Animation technology has changed massively since 2004 and the new edition looks great, with far more detail in the backgrounds, the character’s details are also enhanced. Bob Parr AKA Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) is even sporting a five o’clock shadow. This expansion of detail was achieved without losing any of the original’s comic charm or colour palette.

Adding quite a large number of new characters was also handled with aplomb. The story focus is on the Parr family and the difficulties of everyday life and dealing with super powers, both established and emerging. The real break out star this time out is baby Jack-Jack (Eli Fucile) and his actions are hilarious and steer the proceedings strongly into the comedy zone.

Waiting over a decade and resuming the story right where it left off all those years ago might have been seen as a risk in some quarters but Pixar has produced one of their strongest works in years. The mix of kids level humour, adult sub-text and out right fun is a winning combination.

Rob Hudson
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Their mission is derailed, however, when a new villain emerges with a brilliant and dangerous plot that threatens everything. But the Parrs don’t shy away from a challenge, especially with Frozone (voice of Samuel L. Jackson) by their side. That’s what makes this family so Incredible.

Written and directed by Brad Bird (“Iron Giant,” “The Incredibles,” “Ratatouille”) and produced by John Walker (“The Incredibles,” “Tomorrowland”) and Nicole Grindle (“Sanjay’s Super Team” short, “Toy Story 3” associate producer), Disney•Pixar’s “Incredibles 2” busts into cinemas on June 14, 2018.
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When Emily contracts a mysterious illness, Kumail must navigate the crisis with her parents and the emotional tug-of-war between his family and his heart.

THE BIG SICK is directed by Michael Showalter and stars Kumail Nanjiani, Zoe Kazan, Ray Romano and Holly Hunter.

THE BIG SICK releases in Australian cinemas on August 3, 2017.
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With Batman versus Superman, however, it’s not quite so easy to see the conflict as they are both clearly on the ‘hero’ side of the equation. But director, Zack Snyder, does a reasonable job of pulling this together by tapping into a problem that many viewers had with his prior film, Man of Steel.

Batman, like many of us, heavily resents the heavy public toll resulting from Superman’s urban clash with General Zod. This is understandable but when Batman determines to kill Superman in response, whoah, that’s a whole different level again and Snyder never quite convinces why two honourable superheroes would wish to assassinate each other. Not even a zero tolerant Megacity judge with a penchant for police brutality went there!

In contrast with popular opinion, it seems, I quite like what Snyder is attempting with the Superman tale. It’s a fascinating prospect to put this extra terrestrial Man of Steel into a contemporary setting and look at how, in all likelihood, the public would react to an alien with almost limitless power. In messianic fashion, some would surely revere this figure, but the bulk would treat him with suspicion and fear of what he could do to us were he to turn ‘rogue’.

This is very close to the line Christopher Nolan took with his Batman films, of course, (and it’s notable that Nolan is a producer of Snyder’s Superman films) but Snyder is not the storyteller that Nolan is and the result is a Superman film that is grubbier than even Nolan’s Batman. Indeed, Snyder’s rendering of the Batfleck is just plain nasty and psychotic as he steamrolls through Gotham, branding criminals with his hot iron knuckle batdusters. Snyder has taken Nolan’s balanced grubbiness – and Watchmen-ified it. Substitute Superman for Mr Manhattan and Batman for Rorschach and you pretty much have it.

But while this tone may be passable in Gotham, it sits a little less comfortably with Metropolis. Superman is a messiah figure and dragging him through a Gotham-like quagmire of corruption and dishonour besmirches his brand to its detriment. It’s an uneasy and uncomfortable mix for our Kryptonian white knight and Snyder only narrowly gets away with it.

On the whole, I quite like Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice, (I even saw it twice) but I like it more for the ideas that Snyder is attempting to relate rather than his success in reaching that goal.

Stuart Jamieson
www.batmanvsuperman.dccomics.com