- Ghost In The Shell (2010)
- Akira (2011)
- Ninja Scroll (2011)
- X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
- X-Men Origins: Magneto (2009)
- Iron Man 2 (2010)
- Spider-Man 4 (2011)
- Sin City 2 (2010)
- Sin City 3 (2010)
Monday, November 17, 2008
Plundering the Comics
Hollywood, in there never ending quest to mine creative resources from any and all, has 75 comics being made into films. Films include live action remakes of classic anime:
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9 comments:
I bet on the suck being well over 50%.
Probably, otis. Probably.
The trailer for The Spirit looks sexy, if potentially bad. (the apple trailers site)
Sometimes, I wish comic people weren't so quick to throw their stuff at movies.
*sigh*
The problem is they really only get one chance not to sell out. if DC wants to sell Batman rights to WB, WB gets them, and after making Batman, they don't have to ask permission to make Batman Returns, Batman and Robin, Batman Forever. DC get paid for all of them, but they can't un-sell out.
Um, Elex, Warner Bros. owns DC, they don't have to buy the rights to Batman. They don't even have to consult the comic guys when the movie's made.
The problem isn't really the DCs and the Marvels and the other companies that own characters, it's more the people like Frank Miller and Mark Millar and Warren Ellis who, for now, seem more interested in turning their, often excellent, comics into mediocre movies. And Miller's even taking other people's comics (The Spirit) and turning them into his Sin City.
Lots of problems. (my mistake re: WB/DC)
It might all be about the Benjamins. I wouldn't be too idealistic with a huge pile of cash in front of me, I admit.
You can always make more art. Sometimes bad art can help you appreciate good art. Frankly, Miller's never been more popular. And we do have a choice of watching the movies or not. (I didn't go see Catwoman, or the batman with Mr. Freeze.)
The only real harm I see is that the outsiders perception of a comic book property might be tainted by the movie version. But the fact is, they never carded about the comic anyway, and they probably liked the movie.
Who really loses? Those of us who paid to watch the movie with too high of expectations based on the comic. luckily the internet will spoil any movie it can, so there's no lack of information. You clearly already know about The Watchmen.
Let em make whatever they want.
I think the people who lose are those who you mentioned and those who really appreciate the things each art can do differently.
Look at The Watchmen trailer and all that slow motion. Zack Snyder did the same thing with 300 to make the view linger over the image without stopping the action. He was, and is, trying to create a comic panel in these movies and it just doesn't work well because while reading the comics the reader chooses how long to linger over a panel with a little, or a lot, of help from the artist.
Similar problems happen when books are turned into movies and vice versa or comics tried to create "widescreen" action or a movie is adapted into a comic. Each art tells stories in ways that the others can't, right?
I suppose it's just me in my wishful thinking mode imagining that some day the majority of people will understand and appreciate the differences. Probably not going to happen, though.
I get the money thing because I'd probably sell out, too, but I wish more people would go back to the source just to see the material as it was originally intended.
That's all true. So it really sounds like we want filmmakers to actually try to make good films. We all know they can, but there's an institutional problem. This is why I love to see developments like the Red camera. I think as the cost of entry goes down, the standard for excellence will have to go up with the increased competition. At least, that's my hope.
I hope so, too.
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