I don’t want to like this movie. I am a Marvel fanboy and think that Superman is rather lame. Even lamer is David Goyer, who I will forever remember as the many who killed ‘Blade,” and was too arrogant to say “I’m sorry. I f%cked up.”
Christopher Nolan produced the movie, whom I also don’t think too much of (despite him seeming very gracious when I was an extra on “The Dark Knight Rises”). I don’t want “realistic” superheroes. I live in reality , and don’t want too much of its influence spreading to my comicbook-based movies.
And Zach Snyder? He reminds me of Michael Bay, without the zeal, the passion that makes Bay more interesting than he has any right to be.
And yet this trailer has convinced me that I have to at least see this movie before I pan it.
Baby steps. Baby steps.
Working with DC Comics’ We Can Be Heroes campaign, a relief effort to fight hunger in the Horn of Africa, Kia created a number of custom vehicles for the 2013 New York Auto Show.
The vehicles are designed with styling queues from iconic DC superheroes like Wonder Woman, Superman, Batman, and Aquaman.
The cause that both companies support is admirable and worthy, though the vehicles themselves are a bit…hideous.
For instance, above is an Aquaman-themed Kia Rio5. The angle of the photo, while dramatic, isn’t the best for seeing the vehicle in its entirely, though you can probably tell it’s not that attractive (which is interesting because Aquaman himself isn’t interesting enough to evoke much emotion one way or another).
This has got to be one of the most violent trailers I have seen in a while. The aforementioned violence is cartoony, but pretty relentless, though what’s most interesting is that the person that showed it to me was probably ten or 11 years old, which concerned me somewhat.
That is, till I remembered that violence is more acceptable than expressions of sexuality in our culture, especially among males (if Michael Bay films are any indicator).
And before I forget, thanks to ‘X’ for the heads-up.
Why does this movie not–so far, at any rate–move me? Maybe it was the first teaser trailer, which reminds me of a fabric softener commercial. Now we have a poster, courtesy of Superherohype, and I am even less interested. It has Superman in cuffs, being led who knows where, when you know full well that there aren’t any cuffs made (of anything other than Kryptonite) that could hold him.
And I don’t claim to be impartial. Marvel superheroes are my favorites, though I don’t wish DC characters to fail. After all, Green Lantern is one of my favorite DC Comics characters, and look how fraked that was (Green Lantern is a character that I have always thought is a bit difficult to screw up. I guess that I was wrong).
Zach Snyder’s “Man Of Steel” (and it isn’t an accident that it’s called that, as opposed to ‘Superman’ because I suspect that his humanity will be emphasized more than his virtual godhood, until things need to be blowed up good! Real good!) is supposedly going to be more “realistic” than past interpretations, though the only way that I can see that being possible is for the emotional side of things to be emphasized.
Because I suspect that the film makers understand that when you have a guy that’s almost invulnerable, can fly, and is from a planet named Krypton, then you have already thrown realism out the window (something Christopher Nolan and David Goyer seem to forget when making “The Dark Knight Rises.”)
The weakest links in this equation appear to be Snyder himself, who is a director not exactly known for subtlety; and David Goyer, whom seems to have reached the pinnacle of his career due mainly to connections, as opposed to the quality of his writing (if in doubt, check out Blade a bit before the climatic battle between Blade (Wesley Snipes) and Deacon Frost (Stephen Dorff) and a similar point in “The Crow: City Of Angels.”)
Notice how similar the two scenes are? I am willing to be that there’s even another scene just like it in another Goyer-written film.
By the way, why would anyone consider Goyer to direct “Hellboy?” Didn’t the producers see “Blade: Trinity” or “The Unborn?”
image courtesy of Hot Toys
As expensive as Batman’s kit is–and it’s very expensive–it doesn’t hold a candle to what it would cost to outfit yourself as Marvel’s Iron Man. For instance, just the Arc reactor alone would cost, according to those enterprising folk at Moneysupermarket.com, a cool $36 million.
And while that’s probably reasonable when you consider that it’s an inexhaustible energy source, your costs only begin there.
• Back and shoulder mounted ailerons: $2 million
• Wrist mounted anti-tank missle launchers (x2) – $3 million
• Shoulder mounted anti-personnel guns – $400,00 (a bargain)
Luckily Tony Stark, worth $9.4 billion according to Forbes, has more than enough resources to make such an investment. Bruce Wayne, by way of comparison, is worth $7 billion, though I suspect that is before events conclude in “The Dark Knight Rises.”
image courtesy of MoneySupermarket.com
When you were young, at some time you probably imagined yourself to be a superhero. Maybe one day you’d be Spider-Man, Captain America or maybe the next Superman.
Or Wonder Woman, or Storm.
Though perhaps Batman was one of your favorites. When you were young, all you needed was maybe a towel to serve as a cape; and if you were feeling especially creative, perhaps an addition of a leftover Halloween mask to make things complete.
Though unfortunately, we all have to grow up sometimes, and the price of our playthings tend to increase as well.
For instance, if you were to purchase a real Batsuit–composed of Kevlar and Nomex instead of rubber–Moneysupermarket.com estimates that it would cost a bit over a million dollars.
And that’s not including his vehicles because it’s estimated that the Tumbler would set you back $18 million; the Batpod, $1, 50o,000 and the Bat, a cool $6o million dollars.
And that’s not even including therapy for all the stress you’d be under trying to keep your identity secret.
Which is probably why the best place to see superheroes are either in comic books, or the movies.
“”The Dark Knight Rises” is an engaging film, but in the end it’s too grounded in the real to soar.”
The devastating events in Aurora, Colorado have cast a pall over the launch of Warner Bros. “The Dark Knight Rises,” though if box office receipts are any indicator, the film is weathering the adverse publicity well.
That being said, attentive readers will probably come by many reviews that compare it to Marvel Studios’ “The Avengers,” which isn’t valid because “The Avengers” is one of the best action movies of the year, while “The Dark Knight Rises,” while engaging in its own way, is not nearly as fun.
And that’s OK because just like there are comics for just about every taste, there should be movies that serve the same function.
Part of the reason for this is that, in seeking to make Batman’s Gotham City as realistic as possible, the filmmakers have almost surgically removed the fantastic from the equation, making the proceedings, while interesting, sometimes mundane and held together only by the strength of the cast.
Another is that Bane in the comics was more dangerous; less an anarchist that an almost primal force focused upon breaking the Batman physically, as well as mentally. A similar approach is attempted here, but Bane, as played by Tom Hardy (he of the very odd voice, who’s jaw should move more when he speaks, despite the mask on the lower half of his face) is more interested in destroying Gotham City than breaking Batman.
He disguises his violence in populist clothing–echoing the protests of the 99 Percent in his speeches, but it’s only a ruse designed to lull the citizens to complacency before he destroys them.
The movie makes a point of showing that his beliefs drive him, and enable him to do what normal men cannot, which is what makes him and his followers dangerous. Unfortunately we see little of what animates his beliefs, though its expression in seemingly random destruction is often on display.
Who I found to be a pleasant surprise was Anne Hathoway, who played Serena Kyle (she was never actually called ‘Catwoman’). I was prepared to dislike this interpretation of the character, especially since she was following in the footsteps–or should I say paw prints?–of Eartha Kitt, Julie Newmar, and Michelle Pfeiffer, women far more voluptuous than the (almost) waifish Halloway.
Her characterization works, though I cannot say the same for Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s character, who seems to be hanging around just so there could be an ending that Bat fans would appreciate.
In summary, “The Dark Knight Rises” is worth seeing, though because it’s so grounded in reality, it never really takes off like it should, which is a shame.
Here’s a teaser for Zach Snyder‘s “Man of Steel,” Warner’s reboot of the Superman franchise that is being overseen by Christopher Nolan (“The Dark Knight Rises”).
Too much of it looks like “The Perfect Storm” crossed with a jeans commercial, though the flying scene at the end, complete with breaking the sound barrier, is kinda neat.
‘The Arrow’ Appears To Suffer From ‘Nolanitis’
“Nolanitis” is a disease I named after Christopher Nolan, the director of the Batman Saga. A definite sign of the condition is when film makers feel the need to render the fantastic, the wonderful, on more human terms, sapping the aforementioned fantasticalness and wonder in the name of a realism no one asked for in the first place.
How do I know this? I have yet even seen an episode of “Arrow” (which has received a full season order from the CW, by the way)? No? Then what the frak am I talking about?
To the left is an image of the Royal Flush Gang, from DC’s wiki. Sure, it’s silly, literal and very visual.
That’s mainly because comics are a visual medium, besides oftentimes being directed at young people (and in my case, those young at heart;).
Then again, so are movies and television shows (being a visual medium, that is).
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