#by the DCEU standards it was actually pretty good

[maxwell-grant]

Was kinda interesting watching Aquaman 2 do that thing Hollywood movies do where a villain barks orders in an non-English language to signal to the American audience that they're foreign and scary, except this time the actress doing it was speaking portuguese so I actually understood everything she was saying and it was just weird and abrupt. I guess they just told her to translate and say the lines in her own language but didn't direct her how to adapt the dialogue accordingly, so she ends up just telling the henchmen to pick up a guy in a very stilted formal factual manner while everything's exploding around them, that was kinda funny.

[thebossestunicycle]

Final Flash Update: an actual review

The DCEU has always been very hit or miss for me, but it has a special place in my heart. When Man of Steel came out, my dad was OBSESSED with it (still is), and it became the first superhero movie I ever watched. Despite the mediocre scores internet-wide (and how the terraforming scared the shit out of me as a kid), I cannot help but love that film to death. It really sparked my interest with superheroes and just ‘nerdier’ stuff in general.

While the DCEU opened me up to the whole world of superheroes, it also became part of what made me so weary of comic book movies. While there were good movies like Wonder Woman (2017) and (hot take) Black Adam, and great ones like the Snydercut, there were also huge disappointments that left me feeling pissed off when the theater lights turned back on. It’s not like all of these movies are downright horrible in every way (exception being 2016’s Suicide Squad), but each seemed to have its own form of kryptonite. The Justice League (2017)’s being its lack of character development; Wonder Woman 1984’s forgettable plot; and of course, Batman v. Superman’s Martha scene.

With the DCEU’s track record, the over saturation of superhero media, and with Ezra Miller being… Ezra Miller, my hopes for this movie were extremely low. But I actually left the theater feeling pretty.. decent?

Here are my main takeaways. Spoilers ahead:

Plot + Characters

As of now, I haven’t noticed any critical plot holes, which is pretty great, especially considering it’s a multiverse movie and all. Everything that blew up in Barry’s face was tied up nicely. But I am sorta curious to see how moving the tomato can caused Ben Affleck to become George Clooney.

The time mechanics were also pretty neat, like how a new future creates a new past.

I kinda like Barry a lot. He’s wicked awkward but it’s funny to watch.

Younger Barry too! He was such an airhead in the beginning that I was shocked to find out he was the guy that our Barry kept seeing when he time travelled.

I found Keaton’s Batman entertaining too. But the whole time Keaton didn’t really seem like he was trying to act. He just looked happy to be Batman again, which I can’t blame him for. On that note, I wish Bale’s Batman made a cameo somehow.

I was underwhelmed with the Zod plot. I was ready to watch him totally kick Flash’s ass. I didn’t mind Kara, but again she was a bit underwhelming too.

I got excited when Zod mentioned discovering Clark in his pod somewhere in space. I was like “Oh shit, did they take him in and train him to fight for them?” Seeing an evil Superman would’ve been crazy, but nah, they just killed him instead. Lame-os.

Effects / CGI

Oh man, I did not enjoy some of the choices made here.

First of all, the deep fake cameos. And also, deepfaking people like Adam West and all, who are dead, is a little odd. However Nicholas Cage showing up was very funny.

Then there was the CGI in the Speedverse (?? correct me if that’s the wrong name). It was video-game level. I felt like I was watching a skyrim-inspired acid trip.

Even outside of speedverse, the quality was really spotty.

Action

Oh my god, it’s so refreshing when there’s even the tiniest ounce of creativity in fight scenes (Looking at you, MCU).

Diving deeper into Barry’s powers was cool and seeing him fight with (and then against) himself was neat!

Then there was also pretty standard Batman stuff that I’m a sucker for

NEEDED a better Kara v. Zod fight. I wanted lasers. I wanted them to go to space. ANYTHING

Overall Emotional Reaction

Both Barrys hit hard a few times. The desperation to fix everything. Having to let go of their mom and accept their fate(s?). The scene when he said goodbye to her for the last time was pretty sad.

The themes were simple: accept your past; pain makes us who we are; etc etc. But there’s nothing really wrong with that.

The jokes landed! I laughed with, not at, most things

…Okay, I did laugh out loud at some things, like the deepfakes and when the Barrys phased for the first time.

But yeah, it was really enjoyable to watch. The runtime wasn’t an issue at all. Dull moments were rare (though I didn’t give a single shit about Barry’s dating life at all)

Final Score:

Characters: 7/10

Plot: 7/10

CGI: 4/10

Action: 7/10

6.3 / 10

If I had to rank: above Black Adam, below Wonder Woman

but seriously can they just recast flash already. I wish ezra miller all the best on rehabbing themselves, and they really do a great job with the character, but it’s like they’re trying to get a jail sentence with everything they’ve done

[jasonsutekh]

Justice League (2017) and Snyder Cut (2021)

Batman attempts to construct a team of heroes to stop a villain called Steppenwolf from collecting powerful boxes which, when combined, can destroy the world.

Each character got a little development, much more so in the Snyder cut, though it didn’t help that the theatrical version predated most of the solo movies so the background was vague at the time. The dialogue was interesting at times and it was good to see some conflict in the team even if it wasn’t major. Flash was rather a funny character and easily one of the most likable so hopefully he’ll get some more screen time or a solo film.

The narrative was pretty basic with an archetypal villain without much history apart from doing obvious villain things. The content was mostly action which is to be expected when going straight into a cross-over film this early in a branch of the franchise, especially since there are so many other branches that it’s not clear which ones are linked to this one. Overall the pacing wasn’t really up to Marvel standards which took things slower in completing their team.

The film leaves itself open to sequels which is good because some of the main characters need some development in their own films, including any villains that might be introduced. The longer version leaves it open for sequels that look to be much more interesting than what has happened so far and they’re already recasting so it probably won’t come to pass. There needs to be more detail put into the motivations of some characters besides them just wanting to do god things and spin-off films could give them that chance.

The style was expectedly dark and broody which is good in some respects but actually makes it difficult to see what’s going on at times because it’s literally too dark, Snyder cut cleans that up a bit. The aesthetics are typical and hopefully they’ll mix it up in future films otherwise it’s going to look like a franchise remaking the same film with few individual qualities. There was also too much CGI which varied in its quality, the inconsistencies making it all the more obvious how much is being used.

5/10 -Can’t find a better example of average-

-The spatial tunnels are referred to as “Boom Tubes”, named after the noise they make when establishing.

-This is said to be the 5th film in the DC extended universe (DCEU), being preceded by Man of Steel (2013), BvS: Dawn of Justice (2016), Suicide Squad (2016), and Wonder Woman (2017).

-Batman’s back story is based on the murder of his parents but he’s the only one of the six heroes whose parents aren’t referenced in the film.

[stephaniejuhnay]

Alright yall. I finished The Batman.

Now. Y’all are aware of my deep Batman love. Like, I love my white billionaire angsty superhero so much. Batman: The Animated Series is kinda my gold standard in Batman-lore. And Tim Burton’s take (which informed that show) is my favorite live-action take. Also very much enjoyed the Dark Knight trilogy. (Not a fan of the recent DCEU takes with Affleck.) I’ve watched full walkthroughs of the Arkham Asylum games multiple times. Year One & The Killing Joke & Assault on Arkham are great animated feature films. I played both the Batman Telltale series games through multiple times bc I thought the plot was just that compelling. Mask of the Phantasm IS MY SHIT. I thought Gotham was a nice spin on an origin story we’ve seen a million times.

Said all that to say, I enjoy and am very particular abt my Batman content. I like things with a grounding in the canon but a unique perspective/twist to it. I was worried and almost committed to not seeing this movie bc I was tired of being disappointed by Batman live-action films in the last few years.

I’m so glad I went. This is by and far the best DCEU film. I would even place it over the first Wonder Woman, which I thought was DCs strongest film to date (that I’ve seen - I couldn’t get through Birds of Prey and haven’t bothered to watch The Suicide Squad). But this? I am SO IMPRESSED. There is potential for another good trilogy here and that makes me very happy.

It was longer than it needed to be. We definitely could’ve gotten away with a 2hr film here. I felt like I was watching a director’s cut instead of a theatrical release, but I didn’t necessarily mind that.

I really do feel like I watched an amalgam of Tim Burton’s/Nolan’s Batman with the fighting styles and plot points of the Arkham & Telltale games. In the best way possible. The mystery at the heart of the story was pretty easy to figure out but didn’t make it any less enjoyable going on the ride. And there were a couple twists (the Selina/Falcons connection, the reveal that Riddler DIDNT actually know Bruce’s identity bc I was so sure he did) that I thought were pretty dope. My favorite new piece of origin story is the reveal that Martha Kane was instead Martha ARKHAM. That was such a dope twist and is gonna set up some really interesting stuff down the line if we get more movies. Again, it’s reminding me of the Arkham series and I LOVED the plots of those games. I always said they played like movies and digging into the Arkhams’ history is just…exciting to me.

I TOTALLY called Barry Keoghan being The Joker before he even got on screen. I saw him playing “unnamed Arkham prisoner” and was like “Joker. He’s The Joker, that’s tHE JOKER!!!!!” Again, VERY exciting.

I also really appreciated the twist on the “Batman’s existence is responsible for the types of villains Gotham produces” trope too. It’s usually because they’re sick of him trying to clean up Gotham, want to be the one to take him down, blah blah. But the Riddler here was INSPIRED by Batman because of his use of fear to control the city, and I thought that that was such a clever and poignant take.

And lastly. Rob. Well done sir. I have no qualms. I do think it’s interesting that I ended up buying him more as Batman than as Bruce Wayne which is NOT what I was expecting. But he did a really good job here. Everyone did honestly. Super impressed with every performance, I dug the fighting styles (I really think the Arkham games have forever influenced the fighting in any Batman media to come after it), I thought the cinematography was great. I also appreciate the…basic-ness of the Waynetech too. He’s only 2 years into the Batman gig here so the tech to come (hopefully) has such great potential.

Overall. I REALLY liked this film and I fully expected not to when I learned it was happening. I am more than happy to have this film prove me wrong. I hope we get more.

[81scorp]

My top 7 movies of 2016 (and a bonus)

Hey kids! Its that time again! That day you`ve all been waiting for, when I talk about the movies I`ve seen in the cinema and rank them according to my own personal taste and bias!

Except this year there were some... complications. You might have heard about something called the corona virus, a pandemic and stuff like that.

This year I only had time and opportunity to see one movie in the cinema, not enough material to make a list of as you can see. So instead I`ll give you a list of the movies I saw in 2016! Now, if you`re wondering if I`ll do a list of all the movies I saw in 2015 I`ll have to dissapoint you.

I didn`t start keeping track of my movie going experiences until 2016.

(One of these movies came out 2015, and it even came to the cinemas in my country that year but I didn`t get to see it until 2016, so that`s why it`s on this list.)

M`kay? M`kay.

7: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

Zack Snyder is good at making a movie look good but he is not a good story teller.

Man of steel had some shortcomings, but surely Snyder would learn from that and do better in the next movie that would help build the DCEU and lead up to Justice league, right?

Nope. Batman kills, Supes is sad, just like most of this movie, and I can`t really take Eisenbergs Lex seroius as a villain.

But atleast Wonder woman is not in the movie long enough for them to screw up her character, so there`s always that.

Overstuffed, not strong enough to live up to it`s own ambitions and uses up all the big guns in it`s climax instead of saving them for later movies. Snyder was not the right guy for these movies. He`s better suited for telling his own stories than others.

6: Suicide Squad

This one gets a better spot than BvS because I like it. I like that Batman was allowed to be Batman this time and not another one of Snyder`s broken antiheroes who are appearently obligated to kill people just because the plot says so. I like that we were introduced to characters that aren`t Batman, Superman or Wonderwoman for a change, the DC comics universe does have more characters than those three after all. I like that they weren`t afraid to introduce magic into the DCEU. I like that Harley Quinn, a character with potential, finally appeared on the big screen.

But the keyword here is "like". Just because you like something doesn`t mean that it`s good.

The plot is admittedly a mess. A mess I could follow, but still a mess. Some consider this movie worse than BvS because that movie at least had ambitions while this does not. Yeah but this was fun, and without ambitions it had one less area where it could fail.

Buut that`s not really an argument in it`s favor.

5: Dr Strange

I feel bad putting it this close to Suicide Squad on the list becuse it is much better than that.

Pretty standard MCU quality. Does not dissapoint but doesn`t excel either.

"Iron Man but on LSD" is an accurate description of the plot but also a very generalizing way of describing the movie. Cool set pieces, original ideas and a clever climax makes it different enough from most of the other chapters in the MCU saga churned out by the giant Marvel movie factory.

4: Star Wars: the force awakens (2015)

I didn`t ask much from the new Star Wars movies. I only wished for two things: Don`t mention Jar Jar or midichlorians.

Besides avoiding those obvious mistakes the movie also had good acting, likeable characters capable of delivering non-wooden dialogue, sets that weren`t completely CGI`d and a pretty engaging scene between Han Solo and Kylo Ren. Sure, it played it a little too safe by borrowing more than a few plot points from A new hope but other than that it did what a Star Wars movie should do.

3: Deadpool

The basic spine of the plot is not very innovative and a little old fashioned: boy meets girl, boy loses girl to kidnappers, boy gets superpowers and rescues girl. But what sets this apart from other movies that have used the same formula is the execution. It has a lot of comedy, raw violence and some self aware fourth wall breaking.

R rated superhero comicbook movies are few and rare. R rated superhero comicbook movies that break the fourth wall are even rarer, and thats what makes this movie intersting.

2: Captain America: Civil War

The MCU has always had a little problem with sequels. A few examples are Iron man 2 and 3 and Thor the dark world. Here`s were the Captain America movies are a golden exception.

Captain America: Civil war did not surprise me as much as Captain America: Winter soldier but it still gave me something to sink my teeth into.

It gives both sides good and understandable reasons to fight for the things they believe in and it introduced two new characters in a way that felt like it helped the plot instead of cluttering it.

It gives you some "Hell Yeah!" moments but also someting to think about.

And now...

Drumroll please.

My number one pick for 2016 iiis...

1: Zootopia

As usual, the movie that gets the number one spot on my list is an animated one that knows how to tug at my heart strings. I like when a movie gets me to feel someting but to get the number one spot on my list a movie needs to do a little more than that, and that`s what this movie did. It made me feel and it made me think.

Some tears, some laughs and a little commentary on todays society.

Here`s where my list would normally end, but this year hasn`t exactly been normal. Before I get to the one movie I actually saw in the cinema this year I`m gonna list some of the movies I planned to see this year but didn`t get the chance to.

Wonder Woman 1984

Onward

Sonic the hedgehog (I did see this one in 2020. On DVD. It was adequate.)

Scoob!

Birds of prey and the fantabulous emancipation of one Harley Quinn

The New Mutants

(Black Widow used to be on this list but since it got delayed to 2021 I couldn`t keep it on my 2020 list.)

And now...

Drumroll please... again.

The only movie that I saw in the cinema in 2020 iiis...

Jojo Rabbit (2019)

It is late world war two, we follow Johannes "Jojo" Bretzler, a 10 year old boy who believes in the nazi ideals so much that he has Adolf Hitler himself as an imaginary best friend.

Just when you think that we have made all the movies we can about WWII this movie shows that there are still are a few angles left that we haven`t tried.

Jojo Rabbit shows us not just how dangerous, but also how immature nazism is. The worst kind of immaturity, the kind that lacks any kind of selfawareness and believes that it is dead serious.

If I could to sum up this movie in three words they would be: Important, serious and funny.

And that`s my list, feel free to disagree.

-----------------------------

Deviation nr: 142

Written Stuff nr: 35 I usually post these lists at the beginning of the new year instead of at the end of the old one. But this year there was no point in waiting for any late December releases (for obvious reasons). I had already seen all the movies I could see. Let`s hope that next year is better.

[littleoddwriter]

Happyhoganon: If the Marvel Cinematic Universe and DC Extended Universe never existed, with both Marvel Studios and DC Films just sticking with making solo films during the 2000's and 2010's until 2020, how different could the movie landscape be without the MCU or the DCEU?

Hi!

Okay, so I’ve been thinking about how to answer this, mostly because I have some thoughts on this for sure, and also because I’m anxious that I might have misunderstood you. Either way, I’ll just go for it and if it’s not what you expected, or wanted to hear, I apologise!

I take it that when you talk about “the movie landscape” you’re talking about the MCU and DCEU’s impact on the entire film industry, marketing, etc. because that’s what I took it for, and what my response will be about for the most part.

First off, I think it’s safe to say that weighing impact alone, the MCU is what I’ll have to talk about the most because the DCEU doesn’t have that impact on the industry and people because it still isn’t mainstream or widely loved and popular, like the MCU is.

Why is that? Well, MCU films, especially the Avengers ones, are crowd pleasing and you don’t have to be a fan to enjoy or understand them (talking from experience here, I’ve seen only a few solo MCU films, and I’ve seen the first Avengers when it came out, and then Infinity War and Endgame, too. I was told I wouldn’t get the last two if I hadn’t seen all the solo films. Guess what; I understood them anyway. They are crowd pleasing action flicks anyone can enjoy and understand; it’s definitely just a lot more fun for die-hard fans of the MCU/Marvel, but they don’t need you to know the characters and constellations inside out). 

DCEU films on the other hand are not crowd pleasing, darker and grittier (like the comics, obviously) and so far, none of their movies are on the critical standards that the MCU is on (speaking of: The amount of people, who like and watch those films; Justice League, I’ve mostly heard bad things about, Birds of Prey - as the most recent example - has been bashed before it was even released, etc.); MCU films don’t get that treatment and are better received for the most part. Not because they’re objectively or subjectively “better”, but because they speak to an entirely different audience. 

What I’m trying to say with this point: The MCU has opened up Comic Book Movies to a wider audience. It has managed to make Marvel, at least, more mainstream and popular. Almost everyone I know either loves Marvel, or has at least seen the “bigger” movies (the Avengers films). Basically the exact opposite is the case for the DCEU; People around me neither like, nor watch them, for the most part. Which is okay, but those are the same people, who prefer Marvel, and again: That is okay! Everyone has their own opinion, and so on, and once more, the MCU does speak to a lot more people, than the DCEU.

Therefore, CBM is one of the hottest and most popular movie genres since the Avengers films have come out. The demand for solo movies for certain characters has also risen (taking Black Widow as the most immediate example, such as the solo TV shows for Loki, Falcon and the Winter Soldier, etc.). That wouldn’t have happened if the Avengers films weren’t so popular and mainstream. (I really hope I’m being coherent here, lol, I’m trying).

It’s also important to note that Marvel Studios is owned by D*sney, and they only care about money, etc. So, seeing how popular all of this is, they of course take their chance to make as much spin-offs and solo shows and movies as they can to get that cash in. 

In conclusion, I believe that those studios have had a huge impact, one more than the other, on the entire industry and CBM themselves. CBM are more popular and mainstream, more actors are widely popular and loved, and the industry knows how to use that to their advantage. Is that bad? No, if one of those actors is in an indie film, it’s actually really great because it is bound to get much more recognition. 

Onto my next point, which is how the shift from solo films (Tobey Maguire Spiderman, Christian Bale Batman films, etc.) to the bigger, teaming-up ones (Avengers, Justice League, Suicide Squad, etc.), has also influenced the entire film industry and the marketing.

The thing about this is that it could very well just be my view of things and not be true at all, but I do believe that my thoughts have a place and aren’t entirely incorrect.

Either way, the Avengers films especially have highly popularised the actors appearing in them. Which goes to say is great for them and the film industry because the industry has realised the shift from “I will watch this movie because the trailer made me want to”, to “I will watch it only because this one actor is in it”. It’s not just a fandom thing, like with myself and how I watch every film my favourite actors are in, but it’s become a general thing. Most trailers for films are very different to how they used to be, if you ask me. Films where the studios suspect that they won’t get their cash back in and make profit, will have, and be advertised with, currenty popular, widely loved and known actors in them. Note, how those actors are mostly from the MCU, and always the same, too.

Take for example Knives Out and MIB: International; Knives Out is packed with popular and well loved actors (Chris Evans - MCU, Jamie Lee Curtis, Daniel Craig, etc.). Pretty much every actor in this film was someone you’d know, and love at least one of them. And the trailer showed me that they knew that. I’ve seen the trailer a few times, and none of those times, I was interested to see what the murder mystery would bring because to me, it came very short. What stuck with me, was who was in it. And it’s safe to say that most people went and watched it for the actors first, the film itself second. 

MIB: International took Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson and advertised the film with their characters’ dynamic, which was very much like what we saw and loved in Thor: Ragnarok between Thor and Valkyrie. So, yes, of course people went to see it for those two first, the film itself second. 

I believe that with films like that, they know they wouldn’t get too many people into the cinemas if it hadn’t at least one actor, or a well loved and received duo, attached to it one way or another. 

In my opinion, that is probably the biggest impact MCU had on the entire industry, because their actors appear in so many films (which is good for them, yes!) and the advertisement has definitely made a huge shift from the film itself to the actors in it. (I hope this made sense).

Anyway, this is what I think about this. I tried to compromise it a little. Hopefully, I made sense and it was coherent enough to get behind what I’m trying to say. I, by no means, intend to put anything or anyone down here. It’s really just my opinion and how I see the impact of these studios, especially Marvel. I also hope it was kind of what you were asking for. If not, I sincerely apologise!

Have a great day/night, cheers! 

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Michael in the Mainstream: Shazam!

The DCEU is really the embodiment of the spirit of the origins of the modern superhero movie craze. Much like the man who helped kick it off in 2008 – one Robert Downey Jr. - The DCEU had a dark, checkered past, with a lot of horrible issues that made audiences balk at their films. Man of Steel was just another so-so Superman film, Batman v Superman was a bloated, bizarre crossover film made before anything about the world was really established, and Suicide Squad was just a complete and utter hot mess. Then came Wonder Woman, a breath of fresh air in the current superhero landscape and the DCEU at large… and then came Justice League, a tonally confused mess that managed to be entertaining in spite of itself. After that was the infinitely entertaining cheesy fantasy action of Aquaman, putting the franchise back in everyone’s good graces just in time for a silly little movie about a little boy who transforms into a grown man to come on the scene… Shazam!

Shazam! is, without a doubt in my mind, the Iron Man to the RDJ of the DCEU. While there were great ones before, with Wonder Woman and Aquaman being absolutely fantastic and enjoyable, this was the first film to pull of what those two movies did without the big problems that bogged down those two movies. There’s no inane plot twist villain followed by a goofy fight, and quite mercifully there is no acting as atrocious as Amber Heard’s performance. The movie has problems, yes, but it does almost everything solidly enough that I can overlook the issues.

I think what really makes the film special is just how earnest and unashamed of itself that it is. It’s goofy, it’s bright, it doesn’t sugarcoat what a teenage boy granted the power to turn into a grown man would do… it’s just so playful, silly, and charming. And if there’s one thing I never imagined I’d say, it’s that a teenager turning into Zachary Levi to sneak into a strip club would be “charming.” This movie really loves throwing curveballs.

And nowhere is that more apparent than in the concept itself. Shazam, or Captain Marvel, or perhaps even Captain Sparklefingers is not the first hero you’d expect DC to make a movie out of, especially since on paper he seems pretty similar to Superman, power-wise at least. They’ve already established Superman as a big force in this world, so why would they go with the weird concept of a kid getting powers from an old wizard to turn into a knockoff Superman? But if there’s anything comic book movies have proven lately, it’s that weird, off-the-wall concepts like this can work, and they just dive into all this whole hog. There’s no sugarcoating things or explaining the magic away as alien tech like early MCU movies did; no, this is magic, there’s a wizard, there are demons, this is all happening. Magical elements have obviously been in the DCEU before – Enchantress, the Greek Gods, and to some extent Atlantis have all been shown – but this is our first time seeing a wizard who wouldn’t look out of place in an 80s fantasy film and actual, evil demons that personify the Seven Deadly Sins. It’s just so great that we’ve come so far with superhero movies where we can have a magically-empowered child punch demons in the face.

And speaking of the child, Billy Batson is such a wonderful character. He starts the movie as a bitter loner with abandonment issues and a dislike of authority due to his mother going missing for much of his life, with a good heart underneath it all; as the movie goes on, of course he learns his lesson and comes to accept his new family as his real one and all that delightfully feel-good mushy stuff. And much like fellow superpowered youngster Miles Morales from last year’s biggest non-MCU superhero film, Billy feels real, his struggles feel real, and his growth as a character feels real. He honestly feels like a more accurate take on Superman than any previous Superman movie (except Hercules and The Iron Giant, anyway). Obviously credit must be given to Zachary Levi as Shazam, who does a really good job of being both badass and extremely childish when the scene calls for it, but I think props must be given to Asher Angel as well, not only because he is just as capable of carrying the movie as Levi is due to his fantastic dramatic moments and solid humor, but because he has an absolutely fantastic name.

Of course, a superhero movie is usually only as good as its villain, and thankfully this film has an extremely solid villain in the form of Dr. Sivana, a classic villain of Shazam who has been given quite a makeover for this film. Played by the inimitable Mark Strong of modern classics such as Kingsman, Sivana is an utter bastard as well as a tragic figure; we open the movie seeing him abused by his family, only to be called by Shazam the wizard and then cruelly rejected because his heart just wasn’t pure enough for the wizard’s high standards. What follows is a terrible accident that surely opened up the door for decades of belittlement and abuse at the hands of his father and brother, to the point where you honestly understand where he’s coming from to a certain degree… though probably not to the degree where you find it okay he wants to murder a child.

The Sins on the other hand… well, let me put it this way: they gave me flashbacks of the elemental demons that worked for Blackheart in Ghost Rider, and if that doesn’t make sense to you, I cannot stress enough you do not ever want to be compared to those guys. The Sins lack personality, character, and even creative designs; I could hardly tell which Sin was supposed to be which in quite a few cases. It’s honestly kind of sad they had more personality as statues then they did after hitching a ride in Sivana’s body, but to their credit they at least function more like a plot device and minions than as actual characters, serving as essentially either boss battles for Shazam to knock around or as a power boost for Sivana himself. It is a shame they aren’t more interesting, but it’s also not a big loss, as the movie focuses far more on the comedy and drama around Billy than the actual superheroics, which is weirdly a good thing.

Billy’s extended foster family are all great in their own right, though I will say that at the moment they do seem a bit one-note, aside from Freddy anyway. Mary, Eugene, and Pedro are all interesting and enjoyable in their own right, but the movie kind of shunts them and their characters aside to focus more on Billy, Freddy, and to a lesser extent Darla. To the movie’s eternal credit though, it puts a lot of focus on them in the third act, and they get to do something pretty surprising and awesome in the climax that I won’t spoil.

However, I must spoil the mid-credits scene, because that is the moment when I knew that this movie is not just the Iron Man of the DCEU, but the Guardians of the Galaxy as well. You see, a character who those steeped in the lore of Captain Marvel/Shazam will easily recognize appears, one Mr. Mind. Now, with a name like that, if you are unaware of the character as I was when I first had his existence spoiled, you might think this might just be some mad scientist, or some evil doctor, or something akin to Mr. Sinister where it’s a superpowered evil man… but Mr. Mind is something far better.

He is a caterpillar. An evil alien caterpillar from Venus. And he talks with a little voice box in a creepy radio voice.

Mr. Mind’s appearance is a sign to me that the DCEU is going down the right path. This is the sort of ballsy move sticking Howard the Duck at the end of Guardians was, in a franchise that has a lot more to lose considering its checkered track record. The fact that they are willing to, this early into their run, give us an evil universe-conquering worm shows me that now the DCEU is fully willing to embrace the inherent silliness and fun of the comics they are adapting. I’m fully expecting Tawky Tawny to show up in the next film at this rate (and with all the tiger symbolism in this one, he just might).

Fun, charming, funny, emotional, and dramatic… I figured it would be good, but the fact that this film is this good is just a shock. I’m so happy that DCEU isn’t backtracking on its desire to truly embrace what fans love about comics and take risks with what they show us, and the fact it’s doing it a lot quicker than Marvel did gives me a lot of hope we’ll be seeing even weirder stuff in the future (fingers crossed for Mr. Mxyzptlk!). I think DCEU fans and Marvel fans alike can come together and appreciate this one, because it’s just an absolute joy to watch regardless of which comic book company you slavishly worship over the other. More than anything else, though, it must be said:

This is DEFINITELY the best Captain Marvel movie of 2019.

[valkerymillenia]

"Aquaman" (2018)

I didn't expect to get to watch this in theaters because of financial issues but I got invited to a theater with circumstances that allowed me to use my free ticket coupon so... Yay.

Bear in mind that is just my personal impression. Also- SPOILERS.

Honestly, I went in expecting nothing. Here's why.

Firstly, because I never liked classic comic book Aquaman: straight, white, upper-middle class, cliché blond male with time and resources to get a law degree, upgrades to superpowered King that is mildly useless outside of water and still manages to be one-dimensional (who's story is only interesting and validated by the characters around him and not himself), goes from mild-mannered Superman-copycat personality to the most boring played out viking/pirate-esque personality that tries to hard to be more than it is, all of this with a splash of arrogance, a truckload of tacky outfits and a touch of toxic masculinity to wrap it all up. Sorry but it's just not my jam.

Granted I haven't read the last, what, ten years of the Aquaman comics? Or watched any adaptations others than the Jason Momoa's since... 2010 or 2012, I think?

But yeah, I was never very much into classic Arthur Curry (but I can appreciate the Aquaman worldbuilding though! That part is pretty cool).

Secondly, I got my hopes up for Jason Momoa's Aquaman because even though the JL movie disappoints (as does the overall DCEU movieverse in general), Jason's new rendition of the character seemed promising and a lot more interesting, but given how only Wonder Woman impressed in the new DCEU and everything else has been somewhat disappointing as a whole, I didn't want to get my hopes up again.

However, considering that I tried not to have expectations (other than "please don't oversexualize Mera or shove her exclusively into the romantic interest role") I actually ended up being impressed by the movie!

My first and most simple impression is:

Aquaman feels like Indiana Jones and Fifth Element meet The Little Mermaid and 20,000 Leagues.

It's also a very Arthurian tale, heavily dependant on family drama.

Regarding Jason's acting, the way he chose to play the character is so much better than anything I could have asked for. He makes for a well rounded imperfectly perfect character, he's not Marty-Stu'ed like other renditions, he manages to effortlessly ooze "tough guy" vibes while still being a giant teddy bear dork. Thehe new look is pretty damn impressive even though the movie returns a bit to more recent comic redesigns rather than the new style of JL, and the way Jason acts makes Arthur feel human, exciting and with realistic emotional development.

Plus, a POC Aquaman, specially a Polynesian one since that's how the movie codes him, with strong connections both his heritages, just fits so much better than the Arian cliché, specially since the Atlanteans always displayed a lot of racism/specism in the comics (and even more outright in this movie).

Mera was shockingly not as sexualized or romanticized as I expected. Yes, she still is on both accounts to a certain degree, with her tight overly-cleavaged suit and her role as princess-promised-to-the-king (which in a fight for legacy story like this will always shove her a bit into the trophy role), BUT somehow Amber Heard manages to balance this out with the badassery of a woman who actively takes charge and though she places duty above all else, she doesn't let her role take away from her individuality or shadow her power, strength and intelligence.

So Mera actually turned out pretty incredible but I still want to see her more on equal footing with Arthur, plot-wise. Could also live without the usual mid-battle pause to talk and kiss though.

Tom and Atlanna were a pleasant surprise! Their romance sub-plot actually sets a good tone for the movie and ties everything together very well in a way that makes the story flow and connect convincingly and full-circle. It's also interesting to see how the relationship defies a lot of stereotypes and metaphors of discrimination- it is, after all, an interracial couple where the woman is the strong powerful one and the man is the gentle heart that does not at all feel his masculinity threatened by his queen wife. Very wholesome.

The chronology and editing were pretty damn good too. Again, I haven't seen editing and story flow this well in DC other than with WW.

The CGI was... Well, for DC standards it was pretty epic but still not up to par to the bar the MCU has set. However, entirely aquatic world/sets are something new and ambitious so we have to cut them some slack.

Then again, the biggest problem wasn't so much the CGI but the leaps in logic.

Sure, the movie is spent 85% under water (aka working around visual distortion, air bubbles, low visibly, pollution/blurriness, unknown landscapes, a very big variety of ecosystems between the different bodies of water depicted, etc) in a universe with fish people, crab people, underwater volcanoes, prehistoric sea monsters, wrecks and decay, millions of aquatic creatures, underwater cities of advanced tech and an alien-quality, completely new mind-blowing architecture... It's all very ambitious and you'd think some of these would be a bit much to swallow or look subpar but that's not it at all.

Yes, some of the more fantastical creatures are still less than perfect (not talking about Uncanny Abyss here but literal CGI stiffness) but that can be absolutely overlooked in favor of their creativity and how well in works with the story.

No, the real problem is some obvious flaws in well established physics, used for dramatic effect. I guess many people might not notice them but to me some were a I little more jarring than others and tended to distract from the actual story. I guess I'll post some of these moments in a separate post.

HOWEVER, the one thing I really have to point out in this movie is the wardrobe!

The females had skintight outfits or flowy pearly things, obviously meant to be sexy but the irony is they actually come off as more practical, simple, realistic and appealing! (The jellyfish dress is an exception for obvious reasons, it's supposed to be over the top). And the ladies accessorize very well too! Meanwhile, the male outfits are straight out of the comics- loudly colorful, nerdy, unnecessary, clunky, heavy and in some cases (looking at you, Orm) just plain tacky.

I mean, Arthur has an excuse- he wears pretty normal clothes unless forced to change and when he finally takes up the legacy suit there's actually a good excuse for the brightness and flourish since it's supposed to be an ancient King's ceremonial armor (taking a corpse's suit and putting it on right away is a little morbid though) and, like the female outfits, it's skintight like a wetsuit so it does have less drag and manages to be practical despite the flourish. And Black Manta has A BIT of an excuse too- he has to reshape and work with tech that is beyond his own and just tries to keep it sustainable so I can totally accept it. No other male outfits can be excused or unseen (*Edna Mode voice* capes? Underwater? Really?).

All in all, it's a good movie and I'm impressed. Now if only DC stopped trying to force dark grunginess and cheap-looking CGI (*cough*JL*cough*SS*cough*) on everything and actually took real risks and raised the bar instead of trying to be edgy, super serious and "sexy"...

Though... What does it tell DC that so far the best DCEU movies have been the ones staring and directed women and POC?

[popwasabi]

“Aquaman” Review: DCEU finds life as Seaman Rises (Heh)

Directed by James Wan

Starring: Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Nicole Kidman

 Throughout the two and a half hour run time of James Wan’s “Aquaman” you get the feeling you’re not watching your typical super hero flick.

I don’t mean this in the critic buzz-wordy sense of “It changes everything you know about super heroes!” but rather it’s distinctively its own thing in the tonally all over the place DC Cinematic Universe.

It’s bright, loud, cheesy and very strange but for a film that’s as long as it is there sure isn’t a dull moment within it and if this film says anything about the DCEU it has its first real pulse since “Wonder Woman.”

(My thoughts after “Dawn of Justice” and “Justice League”...)

“Aquaman” takes place sometime after the events of “Justice League” as Arthur Curry, the Aquaman, continues to reap his own vigilante justice upon the evil-doers of the seven seas. When an Atlantian named Meera warns him of an impending war that’s about to be waged on the surface from his half brother King Orm, Arthur reluctantly sets off to retrieve a legendary trident to stop him all while contemplating his complicated roots to the under water kingdom.

As mentioned, “Aquaman” is not a normal super hero flick. If anything it bares more resemblance to Indiana Jones with a splash (heh) of Lord of the Rings (not to mention some fanciful tech elements borrowed from the Kingdom of Wakanda). This isn’t a bad thing though as a character as strange and cheesy as Aquaman might not have worked with your standard super hero script of good guy donning his or her cape to combat billionaire psychopaths, mad titans, or poorly rendered CGI demigods.

“Aquaman’s” strength IS that its bonkers though. Atlantis is a strange setting, even in the world of men who dress as bats and super-powered aliens named Clark but James Wan was right to lean into this weirdness. It’s sincere and cheesy at the same time, perhaps sincerely cheesy, and unapologetic about the fact there are humans with futuristic technology living in the depths of the ocean riding sharks (that roar??) and settle disputes in Klingon-esque trial by combat. It’s a credit to the film’s script that you recognize all this weirdness and yet you buy into it anyways. It’s absurd in the best way and it’s impossible to look away while grinning (sometimes laughing) ear to ear.

(Seriously, weird shit like this actually happens in the film and no one is bothered by it.)

The action is solid with some superb fight choreography to go along with even better cinematography and editing and the variety of adversaries Arthur and Meera face throughout the film between high tech pirates, Atlantean commandos and deep sea monsters are all pure visual treats for the eye. The pacing is superb because of this and makes the film’s lengthy run-time feel like 90 minutes. It’ll be hard to feel bored watching Arthur kick ass, while Meera waterbends enemies around her and it’s a credit to James Wan’s directing that allows this to be way more fun that it deserves.

Jason Momoa does a fine job here, though, as this film’s fish man lead. Though he at times can remind you of that high school football captain who pantsed you in your teenage years with his often jocky line delivery he is nonetheless charismatic and a joy to watch as this character. Traditional Aquaman is just a little too vanilla ice cream (not to be confused with Boy Scout types like Captain America and Superman) for this era of super heroes and Momoa was the right man for this more rugged take on the character. Sure, Momoa can be a bit of a bro but he’s sincere at least and carries each scene he is in perfectly well and will likely be a treat in the sequel.

(Not to be confused with “Being a treat” not that I a straight man would ever say about such a fine hunk of meat...hey wait a minute...)

Amber Heard’s Meera plays off him well, barely tolerating Arthur’s “too cool for this shit” demeanor, but more importantly she is a rare example of a love interest who is helpful to the plot (if anything she does most of the heavy lifting of the story). It helps that Meera is a super powered character herself but too often female characters in these super hero flicks offer little beyond being a prize for the main character at the end and it’s good to see a character like her actually written to be truly strong in more ways than one for a change.

If you liked villains like Lee Pace’s Ronan from “Guardians of the Galaxy” you’ll love Patrick Wilson’s King Orm aka Ocean Master. The script doesn’t lend much depth to Orm beyond “Half brother impure! Surface bad!” but Wilson hams it up to 11 spending most of the film yelling and giving broad dictator speeches on conquest and victory. But this is fine once again cause the movie doesn’t need him to be anything beyond an adversary for Arthur. They probably could’ve played up the brother plot line a little more (somewhat like what “Black Panther” did for T’Challa and Killmonger) but the film gets all it’s points in about power, humility and love that’s it’s not 100 percent necessary.

(Black Manta is a bit wasted here though but perhaps will offer more in the sequel.)

The only real negatives I can say about the film is it could’ve expanded a bit more on the half breed plotline, where Momoa (a hapa himself) is more than capable to play up and Nicole Kidman is wasted as Arthur’s mom as she seemed have a strict line limit set in her contract. But these are pretty minor issues and again it’s impossible to not enjoy the strangeness, cheesiness and crazy shit that happens in this movie.

It’s pretty safe to say at this point that the DCEU is finally starting to find its groove as the “grittiness” and long-winded shit of the Synder-verse appears to be waaay in the rear-view mirror now. Warner Brothers is probably going to play the rest of the franchise as if everything pre-“Justice League” other than “Wonder Woman,” never happened and if this film is any indication the franchise has found its sea legs after enduring some pretty harsh waves. It still has a ways to go before it even sniffs MCU success but at the very least the future is bright.

Hopefully Warner Brothers rides this sea of good fortune and makes a splash with “Shazam” next year.

Sorry.

 VERDICT:

4 out of 5

So what do the dbags have to say about Rotten Tomatoes “DC bias” now? #getoverit

[summeryewberry]

Titans Review: S01E01

Titans (2018), season 1, episode 1.

My thoughts:

Firstly, it's not perfect, and it certainly doesn't have to be. 

It's good enough to be entertaining. That's all I ask from my entertainment. And in that it succeeds.

Quick plot re-cap: Rachel Roth, a teenage girl who seemingly has a second personality inside her, sees her mother murdered in front of her and flees home. She's drawn to Detroit, and to a young cop, Detective Dick Grayson, whom she recognises from her prophetic dreams. Dick is outwardly distant, but quietly concerned about Rachel, which keeps them in each other's orbit. Even in Detroit there are people hunting Rachel; they claim it's to save the world, because Rachel is a portal that must never be opened. What they don't care about is the scared young girl, who doesn't know anything about all of that, only that people keep trying to kidnap her.

Secretly, Dick is struggling against his own anger and a violent streak, that sees him take the law into his own hands when his sense of justice is offended (such as, when a child abuser walks free). For years, Dick has fought outside the law as his alter-ego, Robin, but a year previously split with Batman because, he explains, he was worried he was "becoming like him." (Whether that means becoming more violent like him, or just losing his own identity, isn't clear.)

Meanwhile, a woman in Austria wakes up in a car crash, with no memory of who she is. She manages to piece together the basics from her handbag (Name: Kory, Residing: Das Alpen Hotel, etc). In her hunt for answers, she discovers her own super-strength and ability to generate beams of heat. She’s also - apparently - looking for a girl called Rachel Roth.

The first episode doesn't provide any answers yet. It does, however, set up a slowly unfolding timeline. It's not quite as slow as, say, American Crime Story, but it's a pronounced change of pace from the existing Berlanti DC shows. In that, it plays as more of an adult drama, rather than a superhero show. More Stranger Things, than The Flash. In fact, I'd say there are no heroes in the first episode at all. Instead, the characters are simply lost people, stumbling along, trying to survive, but all with the potential to become greater than who they are right now.

The production values are excellent, and there's some genuinely beautiful camera work in the first episode.

It’s a bit jarring when the story jumps between America and Austria, because there's only the most vaguely tenuous link between them as yet, so it seems like two different stories being told right now. But I'm sure that'll smooth out once all the characters come together.

I was warned about the violence before watching the episode, so I was expecting it to be very hard to watch, but it turned out not as bad as I was expecting. It's still plenty graphic though, so I won't blame anyone for finding it too much. Personally, I'm not a huge fan of graphic violence in any medium, although I'll make exceptions if the story has something else to offer. In this case, I think Titans does have other things to offer; certainly enough to make me curious about future episodes.

Tone-wise: Titans is not exactly like the DC cinematic movies - it's got more humour and emotional connection than those have had (to this point) - but it's not inconsistent with the movies, either. If you wanted to imagine them taking place in the same universe, you could.

To be clear, that's not a bad thing. My problem with the bulk of the DCEU cinematic films to date is that the plot made no sense and I didn't care about the characters.

I have no problem with a grimmer, more serious tone, because I still maintain that a good writer can can make anything work. Do the writers behind Titans have that ability? I can't tell yet, but there’s none of those particular cinematic pitfalls evident here. The plot progresses from point A to point B, in ways that make sense, and so far the characters are already people that you want to care about. So that’s a good start.

It’s pretty standard TV pilot material: introduce the characters, give us a taste of their personalities, and show us enough of what they are facing to sell the story ahead of us.

Episode 1 does a lot of set-up, with no conclusions or pay-off yet, so we'll have to wait and see how the writers handle their themes and characters from here onward.

Things I loved: - The theme music! I'd listen to that music on its own. - “Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel” on Kory's introduction. That made me smile. - The understated details: Rachel has clearly been crying when she buys her bus ticket, because her eye make-up is smudged and wet. - Rachel/Raven in general. You really feel for her and want her to be OK. - Dick's personality. He's cynical and struggling and angry, but not without charm or humour, and we do get glimpses of that. - Also his compassion. He can't not help. It's obvious that all he wants is to help people. - Clearly I am an oblivious lesbian because I missed the implication that Kory and the hotel receptionist had a "thing", until someone else pointed it out. Duh. - I love that they got an actual German speaker to play the hotel receptionist. It sounds simple, but too many shows don't do it. So that was beautifully understandable German, and very nice to hear for once.

The rest of the German is charmingly terrible though. Ah, good old American media.

I know Dick doesn't like guns any more than Batman, but outside of that context, it's actually refreshing to see a cop who doesn't shoot at every little thing on American TV. I didn't realise how much I was expecting a guns-blazing rescue scene until it didn't happen.

Robin is well-cast, too. I'm impressed they managed to find an actor who was athletic, without being too “butch”. And he’s pretty! So good casting, there.

Things I learnt from watching Titans: the best way to shoplift, is to turn yourself into a tiger.

So...

In general, I liked it, and I’m looking forward to seeing more.

[davidmann95]

Could you rank the live action Batsuits?

Honorable Mention: Batman: Dead End

Not quite counting this since it was a fan film, but otherwise it would have a very serious shot at the #1 spot. It’s Batman’s costume!

Dishonorable Mention: Gotham

Unfair, I know, since I didn’t mention either of the Blur suits from Smallville for the Superman costume rankings, but this is recent and boo, sirs. Boo on you for thinking dime-store Midnighter was acceptable.

12. Batman and Robin (1949)

I’m reasonably certain this is some kind of vaguely Batman-themed serial killer. That Robin, on the other hand, is definitely a serial killer. Look at it, it has no eyes! It takes the shape of a man, but it lies! It lies!

11. Batman (1943)

Not exactly ideal itself, but at least the ears and logo are basically where they should be; I’m probably being overly generous given this is almost certainly the most flattering possible photograph of this one, but if it were the 1950s and I hired someone to entertain at my kid’s birthday party, I would be satisfied if they showed up wearing this.

10. Batman and Robin (Freeze Suit)

Hey kids, can you spell “Happy Meal Tie-In”?

9. Batman Forever

Much as I enjoy Batman Forever and think Schmacher’s aesthetic for that world was delightful, there’s no real argument to be made that this didn’t butcher the iconic design that Burton’s movies had settled on.

8. Batman Begins

I wrestled with whether this belonged above or below its immediate successor, but ultimately this is a real neither-fish-nor-fowl kinda look: it’s too weird and rubbery to quite fit with what Nolan was going for with the rest of the movie, but it’s hardly in the vein of the classic suits either.

7. The Dark Knight/The Dark Knight Rises

I really appreciate what Nolan and company were going for with this one, and I’d maybe even rank it higher if not for those damn segmented plates breaking up the bat-logo (the one area where Begins’ suit holds the obvious advantage). But at the end of the day this looks more like a movies’ idea of tactical urban commando Halloween armor rather than an actual suit that someone would ever wear, and with the aspirations towards realism it holds that’s a crushing blow against it.

6. Batman and Robin

The nipples are admittedly a bit much, but all-in-all I think this is a perfectly fine, streamlined getup that fits with the rest of the movie and the (delightful) tone it was going for.

5. Batman Forever (Sonar Suit)

Hey, no nipples! Not that it isn’t overdesigned as hell, but you get what you pay for and in this case I’d say it works out just fine. It’s definitely exists at the best intersection of Schmacher’s sensibilities with what you expect a Batman costume to look like, and in my opinion in turned out looking pretty cool in its screwball context.

4. DCEU (The Dark Knight Returns Armor)

Not much to say about this one: I didn’t rank it higher because it’s still an offshoot getup rather than the real deal, regardless of its comics pedigree, but it looks damn good and I appreciate that it brought the proper white bat-eyes to the screen, however briefly (so did The Dark Knight, but that was…not so great a visualization, even if I got a kick out of it at the time).

(As far as offshoots go, I’m not counting his ‘Knightmare’ suit on this list, since it’s just his main suit with a coat and goggles, and that’s not even a final-boss variant costume so much as its own weird one-scene wonder thingey.)

3. Batman ‘66

Cheap? Obviously, but it’s not exactly as if Bruce Wayne was rocking body armor back in the comics then either, and aside from the eyebrows - which themselves were a charming touch that indicated his goofy straight-laced seriousness while also adding that little extra slice of color - it’s about as 1:1 a translation of the comics as we’ve ever seen with him.

2. Batman/Batman Returns

I know they were two different suits, but the tweaking was minor enough that I’m counting them together, and this worked out fantastically. Embracing that their movies weren’t taking place in anything like the Earth as we know it, it Burton and the rest nailed it down to the minimal, essential elements and bolted them together with his own weird sense of style, giving us a Batman who’d never make sense in our world, but couldn’t have looked more at home in that one.

1. DCEU

I can’t - I can’t - be the only one who took one look at this and wondered what the hell took WB so long, can I? It’s the Batman suit. No frills, no fuss, no muss. Just enough texture to fit Hollywood’s standards and seem vaguely armor-ey, but this is basically what Batman wears when he goes out to fight the Joker. I remain surprised it took them 8 feature films to figure that out. So of course they’re adding weird aviator glasses and a white bat-symbol or somesuch nonsense in Justice League (not that the competition is immune to fixing what ain’t broke - amazing as Black Panther looks, really not a fan of the new mask they swapped out the one from Civil War with), but hopefully this is what we’ll see in The Batman and what’ll endure as the standard going forward.

[videofeed]

Every Superman Movie Ranked From Worst To Best https://youtu.be/4uySYIw3Ofc Here is every Superman movie positioned from worst to perfect. Created by Jerry Siegel as well as additionally Joe Shuster, the Man of Steel came increasing (or leaping) right into comics in 1938, debuting in Action Comics #1. Superman motion pictures have in fact certainly had their increasing highs as well as additionally squashing lows, neverthelessfilmmakerswill likely never ever before give up on finding new approaches of changing the Last Son of Kryptonas well as additionally viewers would definitely miss him if they did. Like different other popular characters - James Bond, Batman, Sherlock Holmes - various celebrities have cycled with the task, nevertheless which Superman made the greatest motion pictures? Superman made his flick introducing in the Kirk Alyn serials, beginning in 1948. The Man of Steel has in fact considered that occurred to appear invarious motion pictures, both computer system computer animated as well as additionally live-action, as well as several beloved television shows. The focus here will be on the hero's live-action theatrical releases. Neither the MCU’s box office domination nor a couple of difficult DC movie outings can dethrone Superman as the most iconic superhero ever created. Even with this in mind, his cinematic adaptations have represented both the best and additionally the worst the genre has to offer - though the same can be said ofBatman’s movies as well. This low ranking is to say nothing negative of George Reeves’ unforgettable portrayal of the Man of Steel for six seasons in Adventures of Superman. However, Superman as well as the Mole Men, released in 1951, was basically a glorified TV pilot, only included here because it did have a theatrical release. Rather than battling the titular Mole Men, Supes defends them from pitchfork-wielding townsfolk, whose fear of the innocent creatures had quickly turned violent. Although Reeves did a fine job, the black and white film isn’t quite sixty minutes long and simply can't compare with Superman’s other movies. It did serve its purpose though, eventually bringing Reeves’ hero to TV screens everywhere. What is there to say about 2017’s Justice League that hasn’t already been said? Zack Snyder and Joss Whedon are both distinctive filmmakers with little common ground.The awkwardly stitched together, tonally incoherent mess of a movie is the result of two conflicting visions that never should’ve been a part of the same film. It’s not, strictly speaking, even a Superman movie, but the Man of Steel was meant to play a pivotal role in it. Sadly,Supes will always be remembered, above all else, for the terrible CGI removal of Cavill's mustache. The movie was meant to be a major superhero team up for DC, but Justice League never really came together. Perhaps the Snyder Cut, coming to HBO Max, will redeem the character. At the very least, it’ll redeem his face. With Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, the most iconic portrayal of Superman ended, not with a bang, but definitely a whimper. It’s heartbreaking to put Christopher Reeve’s final outing in the red cape so low on the list, especially since it was a story that meant so much to the actor. Reeve had hoped to put the Man of Steel back on track after Superman III, a good thought to be sure, but Superman IV: The Quest for Peacestandsas the worst of the original four. Getting rid of the world's nukes was a noble effort, as was making a film that so obviously promoted world peace.Sadly,the 1987 movie suffered massive budget cuts, had a weak villain in the Nuclear Man and was ultimately even more over-the-top than Superman III, which was an impressive feat. While fans were undeniably excited to see the Dark Knight face off against the Man of Steel, Batmanv Superman: Dawn of Justicewas an utterly joyless film in which both heroes are absolutely impossible to like, let alone root for. Released in 2016, Zack Snyder's second DCEU film certainly has its defenders, but the movie didn’t do either character justice. This should not reflect poorly on Cavill or Ben Affleck, who both did the best they could with the material they were given. It does come in ahead ofJustice League, but only because it feels like the singular vision of its director, for good or bad. Like the team-up film, this isn't truly a Superman movie, though it acts as a direct sequel to Man of Steel.Though the movie introduced the world to Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, the bloated runtime (151 minutes), Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor, and the now-infamous "Martha" moment makeBatman v Supermanan overall disappointment. The original plan for Superman IIImight've panned out differently, but the film released in 1983 feels like the result of someone pitching a Superman/Richard Pryor movie but not actually hammering out any of the story details beforehand. Though the movie might be ridiculous, Reeve was still at the top of his game and Pryor is undeniably funny, even if the script is not. Trading in Margot Kidder’s cherished Lois Lane for a subplot in which Clark attempts to woo his high school crush, Lana Lang (Annette O’Toole), was a strange narrative choice in movie absolutely full of them. Directed by Richard Lester, who stepped in to fill Richard Donner’s shoes after he left Superman II, the movie does feature a cool Superman vs.Clark Kentfight, in addition to providingthe basis for the programmers' plotinOffice Space. Exploring the lonelier, more alien side of Superman isn’t a bad idea on a paper. The Last Son of Krypton has often struggled with feelings of isolation, a topic that was thoroughly exploredonSmallville,but a dark, brooding Supermanisn't thebeacon of hope for mankind that many fans expect to see. However, it’s not that easy to be a god among men and Man of Steel shouldn’t be faulted for trying to show a different side of the hero to audiences. Plus, the 2013 film introduced Henry Cavill, who is excellent in the role, and the rest of the cast, including Amy Adams as Lois Lane and Diane Lane as Martha Kent, is great as well. Sadly, Man of Steel failed somewhat in its execution, not only misunderstanding Superman himself, but the Kents as well. The idea that Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner) wouldwant Clark to keep his secret at the cost of innocent lives, including his own, completely alters both characters. That, in conjunction with a hero who left a trail of destruction - and a dead body - in his wake, made for a film that left fansfirmly divided. Cavill’s first time stepping into the red bootsdid have some interesting ideas, even if director Zack Snyder's muted color palette could make the film feel like a rather dull affair at times. All that said, it'sa better movie than many of Superman's previous outings. If Superman Returns is guilty of anything, it’s loving the Richard Donner films a little too much. It’s understandable, considering even after all these years, Superman remains a crowning achievement in superhero films. The 2006 movie ignored Superman III and IV, instead continuing on from Superman II. Overall, Bryan Singer's filmwas a pretty solid outing for the Man of Steel. Long before his time as Ray Palmer in the Arrowverse, Brandon Routh proved he had what it took to play an iconic hero. His performance was both understated and confident, paying homage Reeve, but still making the character his own. At its best, Superman Returns captured the essence of the first two films, though the movie sometimes lost itself in all that nostalgia. Inspending so much time honoringDonner’s legacy, it had a difficult time standing on its own.It's also an incredibly vivid movie, in direct contrast with the muted colors of Snyder’s take on the character. The film’s detractors tend to get hung up on the plausibility of Superman having a son, but in a film about a superpowered alien, how much realism does the audience really need? The movie's Lex Luthor anddirector can’t help but slightlymar themovie in light of the allegations against both Kevin Spacey and Singer, but Superman Returns is still the Man of Steel’s most underrated film. Despite its notoriously troubled production, Superman II holds up not only as one of the best movies featuring the Man of Steel, but also as one of the best superhero outings in general. Much like Justice League, the film was the result of two conflicting visions, butSuperman IIstill holds up. The Donner Cut is great too, but the movie’s theatrical release deserves the second slot right right here. The original intent was to shoot Superman and its sequel side by side, but thanks to Lester replacing Donner as director, much of the film was reshot later. This led to a film that may have actually been a bit uneven at times, but still trounces most of the competition. Superman II is an incredibly ambitious film. It upped the stakes and the action and delivered some unforgettable villains.No Superman flick had aBig Bad who posed as much of a threatto the Last Son of Krypton as Terence Stamp’s General Zod and his cronies.Superman II not only built on thecompelling love story between Lois and Clark, but also explored the hero’s human side. Christopher Reeve was already perfect in the role to begin with, but stripping the Man of Steel of his powers gave the actor something different and more relatable to play. Superman II is not only a nonstop thrill ride, but it’s also quite touching. 1978’s Superman introduced the world to Christopher Reeve as the Man of Steel, and he remains the actor most closely associated with the role, despite all the time that passed and the many other actors to take up the mantle since. It also brought fans the palpable chemistry between Reeve’s Superman and Margot Kidder’s intrepid reporter, Lois Lane. Superman not onlyfeatured John Williams' amazing score, but also set the gold standard for superhero movies to come. The movie takes its time, giving the Man of Steel’s origin story plenty of room to breathe. Reeve remains the very best in terms of portraying Superman and also Clark Kent as two very different characters, making it slightly more believable that a pair of glasses is enough to keep his identities separate. His comedic timing is impeccable, but much of the movie’s magic comes from the way he inhabits the role of Superman. The movie also gave us the first dose of Gene Hackman’s rather brilliant turn as Lex Luther, memorable, even if he never ever before really felt such as an actual threat to our hero. https://videofeed.tv/movies-upcoming-releases-trailers/the-fifth-element-honest-trailer-its-the-weirdest-90s-sci-fi-movie/

[jasonsutekh]

Justice League (2017)

Batman attempts to construct a team of heroes to stop a villain called Steppenwolf from collecting powerful boxes which, when combined, can destroy the world.

 Each character got a little development, some of which followed on from their previous films which were referenced for continuity. The dialogue was interesting at times and it was good to see some conflict in the team even if it wasn’t major. Flash was rather a funny character and easily one of the most likable so hopefully he’ll get some more screen time or a solo film.

 The narrative was pretty basic with an archetypal villain without much history apart from doing obvious villain things. The content was mostly action which is to be expected when going straight into a cross-over film this early in a branch of the franchise, especially since there are so many other branches that it’s not clear which ones are linked to this one. Overall the pacing wasn’t really up to Marvel standards which took things slower in completing their team.

 The film leaves itself open to sequels which is good because some of the main characters need some development in their own films, including any villains that might be introduced. There needs to be more detail put into the motivations of some characters besides them just wanting to do god things and spin-off films could give them that chance.

 The style was expectedly dark and broody which is good in some respects but actually makes it difficult to see what’s going on at times because it’s literally too dark. The aesthetics are typical and hopefully they’ll mix it up in future films otherwise it’s going to look like a franchise remaking the same film with few individual qualities. There was also too much CGI which varied in its quality, the inconsistencies making it all the more obvious how much is being used.

 5/10 -Can’t find a better example of average-

 -The spatial tunnels are referred to as “Boom Tubes”, named after the noise they make when establishing.

-This is said to be the 5th film in the DC extended universe (DCEU), being preceded by Man of Steel (2013), BvS: Dawn of Justice (2016), Suicide Squad (2016), and Wonder Woman (2017).

-Batman’s back story is based on the murder of his parents but he’s the only one of the six heroes whose parents aren’t referenced in the film.

[undulated-raptor]

Justice League

Instead of trying to put together a review of Zack Snyder’s Justice League and talk about the differing aspects of the film, I want to focus on four specific moments. Two of them I absolutely loved, the other two I really couldn’t stand, but I think these four together really show the wide range of good and bad in this movie. Also, I guess there should be *spoiler warning* on this, but let’s face it, there really isn’t anything to spoil with this movie. Just about every major story beat that happened we knew was going to happen, whether from the ridiculously excessive number of trailers that was put out, or the fact that we know these actors all have contracts to show up in each movie, etc.

The first moment I loved is actually the first scene of the movie. The scene just consists of a cell phone interview of some kids talking with Superman, where we see him smiling and actually being the “beacon of hope” we always expect the character to be. For the first time since this whole adventure started with Man of Steel, we see Superman being Superman. It is definitely the smartest thing that this movie could have done, by retroactively showing that the world at large does actually love Superman, which we didn’t really see, especially in Batman v Superman.

The other moment that I really enjoyed is actually the final post-credit scene. Throughout Batman v Superman, I never cared much for Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor. I was initially worried back when he was first cast, and his portrayal, which felt more like an audition to play a villain more like the Joker/Riddler/Trickster level of manicness compared to the scheming brilliance of Luthor. Then this post-credits scene happens. We see him in his full Luthor-ian glory on a yacht, no longer doing a slight variation of his Mark Zuckerberg, but more reserved, more “in control”. Oh yeah, a new character is also introduced, but it isn’t important the way Luthor’s rebranding is.

The first moment I hated came almost immediately after the opening scene with Superman, as we go into a sad, slow-motion montage of the world apparently having lost its hope, filled with hate. I get trying to show the effects of having lost Superman, but the choices to include a shot of a homeless man with a sign saying “I tried” and some epic slow-motion footage of a couple of men harassing a Muslim shopkeeper and her son, including a really powerful shot of one of the men kicking a crate of fruit. Listen, I get there’s a lot going on in the world right now. I get there’s a lot of horrible people out there, who are doing pretty awful stuff. I get that we’re trying to make these movies feel “real”, like they could be happening within our world. That being said, I went to go see a movie that was Batman fighting some aliens. I did not go for some social commentary about how apparently our world sucks because we don’t have Superman.

The other particular moment I couldn’t stand came after the resurrection of Superman. There is a brief fight between our heroes, which is entertaining enough and makes relative sense within the story. Then Superman is holding Batman while floating up off the ground a bit, and returns the threat/question of their last movie, “Do you bleed?” Suddenly Lois shows up, and Superman tosses Batman back behind him like a rag doll. Again, pretty fun moment. But then it happens. We cut back to Batman, laying on the ground in obvious pain, commenting seemingly only to the audience that “something’s definitely bleeding.” Alright, let’s get something straight here. That does not feel like the character of Batman. What makes it worse is while he’s laying there, the camera does a magnificent job to highlight his crotch, with a bulge that makes Jareth the Goblin King seem reserved. At that point, I just have to ask, what are we doing here? I’ve seen a lot of other people commenting online about the “horrible sexualization” of Wonder Woman and the Amazonian warriors, but nary a negative peep about this or Superman and Aquaman running around without their shirts on. Now, I’m not saying that there aren’t a few lingering sexy shots of Wonder Woman, and I’m definitely not saying that those are okay, but let’s have some objective standards over what we get upset about. Reducing a character to nothing more than a sex object should be something we want to avoid, whether it is a male or female character.

I actually found myself loving this movie overall. Yes, it has its weak points (aside from the ones listed, there’s a thousand criticisms all over the web, some more valid than others, but none too terribly distracting in all), and it has some definite strong points, like some of the character interactions. Personally, I would even go so far as to say that this movie is the best one since this DCEU adventure got started up. I might be in the very small minority, but this beats out Wonder Woman, and blows the others out of the water.

[dawnofspeed]

so i went and saw ‘justice league’ with my li’l bro and bestie tonight.

spoilers ahead.

i want to preface my entire thing with saying that lately i’ve felt conflicted about joss wheedon’s work (and even unrelated with the deadpool 2 movie) because of joss’ whole ‘i’m a feminist but the reason i’ve been horrible to women is the patriarchy’ (and with deadpool 2 the whole... forcing a stunt person to do a stunt they weren’t ready for and got them killed).  But also as a filmmaker i know that there are tons of people who work on these films that have nothing to do with those things, so i’ve decided to keep them at the back of my mind and just focus on these slightly problematic films on their own merit. (no i won’t talk about dp2 in this. it’s just been on my mind bc i saw the new trailer and spoke to my bestie, another film graduate, about the issues with stuff tonight and yeah. soz.) ALSO PLEASE NOTE THAT THE FOLLOWING ARE OPINIONS. if you like something i don’t, that’s great. all the power to you. i am literally just writing thoughts and opinions and i only just finished a film degree so... y’know. not an expert.

moving on.

i loved a lot of this movie. as a whole it was a great ensemble piece. the cast was solid, the acting was solid, the script was solid. the plot worked well. i think it accomplished setting up the justice league, introducing us to characters and their backstories while driving the story forward. i also liked that it really seemed to know its source material and kept to the actual point- superhero movies shouldn’t be completely dark. they can be fun, they can be funny, they can be hopeful. whatever problems i have with joss wheedon as a person and the things he’s said and done, i think he can write and direct well. and he knows what he’s doing. the few women in the film he also balanced well. i didn’t feel like he was ‘buffy’ing any of them (something he sorta did with kitty pryde in his astonishing x-men, as much as i loved it. although that could also be because buffy was sorta based off kitty, joss’ fave x-men character). 

i enjoyed all most of the characters. the whole justice league was great (alfred included, c’mon, he’s totally a team member at this point). i do think that diana was different in this film than her wonder woman one, there was just a different tone but you can also kinda just explain that away as this is post-steve trevor, it’s been a while since the events of ww, and that’s just what it is now. towards the end of the movie it felt more tonally in sync with her in ww, so that may be it. also bats pushing diana to lead the team? i loved that.  i’ve never known much about victor but i found his story intriguing in this, he was fun, and my reservations about him being in the flash film are totally squashed now. i maintain that batfleck is my favourite of all batmen. this movie sealed it for me and i definitely enjoy his performance more than any that came before him. i mean. i enjoyed michael keaton but he was just never totally batman for me. clark was SO much better in this movie. he was light, and funny, and 100% the superman i actually love. i didn’t want him brought back to life and then afterwards?? i was like?? nah, you’re right, clark IS a good guy. how have i never seen this before? i just hated dceu superman before this film. arthur curry is cool. i have never been a massive aquaman fan. i didn’t hate atlantis. but i just... didn’t really care? then. they made him cool, and fun, and so much potential. i’m intrigued about his backstory. i wanna know more. i wanna unpack his personality. just. wow.  but the standout? barry all the way. i was a bit anxious about how they were going to do it. i love ezra, but we’ve seen so many iterations of barry at this point that i was just really worried about what aspects they’d keep and how they’d navigate his background and his powers. but they did an amazing job. they kept his sense of humour while also maintaining his kindness, his intelligence, his zest for life and i love how even when he’s terrified he goes out of his way to do the right thing. added to his ‘i assume he’s an attractive jewish guy’ when he’s talking about his security footage. i just. love him. i do think some of his qualities are wally west?? like??? but my brother kept insisting that in the early comics barry was very playful and jokey, not just puns and dad jokes, so i’m inclined to believe him.  also alfred was a+++ i love him. alfred forever. so that clears up most of the mains. plot? well i’m gonna be honest. i know... very little about darkseid and any of that stuff in the comics. i did think it was a great way to bring in both atlantians and amazons. and that cheeky green lantern reference at the beginning. and my brother swears he saw hercules but i only know marvel’s hercules so?? i??? dunno???? i also think it had high stakes, a ticking time frame, gave them the ability to bring superman back AND create a justice league. all while never trying to cram more than one actual plotline into a film. (like. a LOT of other dc movies.) i was happy with it. i never felt like it ran too long or i got bored or any of that so i’m. yeah. great.  also loved that no one was forced into a freakin’ love interest or hampered from saving the world or anything by romance. did think that clark waited way too long to meet up with them for the end battle. like. did he spend all that time making a new goddamn suit? what? got a hair cut? like. why did it take you so long? you’re SUPERMAN. lois told you ages ago to get moving and help out. did you spend all that time like chatting with your mum? also, sidenote: thank you trailers for not spoiling this film. i didn’t expect the superman rebirth. i went in just knowing the jl was gonna kick butt somewhere and we were gonna get introduced to them all. the marketing on this film was spot on, and i loved that surprise and being pulled through the whole movie trying to guess what the hell was gonna happen. double thumbs up. ok. i will go over the things i didn’t like. which were very few. but first i kinda wanna talk about a few other cast/character things. i’m gonna be honest. not a massive fan of amy adams as lois lane. besides the fact that to me she doesn’t look like lois lane, and doesn’t embody (TO ME) anything that lois does... she also (TO ME) doesn’t have any chemistry with henry cavill. i don’t feel a thing. sometimes i might be like awwwww, cute. but that’s more of the situation rather than any emotions i get off of them. but that’s kinda nitpicky here as she was already cast as that character and no one was going to change that for the justice league. i will admit i felt more for her in this film than any of the others, and i enjoyed her more than in the others. but she was still... not lois.  now... amber heard as mera. i will admit that amber looks like mera. and i enjoyed her limited performance and i’m sure she’ll do a great job in the aquaman film and i hold nothing against her. but. if arthur curry doesn’t need to look like comic arthur curry than. why does mera? we only had three women in the whole movie, really. two had limited parts. mera could have been a woc. she could have been not supermodel gorgeous as amber is. (i love amber i do but... who looks that goddamn gorgeous?) already the entire film felt like impossible standards of women. the amazons are varied in body shapes yes, but those costumes. then mera is AMBER. and gal is. gal. i just. there are so many races on earth. asian and hispanic women (and people) exist. not that the movie... shows that... at all.  in fact, between the dceu and the mcu there’s one hispanic character on the movie screen. and he isn’t even a superhero (yeah, the friend of antman’s. and no i’m not counting netflix. that’s not a movie screen. yes rosario dawson is awesome.) heck the cw only added a hispanic woman in the last year. before that cisco was pretty much on his lonesome. wait. that might not be right. i’m sure arrow had a guest star that moved to lot... meh. i don’t keep up anymore.  all i’m saying is... if mera had been cast woc then that would have continued right on through to aquaman too.  but i have nothing against both amber and amy. they’re doing their jobs and i wish them all the best and i will try and enjoy it as much as possible.  my few criticisms:

- ... not a big fan of the costume design. i was so confused about wonder woman’s until i remembered it was probably the one from bvs which i hated. i have no idea what was happening with superman’s. batman’s was fine. flash was fine. cyborg’s was fine. loved aquaman’s (and mera’s). the amazonians? what? why???? you could tell it was a male designer. every vital organ was pretty much on show and it was all sexy, just like how wonder woman’s skirt was shortened and the front was like almost a loincloth. just. no. 

- production design was ok? like there were very few standouts to me. batcave was pretty good, the flash cave, and anything with aquaman’s fishing village. pretty sure that was filmed in new zealand tho and those guys are on point with their pd. studying their stuff over there, man. pd orgasm tbh. ever since lord of the rings those guys are just amazing.

- camera work was great at times and then just weird in others. i think that had a lot to do with cgi demands, which i’ll get to in a minute. 

- the lighting? i mean yes, each scene requires different lighting depending on the place, time of day, people and props... but. there’s this one scene in the field with clark and lois and i was like. confused because it felt like they got first year film students to light it. it was off. and if they were trying to reproduce a field at sunset in a studio with green screen that might make sense but to me it didn’t feel like a gs scene. 

- which brings me to my next point. cgi and green screen. there felt like a lot of it in the movie. pretty sure the fight after clark is revived is green screen. the entire last battle has so much cgi that i felt like it was avengers on steroids. also kinda felt like i was watching a video game with like real people pasted in. and while i get WHY it was like that i also felt like. there could have been ways to do it differently. when i watch stranger things i know there’s cgi. but i never get that feeling, that i’m watching a video game. which is important. because i want to stay sunk into the film. not be thrown out and feel like a different medium has taken over. my challenge for jl2? keep me in the film. find a way to make the sfx stay real. possibly a nitpick but like i said, this is my opinion. so that’s it. that’s my long ass dissection and feels and thoughts. i am so looking forward to every solo movie and also being introduced to iris west and atlantis more. im me or d/cord if you wanna chat about anything or if we’re not pals you can send me a q via askbox.

[ramajmedia]

Green Lantern: 5 Actors Who Could Play Hal Jordan (And 5 Who Could Play John Stewart) In The DCEU

There’s every chance that the DCEU’s eventual Green Lantern movie won’t revolve around Hal Jordan, since that’s the version Ryan Reynolds played in his despised 2011 movie and Warner Bros. will likely want to distance themselves from that as much as possible. So, the DCEU’s Green Lantern might be John Stewart instead. Fans have wanted to see Idris Elba play John Stewart pretty much since the Green Lantern Corps movie was announced for the DCEU, but he’s since been cast to star in The Suicide Squad in the same universe, so he’s out of the running (unless, although it is a stretch, his Suicide Squad character is John Stewart). Here are 5 Actors Who Could Play Hal Jordan (And 5 Who Could Play John Stewart) In The DCEU.

RELATED: 10 Ways Green Lantern Could Be Introduced In The DCEU

10 Hal Jordan: Jon Hamm

The role of Hal Jordan requires a standard leading man type with an extra degree of charm and humor. That’s what made Ryan Reynolds the perfect choice to play him in the 2011 movie (it’s just a shame that the movie itself turned out to be dreadful). It would also make Jon Hamm a perfect choice; Don Draper is the quintessential dude. If the Green Lantern Corps movie has an older Hal Jordan working with a younger John Stewart, then Hamm is about the right age – he’s believably older, but not too old that the physical action scenes would be unworkable.

9 John Stewart: Trevante Rhodes

Ever since Idris Elba is off the table due to his casting in another DCEU movie, Trevante Rhodes has become fans’ most popular casting choice for John Stewart. It seems as though the Green Lantern Corps movie will be a buddy cop movie with Hal Jordan as the veteran training up John Stewart as a rookie. Rhodes has both the look and the age to pull of John Stewart, and he proved with his turn in the Oscar-winning masterpiece Moonlight that he has serious talent as an actor. Prior to his acting career, he was a track and field star, proving he also has the physicality to play a superhero.

8 Hal Jordan: Karl Urban

Karl Urban has always deserved to be a bigger star than he is. He’s always brought a likable charm to roles like “Bones” McCoy in the Star Trek reboot series and even the cold-hearted, ultraviolent comic book icon Judge Dredd. He even managed to make Skurge the Executioner redeemable in Thor: Ragnarok.

RELATED: Star Trek: 5 Kelvin Timeline Actors We Hope Reprise Their Roles In Quentin Tarantino's R-Rated Movie (And 5 We Don't)

He started off as a follower of Hela, but he realized the error of his ways and sacrificed himself to save the surviving Asgardians. Hal Jordan is that guy – he’s the guy who screws up, but will then do whatever it takes to fix the screw-up and do right by people.

7 John Stewart: Michael B. Jordan

Zachary Levi has proved by playing Fandral in the MCU and then Shazam in the DCEU that it’s possible to appear in both studios’ superhero franchises and not get blacklisted in Hollywood by the one you worked for first. Granted, Michael B. Jordan’s MCU role was a lot larger and more memorable than Levi’s, but that was mostly down to Jordan himself working with Black Panther director Ryan Coogler to develop Erik Killmonger into an all-time classic villain. Jordan could play John Stewart as the by-the-books straight man trying to get the job done opposite Hal Jordan’s goofball man-child act.

6 Hal Jordan: Nathan Fillion

It’s about time Nathan Fillion finally got a starring role as a superhero in a comic book movie. He’s been rumored for pretty much every character that has made his way from the pages of comic books onto the big screen, most notably that of Hal Jordan. He has the charm and the warmth to nail Hal’s likable qualities, and he’s proved in antagonistic guest appearances on Modern Family and Brooklyn Nine-Nine that he can also play a jerk with serious personality flaws. Fillion’s acting persona is the definition of “lovable rogue,” and conveniently enough, so is Hal Jordan’s characterization.

5 John Stewart: Jamie Foxx

DC might be looking to make a potential Green Lantern movie their answer to Guardians of the Galaxy, with a lot of heart and humor, and Jamie Foxx has both of these in spades. His heartfelt portrayal of Ray Charles won him an Academy Award, while his background in standup comedy has given him expert comic timing. He’s played a number of action-based roles, like bounty hunter Django Freeman in Quentin Tarantino’s acclaimed spaghetti western Django Unchained, but never with a CG-heavy sci-fi bent. John Stewart would make an interesting next chapter in Foxx’s storied career (he’s set to make his directorial debut in the coming months).

4 Hal Jordan: Armie Hammer

The role of Hal Jordan will need a cocky, confident, and ultimately heroic (heroic enough to redeem the cockiness) leading man type. Armie Hammer has played this kind of role in a couple of prospective franchise beginners – The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and The Lone Ranger – and both failed to take off at the box office. Hammer deserves to finally get a successful franchise with this persona. Lord knows he’s put in his time. Hammer is sort of like Brendan Fraser, but an actually good actor, as shown by his roles in The Social Network and Call Me By Your Name, which would make him an ideal Hal Jordan.

3 John Stewart: Sterling K. Brown

If the plan for the Green Lantern Corps movie doesn’t involve an older Hal Jordan and a younger John Stewart and the roles are switched, Sterling K. Brown would make a fantastic choice to play an older version of John. His star-making turn in American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson proved he could be engaging and memorable, no matter how small the role was, and his subsequent leading role in This is Us has shown that he’s even greater when the spotlight is on him. He’s also a good guy in real life; he’s the only cast member from The Predator who spoke out in support of Olivia Munn after she exposed Shane Black for casting his friend and not telling anyone he was a registered sex offender.

2 Hal Jordan: John Krasinski

Hal Jordan is lovable, charismatic, and goofs off from his responsibilities, which sounds an awful lot like John Krasinski’s beloved character from The Office, Jim Halpert. A Quiet Place proved that he has a strong grasp of filmmaking (Ben Affleck worked so well as Batman because he was putting in time behind the camera as well as in front of it), as well as the capability to shake his sitcom persona and do serious acting.

RELATED: Everything We Know (So Far) About A Quiet Place: Part II

Plus, Amazon’s Jack Ryan series has shown he can pull off action-oriented roles convincingly. Marvel Studios could be eyeing Krasinski to play Reed Richards in their Fantastic Four reboot, so Warner Bros. will have to act fast if they want to get him in the role of Hal Jordan, but he would be perfect.

1 John Stewart: John Boyega

From his starring role in Disney’s Star Wars sequel trilogy to his upcoming sci-fi romance Hold Back the Stars with Letitia Wright, John Boyega is no stranger to space-bound settings. As shown by his trips to a galaxy far, far away, Boyega can flit between goofy and lighthearted fun and grave, serious acting at a moment’s notice, and he has an easy charm. Plus, Attack the Block showed he’s capable of fighting aliens believably. With his Star Wars tenure set to end this year with The Rise of Skywalker, Boyega will have a gap in his schedule that could be filled with a big-screen Green Lantern franchise.

NEXT: 10 Mistakes The DCEU Made That Prevented It From Matching The MCU's Success

source https://screenrant.com/hal-jordan-john-stewart-actors/