Fant4stic: Reborn! - - - - Part 23

[Goshdarn Batman]

some random sci-fi movie.

That should be the title.

 

[Whiskey Tango]

The difference is that, while the story for GOTG2 is new (as is every new comic book story is, every single month), he's not radically changing the characters, their backgrounds, nor the tone of their stories. It will still be recognizable as Guardians of the Galaxy, whereas this film is only recognizable as The Fantastic Four on a VERY, disgustingly basic level.

Wasting your time. Every day CyclopsWasRight pulls out the old "but Marvel does it differently too" excuse, every day someone explains it to him, and every day he misses the point.

 

[Mikelus]

Any study that compares current comic book readership to ticket sales is a complete waste of time. A large chunk of fans used to read comics - I'm old enough to remember when it was primarily a children's hobby. Though oldtimers may not make a monthly trip to the Comic Book Store, we never stopped being fans of the characters and stories we grew up with. And we share our interest with our spouses and children, leading to more ticket sales that are not captured by that laughable RT analysis.

Is not laughable, is the sad reality, only a very small minority read comics. More people watch the cartoons, tv shows and movies.

Anyway, if the movie is decent (at least it seems way better than the last two crappy ones by Tim Story) and makes enough money, then it will get a sequel, it doesn't matter what the haters say. I don't like unnecessary changes, but Marvel and DC do it all the time, so as long as the shows and movies are good enough, I can tolerate them if the essence of the characters is still there.

Did you guys look at any specific runs of the comics to pull from?

KINBERG: Yeah, I think The Ultimates is probably our biggest influence because it’s the younger Fantastic Four. And a lot of the science specifics are there. And a lot of the means of transformation we took from those books. As you’ll see a little bit in the trailer and a lot in the movie, there are influences really from the beginning of what Kirby and Stan were doing in the 60’s all the way up into the present day. I’ve done it both ways from adapting a specific storyline like Days of Future Past or jumping off like in First Class and using more of the mythology of the characters without necessarily adhering to an existing plot line. This is an origin story in many regards and it is inspired by The Ultimate Fantastic Four as much as anything else.

http://collider.com/the-fantastic-four-movie-details-josh-trank/

Kinberg did a great job with the DOFP script, so if he did the same here, then the movie should be fine despite the changes, time will tell.

 

[Whiskey Tango]

Any study that compares current comic book readership to ticket sales is a complete waste of time. A large chunk of fans used to read comics - I'm old enough to remember when it was primarily a children's hobby. Though oldtimers may not make a monthly trip to the Comic Book Store, we never stopped being fans of the characters and stories we grew up with. And we share our interest with our spouses and children, leading to more ticket sales that are not captured by that laughable RT analysis.

Right on. There is a lot more going on than just 'reading comics'. http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2007-07-24-fanboys_N.htm

 

[TheComicbookKid]

So what the heck is "Amblin" supposed to be? The last time I heard that was Abrams talking about Super 8.

 

[Zarex]

Anyway, if the movie is decent (at least it seems way better than the last two crappy ones by Tim Story) and makes enough money, then it will get a sequel, it doesn't matter what the haters say. I don't like unnecessary changes, but Marvel and DC do it all the time, so as long as the shows and movies are good enough, I can tolerate them if the essence of the characters is still there.

What exactly is the audience for a cheap, star-free, rights grab that is not suitable for children, is a reboot of a failed duology, is released in a competitive summer season and bears no resemblance whatsoever to the classic source material? FFINO faces an uphill battle, regardless of what the "haters" say.

And most of the Marvel and DC (and FOX) changes are either necessary or make sense in terms of storytelling. Changing everything, as Trank appears to be doing, reflects an embarassment of the source material. I am not picking on a poor widdle multi-billion corporation by stating the obvious.

 

[Willie Lumpkin]

So what the heck is "Amblin" supposed to be? The last time I heard that was Abrams talking about Super 8.

I assume he's talking about the classic Amblin years: ET, Gremlins, Goonies, etc. but it's a bit of a head-scratcher because I certainly don't see any elements of those in what we've seen so far and it doesn't fit other things Trank has said.

Cronenberg and Amblin seem like they're at as opposite ends of the spectrum as could be possible.

 

[TheComicbookKid]

I assume he's talking about the classic Amblin years: ET, Gremlins, Goonies, etc. but it's a bit of a head-scratcher because I certainly don't see any elements of those in what we've seen so far and it doesn't fit other things Trank has said.

Cronenberg and Amblin seem like they're at as opposite ends of the spectrum as could be possible.

Yeah, that was confusing me, too.

Now I see why Kinberg is with him in interviews. Trank is all over the place.

I guess a dark Gremlins would be less child-friendly.

 

[wobbly]

So what the heck is "Amblin" supposed to be? The last time I heard that was Abrams talking about Super 8.

'Super 8' was like an old school Amblin flick (ET in particular) with teeth. As sentimental as ET, but the Alien beastie was more bent towards breaking bones and rending flesh than looking to make friends and 'phone home'. Btw, Amblin was a co-producer for 'Super 8' too with Abrams 'Bad Robot'.

Anyways, 'Amblin' as a film group are generally more associated with kiddie friendly 'family fare' adventure films, like 'ET', 'The Goonies', 'Back to the Future', 'Jurassic Park', etc, though they also have 'Schindlers List', the 'Color Purple', 'Munich', the 'True Grit' remake, 'War horse' and 'Lincoln' among their credits too (either as sole or co-producers). Basically they have been more diverse than some might think.

In the context of this film I have no idea what they mean. Assuming they are referring to the general perception of Amblin (kid friendly family fare) that's very much at odds with them talking 'darker', 'grounded' and 'Cronenburg inspired'.

 

[Dark Raven]

Looks just like my comics!

I mentioned it in the other thread that Miles Teller's "costume" kind of reminds me of a darker and grittier version of Rusty the Steam Train from Starlight Express.

 

[MakeMinesMarvel]

No it doesn't

 

[Dasher10]

Right on. There is a lot more going on than just 'reading comics'. http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2007-07-24-fanboys_N.htm

I think it's safe to say that fans are the ones who scour the internet for trailers. If we see a trailer we like, we want to see more of it. We watch indie films and if there's a an actor we like, we want that person cast in big budget Hollywood tentpoles.

For instance, I'm passionate about casting Dree Hemingway as Captain Marvel after seeing her in Starlet. Here character there had an awkward sense of humor, isn't an angel but does feel guilty when she makes a mistake and works hard to atone for everything she does wrong and is really, truly driven and won't take no for an answer when she's convinced that she's right. My only concern is that she's a bit too thin and hasn't done an action role but anyone can put on muscle and Bruce Willis and Michael Keaton didn't do an action role before Die Hard or Batman.

We like comics. Particularly, we like the characters. We know the look and tone of this film but know NOTHING about characterization.

Since we follow people who we like, knowing that Bryan Hitch did the storyboards should have come out a lot sooner. Fox should have announced that back when the film was going through reshoots and post-effects since they had no trailer at the time. THAT would have meant a lot. Moreover, it proves that Fox didn't learn from the positive reception to announcing that the late HR Giger worked on Prometheus.

Keeping the actors under such a tight NDA until the first trailer hit was a bad decision. Now allowing Trank to show keep his Twitter up was a BAD idea. The backlash to knowing that we'd be getting Ultimate Doom would have been lessened if Trank posted that still on his Twitter as opposed to it leaking.

Compare this whole radio silence thing to the promo that Joss Whedon and Bryan Singer do while the film is still shooting. Fox's marketing department clearly have no idea what they're doing and whoever was in charge of marketing this film should be fired since the marketing department didn't bother to coordinate with the cast and crew over interviews and social media posts which actually matter today.

 

[coolmovies]

I assume he's talking about the classic Amblin years: ET, Gremlins, Goonies, etc. but it's a bit of a head-scratcher because I certainly don't see any elements of those in what we've seen so far and it doesn't fit other things Trank has said.

Cronenberg and Amblin seem like they're at as opposite ends of the spectrum as could be possible.

The sci-fi aspect of the movie and transformation of the characters will be cronenbergian. That teleportation system in the trailer is kinda similar to the machine that Jeff Goldblum had in The Fly. I think that's what Josh meant.
Whereas the characters interaction and whatever dramatic beats are in the movie will be amblin esque albiet a bit darker.

 

[TheComicbookKid]

In the context of this film I have no idea what they mean. Assuming they are referring to the general perception of Amblin (kid friendly family fare) that's very much at odds with them talking 'darker', 'grounded' and 'Cronenburg inspired'.

This is reminding me of how Steven Moffat talks about scaring kids on Doctor Who. He never/rarely kills people but he has monsters with specific ways to scare the viewer on a family show.

 

[CConn]

I loved that he brought up Amblin. I'll be gleeful to see that look again on film.

 

[kaijunexus]

Right from the mouth of Trank in the Empire interview...

"There's the opportunity to make something that is challenging and tragic and dramatic. The opportunity is right there in the material. We'd rather steer it in that direction as opposed to just embracing a tone that comes right off the page."

Un. Believable.

 

[First Avenger]

I disagree with pretty much everything Trank says about comics and CBMs.

 

[Tymminator]

Right from the mouth of Trank in the Empire interview...



Un. Believable.

I read it.

I also read what he said about Sue, which shows he really doesn't know anything about her character except for the most peripheral and incomplete observations he could possibly misconstrue.

The more he talks the more I'm comfortable in my decision to avoid this movie as if it was Ebola.

 

[Joe Rockhead]

FOX is scared to go up against Marvel in head-to-head Superhero movies. Their characters need to be tortured souls and outcasts... not larger than life, flamboyant and heroic.

Trank's statement about steering away from the comics is confirmation of that.
It's also confirmation of this being FFINO for real.

The inspiration for the characters' origins comes from Ultimate FF alone.

Jack Kirby and Stan Lee provided nothing more than the following to this production:
Names of 4 main characters.
Powers of 4 main characters.

 

[Monochron]

So where are the comics with the "****ty secretary version" of Sue? Because I missed them.

 

[wobbly]

I read it.

I also read what he said about Sue, which shows he really doesn't know anything about her character except for the most peripheral and incomplete observations he could possibly misconstrue.

The more he talks the more I'm comfortable in my decision to avoid this movie as if it was Ebola.

This is worth repeating:

"For Sue then, Trank also wanted to update her from the classic comics, adding: "There have always been two categories of Sue - the slu#ty secretary version, and this brilliant scientist version. This is a really, really smart Sue, and one that is dignified and has integrity."

In all the years I've been reading the book, 'slu#ty secretary' has never sprung to mind regarding Sue. No idea which books Trank's evidently been fapping' off too.

Ironically, "a really, really smart Sue, and one that is dignified and has integrity" is not a bad description for 616 Sue.

 

[TeeKay]

Lord have mercy just read what he said about Sue..

"There have always been two categories of Sue - the ****ty secretary version, and this brilliant scientist version. This is a really, really smart Sue, and one that is dignified and has integrity."

He should pass me whatever he's smoking. I definitely want some of that.

 

[coolmovies]

Empire just unveiled a bunch of new Fantastic Four images and now we’ve got some additional quotes from director Josh Trank to go along with them. In our own interview with Trank and producer Simon Kinberg, the pair discussed what sets Fantastic Four apart from other superhero movies, highlighting their “hard sci-fi take” on the material. With Empire (via CBM), Trank specifically addressed the difference between the movie he wanted to make and previous Fantastic Four films:

“The original two films to me are very similar to a lot of recent movies that have come out, in terms of that kind of cartoonish. It’s just not something that me and Simon are interested in as storytellers.”

Trank elaborated by discussing the tone of the film and how he handled the source material:

“There’s the opportunity to make something that is challenging and tragic and dramatic. The opportunity is right there in the material. We’d rather steer it in that direction as opposed to just embracing a tone that comes right off the page.”

Trank also discussed his choice to change Johnny Storm’s (Michael B. Jordan) race, noting that he has a mixed race family himself and that he wanted the Storms to represent 21st century families. Here’s what Trank had to say about the topic in our interview:

“I had just come off working with Michael B. Jordan and his character, Steve, in Chronicle had a lot of similar characteristics to Johnny Storm. And I thought it would be interesting to take the family dynamic of the Storms, which is brother and sister, and bring that more into the 21st century in terms of what we consider the norm. I have mixed family in my own family and it’s something that isn’t out of the ordinary anymore but we don’t really see it portrayed in the casual reality of the movies. That’s something I felt that would be interesting and challenging, to have mixed siblings.”

As for Sue Storm (Kate Mara), Trank switches things up a bit for her as well:

“There have always been two categories of Sue – the ****ty secretary version, and this brilliant scientist version. This is a really, really smart Sue, and one that is dignified and has integrity.”

Trank also discussed Ben Grimm’s relationship with Reed Richards (Miles Teller) and what made Jamie Bell the right guy for the part:

“Ben is supposed to be a smaller guy in terms of height. That idea of Ben being Reeds best friend in the archetypical way, you want that character to have warmth and strength, qualities Jamie has.”

Trank went on to address The Thing transformation we see in the trailer, dubbing the structure a “transformation cocoon.” The Thing punches his way out of this cocoon and from there, the character will be created almost entirely using motion capture effects.

When asked about Reed’s greying temples, Trank teased:

“There are surprises for everybody in the movie. We’ve had time to figure out every single iconic and subtle aspect of the Fantastic 4, and how it can organically belong to this film.”

http://collider.com/fantastic-four-details-josh-trank/


Have fun!

 

[Joe Rockhead]

This is worth repeating:

"For Sue then, Trank also wanted to update her from the classic comics, adding: "There have always been two categories of Sue - the slu#ty secretary version, and this brilliant scientist version. This is a really, really smart Sue, and one that is dignified and has integrity."

In all the years I've been reading the book, 'slu#ty secretary' has never sprung to mind regarding Sue. No idea which books Trank's evidently been fapping' off too.

Ironically, "a really, really smart Sue, and one that is dignified and has integrity" is not a bad description for 616 Sue.

If anything, the Sue of the 60's was a Damsel in Distress, until she became a Superhero Housewife.

She really didn't become a true hero on her own until Byrne's run started.

In truth, I have no problem with going with her UFF version of the scientific peer of Reed.

 

[Tymminator]

This is worth repeating:

"For Sue then, Trank also wanted to update her from the classic comics, adding: "There have always been two categories of Sue - the slu#ty secretary version, and this brilliant scientist version. This is a really, really smart Sue, and one that is dignified and has integrity."

In all the years I've been reading the book, 'slu#ty secretary' has never sprung to mind regarding Sue. No idea which books Trank's evidently been fapping' off too.

Ironically, "a really, really smart Sue, and one that is dignified and has integrity" is not a bad description for 616 Sue.

He really doesn't even bother to know #%^\ about the characters.

I didn't think I could want to see this movie any less, because I really plan to never ever willingly see it, but somehow with that interview, Trank has made the impossible possible.