The STARSTORE Blog...

Will the real CAPTAIN AMERICA please stand up?

I just read CAPTAIN AMERICA 36 and am not happy. Read the issue, then come back and read this, as it contains SPOILERS.

Read it?

You sure?

Even the last page?

Good.

 

Did I mention SPOILERS? Do not read on if you’ve not read the issue and don’t want your dreams crushing to dust!

 

Now, how many of you, like myself, saw that coming a mile off? Sadly, this looks like it is gradually starting to turn into Marvel’s version of the KNIGHTFALL saga. The discovery of Steve Rogers’ preserved body was always going to happen, wasn’t it? How long before he comes back completely, and we discover the super serum had just put his body into hibernation until he healed? Jaded cynic I might be, but I was hoping Bucky was going to have a good shot at being Cap for a while. As much as a hyper-violent incarnation of the hero grates on the senses, it gives Marvel a good deal of scope for exploring the character as he finds his feet as the new Cap. But now we get this… hopefully I am as wrong as a big wrong thing and we get a decent story out of all this before the real Captain America takes his shield back.

JUSTICE LEAGUE: MORTAL… in trouble already?

Well there hasn’t been a single frame shot yet, but already the Justice League movie is starting to show some signs of stalling. This is a shame, as a big budget superhero team movie is just what DC and Warner Bros needs to reclaim some of the genre that marvel are dominating right now. With the next Superman film struggling to get to the end of its first draft, and all the others seeming to languish in development hell, it is being left up to The Dark Knight to be DC’s sole movie entry of the year.

 

George Miller’s Justice League: Mortal, or as it is otherwise known, just Justice League Mortal (huh?!), has hit some trouble in Australia, where the action was going to be lensed. As the characters would be speaking with American accents and the film would be rather US-centric (and undoubtedly very patriotic), the Australian film board has not approved the film’s production on their soil, seeing it as something as an affront.

 

To be frank, I don’t get their thinking at all. Exhibit A would be, naturally, the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Shot in New Zealand, it was stacked full of people with regional British accents (to quote Bill Bailey, it sounded like a cider festival), and they didn’t complain to Peter Jackson did they? Perhaps this is partly down to public opinion on American patriotism in recent years. I don’t know, but it does smack of politics and not just an opinion on accents and theme.

 

It is a shame that politics have to enter the arena of superhero films. These films are supposed to bring us stories of heroes who want to do the right thing, positive messages that carry across even in the most antihero-based flicks. As George Miller himself has pointed out, the production of something as high-profile as a Justice League movie would bring in a hell of a lot of business for the country, not to mention creating a number of new jobs and raising the profile of Australian industry.

 

With a cast of barely known faces, trouble in preproduction and an unsure audience, there is a growing concern that the film is being put in jeopardy. We will watch this unfold with great interest, as all we really want is a fantastic Justice League movie. How about letting them get on with making it please?

INCREDIBLE HULK TRAILER... is it indeed Incredible?

HULK SMASH! Okay, utterances of superhero catchphrases all in caps aside, the new trailer for THE INCREDIBLE HULK has been released (in the US only, but it ain’t hard to find), and it does look as though this time out, the big green lug is in for a decent film. The last one wasn’t bad per se, but it certainly wasn’t what moviegoing audiences, or indeed diehard HULK fans, were after. Ang Lee’s exploration of Bruce Banner’s psyche and the raging Hulk was interesting, but it was light on thrills or pace. Now here comes the sort of sequel/sort of redux starring Ed Norton and Liv Tyler, and directed by Louis Leterrier.

The initial teaser recently that surfaced last week showed little in the way if Hulk action, limited as it was to Banner’s glowing green eyes, but this new full trailer gives us a first glimpse of the Hulk in action, not to mention the Abomination, who, in its human form, is played by Tim Roth. The tone of the trailer feels very much like Spider man 2, in how each shot is set up and the FX sequences are edited. Take a peek. It certainly fits in better with the other Marvel movies in terms of tone.

Speaking of which, remember this is one half of the 2008 marvel movie crossover, in which one scene plays out in both the INCREDIBLE HULK and IRON MAN movies from different perspectives. Check out the new Hulk movie’s IMDB page and you’ll see a certain Robert Downey Junior playing a certain Tony Stark. Is this the first rumblings of an AVENGERS movie? I do hope so. How about a Captain America cameo? Or at least a shot of Spidey swinging through the city in the background somewhere. Yeah, we’re getting into ET in Star Wars territory there, but it would help gel the movie Marvel universe together into something coherent that can be exploited at a later date with crossover movies.

I’m really into the casting choices for this film. Eric Bana and Jennifer Connelly were great in the first Hulk movie, but I think in Ed Norton and Liv Tyler we have the makings of a very special onscreen partnership. From the look of the film from this trailer, it does look very promising. Here’s hoping that this time out they do the comics, the franchise, Marvel and their fans justice.

I do like the idea of a big Marvel universe in the movie realm. It brings up all manner of possibilities. Not just crossover hero movies, but secondary and tertiary characters from different franchises could pop up all over the place, enriching the mythos and cementing the Marvel Universe in film fans’ minds as something than can be explored and enjoyed on another level aside from the main crux of the action onscreen.

That aside, it does look as though we are in for a great HULK movie at last. I’m glad the studios gave the big green oaf another chance, as it does look as though it is going to pay off in style. There are decades of comics, TV shows, toys, merchandise and more to be true to. This summer is shaping up to be very interesting indeed.

Time for another SUPERHERO MOVIE ROUNDUP...

WATCHMEN MOVIE CAST PICS REVEALED

The biggest news this week in the world of comic book feature films is undoubtedly the unveiling of official character photos from the highly anticipated WATCHMEN movie from Zack Snyder. We’ve already seen Rorscharch a couple of times, but now we get to see a decent picture of him, along with the Comedian, Silk Spectre, Ozymandias and Night Owl. This is a momentous occasion indeed- fans have been waiting for these pictures ever since the movie was first greenlit.

How do they look? Rorscharch looks as badass as you would expect him to, but I still want to know if the mask will be moving constantly, as it does in the graphic novel. Ozymandias isn’t quite what I was expecting, but I’ll reserve judgement until I see him onscreen. Looks appropriate, though. Silk Spectre and Night Owl look fantastic. I’m really pleased with how this movie is turning out from what we’ve seen and heard so far. Granted, that isn’t much just yet, but I’m starting to get the feeling that this os going to turn out to be something very, very special.

You can check out these stunning pictures over at the official WATCHMEN movie website. I would be quite interested to hear what is going on regarding the lawsuit Fox filed against WB regarding this project. Has that been buried? I may well have to do some research into that. Oh, there’s also a cool official photostream over on Flickr.

HULK MOVIE TRAILER SOON?

Keep your eyes peeled for the first trailer from THE INCREDIBLE HULK soon. It is said to be attached to prints of 10,000BC and DOOMSDAY in the states, and will apparently be debuting sometime between March 7^th and March 14th. No word on when the trailer will show up in cinemas over here, but once it gets its US premier I’m guessing it will go live on the Marvel site at least, if not Apple’s trailer page. Failing that, there’s always Youtube. Hopefully we’ll see at least a little taste of action in the teaser, as Hulk fans are dying to see what the not-so-jolly-green-giant looks like this time out. Fair enough we’ve sent he figures and the blister pack art, but we want to see full motion footage of him tearing things to pieces. It was nice to see Ed Norton hulking out in Empire, but when do we get to see him going HULK SMASH? Hopefully this week!

WOLVERINE MOVIE LOCATION PICTURES POSTED

The tide of spy photos from the location shooting of X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE continues unabated, with this batch from Flynet showing Lieb with his Sabretooth nails and mutton chops present and correct. Facially he looks about right, and knowing him from other work he’s going to have some great chemistry with Hugh Jackman. Is the fella going to get a big blonde wig though? At least Tyler Mane had the, erm, mane…

Check out the latest batch of these photos beyond this here magical link, Bub.

IRON MAN MOVIE

Look, this trailer is brilliant. The film looks incredible, and Robert Downey Jr seems more and more perfect every time I watch it. This trailer is wowing all of us here at Starstore, and you all need to watch it. Try not to lick your monitors too much. I do like the way the story has been updated, without losing the integral ingredients of the Iron man character. It is also *very* nice to have a lead character as cocky as Tony Stark.