. Most of the fight is her just trying to get away, and she really only does anything bad ass at the end.

Second, in the previous scene, Kylo Ren was shot by Chewie, leaving him severely wounded and forcing him to focus most of his energy on staying conscious, and thus couldn’t use the force to predict her moves as well as he maybe could have if at full strength. Also, and this is only speculation and not fact, I wonder if he didn’t want to kill her. Either because of familial ties, or simply to bring her to Snoke, he may have pulled his punches.

Third, as I said before, she only does something bad ass at the end. And this is when she closes her eyes and lets the force take control of her. This is reminiscent of the scene in A New Hope when Luke is training with Ben and blocks three shots without being able to see. And later destroys the Death Star simply by “feelings.” Thus, we’ve seen previously that the force doesn’t really work like leveling up in a video game before you can do certain things. It’s more spiritual and mental. It controls your actions and obeys your commands. I’m sure the Jedi do train with lightsabers in formal combat like martial arts, but given Rey already has a handle on combat from her years on Jakku, all she really needed was that slight edge that the force could give her. And once she lands one critical blow, Kylo was so weakened from his injury he basically gives up.

Thus, I see no real problems with how this fight went down. For something like Star Wars, that requires a healthy dose of suspension of disbelief anyway, I don’t see this as asking too much — not any more than a farmboy flying a ship he has no experience with and making a shot that professional pilots couldn’t make, or an 8 year old taking part in a sport no other human can and winning. You can argue the plausibility if you want, but using the other movies as a higher standard is where your argument falls apart.

Conclusion

I’ve seen some ask the question, that if she can do all this now, where else does she have to go?

Well, the short answer is… I don’t know because I’m not Rian Johnson or an exec at Lucasfilm or someone in the cast of Episode VIII.

But I feel this is a bit of a silly complaint anyway. It’s like asking where does Batman have to go after Batman Begins? Or Michael Corleone after Godfather I? Or Ripley after Alien? Or Sarah Conner after Terminator? All of these movies were perfectly self-contained with complete arcs for their characters, yet they also spawned what most consider superior sequels. So I ain’t worried. I’m sure Rey will have tons of new and awesome challenges awaiting her.

Why Rey is Not a Mary Sue

Oh, hey guys. Since I’m tired of all the brainless morons on the internet saying this movie is terrible, I’ve decided to do a little post and explain to you all how stupid you are.

If you can’t tell, I loved this movie. No, it’s not perfect, but nothing is. It was still a very enjoyable and fun movie to watch, filled with all the things I loved about the original movies.

But, as with anything that gets super popular, all the basement-dwellers have to come out of the woodwork and claim that it actually sucks and everyone else is stupid for liking it. So this review is mostly for you.

Chief among the complaints are the main character, Rey, being a “Mary Sue.” I happen to think this is utter nonsense, and very easily disproved.

There are many reasons for this, but chief among them is the fact that literally nobody knows what a Mary Sue actually is. The definition of the trope is so subjective that it becomes almost useless.

Add to this, there are a million different variations of the term. Here are some copied from the TV Tropes page:

• Anti-Sue — I’m genuinely useless, but everybody still loves me!

• Black Hole Sue — Everything is about me!

• Copy Cat Sue — I’m just like my favorite character, but even kewler!

• Fixer Sue — No, that’s not how it’s supposed to go!

• God-Mode Sue — Power overwhelming!

• Jerk Sue — I’m a complete and utter bitch and I have constant PMS…love me!

• Mary Tzu —I knew you would do that. In fact, I knew you would do that before I even met you, cuz I’m JUST THAT GOOD!

• Parody Sue — Why don’t they fall for my buxom charms

• Possession Sue — My favourite character is an even better version of me!

• Purity Sue — Love me!

• Relationship Sue — You’re my boyfriend now!

• Sympathetic Sue — Feel sorry for me!

• Thirty Sue Pileup — We are Legion.

• Villain Sue — I have you now, my beautiful slaves! Ahahahahahahaha!

For every one of these, I could give you a character well known, and liked, in fiction that applies to them. The term has lost all meaning because it has no concrete definition. Even a flaw doesn’t even seem to negate Sue-ness in some people’s minds.

But whatever, there is a pretty common list of traits that most people bring up when talking about a Mary Sue. Usually, in order for a character to be a Mary Sue, they must fulfill these requirements:

#1. Be a self-insert for the author (not the audience)

This is pretty damn easy to debunk. Rey is clearly not a self-insert for either Lawrence Kasdan or J.J. Abrams, because neither of them are British teenage girls or desire to be — I’m assuming.

There’s a big difference between a character being an insert for the author, and one that is an insert for the audience. Rey falls in the latter and not the former category. She is the one we experience the story through. But that’s not a Mary Sue; that’s just a protagonist.

Here are some other characters that fulfill the exact same roll:

• Indiana Jones

• Katniss Evergreen

• Max Rockatansky

• Harry Potter

• James Bond

• Neo

• Marty McFly

• Alice

• Dorothy Gale

• Frodo Baggins

• John MacLane

• Daniel LaRusso

• James T. Kirk

• Ferris Bueller

I could keep going, but I think you get it.

I cannot stress this enough, the appeal of something like Star Wars is vicarious entertainment. We watch it because we want to live out our fantasies of fighting the bad guys and saving the day. It’s not meant to be enjoyed on the same level as something like The Godfather or Citizen Kane.

Yes, the films do touch on heavy themes and character drama, but at the end of the day Star Wars is made to be wish-fulfillment for its audience. Rey might be wish-fulfillment for Abrams and Kasdan as audience members as well, but that just shows that they understand what makes these movies enjoyable. Being an insert for the audience does not make a character bad. Rey was clearly made for the young and young at heart in the audience to project themselves into, and she fulfills that role perfectly.

#2. Have no arc or change throughout the course of the story

This one is also easy to debunk. In order for a character to have an arc, they must do something at the end of the story that they would have never done at the beginning.

In Raiders of the Lost Ark, at the beginning Indy says, “I don’t believe in any superstitious hocus pocus.” But at the end, by finally realizing and respecting that the ark is, indeed, supernatural, Indy completes his arc (no pun intended), going from non-believer to believer.

In Pirates of the Caribbean, Will Turner frees Jack Sparrow from being hanged — something he would have never done at the beginning.

In Fight Club, the main character shoots himself in the face, thus destroying Tyler Durden.

Now, there are plenty of good characters who don’t really change over the course of the story, like Ferris Bueller and Marty McFly. But generally speaking, it’s usually considered more interesting when a character does have an arc.

So what is Rey’s arc?

At the beginning of the movie, we see that she’s a scavenger who makes her living by salvaging parts from old space ships. She’s just a nobody with absolutely nothing special about her. She doesn’t even believe that there is a thing called the force or that Luke Skywalker existed.

By showing her down on her luck and not in a good place, it elicits sympathy and makes us want to see her succeed. You can argue whether this is effective in the movie. For me it was, for some people it wasn’t. That’s fine. Not everyone is required to respond emotionally to the same things, but the makings of a good story are there.

Rey’s arc is about embracing her destiny and accepting that she is more than what she thought she was. It’s very similar to Neo’s arc in The Matrix. Through the whole movie, he’s convinced he’s not The One, and it’s not until the end that he full accepts and embraces it. After she touches the lightsaber and experiences her flashback, Maz says she has a destiny. But she outright rejects this and runs away instead. The obstacle she must overcome is giving up on her old life and accepting a new one.

Her arc becomes complete at the moment when Kylo has her over a cliff in the final sword battle. She then does something she would have never done at the start of the movie: She closes her eyes and simply lets the force take control of her actions. Because of this, she can defeat him.

This moment represents her final acceptance of her new life. It’s her realization that it is because of her strength in the force that has allowed her to come this far, not because she’s simply an unshakable badass. It’s not that she learns everything too quickly, it’s that she already had it inside her the whole time. She just had to realize it in order to take full advantage of it. Whether it’s due to prior training, or just talent, I can’t say. But you can’t say there was no evolution in her character.

This moment in the story is very similar to the scene when Luke is training with Ben and he tells Luke “Let go your conscious self, and act on instinct.” And later, Luke switches off his targeting computer and destroys the Death Star by using the force. Even Qui-Gon tells young Anakin, “Don’t think, feel. Use your instincts.”

We see this theme repeated over and over again throughout the Star Wars movies. The Jedi are heavily reliant on their feelings in order to attain peace and harmony with the force; the Sith use anger and hatred.

This leads us to my final point:

#3. Have no visible flaws

Rey’s overwhelming flaw is her excessive self-reliance and over-confidence. While this can be a good thing in certain circumstances, it’s been established very soundly in the Star Wars universe that the Jedi are to be at peace and in perfect balance — of which she is neither. She is rash, easily frustrated, and reckless. She does things impulsively and — even if it’s for a good cause — she doesn’t stop and think about what the consequences of her actions are.

Remember what Yoda said to Luke:

“You will know when you are calm, at peace. Passive. A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack.”

And…

“…a Jedi’s strength flows from the Force. But beware of the dark side. Anger, fear, aggression; the dark side of the Force are they. Easily they flow, quick to join you in a fight.”

In short, Rey may be a bad ass in a lot of ways, but she’s still a terrible Jedi. She lacks control, discipline, and temperance — most of the same things that Luke struggled with as well. We haven’t seen the full ramifications of it yet, but those flaws are certainly there.

In fact, taking A New Hope and Force Awakens as stand-alone films, Rey is much more developed and is more of a complete person. Luke’s defining characteristic was that he was whiny. Aside from that, he really didn’t have much of a character. He was just your typical, bland every-man. Which is fine, and served its purpose in the story very well. And I’ll say the same about Rey. No, we didn’t get the full spectrum that we got with Luke, but we haven’t had the whole trilogy yet. This is just part one. What we got was fine for that one story and then it’ll be embellished later on. I didn’t think serialized storytelling was that hard to comprehend.

Conclusion

Is Rey simply over-powered? I don’t believe so, personally. But the idea of being “over-powered” is a tad subjective, isn’t it? How can we definitively say a character is over-powered?

If you step back and look at most characters in these kinds of movies, all of them would be dead under real life circumstances. How does Aragorn fight a hundred orcs single-handedly and come out without a scratch? How does Indiana Jones not have a horribly deformed face from being punched all the time? How does any character in Harry Potter not manage to kill themselves by misusing magic?

I guess my point is: Where is it fair to draw the line at what is plausible and what isn’t?

I think it’s important to remember that Star Wars is essentially a fairy tale. Just like The Wizard of Oz or Snow White, it really isn’t something that’s motivated by logic, so much as it is emotion.

Does it really make sense that Dorothy could kill the witch just by dumping some water on her? How does she never get any water on her before that? Why would there be a bucket just lying around if that’s what can kill her?

The reason it works is because we want the story to go there. We’ve invested in Dorothy and we want to see her win. The ending is emotionally satisfying enough, so we don’t really question it — or at least, we don’t say it sucks just because it makes no sense.

I don’t see what makes Rey any different. I cheer at her triumphs because I wanted to see her win, because the movie made me care about her and want to see her succeed. If you didn’t find yourself capable of doing the same, that’s okay, but it doesn’t make her a Mary Sue.

PART 2!