Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2

Most of the time, the heavy use of nostalgic music--in this case 1970s and '80s stuff--is just a marketing tool used to rope in a specific, ticket-buying cohort. Not so here; the music actually plays a pivotal role in the story. It's a thread that ties things together in an interesting way, more so than the tunes in the first installment. Expanding out from that, this film wears its Eighties heritage more flamboyantly than any other flick movie of recent vintage (as does its predecessor); it's no wonder then that folks like myself are eating this stuff up. All that wry, ironic, and even a little bit cruel humor goes a long way to creating the likeability, even if a lot of this story is obvious both in terms of plot and visually. There are a lot of ways of earning an audience's good graces, and these folks pull out all those stops, enough to make an enjoyable sequel. Enough for a third go round? We probably don't have a choice, but, sure, I'll go along.

The Martian

This movie has its weaknesses; a large dose of predictability mixed with plenty of moviemaking and story clichés come immediately to mind. But its strengths are very strong, including an excellent cast in top form and an inherently interesting premise. And the film's greatest strength of all may be its most important trait: its high level of intelligence, particularly in its depiction of science not just as an airy concept, but as a practical way to solve problems. If enough people watch this movie, and absorb its scientific frame of mind, it might nudge this world towards being a place that's a little bit better than the ignorant, superstitious madhouse where we currently live.

Spider-man 2

Yes, I think it is better than the first. A world of credit goes to the cast for an entire collection of wonderful performances, all deep and emotionally resonant. And it helps that the script is more interested in questions about personal identity and responsibility than in blowing things up. I'd go along with a third in the series, if they're willing to keep up the quality.