The Marvel syndrome

Collapse

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • The Marvel syndrome

    By now, Marvel is one of the biggest players in the movie industry.

    The quality of their films is rather consistent. Iron Man 1-3. Avengers 1-2. Captain America 1-3. Thor 1-2. Ant-man (Soon to have a sequel).

    It's really an impressive body of work, and they put effort to have good, competent scripts in their movies.

    But at the same time... I find Marvel a bit dull. I loved the first Iron Man, but the rest of their movies are watchable, but very, very unremarkable. At this point, Marvel means to me a film I will watch once, like it, and then immediately forget everything about it.

    Their insistence on solid scripts and some great casting work is worthy of respect. Yet... I'm more interested on what Nolan and Snyder are doing next. It might be crap, but it will be more intriguing crap than anything that Marvel is offering me.

    Any Marvel fanboys here? Or haters? Just let it out.

  • #2
    Re: The Marvel syndrome

    i stopped watching all superhero movies after the first Iron Man. it's just the same story over and over again, with different suits

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: The Marvel syndrome

      Originally posted by JoeBanks View Post
      i stopped watching all superhero movies after the first Iron Man. it's just the same story over and over again, with different suits
      I felt the same way about Mad Men. Different strokes.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: The Marvel syndrome

        Originally posted by tuukka View Post
        But at the same time... I find Marvel a bit dull. I loved the first Iron Man, but the rest of their movies are watchable, but very, very unremarkable. At this point, Marvel means to me a film I will watch once, like it, and then immediately forget everything about it.

        Their insistence on solid scripts and some great casting work is worthy of respect. Yet... I'm more interested on what Nolan and Snyder are doing next. It might be crap, but it will be more intriguing crap than anything that Marvel is offering me.
        I find the first Avengers rewatchable (because it was the first time all the superheroes came together, and thus novel) and Captain America 2 rewatchable (because it was an excellent 70s paranoid thriller in superhero movie clothing). But as you say, I've found everything else solid but pretty forgettable.

        Superhero movies have essentially become widgets. You are excited about them the year they come out, while knowing that a new one will be coming out the year after that, and the year after that, and the year after that. (Remember the days when there was a gap of 2-3 years between them? Seems crazy now, right?) Studios know that people will keep coming back if they make the new ones just different enough. Thus, they're not really invested in making them markedly original.

        In fact, Marvel is pretty adamant about this business model. That's why Ava Duvernay walked away from Black Panther and Edgar Wright walked away from Ant-Man. They wanted to bring something fresh to those movies, but the studio wanted them to adhere to a tried-and-true template. You could criticize the studio, but look at Warner Bros. -- it's struggling to create a working formula with its superhero films, trying something different with each movie. They'd love to be Marvel right now.

        I think superhero movies are good for the industry's financial stability. They're a safe product at a time when there's never been more competition for consumers' attention. I used to crap on Hollywood for its increasing reliance on them -- but it doesn't bother me as much anymore. That's because there are indie studios popping up (A24 and STX in particular) and indie financiers like Annuapurna that are dedicated to making the mid-budget adult movies Hollywood doesn't care about anymore. They are the saving grace of the industry -- which is why we need to support their output as much as possible.
        "I love being a writer. What I can't stand is the paperwork.-- Peter De Vries

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: The Marvel syndrome

          Originally posted by tuukka View Post
          But at the same time... I find Marvel a bit dull.
          Everyone has character flaws. It is good you have identified one of yours.

          I'm more interested on what Nolan and Snyder are doing next.
          Being more interested in Nolan's next than Doctor Strange or Thor Ragnarok or Infinity War is okay. There's a better than 50% chance Nolan's next (and I have no idea what that is at this point) will be the best of the 4.

          Snyder's next? No comment.

          It might be crap, but it will be more intriguing crap than anything that Marvel is offering me.
          It's exactly that attitude that led to Trump vs Hillary.
          Give it all and ask for no return/And very soon you'll see and you'll begin to learn/That it's alright, yes, it's alright...

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: The Marvel syndrome

            Originally posted by JoeBanks View Post
            i stopped watching all superhero movies after the first Iron Man. it's just the same story over and over again, with different suits
            Except... you didn't watch them. "Oh I remember Romeo & Juliet from high school. All those Shakespeare plays are the same." "Oh I watched the first season of The Simpsons. All those animated shows are the same." "Oh I listened to Michael Jackson's Thriller. All thta pop music is the same."
            Give it all and ask for no return/And very soon you'll see and you'll begin to learn/That it's alright, yes, it's alright...

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: The Marvel syndrome

              Originally posted by mdb View Post
              It's exactly that attitude that led to Trump vs Hillary.
              Yeah but this is a movie, not a politician. So, you know, context.

              Anyway, I like the MCU, though they are kind of their own genre at this point. But it's obviously a model that works. There's some kind of brilliance going on to keep them all interconnected but individually enjoyable. I did skip out on Ant Man due to general superhero fatigue, though. Seeing him in Civil War has me reconsidering that but just...meh. There are so many to choose from at this point that I mostly stick to the ones I already know I love.

              My problem with the Snyder movies is that he just takes it too seriously. I don't know if it's him or if it's some attempt to recreate the Nolan Batmans, but they just end up overpowering and glum. Marvel strikes a better tonal balance where you're invested in the story, but still having some fun.

              DC seems to do a lot better on TV. I don't know if it's a different mindset on the exec side or what, but they seem to get that format better than film.

              Personally I'd love to see some fun TV or digital series from the quirkier Marvel properties. Can you imagine an Unbeatable Squirrel Girl show?

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: The Marvel syndrome

                Originally posted by omjs View Post
                DC seems to do a lot better on TV.
                Be careful that there aren't any Arrow fans around when you say that!
                Give it all and ask for no return/And very soon you'll see and you'll begin to learn/That it's alright, yes, it's alright...

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: The Marvel syndrome

                  I've been enjoying the Marvel movies and the DC television universe, but I can't help wonder when this bubble is going to burst? We're racing towards overload of the market.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: The Marvel syndrome

                    Originally posted by mdb View Post
                    Except... you didn't watch them. "Oh I remember Romeo & Juliet from high school. All those Shakespeare plays are the same." "Oh I watched the first season of The Simpsons. All those animated shows are the same." "Oh I listened to Michael Jackson's Thriller. All thta pop music is the same."
                    here are all the comic/superhero movies i've actually watched in my life:

                    Superman I & II
                    Swamp Thing
                    Batman (1989) + sequels
                    Spiderman I & II
                    X Men I & II
                    The Dark Knight
                    Iron Man
                    Man of Steel (ashamedly)

                    more than enough for a lifetime

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: The Marvel syndrome

                      Originally posted by JoeBanks View Post
                      here are all the comic/superhero movies i've actually watched in my life:

                      Superman I & II
                      Swamp Thing
                      Batman (1989) + sequels
                      Spiderman I & II
                      X Men I & II
                      The Dark Knight
                      Iron Man
                      Man of Steel (ashamedly)

                      more than enough for a lifetime
                      Though that's the problem. All of those are basically origin stories. It's not until you get those out of the way that you can tell the more interesting stories. That's why so many of the great superhero movies are sequels (Superman II, X-Men II, Spider-man II, Captain America: Winter Soldier).

                      At least now we're getting the variant stories. Space adventure like Guardians of the Galaxy. Comedic capers like Antman. Though we're still kind of stuck with the "schlub becoming a hero" story structure.

                      And I'm getting sick of 3rd acts centering on fighting around something huge hanging in the sky over a city. Seems like that's how every Marvel movie ends as well as Man of Steel. Even the new Ninja Turtles is doing it.

                      The films need to learn from TV. Specifically the Netflix series and the Flash. Netflix does a great job with the indie/gritty heroes done on a very small scale. Flash shows that superheroes can have fun.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: The Marvel syndrome

                        Originally posted by UnequalProductions View Post
                        Though that's the problem. All of those are basically origin stories. It's not until you get those out of the way that you can tell the more interesting stories. That's why so many of the great superhero movies are sequels (Superman II, X-Men II, Spider-man II, Captain America: Winter Soldier).
                        other than Superman II (which was really just the second half to Superman, and filmed simultaneously), i gave even less of a **** about the sequels

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: The Marvel syndrome

                          I am PRAYING they don't try to do Spider-Man's origin story in the new reboot that's coming. We've already seen it twice within the last 15 years or so; we get it.

                          There's really only so many ways you can do an origin story, so they just get old. I'm hoping some of the other new heroes that are coming up (Black Panther, Captain Marvel, I'm not sure what else?) will just drop us into the life of an existing hero instead of hitting all the same old beats. You can really shorthand that stuff at this point. -- EDIT: Forgot about Doctor Strange. Which appears to be a standard origin story with some Inception-style effects thrown in. Oh well, I'll end up seeing it. --

                          The later films do tend to be a lot more interesting, along with the ensemble films like The Avengers. I think you just have to think of them as more like a TV show or mini-series than individual film sequels. They're more serialized than we typically think of sequels being.

                          It's really interesting how the MCU, at least, echoes the structure of a comic book universe (but simplified).

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: The Marvel syndrome

                            Originally posted by JoeBanks View Post
                            other than Superman II (which was really just the second half to Superman, and filmed simultaneously), i gave even less of a **** about the sequels
                            Seems like you might just not be a fan of the genre.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: The Marvel syndrome

                              Originally posted by UnequalProductions View Post
                              Seems like you might just not be a fan of the genre.
                              "Any Marvel fanboys here? Or haters? Just let it out."

                              as solicited in the original post.

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X