#Shellshock live thinking with portals movie

If that moment was done similar to Portals, we wouldn't have seen Thor struggling to forge the axe. I'd take Thor in Wakanda over Portals tbh. There's a sense of vulnerability to the heroes in Lord of the Rings which raises the stakes. I don't think the Citauri are ever a serious threat to the Avengers, especially fighting in the empty rubble and not in New York City. While orcs are kind of cannon fodder, they are still quite dangerous and have gotten important kills in the prior movies.

There's also a sense of threat to the enemies. The Rohirrim charge has some amazing scale to it though and a great speech. I put this moment above the Rohirrim charge because it was done first but the same elements are present in both. Just like the characters we're so wrapped up in the battle and the fight to survive that it takes that beam of first light on the fifth day (and some VO) to remind us.

#Shellshock live thinking with portals movie

But then the movie is properly paced to allow the audience to forget that Gandalf is coming in the excitement of battle. It's not a secret and it establishes a timeframe for which our heroes must hold out. Notice how the movie straight up tells you 'I'll be there at this time, on this day with these dudes'. It's everything right with that kind of moment. The real secret best one is Gandalf at Helm's Deep. The entire movie is weirdly disconnected from the prior installment. Don't even get me started on the Lando thing which just undoes what the previous movie established for some weird reason. Like those people were dust like five minutes prior and then a stranger shows up to teleport them into battle. There’s no sense of urgency or threat if you can just teleport a huge army out of nowhere without any regard for logic. You actually feel like it’s the last charge to save humanity from darkness.