Movies in the News: Post-NYC hearings

I'm starting a new feature here on the site called Movies in the News. It won't be anything major...but it will take my love of pop culture to an unhealthy level. The concept is pretty simple...I'll feature images from movies and present them as graphics you'd see during a TV news broadcast.

We'll debut with Tony Stark and a post-Avengers concept.

Superhero ABCs: Letter I

I is for Iron Man.

The ol' Shellhead is a Marvel Comics staple: a member of the Avengers, a talented scientist, a womanizer, and a drunk. I've always liked Iron Man, but the character didn't get the attention he truly deserved until the 2008 movie starring Robert Downey Jr. as a pitch-perfect Tony Stark/Iron Man. The sequel was a convoluted mess, but Downey is so good in that role!

Stark is a billionaire playboy and heir to his father's company, Stark Industries. His origin story has been tweaked over the years, but basically Stark gets injured and captured during a battle. As shrapnel races toward his heart, another captured scientist named Yinsen builds an electromagnet that keeps the shrapnel from piercing Stark's heart. Eventually the two men assemble a crude battle suit that allows Stark to escape.

Upon returning to civilization, Stark wages a war on those who would misuse his company's weapons. He fights against arch-enemies like the Mandarin, Titanium Man, and the Crimson Dynamo.

One thing I've always liked about Iron Man is his Hall of Armor, a vast collection of specialized armors designed for any conceivable situation. Iron Man's alternate suits include armors fit for duty in extreme environments like the arctic, underwater, and space. He also keeps a set of Hulkbuster armor around just in case he needs to, you know, fight the Hulk.

Monday: A survivor who's afraid of fire.

Previous Entries:

H is for the Human Bullet
G is for Green Lantern
F is for the Flash
E is for Events
D is for Dr. Fate
C is for Captain America
B is for Batman
A is for The Avengers

Five Favorite Superhero Movies

After a post earlier this week on superhero movies I shouldn't like (but do anyway), I thought I'd take a look at a few of my true favorites. Comic fans will discuss the merits of each film exhaustively, bemoan the absence of The Dark Knight and Superman, and question the inclusion of Watchmen (you can't pick that...it...doesn't...have...a...squid!). But the great thing about having my own blog is...I get to express my opinion.

I'd like to point out that this isn't an attempt to make an exhaustive list or a list of the "best" superhero movies. Below, you'll find five movies I really dig. With superheroes. Oh, and you can ignore the numbers. They mean nothing.

Seriously.

Batman (1989)

Why It's On the List: I love the Christopher Nolan movies, but there's something to be said for going to see a movie with your dad when you're nine years old. Those experiences tend to stick with you...and that's why Michael Keaton is my Batman and Jack Nicholson is my Joker. I have fond memories of this movie, the main theme is unparalleled (and I was bitterly disappointed it didn't return in the Nolan movies because, well, the Danny Elfman theme is Batman), and despite its darkness, it still makes you laugh at times. Plus, Lando Calrissian is Harvey Dent.

Favorite Quote: "I'm Batman."
Favorite Quote 2: "Where does he get those wonderful toys?"

X2 (subtitle withheld out of principle/2003)

Why It's On the List: The first X-Men was a triumph--mostly--but it ran kind of short and Magneto's plan to turn the world's leaders into mutants was lame. X2 gives us much more depth. Everything in this movie seems to carry more weight, and it feels grander because of it. Magneto doesn't miss a trick, Hugh Jackman is terrific as Wolverine, the siege of Xavier's mansion is exciting and well-executed, and Patrick Stewart was born to play Professor X. Oh, oh, oh...almost forgot! Brian Cox alert!

Favorite Quote: "People don't change, Wolverine. You were an animal then and you're an animal now. I just gave you claws."
Favorite Quote 2: "You are a god among insects. Never let anyone tell you different."

Spider-Man (2002)

Why It's On the List: This was a well done origin story helmed by Sam Raimi. Tobey Maguire isn't quite the wise-cracking Spidey we expected, but he does a fine job (even though he...ahem...probably spends too much time without his mask). J.K. Simmons is PERFECT as J. Jonah Jameson, Cliff Robertson brings some gravitas as Uncle Ben, Rosemary Harris is wonderful as Aunt May, and most of the web-slinging fun is well done. Also...I'll watch Willem Dafoe in just about anything. Despite the clunky Green Goblin armor, he gets the most out of the character and makes for a compelling baddie.

Favorite Quote: "With great power comes great responsibility."

Iron Man (2008)

Why It's On the List: Superhero stories don't always have to be about brooding and the dark nature of man. Just take Iron Man. This gem based on the Marvel character is absolutely terrific. Robert Downey, Junior, uses his quick-witted charm to bring Tony Stark to life. He absolutely owns this role and this movie, infusing Stark with devil-may-care smugness and humanity. The "Iron Man in training" scenes manage to get a laugh every time, and when Downey's on the screen, you can't look away. When he's not on the screen, he gets plenty of help from Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges, Terrence Howard, and Jon Favreau.

Favorite Quote: "Yeah, I can fly."
Favorite Quote 2: "Sometimes you gotta run before you can walk."

Watchmen (2009)

Why It's On the List: A long and complicated graphic novel gets a very faithful adaptation that's visually stunning, visceral, and violent. Great turns by Patrick Wilson, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Billy Crudup highlight the film. However, it's Jackie Earle Haley's Rorschach who steals the show. His character, for better or worse, is the heart of the whole story. The screenplay does an admirable job of whittling down the comic's complex narrative, and it's a treat to look at. Some may find it a little slow, but it's a great movie to throw in on a boring afternoon.

Favorite Quote: "Never compromise. Not even in the face of Armageddon. That's always been the difference between us, Daniel."
Favorite Quote 2: "I'm not locked in here with you. You're locked in here with ME!"

Superhero Summer Slump

Yahoo! posted an article this weekend about the failure of this year's crop of superhero movies (you can read it here).

This should've been the Summer of the Superheroes.

Instead, many people walked away from Green Lantern unbelievably disappointed, Thor hasn't been the Iron Man-like hit Marvel wanted, and X-Men: First Class was a good movie that hasn't lit up the box office.

I've seen all three movies. On some level, I enjoyed each one of them, but here's my analysis of why each movie has failed to capture the hearts of audiences.

All Three

They're too close together. Hollywood thinks we all have money to burn and believes people only want to see superhero movies. These flicks are big-budget spectacles that need a certain distance from each other. You can't release them so close together and hope for repeat business because the same targeted demographic will be spending its money to see the next movie coming out.

They're not Avatar. Scrap the 3D. People have caught onto 3D as being a gimmick (as it always has been!) allowing studios to change you extra money to be more uncomfortable at movies while having an inferior experience. I accidentally saw Thor in 3D (we thought the regular version was playing at our appointed time and we had read the listings wrong) and it brought NOTHING to the table. I will say Avatar did a nice job with this. I don't think the new X-Men had a 3D version, however.

Bring in the B-team. I'd venture to say Thor is more recognizable as a character than Green Lantern, but that's just me being ignorant about what the rest of the world knows about comics. Iron Man pulled it off because of a recognizable star in Robert Downey, Jr. Thor starred the guy who played Captain Kirk's father in the Star Trek reboot. Ryan Reynolds is a recognizable name, but many don't perceive him as superheroic. And while Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy were great in X-Men, your average moviegoer has no idea who they are. So not only are this summer's franchises "lesser heroes" in the public eye, the stars are as well.

Green Lantern. First off, I mostly enjoyed Green Lantern, but it did squander much of its potential. Here's why:

Too Much to Do. Green Lantern had too much going on. We had to introduce the Green Lantern Corps and the idea behind it. We had to introduce the villain Parallax and his relation to the Corps. We had to introduce Hal Jordan and the concept of his being chosen as the first human Lantern. We had to introduce his relationship with Carol Ferris. And then they threw in Hector Hammond. And Hal Jordan has father issues. Hal has to get trained. Hal has to save the day. You get the point.

Video Game World. The special effects in Green Lantern were, overall, pretty effective. But some of the little things...Reynolds' eyemask never quite felt "right"...added up. The scenes on Oa were sometimes breathtaking, but other times felt like a cutscene from a video game. Some of the ways Hal chose to use the ring were visually uninspiring.

Weak, Abstract Villain. To me, this is the biggie. These types of movies need effective villains (although Iron Man has managed, somehow, to get around this). Parallax was too abstract and didn't have a personal connection, really, to Hal Jordan. The whole movie was set up for Hal to fight a mildly irritated storm cloud with a face. The lack of a personal vendetta really hurt this one.

Mediocre Writing. A little too paint-by-the-numbers on its plot points, GL also suffered from some poor characterization and consistency. The movie talked a lot about how the death of Hal's father shaped his personality, but as the movie went on, that point seemed to get dumped. In addition, it would've probably been best to hold off introducing Tomar-Re and Kilowog...giving the role of Hal's mentor completely to Sinestro. Yes, diehard GL fans would've been upset, but they would've seen the movie anyway and we would've had a stronger connection between Hal and Sinestro.

Thor. Of the three, Thor was probably my favorite. It almost recaptured the Iron Man vibe that Marvel was going for. Like Green Lantern, it had a few things holding it back.

Superpowered...gods? Huh? Asgard was realized beautifully, but Thor is a much harder sell than Iron Man as a character. You can almost believe, somewhere, some rich guy is making a suit of armor to go and blast bad guys. You can't believe, however, that the son of a superior race of beings came to earth to learn humility. Thor's mysticism made the movie less palatable.

A little misplaced humor. Look, this is a great fish-out-of-water concept and Hemsworth did a great job. But there were some kitschy moments that didn't quite click.

X-Men: First Class. This was a solid effort with no show-killers and I'd definitely recommend it.

Where's Cyclops? Storm? What about Wolverine? Havok. Darwin. Banshee. Who the hell are these people? And why should I care about them?

The sour taste from X3 and X-Men Origins: Wolverine didn't help much. X3: The Last Stand was pitiful, a movie of squandered potential. Wolverine was...um...well the video game tie-in was really good. Comic fans will never get over what they did to Deadpool. The bad feelings from these two movies may have given some fans pause about seeing yet another X-Men flick.

Oh, so you have another speech for us. About equality and crap. And politics. First Class got a little preachy at times, which I'm sure grated on some viewers. Trimming one of two of these little diatribes would've helped move things along.

But it's not all bad!

Green Lantern Pros:

*Ryan Reynolds is always watchable
*Oa visually beautiful, overwhelmingly so, at times
*Sinestro was terrific
*Movie managed to mix a sense of wonder with light humor

Thor Pros:

*Likeable hero in Thor
*Terrific supporting cast
*Memorable villain with personal vendetta
*Felt part of a larger, shared universe
*Beautiful to look at

X-Men: First Class Pros:

*Wonderfully realized relationship between Xavier & Magneto
*Laugh-out-loud Wolverine cameo
*Nice 60s retro vibe
*Kevin Bacon looked ridiculous in the Magneto helmet

Now, I have to say this: I have HIGH HOPES for Captain America. And the promo materials and trailers look incredible. You can bet I'll be there!