TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

"Iron Man 3" has left me with a bitter aftertaste since early May, so my expectations for the sequel to 2011's "Thor" were not the highest. Before the "Iron Man" threequel "Thor" had previously been my least enjoyed Marvel, and it wasn't even a bad flick. I didn't enjoy Thor's extremely cocky attitude (RDJ played it off much better in the original "Iron Man" with that smart alack snark) Natalie Portman's sidekick Darcy (played by the usually funny Kat Dennings) and a general lack of enjoyment. So I imagine this is how the meeting went at Marvel, to vamp up Thor's already improved image post-"Avengers:" MARVEL: So none of you liked Kat Dennings' character right? WORLD: NO. MARVEL: She was annoying and added nearly no purpose to the film? WORLD: YES. MARVEL: So what you're saying is you want her back in the sequel? WORLD: NOOO! MARVEL: Right. Silly suggestion. You're saying ...

A good writer must always be willing to realize he made a mistake, and I've realized one has occurred.  In my review of "The Hunger Games" I stated that it was the most buzzed about movie of the year.  I was wrong.  It is obviously "The Avengers." Realistically it'll probably be "The Dark Knight Rises" coming out in a few months, but at the moment, "The Avengers" is the only thing people want to talk about, the only thing they want to see, the only thing they want to think about.  I haven't seen my peers, fellow critics, and others more excited about a superhero movie since the original "Dark Knight."  To say my hopes weren't at an all time high for this is an insult to my hopes. That said, (I feel terrible, writing about the film this late, but I was told people were sitting on theater steps during it's gargantuan opening weekend, so I didn't even attempt) the buzz is 100% accurate, but I can't call it t...

AAAHHHH! My inner nerd (who am I kidding, I'm nerd inside and out) has exploded.  "The Hunger Games" was incredible, "Dark Knight Rises" looks incredible, and now "Avengers" TV spots are popping out everywhere.  I won't lie, between the 3 superhero movies coming out this year (the other being the Spider-Man reboot) "Avengers" lands at a solid #2.  Why not 1? Well...it took a couple of reasons to truly realize how great "The Dark Knight" was.  I had a similar experience with "Inception," you have to see Nolan's movies a few times to soak in.  There's no denying "TDKR" will break insane sales and might get a Best Picture nomination to make up for the predecessor's loss.  Any other year "Avengers" would be at the top, though.  Since 2008 when superhero movies were saved (Iron Man, Hulk reboot, TDK) the suspense has been building up to this film, and I've tried to avoid the online trai...