Comics And Movies

With this summer officially the summer of the Comic Book Movie, the studios are scrambling to adapt everything and anything they can. Marvel's plans for Thor, Captain America, and eventually, The Avengers, are pretty well known. Warner Bros/DC have talked in recent days of a Superman reboot as well as developing Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, etc. in hopes of finally getting a JLA picture off the ground. Even the indies aren't being left out as one of my favorite comics, Sleeper, has been optioned with Tom Cruise being discussed as the lead. With The Spirit coming for the holidays, Watchmen early in '09, and G.I. Joe and Transformers 2 next summer - it's a good time to be a comic book fan if you like going to the movies.

One of my frequently checked websites, Comics2film, discussed a couple lists of comic book movie ideas. Let's take a look!

First, there was a list of the Top 10 Marvel Comics Heroes they wanted to see in the movies. Here's the list with my comments on each:

Dr. Strange
I could actually dig this one, I think. The Harry Potter movies have shown that magic and fantasy in the right hands can be a lot of fun for everyone. Something that starts darker from moment one could work nicely.

Namor, The Sub-Mariner
Uhhh. I really don't want to see this. I'd be more interesting in Aquaman, I think - and I'm not very interested in that at all. Unless Mandy Moore is playing Aquagirl - then I'm all in.

She-Hulk
Wow. Absolutely no desire to see this. Let's see if we can get the Hulk franchise nice and stable before we go there - and even then, let's not go there.

Ant-Man
Fuck. This list looked like it'd be a lot more fun to check out then it has turned out to be. This is a joke, right?

Captain Marvel
Next?

Scarlet Witch
Seriously? Next?

Nick Fury
Ahhh. There we go. With Samuel Jackson already in place as Mr. Fury, I could totally dig a 24-esque Nick Fury flick. Have him taking on HYDRA and I'm sold.

Black Panther
I actually think this could be good. The Panther background and the story of his country would be a lot of fun. This one probably could fly as a 300-ish style story actually. Just put the Panther in the leader role.

Cloak And Dagger
Never read it. Won't comment.

Power Pack
Nope. But I do think a Luke Cage movie might be fun.


The other article had to do with "unfilmable" movies based off the fact that for years, everyone considered Watchmen to be an unfilmable movie. Of course, a lot of people felt the same way about Sin City and 300 too - guess special effects are bringing down a lot of those walls. So, this was a list of comics considered "unfilmable" that they want Hollywood to tackle. Let's take a look!

The Sandman
Largely considered Neil Gaiman's greatest comic work, The Sandman has been in development hell for years. I'm not super-familiar with it sadly even though it's always been on my list to check out. I think I might even have a TPB of the first arc around here somewhere. I loved Stardust though so if The Sandman approaches the awesomeness of that [which I've always heard it does] I'd be down for it.

Preacher
Man, this list is really bringing back some memories. Preacher and The Sandman were both comics I've always wanted to sink my teeth into but never got around to. I've heard nothing but amazing things about Preacher so I'd be up for it too. However, at one point, there was talk of doing it "issue by issue" as an HBO TV Series. Now _that_ would be pimp.

Marvel Zombies
I've never even heard of this. The description talks about Spidey agonizing after eating Mary Jane. I don't understand why he'd be in agony for doing th- ohhh... I misunderstood. Hrm. I think my version makes for a better movie.

And that's that. Pretty shitty list, IMO. No Y The Last Man? No Fables? No 100 Bullets? Honestly, the entire Vertigo line is ripe to be picked for both the big and little screen. I'd love to see a 100 Bullets anthology series. Fables would be absolutely amazing - and easy to market because the characters are all familiar. Y The Last Man might be better as a TV series.

Top Five Friday: Comic Book Movies

With Iron Man hitting screens this week, it seems like an appropriate time to look back at some of the very best comic book adaptations to hit the big screen.

So, let's!

NOTE: I haven't seen Iron Man yet [but hope to this weekend] so that one won't make the list... yet! Also, I haven't watched Transformers yet so... well, subject to change!

5. Blade

It's odd. As I started thinking of movies to put together on this list, my mind drifted to movies that a lot of people don't even associate as having a comic book as their source materials. Things like 300 or Sin City could've easily made the list as well but just fell short. Another thing that's weird about the list I came up with is that as much of a stickler as I am for staying true to your source material, the majority of the movies that came to mind I had very little familiarity with the original source or the movie was notorious for tossing it aside. Anyways, Blade is just flat out cool. It's a comic I've never read - not even after seeing the movie and really had no desire to. But the movie version of Blade is awesome - although I think it is helped greatly by the tremendous performance of Stephen Dorff as Deacon Frost, one of the all-time great movie villains that is criminally overlooked and underappreciated when that discussion comes up.

4. Batman
How could you not like things like the Bat Shark Repellant? Or the zany popups on the screen with "POW!" or "THWACK!"

...

Huh? Oh. Not _that_ Batman.

Gotcha. Well, the Nicholson one was good too. And really, isn't Nicholson the key to the first Batman movie? It may not be the Joker performance that comic book fans were dying to see... and in just a few weeks time, we may discover it's not even the best Joker performance in a movie... but it's Jack being Jack and being Jack to perfection. All the one-liners are gold. "This town needs an enema!" "Never rub another man's rhubarb!" "If you've gotta go, go with a smile!" Michael Keaton is... okay. Keaton was good as the dopey, bumbling side of Bruce Wayne... but Bruce Wayne doesn't have a dopey, bumbling side. Before Batman Begins came out, I used to say that Keaton was a good Batman but a bad Bruce Wayne - Kilmer was a good Bruce Wayne but a bad Batman - Clooney was just plain bad. Christian Bale pretty much broke the mold but more on that later. Anyways, give full credit for this making the list to Jack Nicholson... or a cameo by Lando Calrissian as pre-scarred Harvey Dent.

3. The Crow
Another comic book movie that I've never read the comic book of - despite owning a t-shirt promoting the comic that I bought at Hot Topic as a youth and wore endlessly resulting in many a photo from my youth where I'm wearing the t-shirt... and I never read it... and I shopped at Hot Topic... somebody just wipe all those memories out of my head please. The Crow was an utterly fantastic movie that I just realized I don't own on DVD and felt absolutely sick about it. The epitome of a revenge flick and just about perfect in every aspect. It's dark, it's creepy, but it still tells the story and doesn't get lost in the violence. And if nothing else, it brought two quotes into my world that I love to death. The first? "It can't rain all the time." I spout this one off from time to time when it seems like things just can't get worse - a glimmer of light in a very dark and gloomy world at times. The other? The one that prompted my good friend Poff Daddy to air-hump any light post, mailbox, video game, golf club or anything else that would give him the opportunity to bellow "BANGIN' AWAY ON DARRRRLA!" at the top of his lungs on any number of nights. Ahhh, memories.

2. Batman Begins

I just couldn't do it. As much as I wanted to rank this number one for being very close to a perfect comic book adaptation, I just couldn't do it. I love the acting [for the most part,] I love the story, I love the lighting, the set design, the "toys", everything about it. Cillian Murphy as The Scarecrow stole the movie for me actually - he lit up the screen with charisma every time he was on it. I could've done with him as the lone villain in it. I can watch this movie over and over and seemingly never tire of it. So, why didn't it get the top spot?

1. Superman 2

Sigh. How could I not? It was a hard choice, I'll admit. Batman Begins did a worlds better job of sticking to the source material - something I treasure in a comic book movie... hell, any adapted flick generally. But there's something magical about Superman 2. I don't know what it is. Maybe it's Superman making the great sacrifice to be Clark for the rest of his days for his love - only to realize that he was being selfish and society needed him to be Superman. Maybe it's the menacing trio of villains - the brawn, the sexy siren, or the brains. Maybe it's the face that the phrase "Kneel before Zod" is a permanent part of pop culture because of it. I don't really know what it is but I'll be damned if Superman 2 isn't the best comic book movie ever released on Planet Houston.

And that's that.

Superman vs Wolverine!

Impossible, you say?

Imagine the not-so-distant future. You race into your local comic store on Wednesday, quickly looking over the racks to find your favs. Captain America is back... and yes, it's an alive Steve Rogers. Batman's in some kind of grave danger and questioning his role in society... check. Spider-man is back to being a mystery and the Punisher is still killing people.

You grab for the latest edition of the Justice League of America. The team is engaged in some major battle... all the major players are involved... Batman, Wonder Woman, GL, Flash... there seems like there's someone missing though. Can't quite place who but something just doesn't seem quite right.

You pick up all the Superman books. They're all still there. But again, something's just a little different. The numbering of the books seems off too and the logo is... hrmm.

You're flipping through the pages of the Superman issue. Was that Nick Fury? Couldn't have been.

You grab for a copy of the Avengers. Yep, they're all there too. Cap, Thor, Iron Man... hey, who's the guy with the big "S" on his chest? That's weird.

As you reach the register, there's a giant pile of books that are among the most-hyped. You look at the cover... it's a shot of Wolverine attempting to shove his claws into the guts of Superman. It's a beautifully done cover and as you marvel [no pun intended] at the company cooperation... you notice no DC logo on the book. It's Marvel only.

And you wake up with a start! Whew, that was a close one. A world where Marvel controlled Superman? Now _that_ was a dream... or a nightmare.

Or was it?

A couple weeks ago, Warner Bros lost a lawsuit to determine who owned the rights to Superman. The court ruled the rights belonged to the heirs of Siegel and Schuster, the original creators.

What's that mean?

Well, it means that the heirs could tell WB to shove it and kill any upcoming Superman film properties.

It also means, in five years time when the contract expires, they could very well sell the comic book rights to Marvel.

Will it happen? Probably not.

But Superman gone from the JLA? The Big Three becomes the Big Two? Marvel gets the Man of Steel?

The mind boggles at the possibilities.

Under The Gun!

Trying to watch the Celebrity Apprentice Finale before Mrs. Blue falls asleep. So, I don't have time for a full post. Take this and enjoy it!

A Post For Posting's Sake

I read this article on CNET that was about becoming famous via your blog... and of course, as you can tell by the high-browed, worldly content on here, that's exactly what I'm aiming for.

One of the suggestions they make is that you should make sure you're posting daily... just anything at all to give people something new to read if they happen to stop by because if you don't at least give them the option, they won't come back! Is that right?! You treacherous fucks!

Alright, fine. I'll try to post daily. Happy now?

So, in honor of that half-assed pledge, I present a post for posting's sake.

Give me a few minutes here to scour the Interweb for things to write about because I'm drawing a blank [total creative blank as I haven't been able to do anything screenplay-related in days either.]

Okay, here's something... well, I wouldn't say "good" per se... but it's amusing and relevant since it was a topic for brief discussion at family dinner on Sunday.

I've posted on here before some of my fears for the forthcoming Justice League movie and I'm far from the only JLA fanboy getting nervous every single time a piece of news comes out about this thing.

Honestly, the first sign of trouble was the news that they had no intention of casting Christian Bale as Batman or Brandon Routh as Superman.

...

What the fuck?

Why the hell do you make multi-hundred million dollar relaunches of two franchises and then not use the faces of those franchises when trying to launch a third that they're both integral to? It just makes no sense at all.

And just when the thought crosses your mind that "Any idiot on the Internet who has read JLA could probably do a better job than the shit they're tossing around right now"... you're proven dead, dead wrong. One of my favorite websites, Comics2film [I know... big shock, huh?] had an opinion column up by someone proposing another take on the JLA movie. I settled in to read moments ago expecting to be blown away by a fanboy's vision... or at least mildly entertained.

Instead?

Well, let's put it this way. When most people think of the Justice League of America, you probably think of something like this...



It's a Murderers Row of superhero teams. Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash... you know, the heavy hitters.

Our friend at Comics2film has an alternate suggestion. He despises the idea of the fucky casting like most of us but he understands the expense of Bale/Routh might push the budget into another stratosphere. His solution?

Use a different team.

He proposes...

Well, he proposes a lineup that a quick 'net search can't even score me a picture of. He wants to use a post-Crisis on Infinite Earths lineup of Blue Beetle, Guy Gardner, Booster Gold, Dr. Fate, the female Dr. Light, Mr. Miracle and others.

Crikey.

Why not just pour money down a fucking hole?

The idea is so bad on so many different levels, I don't even feel like dissecting it. I can't bring myself to confront idiocy on that grand of a level.

So, the moral of our story?

"Just when you thought it couldn't get worst, you went on the Internet and realized the true nature of man is to be dumber than the guy next to them."

And that's one to grow on, kids.

Comic Book Movie Roundup

A few Comic Book Movie tidbits for this sorta early Wednesday morning...

NEWS: Justice League movie back on track for '09 release
REACTION: Oh, fuck a duck. I thought the strike had killed this thing but apparently not. The fact that they're already done with their rewrite that they need frightens me because from all indications, it needed a lot more work than that. On a side note on this project, some dude from Mad Max was cast as the Martian Manhunter - don't know if that's good news or not. I'm scared that we might get another X-Men 3 at best or another Batman & Robin at worst.

NEWS: Favreau to helm Avengers?
REACTION: At WonderCon last weekend, Jon Favreau cracked during his Iron Man panel that if the movie does well enough, he might get to direct Marvel's upcoming Avengers movie. See, that news makes me feel ten times more confident in the Avengers movie than in the Justice League... which is totally fucked because I'm much more of a DC guy than a Marvel guy. A JL movie is like a fanboy's wet dream and it looks to be turning into a soaking nightmare while the Avengers movie looks better and better as Marvel smartly builds towards it. I still think they need to do a Captain America solo flick before jumping into the Avengers but hey... that's just my opinion.

NEWS: Deathstroke in The Dark Knight?
REACTION: This rumor got started a couple of weeks ago when at a toy show someone snuck a shot of a Deathstroke toy from the upcoming Dark Knight toy line. The figure design was apparently approved by Nolan himself which made fanboy hearts aflutter. Problem is that with all the rumors regarding the movie, no one ever stumbled upon this one. Today's addition to the rumor is that Anthony Michael Hall is playing Deathstroke which really just sounds like someone making an educated guess to me since AMH has been signed on to the film for a while but no one knows what role he is playing. There was talk earlier that he'd be doing an Edward Nygma cameo to set up a Riddler appearance in the third [or beyond] flick much like the Joker card teaser at the end of Batman Begins. While I dig the Deathstroke character and find it intriguing what could be done in a Nolan Batman world with him, I find this one hard to believe unless it's just an Easter Egg for fans like Mr. Zsasz was in Begins.

NEWS: SHAZAM! is a go
REACTION: During the Get Smart panel, director Peter Segal announced that SHAZAM! would be his next flick. The guy sounds like he "gets" his source material and that can usually produce very cool results. It's an interesting film to tackle and I just hope he doesn't try to get too cute with it. This one will have a very thin line to tread between serious drama and over-the-top. Good luck, sir! Oh, and the best news on this one... The Rock's been approached to play Black Adam which may be the best idea in ages.

As a bonus, I'm tossing in a pic from the new Hulk movie and one from the upcoming Wolverine solo flick as well... enjoy! [NOTE: Hopefully these pics stay up longer than the GI Joe pics that got relocated right after I posted them.]








[MORE NOTES: I decided to go re-find the GI Joe pics for you guys... and I found a new one as well. Enjoy!]

Meet General Hawk - doesn't look quite right to me.


The lovely Baroness


And the not-so-lovely Duke... which won't embed in the post for some weird reason so go check it out HERE