I'm going to start this post saying I have no problems with superhero movies. I think they are fun popcorn-munching summer entertainment that totally has a place in the world, BUT that place needs to be scaled down a lot. So while I don't have a problem with the genre (yes, it is definitely it's own subgenre), I have a problem with how superhero movies are being approached these days.
I'm probably wrong on this point, but I place the "revival" of the superhero movie at the release of Iron Man in 2008. Watching the trailers for Iron Man, I thought it looked insanely stupid, but it wasn't. I am not a comic book guy, but I do like good movies, and Iron Man was a really good movie. Unfortunately Iron Man continued moving movies in two directions: more superhero fair and the FIRST summer movie will ALWAYS be a superhero flick.
A couple years ago I had a bet with my dad about whether Thor or Captain America would make more money since they both came out the same summer. BUT Thor came out in May and Captain America in July. It was really close, but Thor made more money that summer AND got better word of mouth than Captain America and I credit that to it's May release. Now the majority opinion is the Captain America is a better movie than Thor, but that summer people said otherwise. This leads me to the point that superhero flicks are more about marketing to predict success than anything else. Last summer Guardians of the Galaxy and Amazing Spider-Man 2 made roughly the same amount of box office money, yet one was praised the world over and the other "boasts" a truly pathetic 53% on Rotten Tomatoes a full 20% drop from Amazing Spider-Man. This saddens me because it means I had to talk about a really good movie and a really terrible movie in the same breath. I think my biggest problem with the whole system is that the release date does more for your movie than anything else. By giving in and moving Batman vs Superman to March and not May, DC will lose money. I don't know if it will be a ton of money, but they will suffer a hit. The better movies should be ACKNOWLEDGED as the better movies rather than the American public getting starry eyed and saying Iron Man 3 and Thor were good because they were released in early May.
That was long winded. My second point regards the sheer MASS of superhero movies. It's now become pretty standard for three superhero flicks a summer, and this year they're ALL MARVEL!!! Consider that for a moment. This means that NEXT year when DC shows up as more of a factor we will have 4 or 5 or more superhero movies over a 6 month period. I'm as excited about Batman vs Superman, Captain America 3, and Suicide Squad as much as the next guy, but pump the breaks. With increased popularity in shows like Arrow and Daredevil, viewers no longer have to get their superhero fix only a couple times a year. If these movies stay good (and the Avengers line has a good chance of that), people wont be concerned, BUT if Batman vs Superman is BAD, DC will have major trouble on their hands. People went to see Guardians because it was Marvel and we all trust Marvel, but DC doesn't have that luxury with their movies yet. Trust is earned and aside from Nolan's Batman, they haven't earned it. But I've been predicting this fall for a while now and so far it hasn't happened.
I think people forget that great movies need a decent story with manageable characters. We need to like the heroes, hate the villains, and care enough about what's going on to sit there and watch it. Avengers was good because we knew Marvel, knew the characters and LOVED Loki as a villain. I think the number one predictor of a superhero movie being good is the villain, but more on that next time.
So all this to say, I do plan to see Avengers and MAYBE even Ant-Man/Fantastic Four, but it takes more than cool effects to make a good movie (cough Transformers 2-4 cough). Avengers had a good story and that is central to success, not in a monetary way but in a quality way. So yes, I'll go see and talk about Age of Ultron, but I want people to remember that there are other movies coming out to get excited about like:
-Tomorrowland
-Inside Out
-Minions
-Paper Towns
So watch and talk about superhero flicks, but don't forget family fare in the summer. Because I think Inside Out will be the best Disney/Pixar movie since Up.
No comments:
Post a Comment