I came across this article about the Superhero memorabilia displayed at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. Here’s a summary describing that you can vote for your favorite super-powers (on-line or at the museum).

Superheroes: A SuperPOWered Spring Break at the World’s Largest Children’s Museum

The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis is pairing superpowered heroes from pop culture, literature, myth, and legend to create an ultimate superpower showdown this spring break. Your vote decides whose superpower should make it to the final round; Batman®, Spider-Man®, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles®, Hercules, Ravana and Eagle Kachina are just a few of the options.

The article goes on to mention some of the items on display such as the original Batman’s cape (as well as the Batman costume worn by Christian Bale in The Dark Knight Rises).  They also have items from Superman, G.I. Joe, Transformers, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles just to name a few.

They have quite a few Superhero related events. For example, on March 23, 2013 Downtown Comics will be giving out free comic books (starts at 10am while supplies last).

You can read the article by clicking here, “Superheroes: A SuperPOWered Spring Break at the World’s Largest Children’s Museum” , or you can directly to their website at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.

Branded has been called a science fiction thriller however I disagree with that description. It is more of a fantasy film with a powerful social message. That may not sound as appealing but my initial disappointment was that the movie was absolutely not what I was expecting based on the commentary on the box.

The cast includes Ed Stoppard, Leelee Sobieski, Jeffrey Tambour and Max Von Sydow. They all play their parts well. The story starts out a little slow and there’s a little too much monologue that could have been portrayed better with more acting scenes.

We are taken through the life of a Russian man (played by Stoppard) and how he gets a start in his career in marketing. He can see the power of the marketing industry and how it can be abused. He finally gets what he thinks is his big break.

Unknown to our hero there is a marketing guru using his power to change the world for worse and his evil plans are about to involve our hero. The guru promotes fast food using under-handed tactics but it’s not until later that we see what he has really unleashed on the world.

This is where the story picks up the pace and becomes interesting in that it explores our world’s addiction to marketing. This is not an outright attack on capitalism as some have suggested but makes strong points about independent thinking and how people can be influenced by various mass-media. In fact, the hero eventually uses capitalism to fight the evils he sees.

It’s a well made film overall despite having a low-budget appearance but I’m sure that audiences will tend to like or dislike the movie depending on whether they agree with the movie’s message. It’s certainly something different from the usual big budget Hollywood-style movies and worth watching.

You can see the Movie Trailer for Branded below.

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Most of the Expendables team returns in The Expendables 2, including Sylvester Stallone as Barney Ross, Jason Statham as Lee Christmas, Dolph Lundgren as Gunner Jensen, Terry Crews as Hale Caesar, Randy Couture as Toll Road and Jet Li as Yin Yang. Mickey Rourke does not return but Liam Hemsworth joins the cast as Billy the Kid , the youngest member and a sniper.

As in the first movie Mr. Church (Bruce Willis) commissions Ross and the rest of his team for a mission. This time to retrieve an important item from a plane that crashed in Albania. This seems to be an easy pay-day so they take the job.

Jean-Claude Van Damme shows up as a gun dealer called Jean Vilain. This international criminal also has an interest in the property that Ross was sent to retrieve. In the confrontation Vilain and his team kill one member of Ross’ team.

Arnold Schwarzenegger reprises his role as Trench but with a larger part in this movie. Also, Chuck Norris turns up as Booker aka “Lone Wolf”. So just as in the last movie we have a full-blown cast of action hero stars and this is a throw-back to the 1980’s style action flick.

Our review of the first Expendables movie was not very favorable but looking back it probably wasn’t all that bad. If you are fore-warned that this is something of a retro-80’s homage and if you’re okay with that then you’ll enjoy these movies for what they are.

If you’ve seen The Expendables then The Expendables 2 is pretty much more of the same.

Take a look at The Expendables 2 movie trailer below.

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Will Montgomery, played by Nicolas Cage, is a former thief. He is thrown into prison after it is proved that he is guilty of robbing $10 million from a bank. Eight years later, he is released. His first stop from prison is his estranged daughter. He would like to be the father that he should have been with her.

However, his old partner Vincent, played by Josh Lucas, won’t let him walk away just like that without him having a part of the loot. He fakes his death in order to be a free man. Now, he’s going after Will to get his share.

Unfortunately, Will burned the $10 million loot during his capture with the hope of hiding the evidence. Enraged, Vincent kidnaps Will’s daughter Alison (Sami Gayle). He locks her in the trunk of his taxi cab and demands a $10 million ransom for her release. Vincent gives Will a 12-hour deadline or his daughter will be history. Will is then forced to rob another bank in order to comply with his daughter’s kidnapper’s conditions.

Nicolas Cage manages to pull off several good action sequences in this film. But it is clearly seen in his physique that his youthfulness has left him. I can still remember him in the Ghost Rider. That film doesn’t have a great storyline but was good as far as action sequences are concerned.

The film is rather sluggish. If you’re expecting some edge-of-the-seat action while watching this one, you are not going to have it. There are just a few twists incorporated in the story with the stunts classified as good enough.

Although Nicolas Cage fans are probably going to enjoy this one, those who are not fans will very likely be a little disappointed. One can’t expect too much from the once dramatic actor now a struggling action hero in this film. I don’t want to be harsh but I’ve seen better Nicolas Cage films and way better action films than this one.

You can watch the Stolen movie trailer here.

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It’s Kind of a Funny Story is a light drama starring Keir Gilchrist as Craig, Thomas Mann as Aaron, Zoe Kravitz as Nia, Zach Galifianakis as Bobby, and Emma Roberts as Noelle. The story revolves around Craig, a 16-year-old student who contemplates suicide but ends up seeking help from Dr. Mahmoud, a part played by Aasif Mandvi.
Craig is admitted to the psychiatric ward and is mixed with other teenagers and adults. Dr. Mahmoud finds out that Craig’s issues are brought about by the stress he gets from school, his peers, and his dad who wants him to do well all the time. In the hospital, he meets other people with concerns more difficult than his own. He befriends them all and even becomes attracted to one in particular, Noelle.
However, Craig faces inner-conflict when Nia, his best friend Aaron’s girlfriend (whom he is also attracted to) visits him at the hospital one day. She tells him that she and Aaron are going through some difficulties and then tries to seduce him. At this point, Noelle and Craig had built a relationship but he seems to forget about her and accepts Nia’s advances.

This is a story of self-discovery and Craig must acknowledge his poor choices and change his ways in the process of getting better. Perhaps his success or failure will touch the lives of the others around him.

It’s Kind of Funny Story is a story about hope. Watching it will make you feel good right after. The story shows that even the most difficult problems have solutions, even if it means you have to stay in a psychiatric ward and spend time with people with similar problems.

You can view the movie trailer for It’s Kind of a Funny Story below…

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Meryl Streep stars in a romantic flick involving two married couples who are having a major relationship problem but denies it. Her husband Arnold is played by Tommy Lee Jones. He works as a partner in an accounting firm while Kay, who is Meryl Streep’s character, is a regular office employee.

Kay feels the tension in their marriage because even as couples, they don’t sleep in the same room anymore for years. To try to make things okay again, Kay consults with a marriage counselor and he suggests that the counseling be done in a Maine beach resort. Arnold is against making the trip but agrees to go anyway.

The story thickens as both Arnold and Kay, with the help of Dr. Bernie Feld played by Steve Carell, try to find the spark that drew them together in the first place. Under counseling, both were either awkward or resistant about the topics revolving romance, love, and sex. And as they try to force things to fall right into place, things seem to get worse.

Hope Springs is a romantic comedy dealing with the absence of intimacy in a marriage. It is unusual in that most romantic comedies are aimed at a much younger audience; however this movie portrays an older couple.

Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones are brilliant and the story is well written.

If you are younger and you still think that your parents kissing is “gross” then you might not enjoy this movie. More mature (by attitude not necessarily age) audiences will enjoy the insight into what is really important in life.

Take a look at the movie trailer for Hope Springs below.

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Alice, played by Milla Jovovich, is back with the Resident Evil movie series the fifth time. Resident Evil: Retribution is directed by Paul W.S. Anderson and is based on the horror video game series released by Capcom. The game carries on the story of its previous film installment, Resident Evil: Afterlife.

The film starts with the attack on the Arcadia freighter, the ship that Alice tried to escape from the Umbrella Corporation with. The attack against her and her companions were led by Jill Valentine, Alice’s former friend and ally, played by Sienna Guillory. Jill was brainwashed by the same people that Alice is now running away from.

Alice was captured but was able to escape her cell during a sudden power outage. But in order to get out of the base that is located in the underwater of the Arctic Circle, she has to go through the different simulation rooms and unite with a team of gunmen who will rescue her into safety. The Red Queen won’t have any of that happening, and so she tries to do everything to keep Alice and her comrades from getting away.

Resident Evil: Retribution is the same action-packed film that you can expect out of Alice, Jill Valentine, and the Red Queen. If you like gun fights, hand-to-hand combats, and a few dead zombies thrown in the mix, this film is going to be such an enjoyable watch. But if you’re looking for something far more original, new, and fresh, you’ll say that there are a few more movies that deserve watching.

However, movie-goers can’t be wrong. Resident Evil: Retribution is right now the highest grossing film franchise based on a video game. It’s certainly worth watching on a lazy afternoon.

You can see the Resident Evil: Retribution movie trailer here.

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Taken 2 is the sequel to the movie of the same title, with its main cast in tact. The film is lead by Liam Neeson and is joined by Maggie Grace and Famke Janssen on supporting roles. Liam Neeson plays Bryan Mills, an ex-CIA agent whose married life is currently in turmoil. In an attempt to rekindle his lost relationship with his wife, he invites her and their only daughter Kim, who is played by Maggie Grace, on a trip to Istanbul.

It is in Istanbul where the plot thickens. Bryan is hunted by the father of Marko, his daughter’s kidnapper on the first film. Bryan killed Marko by electrocution and that’s the reason why his father is seeking revenge. And just like in the previous film, the bad guys take someone to be their hostage. There’s a bit of a twist here but I don’t want to spoil the whole story.

Action sequences and chase scenes followed and Liam Neeson reverted into the big action hero that he was in the first movie. Neeson is already 60 years old, but in this film, he seems to be a lot younger. But when the two films are compared side by side, the first film is a lot better. Taken 2 failed to match the adrenalin level of the first Taken but it is nonetheless a good film for Liam Neeson. He matches the role real well, even managing to look more energetic than his age. Watch Taken 2 and be taken by Neeson all over again.

You can watch the Taken 2 movie trailer below…

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Here, Matt Damon stars in a romantic film with Scarlett Johansson. Matt Damon plays Benjamin Mee who is recently widowed and is still struggling with his loss. He tries to start his life over again by buying a new house – a very large one with a zoo at the back. Buying the house means taking over the zoo, which he is very reluctant to do at first.

That’s how he meets the zoo’s head keeper, Kelly. Kelly (Scarlett Johansson) must play the intermediary between the zoo workers and the new owner, Benjamin. Benjamin has two children to further complicate the story, especially Dylan, his 14-year old son played by Colin Ford who is against living with all the animals in the zoo in the first place.

We Bought a Zoo is such a fresh new take on telling a love story. Matt Damon is charming in this film, although he is mostly associated with action packed films. But now that he is into drama and romance films, he becomes yet another good candidate for a leading man. Scarlett Johansson, on the other hand, remains to be very pretty. She can make any man fall in love with her, despite her rugged looks and boyish get ups.

Overall, We Bought a Zoo is the perfect film for all broken hearted individuals who want to be inspired into letting go. This story is actually based on a true story. After watching, the audience will realize that moving on from a life-shattering loss is very much possible.

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The Dark Knight Rises continues the Batman legacy. This story carries on 8 years after Harvey Dent (Two Face) died. Commissioner James Gordon is at the verge of resigning from his post. Batman and Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) have become reclusive.

As you may have expected new characters are introduced into the story, with Catwoman/Selina Kyle joining the mix. Anne Hathaway does a great job in the role.

The plot in this newest Batman film concentrates on the fusion reactor project that Bruce Wayne discontinued. With Wayne Enterprises nearing bankruptcy, unscrupulous people are trying to take over the corporation. They manage to get the fusion reactor powered up and armed, threatening the whole of Gotham City to be reduced into a pile of ashes.

The Dark Knight Rises is a continuation of the previous film, something that Batman movies are not used to doing until this one. This film kind of takes us back to the journey of how Batman came to be just like in the first one.

Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, and Morgan Freeman rekindled their roles as Alfred, Commissioner Gordon, and Lucius Fox, respectively.

The main antagonist in this film however is not the Catwoman. She’s an anti-hero but not the villain. As a matter of fact, she remains a love interest for Batman.

The real villain here is Bane, played by Tom Hardy. Bane is a masked criminal who threatens to destroy all of Gotham. Bane is known from the comic books to be the villain that killed Batman though you’ll need to watch the movie to find out what happens in this story.

There is plenty of action and all the visual cinematography of the first 2 movies in the series. If you’re in the mood for more of the same action adventure then you’re going to enjoy this movie.

Take a look at The Dark Knight Rises movie trailer here.

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