is still my favorite comicbook movie (since people always argue that The Matrix and Unbreakable technically don't count). All the hooplah, cash flow, and studio biting surrounding Nolan's Batman Begins and The Dark Knight (and of course the death of Heath Ledger) called to question which was greater, and even though I'm probably alone in this, I'll side with The Crow.
before i went out to see Astro Boy last night, I watched the movie critics on At the Movies tear the movie apart. They hated the movie, and said that it was confused, boring, and totally inappropriate for children. They appeared especially concerned with the violence, death, and questionable character motivations at the core of the conflicts in the film. although both critics suggested skipping the movie, their reviews actually intrigued me to give the movie a chance. As often happens, the critics got it wrong.
joint on the DVR... this mess is fun and original, but still brings the 'toon violence for cats like me! I found it on youtube for the fam, but you can click the pic if you want it for your teevee...
Okay. i just watched a full-length cut of the new marvel mutant movie that isn't supposed ta be out yet... (click the pic on the left and you can stream it like me or download it if you're not in the mood for "buffering"... be quick about it! it will likely be gone soon...). i'm sure the blogosphere is blowing up with hate over the changes they made to "the continuity" of the character... but you won't get any of that here. the leak is missing special effects in places, but not so much that you can't follow the story.
this is a repost from my original review of V for Vendetta (also adapted from a comic by Alan Moore) on ghettoManga.com
was AWESOME!
when that dude Zack Snyder (300) announced he was directing a live-action studio adaptation of what is considered by some the greatest comic of all time, I spent every day for months moaning about how bad an idea it was. the original comic, Alan Moore's Watchmen
, was masterfully built specifically to be a comic. much of the greatness of it comes from devices that can't be replicated in film. plus, there is so much going on that it just wasn't possible to fit it all into a two (or even three) hour film. i was convinced it was gonna be a disaster!
it was fabulous! i mean, don't get me wrong, it wasn't as good as the comic, but it was about as good as it COULD be! Directed by Zach Snyder (300), Watchmen
has an ensemble cast that includes a home run performance by Jackie Earle Haley as Rorschach, a grimy, bone-snapping masked vigilante investigating the murder of nihilistic government spook/retired superhero, the Comedian. as Rorschach investigates the murder we also meet his ex crime-fighting partner Nite Owl and other members of the ill-fated superteam, and become entrenched in the fear and apprehension of a world headed for mutual assured destruction.
The movie does a great job of shifting between the storylines of the many characters, which i was really concerned about. Snyder had the daunting job of cutting the fat out of one of the most highly celebrated stories in all of comicdom, and handled it admirably. Rorschach, the most popular character in the story, is handled perfectly without losing the other characters in the shuffle. in fact, the love triangle between Nite Owl, Silk Specter and Dr. Manhattan is handled better than i expected as well.. once you've seen it, buy (or reread) the graphic novel for an additional kick in the tail!
Marvel Locks up Samuel L. Jackson for 9 Comics adaptations. (more here)
movie studio 20th Century Fox has applied for an injunction blocking the release of 2009 Warner Bros blockbuster film Watchmen (based on the fan-favorite graphic novel of the same name), claiming Warner Bros did not properly secure all the rights to make the film. According to The New York Times, Fox asserts that they should'a been consulted with, since they have partial rights to the film. Fox just wants some of that Dark Knight paper... the judge presiding over the case blocked the release of The Dukes of Hazard in 2005, leading to a settlement of around $17.5 milli. given that Dark Knight's raked in $500 million domestic (and counting) expect Fox to turn its nose up to something as paltry as $17.5m, and there's no way the WB execs are gonna let the movie get delayed, so mark down another black eye for Time-Warner... the only question is how bad will the settlement be...
went to the Midnight show of The Dark Knight, and one thing is for sure: this joint's gonna make a load'a bread! i had to go to three theaters to find one that hadn't sold out multiple screens, and i got one of the last spots available, sitting in the chronic kneck-pain seats.
Dark Knight made me happy, like Begins, by breaking superhero movie molds. where most sequels in the genre choose to focus on the villain's sad story leading up to transforming them into the evil bastard that has to be stopped, Dark Knight respects the audience enough not to bother. rather than engage in poorly constructed psycho-babble, The Dark Knight sticks to the psycho. the Joker is an evil bastard that has to be stopped, and that's all you need to know.
this movie, like Begins, doesn't retread any existing Batman story, it creates a new one... part of the genius is that Nolan's films do what other superhero flicks don't: both Begins and Dark Knight actually add to the mythos of the characters. he ties the Joker to Batman flawlessly, showing how the strengths and weaknesses of both men tie them together as the ultimate arch-enemies. by the end of the film, Batman turns everything that has happened to his advantage, even the loss of everything he had hoped for the whole film. he is possibly the most pure interpretation of Batman's personality ever seen on screen.
The film is not without weaknesses. i still think these films rely too heavily on action movie logic, where a more horror-suspense bent would work better. talking while fighting, car chases, and technology effects are all a ton of fun, but i don't think they are Nolan's strong suit. speaking of which, the Batman suit still needs work... the cape doesn't do the Batman thing of adding to his general scariness that you get in the comic. the beauty of it is that like Batman Begins, the strength of Dark Knight lies with the story and the actors, not the action-superhero window dressing.
and the acting was fabulous. while there were no weak performances, the late Heath Ledger owned this film. i can't say enough about his low down, gritty, grimy performance. he was so good, i actually think he will get that Oscar nod every one keeps talking about (he's a lock for the Golden Globe). from his first scene, he erased every prior interpretation of the sneering mass-murdering anarchist Joker, grounding the larger-than-life "clown prince of crime" in the real world...
okay, finally got outta the house and saw Wanted, the action-packed adaptation of the Mark Millar and J.G. Jones coming-of-age supervillain graphic Novel of the same name... and i'm convinced that i kinda need to write two reviews, evaluating it separately as a comics adaptation and a summer blockbuster action movie, but alas, i am not that dedicated, so you'll only get one review...
i would probably gush more over the casting if the comic hadn't cast the characters so well to begin with! i mean, who wouldn't LOVE to have seen Eminem as the clueless Wesley Gibson, transformed by the Fox (played by Hallie Berry, of course) into the murderous savant The Killer, following in the footsteps of Tommy Lee Jones, his dear old dad!? sure, McAvoy is probably a better actor, but nothing i saw leads me to believe Em
couldn't have pulled it off just as well. having Eminem in the film would have likely helped the film's box office (which came in second last week to Wall-E, and will pro'lly not come in on top this week either), and contributed to at least a few hipHop songs being added to the soundtrack (no hip hop on the soundtrack? BOOOO!)... but unfortunately, some kinda beef between Mark Millar and Eminem's people killed that likelihood...
most of the changes were motivated by the desire to make this film appeal to as many people as possible by not offending anyone, and that's why it doesn't work as an adaptation. the story suffers because it needs to keep Wesley redeemable: he can't kill his ex, his best friend or his boss (even though we, the audience, want him to) because this popcorn film needed him to become a hero by the end. the comic pulled no such punches. Millar's Wes kills, rapes, and pillages at will. Millar was not planning on redeeming Wesley, and as a result, created a more interesting and attractive character who makes no apology for becoming a villain... in fact, only the horrific Mister Rictus made Wes look halfway human by comparison in the comic! the edginess of the comic is one of the things that makes it hot, and i don't think enough of that heat makes it onto the screen.
so anyways, to summarize, Wanted the Summer Action Film gets an A- for dope action and good pace, acting and overall direction. but Wanted the Comics Adaptation gets a C because it just doesn't bring as much punch as the comic. the missteps come from trying not to offend, which totally abandons the spirit of Millar's writing. Overall, Wanted gets a B. if you are a comics nerd who just NEEDS it to be up to the standard of the comic, skip it. people who hated the comic may actually enjoy the movie (i can elaborate if you want...), so they should check it out. everyone else who isn't feelin' anything else out, peep it. it's good ignorant fun!
it's a GREAT time to be a comic book nerd....
footsteps of that other, better Marvel heropic Iron Man, in that it grounds Hulk firmly in the Marvel Universe. the fun thing about it is they manage to do it without taking away from the movie-ness of it... nerds... i mean enthusiasts like myself will have a blast geekin' over minutia, but the filmmakers didn't let the easter-egg hunt interfere with the story moving along. Incredible Hulk is a real movie, with emotion, stakes, decent acting, and a semi-believable plot that the average summer blockbuster fan can enjoy whether they know the multiple incarnations of the Hulk or not!
i'm warning you now: if you don't see Iron Man this weekend, someone's gonna tell you something about it that you don't wanna know. but here's what you DO wanna know: it's good. it has balance. it's funny, it's serious, it's beautifully shot, the effects are great. the dialogue is tight and natural. Downey owns Tony Stark. Jeff Bridges rocks hard as Obadiah Stane. Favreau gets the gold star and directs a great, great action flick!
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