Boy Wonder: Grittier Than Gravel

Good afternoon, Cadets! I hope everyone enjoyed the review of the Redeemers, it was a lot of fun getting feedback from you all! Today I will be reviewing the independent hero drama, 'Boy Wonder.' The movie was written and directed by Michael Morrissey and starred Caleb Steinmeyer and Zulay Henao. I'm going to attempt to make this as spoiler free as possible.

The movie starts out strong with a look into the past of the main character, Sean Donovan. His personality is established as extremely smart and athletic but withdrawn from his peers. He has yet to begin to become a vigilante and seems to have a method to the mayhem he is about to unleash. You also meet the leading lady, Detective Teresa Ames, a very by the book cop who knows how to play the politics of her job. The way in which the characters meet is rather ingenious. It appears all the key characters are effectively established within the first fifteen minutes.

One thing that was an interesting theme was the music that lead into the flashbacks of Sean's past at the beginning third of the film and the significance of how it was done. The build-up to the first confrontation was well done without a frame wasted. 

In the first fight the camera-work was a bit frantic but in retrospect I think I know why. This was his first fight as a vigilante and he was bound to be more flustered than his usual calm self and the quick changes and cuts may have been a way to show how the character was feeling and what was going through his mind. As the movie progressed the camera calmed more and more as did Sean. There was also a definite theme to the 'bad guys' he was choosing to go after. 

Detective Ames was no slouch either, unlike most cops in movies she was able to piece important information together right away and proved mentally formidable to Sean. She was possibly one of the most realistic Hollywood cops I've ever seen, married to the job and determined to prove her worth.

As the movie and story progressed I was happy to see the one thing most super-hero movies forget; character progression. There were leaps and bounds in the characters' personalities and actions from when you first meet them to the end of the film and I admit I was awe-struck. There were minimal to zero loopholes in the story and every scene that was shown was vital to the story. The humor injected into it was well timed using uncomfortable yet believable situations without relying on cheesy puns or slapstick. The way everything tied together was inspiring to say the least.

Before the screening at C2E2 I got the chance to meet the actors and Mr. Morrissey and I really enjoyed talking with them. All of them were humble and polite and really loved what they were doing. The promotion of having people dressed as Sean with the black face paint was brilliant and eye catching as was the art and tagline. I would say that this is a movie I want to show everyone, the writing was brilliant and the dialogue was delivered with amazing skill. The only thing I would like to see improved upon is the 'bad guys' dialogue, there was a heavy reliance on cursing and considerably less imaginative speech compared to the rest of the movie. The action scenes were brutal and yet simple. When 'Wonder Boy' comes out on video I will be adding it to my collection for sure. Please visit the official site at www.boywonderthemovie.com.

Geek rating: 9 out of 10 fanspazzes

I hope you all found this review enjoyable and informative as I feel it should be relevant to your interests. This is War Kitten signing off and reminding you that just because it looks like a sheep and sounds like a sheep, be suspicious because that's how the wolf got Red Riding Hood.

C2E2: A Retrospective

Hello Cadets! It's been a crazy weekend full of excitement at the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo here in Chicago. This was my second year going but my first year going for all three days and it still feels like I missed a lot. I'm going to try to gather my thoughts and memories as I share my experience with all of you so sit back and enjoy.

The first day was interesting, I had to pick up my badge as I had upgraded to VIP the week before. The process was well organized but I think more signs telling people where to go was in order because there were lines and lines of people and despite having a VIP badge I was put at the end of the line instead of in the VIP line because some of the staff were unaware that VIPs were to be let in first. There were a few instances where the staff were unsure of what was going on and either gave an answer incorrectly (coat check was not open till 9pm) or asked on the radio, walked away before receiving an answer and were never heard from again. I'm chalking these things up to it only being the second C2E2 and there are still kinks to be worked out. Aside from that the showroom was so much bigger than last year. Artists in Artist Alley had more than a little elbow room which made them much happier this time around.

The artists were amazing, I saw so much and would have loved to take something home from everyone but alas it could not be done. I did snag a few things and had some wonderful conversations with many talented people. I met Ian McNiece and talked to him more about his short role in Top Secret! and he was nice enough to let me take a video of him saying his famous line, "what funny duck poo?" After that I met the artist and writer of the Redeemer comics, which will also be getting a review on here this week.

Friday night was also the comedy show with Oswalt Patton and it was amazing; I was laughing so hard my cheeks hurt. I think either the microphones or the sound system needed adjusting because it was either quiet or it was set in such a manner the speakers were crackling when the comedians attempted to speak up. Overall Friday was a success and left me giddy with excitement.

Day Two was epic beyond belief; first thing I did was run to Artist Alley to let Tim Broderick know how amazing his graphic novel, Cash & Carry, was. Next was run downstairs to the Chris Hemsworth meet and greet, and what an awesome moment that was. He was so polite and humble and he never stopped laughing and smiling. He knew we were there to see him and seemed to really appreciate it. Later I made my way to the showroom to explore some more and take photos. I was dressed as the Green Hornet and was happy when people wanted my photo as well. Also thank you to the photographers at the convention who held a free photoshoot, it was so much fun! I was able to get some promotional gear and talk to a few vendors about their experience so far and there was a great feel-good attitude. The lead actors from the independent film "Boy Wonder" were on hand as well for autographs and interviews and they acted in the same spirit as those enjoying the con, making sure to talk to everyone who stopped by. I left on Saturday feeling like I was on Cloud 9 and even had a bit of a nerd parade leading few conventions-goers to Union Station from the shuttle.

On Day Three I started a bit late but was able to make the first Mark Sheppard signing. I have to say he is very much so sarcastic but in such a playful way that he makes you feel relaxed when meeting him. He was also nice enough to actually come from behind the signing table to take proper photos with fans which was amazing. His Q & A session was fun and full of laughs and really made everyone aware of his monumental nerdiness. I have to say the guests that came this year were just so kind and really made the event into something great for the fans. I also made a new friend thanks to him which made everything so much more enjoyable. We walked around and saw some amazing things and I even stopped to say hello and thank Jerry Lawler for coming to the convention as I was a huge wrestling fan as a kid. We made our way to the final showing of Boy Wonder and I have to say I was blown away; the review will be up this week as well.  My new friend and I parted ways afterwards and I headed home, speaking with another convention goer on the way about everything that came to mind. I have to say I love that I get to geek out openly and share my geekiness with others who are interested in similar topics.

That wraps up the cliffnotes edition of my weekend at C2E2. Feel free to follow my group on facebook, the Litter-ati, and participate in group discussions, ask me questions, or just say hello and meet the other readers. As always it's been wonderful sharing my thoughts with you and I welcome your comments and critiques. This is War Kitten reminding you to wear a helmet, it's raining awesome!

Litter-ati: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=172554432795827#!/home.php?sk=group_188729431163726&ap=1

Special thanks today to Howard and Kelsey for joining me this weekend! Also thank you to those from C2E2 joining for the first time, I hope to see you all here often!