Movie Review: Avengers: Infinity War

Everything has led up to this moment.

For the past decade we've been treated to a historic cinematic superhero journey of epic proportions - starting with Robert Downey Jr. putting on his armored suit and becoming Iron Man; Chris Hemsworth lifting that mighty uru hammer Mjolnir as Thor and introducing us to the kingdom of Asgard; Chris Evans emerging as the finest Super Soldier hero the world has ever known and wielding the shield as Captain Americ; And inevitably the gathering of Earth's Mightiest Heroes together in one solid team-up film in "The Avengers" that literally opened the door to new possibilities. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has truly been quite the ride... And now it faces its ultimate test with the arrival of Thanos and his quest to gather the Infinity Stones in "Avengers: Infinity War".

In other words - this is THE film celebrating 10 YEARS of the MCU, as well as all the heroes we've come to know and follow with their respective storylines finally converging in this event that threatens the universe as we know it. Together with the rest of the world, we've all waited for ten long years for things to come together like this, and to see characters like Doctor Strange and the Guardians of the Galaxy interact with Iron Man, Spider-Man, and the rest of the Avengers is quite the spectacle. Years of patience and perseverance paid off, and Kevin Feige and his team from Marvel Studios deserve all the credit and accolades they get for making this entire thing possible.

After seeing the film a couple of times, I can honestly say that everything here will shake you to the core. We've been so used to our heroes coming out of any situation unscathed... But they've never faced a threat like Thanos - and he is very much an unstoppable force that will test our heroes AND the audience as well as you watch this two and a half hour flick directed by The Russo Brothers. Again, EVERYTHING has led up to this moment, and here is my review of "Avengers: Infinity War".

Naturally, this may contain SPOILERS, but "Thanos Demands Your Silence", so that's a fair warning and I will go light with the reveals.

Movie Review: Black Panther

Superhero films have become the norm in the Hollywood film industry this day and age, and that has much to do with the success of Marvel Studios' Marvel Cinematic Universe - which celebrates its tenth anniversary this year after beginning an ambitious and daring project of uniting several films together under one shared continuity. That began with 2008's "Iron Man", which bore fruit as Robert Downey Jr. took to the skies as the armored alter ego of Tony Stark and helped inspire the events that led to the assembly of the Avengers. Today the MCU is in the middle of "Phase Three", and this year will bring three more films that will add more stories and characters to the growing film dynasty of the Marvel Universe - including the long awaited solo movie of the fictional superhero known as the Black Panther - the identity of the protector and defender of the fictional African nation known as Wakanda.

Thanks to Marvel Philippines and Walt Disney Studios PH, I had the chance to see one of the most anticipated films for this new year a few days early before hitting theaters - which is on Valentine's Day in the Philippines! As a dedicated comic book collector and follower of the MCU, I've been looking forward to T'Challa's solo film for a long time - more so with the recent raving reviews brought about by critics and viewers alike who got to see early premieres and screenings c/o Marvel. Now that the movie is about to debut this week everywhere worldwide, I can honestly say without spoiling that this is a VERY DIFFERENT kind of superhero film - culturally significant for an African based superhero like this and transcending the basic premise of good versus evil as tradition and ideology clash in a battle for a nation and the future.