As almost everyone knows, Comic Con happened this past week. I was not able to attend, for the main reason that it occurs all week in San Diego, California. Even after pretending to be dying for the week so that I could get the time off from work, I would still have to either drive 3 long days, hitchhike, or pay several hundreds of dollars for a plane ticket. Since I do not want to pay the money, wait in massive lines to get inside, spend the week before creating a wizard or Green Lantern costume, and fighting the crowds for a chance to touch Ryan Reynolds and Angelina Jolie (which would end with lawyer fees and possible 3 days in jail and bail money), I decide to watch all the action from my computer. For future reference, maybe they could have Comic Con in DC or NY one year? Please??
Now on to the point of this blog: Superheroes!! For the past 4 years, there have been a dozen of huge superhero blockbusters that have done really well with keeping to the original story and even entertaining the masses. With that said, I have mixed feeling about what is ahead of me in the next few years.
First, there is the Thor film. I am not very familiar with this Norse God who is also part of the Avengers. The only footage that I have seen is the hammer in the end of Iron Man 2, which left many people asking “What the fuck is up with the hammer???” This is proof of how unknown Thor is compared to the big names (Iron Man, Superman, and Batman). The movie does have two things going for it: Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins. These two actors take only the best roles (except for Beowulf and Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium), so there is hope that this movie is going to be an intelligent, dark film.
Second, there is the Captain America: The First Avenger film. This has one major thing going for it: it CANNOT be as bad as the 1990 version! The film could be shot with a digital camera and a budget of $10.57 and it would still be better than that version. I love the story behind Captain America and the awesome shield. The one thing that I am conflicted about is the casting of Chris Evans as the hero. If you remember, he portrayed the Human Torch in the not so fantastic Fantastic Four movies. He is good at playing the cocky badass, but that is not what the Captain is all about. It is my hope that he took some acting classes before he began filming. Regardless of how bad this film ends up, I will no doubt see it opening weekend.
There is also the Green Lantern film. I will admit that the Green Lantern is one of my top 3 favorite superheroes ever. I love the back story, the ring, and the fact that it goes beyond our universe (which gives me hope of life elsewhere). When I discovered that Ryan Reynolds was cast as the lead hero, I nearly fainted. It gave me so much hope that this would be a top tier superhero film. Unfortunately, that hope did not last very long. Shortly after discovering the casting of Ryan, I found that Blake Lively was cast and fury went through me like bad egg salad. I don’t hate her as an actress, but I definitely do not think she will help this film. The other thing that crushed my hopes was the reveal of the Green Lantern suit. Seriously?!?! It is completely CGI!! I can understand some CGI because he has to glow and such, but it looks SOOO fake!! Ugh, I will stop this now, before I am placed on DC Comics hit list.
Another film coming out soon is The Avengers. This will bring together the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and War Machine. First, I have to ask one question: What the hell is the budget for this freaking movie?!?!?! Robert Downey Jr. is not a cheap actor, neither is Don Cheadle and Scarlett Johansson. Then they fire Edward Norton as the Hulk, which I think is a horrible mistake. I loved Norton as the Hulk and he is a genuinely good actor who takes chances. Instead, they cast Mark Ruffalo, who is best known for 13 Going on 30 and Shutter Island. I am skeptical as to how this will work out. Either way, I am just glad the Hulk is CGI intense and acting is secondary. With all of this said, I am not as excited about this film as I thought I would be. I would much rather see a Justice League film with Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and some more likable villains, but hopefully this movie will be successful enough to end up with a Justice League film coming soon after.
Last but not least is Batman 3. I am a little biased on this film since I am currently watching The Dark Knight and am in love with the entire Batman universe (minus some of the shitty films made in the mid-90s). There is speculation from every source of media about the villain in the new film, which is what seems to make the movie popular or not (The Scarecrow was lame and the Joker was epic, as were their respective films). We know only a few facts about the villains. It will not be the Joker because replacing Heath Ledger would be the worst mistake he could make. Nolan also does not want to bring in Mr. Freeze because it is hard to portray, which is the same with the Penguin. Now, there are some great villains that I would love to see. Catwoman makes the most sense because she is smart, cunning, and a freaking woman villain, which is badass. This would be easy to portray for Nolan and it would fit with Fox’s line about how the new bat suit might not do well for dogs but it should hold up against cats. Connection! Then there is one of my favorite villains: The Riddler. I am also in love with the rumors that Joseph Gordon-Levitt is being looked at for this part. He is a great actor and would make a fabulous villain. I would also love to see Thomas Schiff, the paranoid schizophrenic from Arkham. He was in The Dark Knight, the crazy guy who Harvey tries to get answers about the Joker. He would be perfect because he is crazy, connected to the Joker, and would have a reason to want to continue the reign of terror in Gotham. I also have to throw out Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy. These two could make one hell of a splash in the Nolan universe and add some much needed estrogen to the films. Regardless of who plays whichever villain(s), it is going to be one amazing Batman film that I will see opening night.
With all this said, I am glad that Comic Con is over. As people go back to their normal lives, the epic trailers and teasers from the convention will finally make its way online for those of us unfortunate enough not to go to the event to see the footage in person. It is my hope that all my worries and fears about how bad some of these films will be is going to be destroyed with some amazing teasers. Let us all pray for the best!
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