What has happened to live action comic book movies is a disgrace. They have become over produced, strayed away from being faithful to the source material, have focused more and more on representation, and more importantly…have not listened to what the fans want. With the technology we have today, and literally thousands of scripted stories right at their feet, it couldn’t be easier for Marvel or DC to tell a great superhero story. Yet, because of personalities and politics, fans are being subjected to boring, shallow versions of our favorite characters, that we no longer recognize. DC and Warner Bros., has yet to find their footing in the superhero genre, and missed their opportunity to follow the success of Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy. They was some success with ‘Wonder Woman’, and ‘Aquaman’, but even those never quite caught what Christopher Nolan was able to do with his Batman trilogy, and were more anomalies than anything else. The magic for Marvel ended literally with ‘Avengers: Endgame’. A once in a lifetime magic that was sacrificed for an obsessive push for representation, rather than a focus on story. Since Endgame, Marvel has yet to record a billion dollar movie. Some might argue that ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ counts, but that was a Sony produced movie with Marvel only getting a percentage of the profits. Even their Disney Plus shows have failed to spark the same interest that the Infinity saga storyline did. Some might say it’s because Kevin Feige is no longer in creative control, and some might say fans are exhausted from the genre. I contend it’s neither, and fans will see any superhero movie as long as it’s faithful to the source material, and not warped into some poster child of identity politics. Either way, Marvel and DC have lost their way, and unfortunately, might never find their way back.
Richard Donner Made Us All Believe a Man Could Fly
There used to be a time when comic book fans could only wonder what it would be like to see there favorite superheroes on the big screen. Sure we had some TV adaptations in the 1970’s that were okay, like Spider-Man, Wonder Woman, and The Incredible Hulk, but they were constrained by the limited technology they had to actually achieve a realistic depiction of those characters. Then in 1978, we had Richard Donner’s Superman that beautifully cast Christopher Reeve as Superman, and all of a sudden, comic book fans believed a man could fly. But then there was nothing. All of the success and innovation that Richard Donner brought to Superman, and what was possible, seemed wasted. Sure we had Superman II, which saw Donner’s original version butchered, and what we got was a campy sequel that did the original Superman a disservice. Following that, were two more sequels, that tried there best, but never captured the same magic that Richard Donner’s creativity, ingenuity, and dedication caught in 1978. Fast forward a decade, and finally, fans got Batman on the big screen starring Michael Keaton. Although not the best version of Batman, it was the best comic book movie fans had seen since the original Superman a decade prior. Tim Burton had the same ingenuity and dedication as Richard Donner, in my opinion, but not the same loyalty to the comic books. That’s not a negative critique of Tim Burton’s version. Tim Burton put his own unique style onto Batman, and that was fine for the time, but still didn’t quite grasp what fans were looking for like they saw with Richard Donner’s Superman. What was the same, was how campy and sub par the sequels to Batman were compared to the original. After the 1990’s, however, fans began to see a light at the end of tunnel, and their dreams of a legitimate depiction of a comic book superhero, like the magic that was caught with Richard Donner’s ‘Superman’, were about to come true.
Related: Waititi’s Brand of Shallow Vision
Bryan Singer Started a New Age of Superhero Films
Other than the Batman sequels, the 1990’s were a virtual drought for live action superhero movies. There was ‘Blade’ in 1998, which was a great adaptation of that comic book anti-hero, but other than that, there was nothing. Comic book fans could only hope and imagine their favorite comic book characters on the big screen. Wizard magazine launched in 1991, and helped facilitate those imaginations, with casting calls of what actors would be the best fit for any number of comic book characters from Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern, to Nick Fury, Wolverine, and Spider-Man. Some were actually spot on, and helped fill the void. Then in 2000, comic book fans had hope again with Bryan Singer’s ‘X-Men’. It was dark, gritty, funny, and gave fans as close to an accurate depiction of a comic book version of heroes since Richard Donner’s Superman. Say what you want about Bryan Singer and his ups and downs with comic book adaptations, his dedication to producing a live action, believable version of the X-Men, really got the ball rolling, and started a new age for the superhero film.
Christopher Nolan’s Batman Trilogy is the Best Most Faithful Adaptation of the Character
As a result of 2000’s ‘X-Men’, studios, directors, and producers were itching to get it right with other superheroes. In 2002, Sam Raimi’s ‘Spider-Man’ was damn near perfect, and proved that if you tell a great story, and have a commitment to established lore, that you can win with a superhero movie every time. Sam Raimi followed up his blockbuster Spider-Man movie with an equally, if not better than the original, Spider-man 2. Marvel, more than DC, seemed to be finding their footing with the live action superhero genre. Sure there were some missteps with 2003’s Daredevil(I would argue that the director’s cut of Daredevil is a really good and faithful depiction of the man without fear), and 2004’s Elektra, but it seemed that Marvel knew where they wanted to ultimately go. But then in 2005, DC and Warner Bros. shocked us with Christopher Nolan’s ‘Batman Begins’. It was, and still is, in my opinion, the best adaptation of the character to date. Fans everywhere were wondering if DC could finally give us the accurate version of Batman we were all craving. They did, and Nolan’s trilogy, hands down, is the best version of any of DC’s live action films to date. But then Marvel upped the ante, and began their shared Marvel Cinematic Universe with the release of 2007’s ‘Iron Man’.
The MCU’s Phases 1-3 Were Lightning in a Bottle
Kevin Feige and the MCU brought an integrated cohesiveness that fans only dreamed of. No matter what MCU movie you were watching, there was always a connection to the ultimate evil that was headed in the MCU’s way, and it was exciting. Fans were talking about the MCU movies like they used to talk about the latest issue of a comic book at their local comic book shop. We had gems like James Gunn’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’, and the Russo brother’s ‘Winter Soldier’ that were instant classics, and favorites among fans. Not every MCU movie was perfect, but they all had a shared goal just like crossover events in comic books. The MCU was running on all cylinders, and it seemed like nothing could stop the powerhouse that was the MCU. But then, as we were getting closer to the end of Phase 3, a ‘Captain Marvel’ movie was announced, and all the mainstream media trades, Kevin Feige, and those at Marvel Studios, were insisting that this was the movie to watch. Fans had to go and see this movie because it was “crucial” and connected to what would happen in Endgame. Comic book fans were scratching their collective heads as to why Kevin Feige thought a failed character that no one heard of was a good idea for an MCU movie, but who were we to argue with the man that gave us 20 entertaining movies in a row. Well, some of us saw ‘Captain Marvel’, and were left with a really bad taste in our mouths, that had us all wondering and asking…why a Captain Marvel movie? Marvel could have not made ‘Captain Marvel’, and the MCU would still be intact, and wouldn’t have hurt Endgame in any way. ‘Captain Marvel’ was Kevin Feige’s way of telling fans that a new kind of MCU, an “M-She-U”, was on the way, and that Captain Marvel was going to be the face of phase 4. Well, fast forward to present day, and we have almost every male superhero character in the MCU gender or race swapped, Captain Marvel is no where to be found, 5 movies, 6 Disney Plus tv shows, and we’re all yawning in boredom.
Will DC and Warner Bros. Ever Find Their Superhero Footing?
Marvel’s Phase 4 has lacked cohesiveness, originality, and suffers from its obsession with identity politics. Kevin Feige has literally Disnyfied the MCU, and has forgot how to tell a good story with characters that fans want to see. Marvel has lost what originally made them so successful, and that was a dedication to the heart and soul of Marvel’s characters. Phase 4 lacks the re-watchability that made all of its predecessors so successful. Comic book fans across the planet either have no interest in what Marvel is trying to sell, or they are one and done, and regret seeing it. DC is in the same boat, but for different reasons. They literally have some of the greatest stories in comic books ever told, but keep producing some of the worst films I have ever seen. DC and Warner Bros. just can’t seem to get out of their own way when it comes to producing quality content. Sure we’ve seen some sparks, like ‘Joker’, but even that movie was more like a madman in an indie flick, rather than a true depiction of the clown prince of crime. If you want a true depiction of the Joker, then do a live action of the graphic novel Arkham Asylum by Grant Morrison, or The Killing Joke by Alan Moore. DC hasn’t been able to find its footing since Christopher Nolan’s Batman Trilogy, and if we’re all honest, probably never will, short of a miracle.
Marvel and DC are not Listening to the Fans
Superhero movies have become exhausting, and I don’t write that lightly, as I would watch them non stop if there were no politics and some originality. Take any of the last 5 installments of the MCU’s phase 4 for example. Marvel has been more focused on the representation and firsts in those movies than the stories themselves. ‘Black Widow’ was a horrible story that gender swapped the main villain, and should have been told somewhere in Phase 2, ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ was an unknown character for most, which was touted as the first MCU movie to star an Asian superhero, ‘The Eternals’, was another identity politics smorgasbord of characters that no one was familiar with, ‘Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness’ made Dr. Strange a second string character in his own movie, and was apparently a sequel to WandaVision, and ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ according to Taika Waititi and Natalie Portman, is the gayest Marvel movie yet. In what universe would any of those movies interest a comic book fan? Fans that would repeatedly pay money over and over again to see and buy your product? The answer is that they wouldn’t. The problem is not necessarily the characters that Marvel is choosing. It’s why they are choosing them. Jack Kirby’s Eternals could have been a great choice to do a film around, except that Marvel chose to focus on all the representation they could fit into that movie, instead of the great stories that Jack Kirby told with the Eternals. The same goes for Shang-Chi, Dr. Strange, or Black Widow. Who would’ve loved to see a Black Widow movie that also had Hawkeye in it, and told the story of their adventures in Budapest that was alluded to in ‘Avengers’. Marvel and DC are not listening to the fans, and instead are producing what they think makes a good movie. Well, that’s not working. You know the definition of insanity, that says if you keep doing the same thing over and over and keep expecting a different result?
