Caution: This article contains minor spoilers for the motion picture, ‘Dragon Soldiers’.
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This past summer, my son Tommy who’s an Animation, Film, Photography and Motion Design major at Colorado Mesa University (Grand Junction), had the chance to attend the local premiere of Dragon Soldiers (Lionsgate; 2020) at the Avalon Theatre – slide show below. Put on as a fundraiser for the Avalon Theatre Foundation, I was happy to hear what a great time Tommy had. So much so, I decided to purchase the film on Amazon Prime Video in support of local film makers and today, I’d like to share my thoughts on this fun installment co-written, produced and directed by Grand Junction native and campy monster fan Hank Braxtan (Snake Outta Compton 2018; Dead Ant 2017). Come along, won’t you?
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Braxtan’s “In Development” section on his PhotonicMedia site states: “Our philosophy is simple – Make what you want to see, and be excellent to each other.” The awesome Bill & Ted reference aside (insert air guitar motion here!! – LOL!), this motto seems abundantly clear not only in this film, but throughout Hank’s work. Often collaborating with his wife (Arielle Brachfeld), who co-wrote and stars in Dragon Soldiers as the Park Ranger Gwen Peters, Braxtan shares the spotlight in multiple ways. Including featuring the town of Fruita, amongst others, along with the amazing surrounding Colorado landscapes and terrain. Which I must admit, is pretty darn cool. I mean… it’s a scenery cinematographers dream! And the movie definitely doesn’t skimp on the wide shots and panoramic views. There’s even plenty of aerial shots mixed with close ups of flowers, cascades and river shots as well as various rock formations in the state, including the Colorado National Monument. I’m no film major, but allowing the beautiful topography to be your set is definitely a visually smart, yet cost effective move, no? Plus, we also get to see things from the dragon’s point of view which helps intensify the danger. HECK YA!!

Additionally, like a large chunk of Braxtan’s other films, Dragon Soldiers under PhotonicMedia was made in partnership via Lionsgate Films and his wife’s other, other day gig (LOL!), Automatic Entertainment which lists it as a creature-feature/action film. And boy do I agree. The effects are a bit cheesy, but still quite cool overall. Especially when compared to any number of similar films running today. I mean… specializing “in low budget genre movies – science fiction, horror, fantasy, and action…with a dash of comedy,” means cheesy, yet cool overall, is EXACTLY what Hank was going for! *Fist bump* Nailed it!! LOL! We also don’t have to wait until half the film is down before seeing the creature as it’s shown throughout. Including a suspenseful opening sequence. Right outa the gate… NICE!!

And speaking of collaboration, several other folks both behind and in front of the camera have previously worked with Hank on other projects. Including Dan Sinclair who, like Arielle, co-wrote and stars in Dragon Soldiers. Not to mention our two leads, Antuone Torbert who plays Julius Green and Ruben Pla who plays Artie Cameron, have recently, along with several other cast members, returned for Hank’s latest monster feature, Jurassic Hunt (Lionsgate; 2021), currently streaming now. And most definitely my next campy sci-fi adventure!! So, if constant collaborations and returning actors doesn’t represent being excellent to each other, I am obviously lost on the translation… LOL!! It clearly shows on screen, that’s for sure. And this fun Vimeo of The Making of Dragon Soldiers, gives you a bit more insight into the team dynamics and Colorado setting as well. But beyond my love of scenery and praise for teamwork, what I also liked about this movie on top of having all the camp of a traditional B-tastic sci-fi flick is the emphasis on soldier camaraderie. Let’s discuss!
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Ruben’s character Artie leads a group of mercs hired by Fruita’s slimy Mayor Eddie Mordry (Butch McCain) to search for a missing local militia (AKA weekend warrior) group. As with most military teams, Artie assembles a squad based on certain skills – Bobby Tristan the weapons expert (Heath C. Heine), Julius Green the tracker (Torbert), Lance Hollis the skillful demolitionist (Tarkan Dospil) and Hector Kayman the sniper (Motown Maurice). Yep, that sounds about right for a search party heading into the unknown!! Besides, rumors of monsters in the woods aren’t enough to scare off a group of military veterans, right? NOPE! From the get, our soldiers clash, but waste no time having each other’s back when needed. Which is exactly what any platoon should do and Hank, a military vet himself, knows it!! NICE!! Working together the guys sweep the terrain while the resident sniper watches from above. Eventually, the soldiers, a weekend warrior and the Park Ranger are mashed and must work together to defeat the ancient beast culminating in a thrilling yet comedic climax followed by a lovely follow up and a just veteran tribute of sorts in the end. EXCELLENT!! *Air guitar*

Finally, apart from scenery, soldier camaraderie and the dragon, we also get to see a poke at the would-be weekend warrior via Sinclair’s character Griffin which I found absolutely hilarious. And let’s not forget about the cult. Yep! There’s one of those too… LOL!! There’s also a post-credits scene that I found to be a silly and fun nod to Caddyshack (Warner Bros.; 1980) of all things… LOL!! Plus there’s commentary on fracking, crooked politicians and even the rising homeless population, particularly among veterans. Considering Braxtan’s military history and Colorado upbringing, the whole thing feels like a bouquet of homages and I must say, they’re B-tastic in all the best ways!! All wrapped in a gun shootin,’ mind altering gas (yep, that too… LOL!!), blood-soaked explosive bow… LOL!! All of which make Dragon Soldiers a fun sci-fi adventure mixed with real-life undertones, comedy and beautiful scenery. So, basically… all the things!! *BIG GRIN* Check it out if you haven’t already. Until next time.

Caution: This article contains spoilers for the motion picture ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’.
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Spider-Man: No Way Home swung into theaters carrying the burden of high expectations. In addition to picking up the cliffhanger ending to Far From Home, this installment was also responsible for carrying the MCU’s momentum into Phase Four and answering questions about the multiverse, while also dodging swirling rumors about surprise returns. With several former villains confirmed to return, it was also charged with seamlessly weaving together iconic actors and characters from every era of Spider-Man movies. In all, there was a lot for it to live up to. Fortunately for Spidey and Marvel fans past and present, No Way Home went above and beyond in what it delivered. 
 
As we’ve seen in past MCU movies, it takes a delicate balance to bring together an entire roster of characters while giving each adequate screen time and depth. No Way Home succeeds in merging together three separate Spider-Man franchises, accounting for each of their strengths and flaws, and finding a way to make them coexist in one universe. 
 
We got each of the villains that were confirmed in the trailer: Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin, Alfred Molina’s Doctor Octopus, Jamie Foxx’s Electro, Thomas Haden Church’s Sandman, and Rhys Ifans’ Lizard. As many hoped, we got Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfiled reprising their roles as Spider-Man to the cheers of packed theaters everywhere. We dove deep back into Marvel’s Netflix catalog for a quick cameo from your friendly neighborhood very-good-lawyer Matthew Murdock (cementing this as the greatest film in superhero history, in my humble opinion). Factoring in Doctor Strange, MJ, Ned, Aunt May, Happy, Wong, and J. Jonah Jameson on top of all of that, everything comes together surprisingly neatly. With the possible exception of Sandman and Lizard, who have more limited screen time, all of the characters’ roles and motivations are made clear, especially for viewers familiar with the previous movies. 

It all melds with a surprising amount of chemistry, too. All three Spider-Men are at their absolute best, each perfectly personifying their version of the wall-crawler. The moments when they appear on-screen together are some of the most magical and inspiring, especially as the two older Spider-Men share with Holland their struggles and experiences as regular people trying to be heroes. They bond over both humorous discussions of their abilities and the villains they’ve battled and over a deeply emotional conversation about loved ones they have lost
 
No Way Home is a redemption tale in many ways. It allows Maguire and Garfield to put the best aspects of their characters on screen again and it gives Garfield’s Peter Parker the chance to heal his emotional scars. It seeks to cure and ultimately save each of the villains. And, above all, it remedies the missteps made within the previous franchises, mixing nostalgia with new steps forward. 
 
On top of its achievements in fusing together three franchises, No Way Home deserves credit for what it does as a standalone Spider-Man story. The tone of this film starts very similarly to the preceding entries in the trilogy: chaotic but still light and focused on Peter’s immediate circle. Even as all of the world begins to find out that Peter is Spider-Man, the movie first looks at how that impacts his friends, family, and school life. The focus shifts pretty rapidly from there, becoming an extremely emotional and sometimes dark story by the third act. 

​The case can be made that we finally get the true origin story for Holland’s Spider-Man in this film. Both Maguire and Garfield’s characters were dealt big blows early on in their arcs that forced them to weigh the meaning of being a superhero. While we began to see some similar character development for Tom Holland’s Peter Parker as he deals with the loss of Tony Stark in Avengers: Endgame and Far From Home, his transition into the role of Spider-Man has definitely seen the stakes ramp up with each movie. No Way Home accelerates everything at a blinding speed, as we see Peter nearly break under the pressure of his alter-ego negatively affecting those around him and taking his Aunt May from him. Holland gets to add a more dramatic portrayal of Peter Parker to the charismatic side we had seen from him before. 
 
No Way Home played to the past and present of the MCU extremely well, and it also moved forward in setting up the MCU’s future. At this point, over two dozen movies and several TV shows in, the MCU is a tangled, sprawling web of characters and storylines, with the connections between those threads growing only more ambitious. Aside from bringing in characters from prior iterations of Spider-Man and from other Marvel properties, it created further linkages to the Disney+ shows (including a reference to a quote from Yelena in Hawkeye about the new-and-improved Statue of Liberty). The mid-credits scene pulls Venom into the MCU, leaving massive ramifications for upcoming Sony projects like Morbius. The movie also finishes setting up the events of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, culminating in a post-credits trailer. 
 
With everything it took on in furthering the MCU, Spider-Man: No Way Home rises to the ranks of Avengers: Endgame. It makes its mark as not only a top Spider-Man movie, but as a top MCU movie. It’s rare in the era of social media that audiences are truly surprised leaving a blockbuster movie with so many expectations. Marvel and the film’s marketing team (and Tom Holland… *cough cough*) deserve a lot of credit for protecting and disguising so many secrets through the release date. Because they did, No Way Home is one of those movies that, years from now, you’ll wish you could experience again for the first time, taking in all of the surprises and emotions anew.