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He’s Just Starting to Fly
(Man of Steel — Official Movie Website)
“There’s plenty of time for individual Superman sequels. He’s a tough character to tell. People like the darker vigilante. I think it speaks to the human psyche more easily rather than the god-like being that we can’t really understand. Once we have a more expansive universe we can delve more into the character of Superman and hopefully tell more stories”
–Henry Cavill (Superman)
This is a nice early birthday present from Henry Cavill. At least future separate movies for the greatest superhero ever created are part of the DC Comics master plan.
Thank goodness.
Following the origin story of Man of Steel (set in a natural environment with gritty roots), it seemed plausible that it would mirror the remarkable Dark Knight trilogy. Even though executive producer Christopher Nolan insisted it was Zack Snyder’s movie and that it would not be the same template as Batman, the tone and build-up was undoubtedly similar. Opportunity for another legendary standalone DC Comics trilogy was there for the taking. Instead, it was declared that the “sequel” would be Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice. The enormous universe would be greatly expanded from its many clever clues sprinkled throughout Man of Steel.
The quote above, in the very least, allows a deep breath to be taken by fans who are still wary of seeing a new Batman so soon after Christian Bale’s defining and iconic portrayal (ie– Ben Affleck) and believe that Superman could have seen Dark Knight-like success in its story arc, excellent writing, casting and character development with an isolated trilogy. Plans to weave Superman-centric sequels amongst The Justice League and other solo movies will hopefully succeed in elevating (no pun intended) the Last Son of Krypton to a level not seen since Christopher Reeve. The world wants to see Clark Kent at The Daily Planet, as well as the romantic chemistry between Clark/Superman and Lois Lane.
The time is now to capitalize on superheroes in popular culture, but Nolan and Co. proved that patience and the highest cinematic quality in writing, casting, acting, directing and consequential musical scoring is of paramount importance. There are many profound reasons why men in capes have sustained as important figures in our societies for decades upon decades and the greatest favor a filmmaker can do for these characters is to take them seriously and discover what makes them tick, why they’re eternally relevant and why they’re needed today.
Why put superheroes on the silver screen in the modern era? What’s the reason?
Fortunately, this new Superman is rooted in hope.
Happy Monday!
A bootleg is nothing new. As a matter of fact, for anyone who has ever walked through the bustling streets of a major city, it’s as common as a 3-figure gold Rolex. Sure, the time is only right twice a week, but it looks like a Rolex at passing glance.
But what happens when a bootleg teases something that hasn’t reached a global audience yet and it changes an entire movie studios’ elaborate trailer release plan that was only a few days away from occurring with spectacular fanfare and that even forced a direct response from the director of said film the very next day?
Welcome to director Zack Snyder’s world last Thursday night.
It’s being reported that the trailer leak of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice late last week originated from Brazil with a cell phone capture of the trailer with Portuguese subtitles. The quality was low, yet it clearly showed it was for the highly-anticipated superhero epic to-be-released on March 25, 2016. Snyder took to his Twitter account Friday to attempt to counter the early teaser trailer release with the official video and hashtags, “#BatmanvSuperman #NotBlurry #NotPirated.”
While the planned IMAX event at select movie theaters tonight will feature the trailer, a message from Snyder, a few additional shots and some goodies, below is the long-awaited trailer for the public:
Snyder was clever at leaving Easter eggs throughout Man of Steel (regarding Bruce Wayne, Lex Luthor and Aquaman) and it seems he’s continued this fun trend in the trailer above. Watch it again and pause at the 1:21 mark. Notice that question mark on the cement column in the foreground on the left side with Batman standing in the background…?
Have a Super Week!
P.S. The first look at Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne brooding (a pivotal expression for the character) somehow appears to have missed the mark, confirming my initial criticism of his casting. And yes, it may be a hasty response (fair enough) and it was always going to be impossible to follow Christian Bale and The Dark Knight trilogy, but still…
The Stars are at War in Gotham
There are clues for a myriad of puzzles to solve all around us. It’s one of the truly fantastic aspects of life: never-ending treasure hunts for the eternally curious human population. One of the most fun exercises is when we notice an anomaly in a favorite movie or television show. In the case of the following video clip, director J.J. Abrams (Star Wars: Episode VII) continues to have fun with his blockbuster director friend Zack Snyder (Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice).
An ordinary visual tour of the new Millennium Falcon, right?
It’s likely a good guess that this will not be the last time these two directors cross-over their universes. After all, someone’s got to post bail for this guy…
(Zack Snyder’s Twitter) “Case closed”
The Hope for Justice
“Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice”
Ladies and gentlemen, two years out from its release date, at least we can take comfort in the fact that the title is awesome.
It’s common knowledge that the Man of Steel sequel will take super leaps and bounds towards a Justice League movie. Add in the fact that there will be an epic battle between arguably the two biggest superheroes of all-time and the potential for this film is becoming increasingly limitless.
Still, there are a few questions that remain/should be asked:
- Will Ben Affleck succeed as the guardian of Gotham? After Christian Bale’s masterful performance (and throw Christopher Nolan’s vision and expertise into that mix as well), all things Batman will be scrutinized. Quite frankly, after The Dark Knight trilogy, it should be. Playing this character is tricky because if an actor cannot make an audience believe they really are a dedicated and skillful crime-fighting force in an adult bat costume, while also gallivanting as a billionaire playboy in modern day Gotham City, well, then that universe falls apart in a hurry (remember George Clooney and Val Kilmer?). As we watch his portrayal on the silver screen, we’ll find out quickly what truly motivated this controversial casting decision.
- Why not give Superman a second movie by himself to battle with Lex Luthor and a surprise villain, in which Wonder Woman and/or Batman could be teased at the end of the sequel? Man of Steel was a gritty, realistic (for a superhero movie) story of how an alien adapted to his adopted planet, adopted parents and adopted citizens with his evolving super powers. It was an origin story. Consequently, this warranted only one scene of vintage Clark Kent flirting with Lois Lane. Shouldn’t fans get a full movie of Superman battling an enemy/enemies on Earth as a newly declared human within Metropolis with Lois Lane close by? Trust me, Superman can carry a movie by himself. Just judging by the title, a little patience would have been nice…
- Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor? If he can duplicate his performance from The Social Network, he could shine as the digitally-deft villain from the Millennial generation. Like Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder and Terence Stamp, Gene Hackman is forever treasured as an icon in the Superman cinematic universe. Fans will and should compare the performances of the aforementioned actors and actress from the 1978 classic to today’s portrayals. Like the Ben Affleck casting, the Eisenberg choice will go either really well or really badly. Quick question, was Billy Zane considered for Lex Luthor? Actually, that not a quick question, that’s a very serious question.
- Will Wonder Woman get a worthy and well-deserved character introduction with a background story or will she be introduced as more of a super sidekick? This is a powerful moment for a female superhero to shine in the spotlight for multiple generations of women and girls to see and relate to. Are they crowding the Justice pool with too many characters too quickly? Does Wonder Woman deserve an origin story?
The expectations will be super (pun intended) around this time in 2016 for Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. Will this movie do the modern superhero story and its beloved characters justice by soaring to new cinematic heights?
Either way, it seems fitting to put our hope in the man of steel.
Jimmy's Daily Planet 