Black Superheroes Movies

[COAL TIGER]

It's racist to say that America is racist???????????? That's what you're saying?

Because it's not.

 

[C. Lee]

It's racist to say that America is racist???????????? That's what you're saying?

Saying some people or a lot of people are is one thing....but you basicly said that every white person in America belonged to the KKK.

If someone posted that all black people are criminals, I would say something to them too. Making wide generalizations against a whole segment of people is what leads to the troubles the world is in now.

 

[E-Man]

I'm not too worried about that people would shy away from an African country depicted as being rich. Sure some people will dismiss it, but casual fans will go see something if it's marketed right. If they see Black Panther doing some wicked moves in the trailer, they'll have their ass at the theater to see the movie. People will go see anything if it looks cool, and I can see Black Panther appealing to enough people to make it profitable.

One thing that's overlooked is what the Black Panther has going for it:

-It's a comic property, and nerds will go see it. The entire comic community would show up to see the movie. Think about yourself for a second. Is there any comic based movie outside of a reboot or remake that you had no intentions of watching? There may be the one movie(probably a Fox movie) that you will avoid like the plague, but if it's comic based you're going to see it at some point in time. I'm not into Booster Gold, but if there was a Booster Gold movie coming out I'd want to see it. We may not be a big fanbase, but we'll at least be a chunk of BP's ticket sales. The same people who geeked out to see Spider-man, Batman, Iron Man, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four would definitely be interested.

-It won't be seen as a "black" movie. When I say "black" movie, I'm not talking about movies like Talk to Me or The Hurricane. I'm talking about movies like Waist Deep, Baby Boy, or anything John Singleton is peddling. Those movies seem to scream, "Look black people it's a movie for you! Come on and see this mess filled with all the stereotypes you like. It has Big Momma, Ray Ray, and 'dem, and you'll love watching this with your free bucket of KFC." Black Panther doesn't need to be marketed like that, and I think they would benefit if they just portrayed him as a cool ass kicking guy that happens to be black. T'Challa is African too, so there won't be any "hood" in the movie. Luke Cage would seem to be weighed down by this, but BP can easily avoid that hoopla.

-The Blade factor. I have a hard time believing that the same people who saw Blade wouldn't want to see this. Blade was marketed the right way, and the only thing that kept it from domestically being a big blockbuster was the fact that vampires aren't that popular, and it was rated R. But the same thing that people think will hold back a BP movie never held Blade black. People didn't avoid the movie due to Blade being black, and Wesley Snipes wasn't this huge star either. He was well known, but he was not a star like Will Smith. Well BP could benefit from those same things, and he wouldn't have that vampire stigma over his head. Take away the R rating, and you'd have something that kids wouldn't be bared seeing. Parents may or may not want to see a black guy doing something, but kids don't really care. If it looks cool enough they'll want to go see it, and they can't take themselves can they?

Marvel just needs to focus on making a great movie, and they need to focus on presenting it right. Color won't be an issue if the trailers look good.

 

[C. Lee]

Maybe if they could get someone like Denzel to play Black Panther's dad...that would throw the air of respectability to it that I believe you are talking about.

 

[p4poetic]

There's these videos on youtube called "The Africa You Don't See On TV". They show all the beautiful cities that were built by Blacks and are populated by Blacks. Of course we never see any of this in the media because this is the U.S Of KKK.A. They'll only show you Blacks shooting at each other and walking around half naked living in huts.

Thanks, I'm looking at some of them now.

[YT]kr4AiXBbACc[/YT]

 

[E-Man]

Maybe if they could get someone like Denzel to play Black Panther's dad...that would throw the air of respectability to it that I believe you are talking about.

I know some people would groan at that, but I like that idea. He would be a marketable guy that could bring attention to others in the cast. Movies need stars, even if they are not in the main role.

 

[COAL TIGER]

Saying some people or a lot of people are is one thing....but you basicly said that every white person in America belonged to the KKK.

If someone posted that all black people are criminals, I would say something to them too. Making wide generalizations against a whole segment of people is what leads to the troubles the world is in now.

Just because I said America is racist doesn't mean I'm talking about every White American. You were putting your own interpretation into it.

America is influenced by racist. That's what the hell I was inplying.

 

[RockSP]

-The Blade factor. I have a hard time believing that the same people who saw Blade wouldn't want to see this. Blade was marketed the right way, and the only thing that kept it from domestically being a big blockbuster was the fact that vampires aren't that popular, and it was rated R. But the same thing that people think will hold back a BP movie never held Blade black. People didn't avoid the movie due to Blade being black, and Wesley Snipes wasn't this huge star either. He was well known, but he was not a star like Will Smith. Well BP could benefit from those same things, and he wouldn't have that vampire stigma over his head. Take away the R rating, and you'd have something that kids wouldn't be bared seeing. Parents may or may not want to see a black guy doing something, but kids don't really care. If it looks cool enough they'll want to go see it, and they can't take themselves can they?

Gotta disagree with the vampire thing being unpopular or a hinderance to the film. The vampire angle is one of the things that helped the film(s) be succesful.

 

[DarKush]

I'm not too worried about that people would shy away from an African country depicted as being rich. Sure some people will dismiss it, but casual fans will go see something if it's marketed right. If they see Black Panther doing some wicked moves in the trailer, they'll have their ass at the theater to see the movie. People will go see anything if it looks cool, and I can see Black Panther appealing to enough people to make it profitable.

One thing that's overlooked is what the Black Panther has going for it:

-It's a comic property, and nerds will go see it. The entire comic community would show up to see the movie. Think about yourself for a second. Is there any comic based movie outside of a reboot or remake that you had no intentions of watching? There may be the one movie(probably a Fox movie) that you will avoid like the plague, but if it's comic based you're going to see it at some point in time. I'm not into Booster Gold, but if there was a Booster Gold movie coming out I'd want to see it. We may not be a big fanbase, but we'll at least be a chunk of BP's ticket sales. The same people who geeked out to see Spider-man, Batman, Iron Man, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four would definitely be interested.

-It won't be seen as a "black" movie. When I say "black" movie, I'm not talking about movies like Talk to Me or The Hurricane. I'm talking about movies like Waist Deep, Baby Boy, or anything John Singleton is peddling. Those movies seem to scream, "Look black people it's a movie for you! Come on and see this mess filled with all the stereotypes you like. It has Big Momma, Ray Ray, and 'dem, and you'll love watching this with your free bucket of KFC." Black Panther doesn't need to be marketed like that, and I think they would benefit if they just portrayed him as a cool ass kicking guy that happens to be black. T'Challa is African too, so there won't be any "hood" in the movie. Luke Cage would seem to be weighed down by this, but BP can easily avoid that hoopla.

-The Blade factor. I have a hard time believing that the same people who saw Blade wouldn't want to see this. Blade was marketed the right way, and the only thing that kept it from domestically being a big blockbuster was the fact that vampires aren't that popular, and it was rated R. But the same thing that people think will hold back a BP movie never held Blade black. People didn't avoid the movie due to Blade being black, and Wesley Snipes wasn't this huge star either. He was well known, but he was not a star like Will Smith. Well BP could benefit from those same things, and he wouldn't have that vampire stigma over his head. Take away the R rating, and you'd have something that kids wouldn't be bared seeing. Parents may or may not want to see a black guy doing something, but kids don't really care. If it looks cool enough they'll want to go see it, and they can't take themselves can they?

Marvel just needs to focus on making a great movie, and they need to focus on presenting it right. Color won't be an issue if the trailers look good.

Color will always be an issue, though it might not be the predominant one. I disagree with your assertion that Wesley Snipes was not a huge star. Today he isn't, but back then he was one of the best known action film stars around and had a string of hit or well received movies under his belt before he did Blade (Waiting to Exhale, Passenger 57, Demolition Man, Rising Sun, New Jack City, etc.). He was never as huge as Will Smith now, but he was a name.

One thing that perhaps made Blade more acceptable to white audiences was that any racial issues were kept in the background. You might get a reference to Uncle Tom from Deacon Frost or Blackula from Hannibal King, but there were no overt injection of racial subject matter from Blade. Also, Blade was desexualized and turned into a cold, badass machine and white audiences don't have a problem surprisingly seeing black badasses (Mr. T, Samuel L. Jackson, Ving Rhames, etc.) so long as they stay in their lane, like the stereotypical black buck. There was also the vampire angle, the martial arts, how it was marketed, etc. that brought in a lot of fans.

Blade was the most prominent black person in all three films and there weren't too many other black actors around-none long term that could give the movie the 'taint' of being a black movie. Same with the TV show. They were supposed to be in Detroit, and Blade was like the only black person on the show. Come on.

One thing about the Spawn film that I hated was McFarlane's admission that the suits wouldn't fully support the film with all three main characters black because they thought it would be seen as a 'black' film, so he changed Terry's race. A capitulation, among many other compromises that McFarlane made that doomed that film.

With Black Panther, being not only a hero, but a king and symbol of a powerful African nation, race might be a more overt issue. In a way BP is a black power fantasy like Superman and countless other white heroes are white power fantasies. Is a majority white audience ready to see a character like that on the big screen? I don't know. There really isn't a track record to really gauge if they will.

Most of Will Smith's action roles are not political and he never really challenges the system. BP might have to take a stance in opposition to the US or maybe critical of the West or the US in his film, and I don't think that would fly.

Though BP is a comic and that might get some people interested, he's not a well known character and I wonder if him being black and African to boot might turn some people off. They might not feel they can relate to him or are interested in his adventures.

Any BP movie would have to have some real good action, some kickass FX, and a tight story. I definitely think some name actors should be chosen for some roles. I think Iron Man's casting was great. A lot of Robert Downey, Jr., Gwenneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard fans were probably not going to see Iron Man per se, but to see them, so I think it widened the audience for that movie. BP is even less well known than Iron Man, so perhaps having Denzel do a cameo, etc. would be cool. Maybe even throwing Halle Berry in there for a Storm cameo, Samuel L. Jackson for a Nick Fury cameo, and Matthew Perry for an Everett Ross cameo would be cool too. And then getting a name to play either T'Challa or the main villain.

 

[SurfDUI]

Like one of my favorite Common songs, I don't want to be Misunderstood.
I got no quams about Wakanda, It's a fictional story and that's where BP lives, I have more of an issue about the fact that Manhatten is still standing in Marvel comics after 40 years of shattering events in the middle of the city.

I like Squadron Supreme and King Hyperion, I just (yea it's old now) finnished finding the King Hype/Nighthawk limited series, where Nighthawk went to the hotbed of unrest in hopes of gunning down all the bad guys. Even in that story you can't ignore the level of ill ish that goes on daily.

I don't think in 2009 alot of folks still have this perception of 'darkest Africa' that they had 30 years ago, we have the internet and they have populus cities and everything, but it's just w/ Blood Diamond, and Black Hawk Down, when it comes to an entire continent vs. a country even if it's the U.S. you have to at lest show some living conditions, and while not every place on the continent is bad, alot of it is and I just think you can't look at that from a purley entertaiment POV. Even if it's T'Chilla.

They were supposed to be in Detroit, and Blade was like the only black person on the show. Come on.

Exactly, that's why in IRON MAN aside from his origin leaving Vietnam, it was a generic version of Al Queda, like the new supposed Avengers movie or the transverse the JLA live action and going straight to the Detorit years of the group, your GOING to have to put some real Detroit elements there, and that's more grounding to this type of project that it would sustain and I don't think it would work so well

 

[roach]

I'll trade every single buffoonery 'black centered' movie that keeps getting made like the upcoming 'Dance Movie' parody that's coming out from the Wayans. Movies with Katt Williams and Eddie Griffin in them.

Don't touch Madea, please. I like Tyler Perry



lol.

What about Soul Plane 2:The Blackjacking

 

[SurfDUI]

What about Soul Plane 2:The Blackjacking

t:

I like Kevin Hart, but haven't had the pleasue of a SP viewing.

We've all been there.
Your with a chick, or your over somebody's crib and all of a sudden some movie gets put in are you trapped...and your thinkin "Oh crap, I CAN NOT sit through this...WTF am I going to do"

I was over one of my patnas crib bout a month ago, and usually we agree on the same B.S., but then Big Momma's House came on and he didn't turn the channell, we were trashed but...and I just couldn't get past it...I would rather have cut my visit short that to make it past the second act.

 

[terry78]

If they could pull off an Iron Man with BP, I would be extremely happy. I feel with the costume, the persona of the character, and his vllains, he could be marketed, but they'd have to be careful how it's done, obviously. Most popular black superheroes like Spawn and Blade and Ant aren't really FOR kids, because of how adult their subject matter is. Panther hangs with Avengers and what not, so he's more of a PG-13 to an extent.

 

[DarKush]

Like one of my favorite Common songs, I don't want to be Misunderstood.
I got no quams about Wakanda, It's a fictional story and that's where BP lives, I have more of an issue about the fact that Manhatten is still standing in Marvel comics after 40 years of shattering events in the middle of the city.

I like Squadron Supreme and King Hyperion, I just (yea it's old now) finnished finding the King Hype/Nighthawk limited series, where Nighthawk went to the hotbed of unrest in hopes of gunning down all the bad guys. Even in that story you can't ignore the level of ill ish that goes on daily.

I don't think in 2009 alot of folks still have this perception of 'darkest Africa' that they had 30 years ago, we have the internet and they have populus cities and everything, but it's just w/ Blood Diamond, and Black Hawk Down, when it comes to an entire continent vs. a country even if it's the U.S. you have to at lest show some living conditions, and while not every place on the continent is bad, alot of it is and I just think you can't look at that from a purley entertaiment POV. Even if it's T'Chilla.



Exactly, that's why in IRON MAN aside from his origin leaving Vietnam, it was a generic version of Al Queda, like the new supposed Avengers movie or the transverse the JLA live action and going straight to the Detorit years of the group, your GOING to have to put some real Detroit elements there, and that's more grounding to this type of project that it would sustain and I don't think it would work so well

I don't think you have to show something bad in regards to Africa. We've just been taught or trained to expect something bad regarding the living conditions in Africa. Maybe a BP movie can show another side of Africa.

Not every place is a war zone, etc., so why should they have to show a war zone, etc. in a BP movie? Or people living in huts or in the bush, or always with their hands out for the largesse of good hearted white folks?

It's been established that Wakanda is not that way, largely because it was developed unmolested.

I enjoyed the Nighthawk/Hyperion story set in Sudan as well. It did a pretty good job hightlighting a very real issue in the world today. In a way it was an exercise in futility, because I knew that the heroes would fail and the problems would go on. I also think that most people who read the book probably would just shake their heads and move on with the real concerns of their own lives, the misery of Sudan reconfirming what they felt about Africans/Africa and that was that. So ultimately what did the book really accomplish or did accomplish besides adding to the image of Africans as a hopeless, perhaps savage people under the guise of being a socially conscious story? To reinforce the notion that the West is so much better than Africa, while ignoring all of the ethnic conflicts that have plagued the European continent for centuries.

The BP comic provides a more balanced view of Africans, a largely positive view to counter decades of negative ones, and that's the tack I would like to see them take in the movie.

 

[SurfDUI]

I enjoyed the Nighthawk/Hyperion story set in Sudan as well. It did a pretty good job hightlighting a very real issue in the world today. In a way it was an exercise in futility, because I knew that the heroes would fail and the problems would go on.

It was hard. I kind of felt that's the way it was leaning, and still he/'Bruce' did go through all of that and got a certain level of understanding about things, and I GUESS that's what is was about. I did get that futile feeling

the misery of Sudan reconfirming what they felt about Africans/Africa and that was that. So ultimately what did the book really accomplish or did accomplish besides adding to the image of Africans as a hopeless, perhaps savage people under the guise of being a socially conscious story?

yea agreed, but it did convey the general sense of 'this is how change can be made the best way possible' except we in the West feel things should move more swiftly, even after Katrina, I feel we at least want things to get fixed more rapidly, which is where Nighthawk came out on it.

To reinforce the notion that the West is so much better than Africa, while ignoring all of the ethnic conflicts that have plagued the European continent for centuries

Well, even a rudamentary history lesson about Europe can't get past some of the illest actions over the past severl centuries, the bad out weighs the good there and is the model for that. Agreed, but I don't know about were better than them, it's just the way some cacausian americans feel about some of the larger ethnic issues, they want better and supoort causes, but it's just so big.

 

[SurfDUI]

The BP comic provides a more balanced view of Africans, a largely positive view to counter decades of negative ones, and that's the tack I would like to see them take in the movie.

I'm embarassed for myself.
I do own the fist 10 or 11 issues of the Hudlin run, but have yet to read it...It's just those Hudlin's, somethin about them I didn't dig, I mean I love the movie Boomerang O.K. and I don't know what happend to the other brother, is he working w/ Reginald? Over the past few years I've taken in more comics than I can read, so my to read pile just gets bigger, and older. I still don't know how Civil War turned out. but I collect all things black superhero, I got all of the early Luke Cage's, and Black GOliath, and I'm diggin Black Lightning Year one, i'm only up to issue 3, and it's kind of cliche. Does good goes back to the neighborhood type deal, but it's cool.

Yea, I get his take on the character tho, and I've read spotty issues, just not from 1 on...If there were to be a take, that be it, and knowing is half the battle.

 

[RockSP]

I don't think in 2009 alot of folks still have this perception of 'darkest Africa' that they had 30 years ago

Heh. You're giving people too much credit.

 

[DarKush]

I'm embarassed for myself.
I do own the fist 10 or 11 issues of the Hudlin run, but have yet to read it...It's just those Hudlin's, somethin about them I didn't dig, I mean I love the movie Boomerang O.K. and I don't know what happend to the other brother, is he working w/ Reginald? Over the past few years I've taken in more comics than I can read, so my to read pile just gets bigger, and older. I still don't know how Civil War turned out. but I collect all things black superhero, I got all of the early Luke Cage's, and Black GOliath, and I'm diggin Black Lightning Year one, i'm only up to issue 3, and it's kind of cliche. Does good goes back to the neighborhood type deal, but it's cool.

Yea, I get his take on the character tho, and I've read spotty issues, just not from 1 on...If there were to be a take, that be it, and knowing is half the battle.

I enjoyed the first 5/6 issues of Hudlin's run, the "Who is the Black Panther?" storyline, but I got it in TPB after the fact. I can't really comment on the next cycle of issues. I picked it up sporadically, getting the Hurricane Katrina arc, a lot of the pre-wedding/wedding issues, but didn't really start collecting BP until around Civil War.

That being said, I think Hudlin's stuff is a mixed bag, though not as bad as many people claim. I think he had a good vision and respect for T'Challa as a character. Unlike Priest, Hudlin's BP is the central POV character which I prefer to having another character tell his story. It would be like Alfred or Robin telling Batman's story. Sometimes that would be cool, but I think it takes away from the immediacy of getting inside the hero's head.

I also liked the Storm marriage, a black superhero couple to my knowledge had never been done before so I thought that was very cool. Eric Jerome Dickie's Storm miniseries, which fleshed out the backstory between Ororo and T'Challa is a must read.

What I didn't care for in Hudlin's work was the tendency to make Panther a Gary Stu. He became somewhat boring to me. I like my heroes challenged, and BP always had the right answer or the right gadget or whatever at his finger tips, and everyone totally respected him. It was like BP wasn't even trying or breaking a sweat, and I didn't care for that. There was a lack of genuine danger. Outside of Hudlin's first run, his take on the villains wasn't too great either. I didn't like what he did to Killmonger and he never created a villain as interesting as Priest's Achebe.

With Hudlin's current run on BP, and his last, he's correcting some of the issues I previously had so it will be a shame to see him go. For me, I think some of the fanboys had legitimate issues with Hudlin's writing. But I can't help but wonder how many truly had issues with Hudlin's take on BP because his T'Challa was unapologetically black, didn't take a backseat, and white characters played background roles or no role at all, which is not something many fanboys are accustomed to. Hudlin also made took some political stances, I guess, which were mild to me, but didn't set well with some fanboys.

About Black Lightning Year One, it started out pretty good, but the last couple issues lost me. A shame really, but I give DC credit for trying. They largely succeeded. Though I think the Vixen miniseries was much better, and had great artwork.

 

[Chris Wallace]

Gotta disagree with the vampire thing being unpopular or a hinderance to the film. The vampire angle is one of the things that helped the film(s) be succesful.

It did limit Blade. A hero like Spider-Man or Batman can have a wide variety of storylines, villains, etc. One like Blade can't.
Plus there was a common misconception that Blade was a Buffy knockoff.

 

[Red Mask]

Blade was also rated R. No milk money was going there.

 

[gwynplaine]

Blade was great. even Stephen Dorff was good in it, that says a lot.
Also seeing Udo Kier with the fangs on again (or actually defanged) was a great plus for me.

 

[E-Man]

Gotta disagree with the vampire thing being unpopular or a hinderance to the film. The vampire angle is one of the things that helped the film(s) be succesful.

I know it helped it, but it also put a cap on it. Vampires are a popular, and well known subgenre for any medium. But there's only so many people that would watch a vampire movie. The only vampire movie to break $100 million domestically is Interview with the Vampire, and that movie had Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in it. Blade reigns supreme over the others, and it did really well for itself. But there is only so much a vamp film can make.

I disagree with your assertion that Wesley Snipes was not a huge star. Today he isn't, but back then he was one of the best known action film stars around and had a string of hit or well received movies under his belt before he did Blade (Waiting to Exhale, Passenger 57, Demolition Man, Rising Sun, New Jack City, etc.). He was never as huge as Will Smith now, but he was a name.

That was the point I was trying to make. He was a well known guy, but people weren't going to flock to see him like a big name. A big name guy like Arnold or Sylvester would've made Blade X2 money.

One thing that perhaps made Blade more acceptable to white audiences was that any racial issues were kept in the background. You might get a reference to Uncle Tom from Deacon Frost or Blackula from Hannibal King, but there were no overt injection of racial subject matter from Blade. Also, Blade was desexualized and turned into a cold, badass machine and white audiences don't have a problem surprisingly seeing black badasses (Mr. T, Samuel L. Jackson, Ving Rhames, etc.) so long as they stay in their lane, like the stereotypical black buck. There was also the vampire angle, the martial arts, how it was marketed, etc. that brought in a lot of fans.

You're absolutely right about that, and that's why I want to keep people like Singleton, Hudlin, and Spike away from the film. They would focus too much on Black Panther's "blackness" instead of making a good film. We don't need any "get back at whitey" moments in a BP film. In a country that is 100% black, I'd imagine that Wakandans don't care much about being black, so that could help the film.

Blade was the most prominent black person in all three films and there weren't too many other black actors around-none long term that could give the movie the 'taint' of being a black movie. Same with the TV show. They were supposed to be in Detroit, and Blade was like the only black person on the show. Come on.

Yeah that's pretty messed up, but I'm nt shocked at that. Hollywood and TV Land have acted like black people don't exist for years.

 

[DarKush]

E-Man,

Blade 2 did very well at the box office. Of course it wasn't X-Men level, but at the same time the X-Men were like one of the franchise properties for Marvel for about 20 years before the first X-film came out, with a built in fanbase, better marketing, more buzz, a nice release date, and the movie had a bigger budget and Halle Berry, Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellan, etc. X-Men was expected to be a winner, whereas with Blade they were crossing their fingers and hoping for the best.

Blade had existed on the margins in relative obscurity for most of his existence. I think it's an unfair comparison to some extent. Being R-rated cut into the audience as well. Maybe Blade was never meant to be a big comic book hero, but the first two movies at least proved he could be popular, make money, and build a small devoted audience which is saying something. He was skating uphill to begin with and I think the first two movies did very well despite the challenges they faced.

Outside of Wesley Snipes what other popular Black actor from the 90's made Arnold/Sly money that you could see as Blade? I can only think of Will Smith and Denzel, and neither would've worked as Blade, perhaps Will Smith, but would he have wanted to do it? Blade would be the darkest character he ever played. Denzel might think Blade a step beneath him. I read that New Line wanted LL Cool J. I don't think LL is that bad an actor and maybe he could've pulled it off, but I think Snipes was the best choice. I think his resume at that time was better than say current action star Jason Statham's today and Statham gets work, is a name, but not as big as Arnold/Sly/Bruce.

I have mixed feelings about how being a vampire film limited Blade. On a personal level, I have a relative that loves comic book films but he just couldn't get into Blade because he felt there was too much blood, and I wonder how many other people are turned off by the horrific elements in the Blade films?

Also as much as I loved the scientific explanation for vampirism and how it was handled in the Blade films, I wonder if that approach limited the films creatively. If they went back to the supernatural roots, Blade could fight more than vampires and it might open up more storyline possibilities than pretty much the same-old, same-old. But even in those 'restrictions', we got a vampire god, reapers, Damaskinos, and Drake. For the most part, I think there was a nice variety of vampires.

Another thing that limited Blade, IMO, was the Goyer take on the character, restricting his emotions and humanity. He was a total badass, but a hard person to really sympathize and empathize with. He was filled with so much rage but very little attention was spent on other aspects of his personality. I'm a genre geek so that was cool with me, but I wonder how others might view his static characterization. He was so consumed with rage that he never even got laid or appeared interested in the opposite sex or any sex, except with the vampire chick from Blade 2 and they cut out that scene. With Buffy, the Winchesters, and just about every other vampire/monster hunter you see far more of their characters/personality than you ever did with Blade. I just think Wesley Snipes subtle acting conveyed Blade's tortured soul and humanity more than Goyer's writing and definitely more than his direction. Without Snipes, you got Sticky Fingaz's Blade.

Why does he care about humanity so much? He didn't seem to like anyone besides Whistler and maybe Karen Jenson. Why didn't he take Dr. Jenson's cure if he hated his vampiric side so much and just called it a day? Why does he hate vampires so much and for so long? Especially the ones that were born that way. What gives him the right to murder them? Does he hunt vamps 24/7 and that's it? Does he read, listen to music, go outside, etc.? These are just some of the things I wish they had explored more in the films and the TV show. They really didn't have to show a day in the life of Blade, but just some indication that he had an inner life or something else going on, some other reason to keep him fighting. Even with Batman, they created a 'family' around him beyond Alfred.

 

[Ace of Knaves]

Blade was ****ing bad ass. I still love that film and put it in my top 10 comic book movies.

And say what you want about Goyer, but he re-invented Blade, he made it "cool".

 

[chamber-music]

I remember them cutting out the scene that implied Blade knocked boots with Nyssa. DarKush don't forget Karens ex-boyfriend the Zombie Vampire. I wish we got to see more of them and there was whatever Pearl was.

Also I agree with what others have said the whole Hudlin White Devil stuff needs to stay out of a Black Panther movie. The fact the guy wrote that stuff is just petty, embrassing and would distract from the movie.

No 1 Ladies Detective Agency has been said to have a positive view of africa but thats the only show I can think of that has.

Blade was probabley the last good movie Stephen Dorff made. He was the next big thing in the 90s along side DiCaprio and River Phoenix. I thought Dorff was really good in Backbeat, City Of Industry and Blood and Wine where he held his own against Micheal Caine and Jack Nicholson.

Nowhere days Dorffs more known for being music videos and getting third billing in Uwe Boll movies.