Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol: Your mission, should you choose to accept, is to check this film out!

Agent Ethan Hunt returns to face another terrifying threat. After the IMF is shut down and implicated in the bombing of the Kremlin, Hunt and the members of his new team must go rogue to hunt down a dangerous terrorist named Hendricks who is not only responsible for framing them for the bombing, but also plans to launch a nuclear strike on the United States.

From the moment it starts, the film barley lets off the gas, giving the audience a multitude of amazing action sequences, car chases, tense moments, close calls and laughs. In comparison to the last couple of Mission Impossible films, this one felt more in line with the set up and spirit of the original television series. There were plenty of cool gadgets and other technology used by Ethan and his team but not so much that they overwhelmed the story. The most refreshing aspect to this chapter in the Mission Impossible film series (and the thing that spurred the comment about a return to the spirit of the original television series) was the fact that the story was not all about Ethan. It is true that he was the main hero of the film (I mean, Cruise did produce it so it's only right), but he was dependent upon the rest of the team to help him stop Hendricks and foil his nefarious plan of nuclear armageddon. Each one of the team members (which included Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton and the always hilarious Simon Pegg) was able to provide a terrific performance. Heck, Cruise even provided a very effective turn as Ethan, giving him an emotional depth and maturity that seemed to be missing from the previous Mission Impossible films.

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol pulled out all of the stops to not only be a thrilling action film but also distinguish itself from the other films in the series. The result was a terrifically entertaining blast of action flick goodness that everyone will enjoy.

Grade: B+ 

Thor: Another solid comic book film!

Thor, a powerful warrior from the distant planet of Asgard, is banished to earth by his father Odin for his arrogance. He must use all of his powers to protect the friends he makes there from evil forces sent from his home world by a sinister villian.

Thor can almost be viewed as a companion piece to the other Marvel superhero film adaptation released this summer, Captain America. Both featured richly, complex protagonist that had to learn to deal with the high and lows of the great responsibility of having great power. But whereas Steve Rogers grew up never knowing what it was to have power before he became Captain America, Thor grew up always having that power. He grew into an arrogant prince that needed to have that power yanked from him in order to realize what it meant to be a true leader. This might sound a little complex for a simple action film about a Norse God with a cool looking hammer but director Kenneth Branagh tempered the Greek tragedy overtones of the story with some solid action sequences as well as some truly amusing comedic bits as Thor adjusted to life on earth (the parts featuring his introduction to the taser and modern medicine were the highlights of the "fish out of water" stuff). Where Thor fell short was in showing the audience the Thunder God's transformation from selfish brat into selfless hero. It is true that, once on earth, he meets a beautiful scientist in Jane Foster (the always stunning albeit under-utilized in this particular role Natalie Portman) but it should take more than one romantic conversation under the stars to convert him into someone other than the egotistical brat he was.

All in all Thor was another solid entry into the growing lineup of Marvel superhero films.

Grade: B-

Captain America: The First Avenger - The Summer Blockbuster that delivers the goods!

Steve Rogers, a kid that has been rejected for military service on a number of occasions, volunteers for a top secret program which seeks to turn the average soldier into a superhero. This program successfully turns him into Captain America, a hero dedicated to the truths, ideals and defense of the American way of life.

In this summer of blockbuster sequels and comic book adaptations it might be difficult to sell a film like Captain America to the movie - going public, but there are a number of reasons why they should not skip over this tale of The First Avenger.

The story gave the audience the necessary nuts and bolts of the good Captain's origins to draw them in without overwhelming them in miniscule details that could derail it. Director Joe Johnston effectively mixed solid action sequences along with properly timed bits of humor to give the film an almost "Indiana Jones -esque" quality. But what set Captain America apart from those other lackluster sequels or comic book films was the performance of Chris Evans as the title character. When the audience is first introduced to Captain America, he is a skinny kid from Brooklyn named Steve Rogers who has been rejected by the Army four times due to his poor health and other medical problems. One got the sense that Steve had been picked on most of his life, but that did not stop him from standing up to bullies or taking on challenges that stronger men shied away from. He was the prototypical underdog and if Johnston had just jumped straight into showing Captain America cracking skulls and kicking Nazi butt without showing the audience who he was before, the film would have lacked the depth to story and character that it exhibited throughout (a trait sadly missing in the bulk of films released this summer). The humanity and heart that Evans endowed Steve with at the beginning not only made him the perfect subject for the Army's Super Soldier program, but also gave the audience a hero that they could relate to on an emotional level.

It was easy to stand up and cheer for Captain America for it was the first summer blockbuster of 2011 to deliver the goods (and make sure you stick around after the credits for a special surprise, you'll be glad you did).

Grade: B

Iron Man 2: Another average sequel

Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, has made the world a safe place again. But his days of being a superhero might be cut short after he is asked by the US Government to hand over his incredible suit and its technology. He also faces the threat of a new villain named Ivan Vanko, who teams up with one of Stark’s corporate rivals in order to destroy not only Stark Industries, but Iron Man himself.

Credit needs to be given to director Jon Favreau, screenwriter Justin Theroux and Robert Downey Jr. for they tried to further develop the character of Tony Stark and make this sequel stand out in its own way. Downey still played him like the narcissistic ego-manic with a good heart and a desire to make the world a better place that audiences could not get enough of in the original but there was also a tinge of self-destruction to him this time around. Stark looses faith in himself and his ability to be the hero the world expects him to be, and Downey was able to portray this devolvement masterfully. The audience felt the weight of the world on Tony’s shoulders, when they weren’t busy chuckling at his sharp witted retorts, and for an actor to accomplish a feat like that in a comic book adaptation is remarkable. Another enjoyable aspect to the film was the relationship and interplay between Downey’s Stark and Gwyneth Paltrow’s Pepper Potts. Their snappy dialogue and crackling chemistry provided plenty of laughs and tender moments. However these juicy bits of character development and intrigue were overcome by an inordinate amount of tedious backstory which made the film drag and the audience loose interest. Add to that a couple of lackluster villains in Justin Hammer (an uber sleazy Sam Rockwell) and Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke, who looked like a ghetto version of Dr. Octopus when he had his suit on), some mediocre action sequences (including the final showdown between Iron Man and Vanko which redefined the term “anti-climatic”), plus Scarlett Johansson's lack of any meaningful screen time (we only get to see her kick butt for a minute or so) and you get a so-so action film which wasted the efforts of its two greatest assets, its lead actors.

It’s true that Iron Man 2 is supposed to serve as a sort of pre-cursor to a number of other Marvel comic book film adaptations that will be heading to the big screen in the coming years, (Thor, Captain America and The Avengers to name a few), but setting up all of these other characters and stories could have been accomplished without watering down Iron Man 2 so much that it became more of a tedious exercise than a good old fashioned popcorn flick like the original was.

Grade: C