Here is something interesting. As Hollywood continues to wander, having lost the stomach to make truly unique movies and instead backing formulaic rehashes and ‘revisions’ of classic movies, more movies based on comic books are being done. With each success the number of movies increases and the lower the tier of character interest becomes. Of course the rush to get the latest hero brought to life can result in massively inferior interpretations.
While Batman, Spiderman, Blade and a few other movies have been quite good and have the monetary success to justify their sequels (and prequels) there is the other side as well. The Fantasic Four completely missed the mark. The Hulk was an abysmal glorification of CGI effects. The later Christopher Reeve Superman movies became pure camp, and the later Batman movies were about looks over anything else. The last X-Men movie was just an attempt to cash in on the popularity of the first 2 movies.
So what is left? The big hitters of DC comics and Marvel have been used with mixed results. Time to drop the character quality and get the lesser characters made. This is not necessarily a bad thing. Blade was a relatively minor character. The movies were mostly well done and good enough to have a series based on them made by the Spike cable network. Spawn on the other hand was far less interesting, though the potential was there.
This brings us to the next string of movies soon to appear at a theater near you. Ghost Rider has Mr. Nicholas Cage. It has CGI effects and lost of internal struggles, as characterized by the battle for maintaining control over a demon that shares the body of a man. Potentially good, or it can go the path of the Hulk – too many effect and the story line is muddled at best.
The Black Panther may be a real big winner. This is another pet project by Mr. Wesley Snipes. Its focus on a successful African nation and its leader can be a big draw and a positive image in an arena where Black African Americans, Hispanics and every other ‘minority’, is under represented. And now news of Iron Man has just come out.
I’d like to say this will be a good movie, but I have some doubts. First there will be a need for a lot of effects, from the suit to its weaponry. So believability could be an issue. Also the character is not just flawed, he’s a mess. An alcoholic and womanizer, Tony Stark is also the president of an arms making corporation. Not a great draw depending how the director plays it. The good parts are the director is Mr. Jon Favreau, who did Elf and Made, and Tony Stark will be Mr. Robert Downey Jr. Mr. Downey is perfect for the role as his own bouts with his inner demons make him uniquely in touch with the character.
So while the best characters may have been done, the best movies might be just down the road. Of course if the number crunchers push for a formula approach rather than the deep wealth of character development already done, you can wait for the DVD’s and have some neat Frisbees.
This is what I think, what do you think?
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