Is Man of Steel the 'Godfather' of Comic Book Films?

[bluearth]

Armond White thinks so

Thanks to Zack Snyder’s artistry, Man of Steel is The Godfather of superhero movies.

http://www.nyfcc.com/2013/06/movie-of-the-year-man-of-steel-reviewed-by-armond-white-for-cityarts/

I remember when The Dark Knight first came out everybody was saying it was a live action comic book, and thats one of the reasons why they loved it so much.

Man of Steel is to me, the first time I really saw a comic/animated series Superman on the big screen. By the time I saw Superman battle the World Engine defenses, it was a done deal. Seeing Superman dart around trying to avoid 'mechanical' arms was something I'd only hope to see in the Animated Series. Seeing it in Live Action was astonishing.

So thats just part of the reason I think it is the 'Godfather' of Comic Book films. Its more faithful to the comics then The Dark Knight. The entire film is taken more seriously then your average comic book movie. Not just in tone but in dialogue, the plot, etc. The cheese you'd expect in such a genre slashed. Full of powerful moments, astonishing special effects, memborable characters and more.

To me The Avengers is the 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' of Comic Book films, but Man of Steel is the 'Godfather' of Comic Book Films.

 

[Senator Pleasury]

Oh yes, I remember that at one point TDK was The Godfather and Avengers was the new Star Wars. Oh, and Hiddleston's Loki was as good as Ledger's Joker so it had to be nominated for an Oscar.

MOS is as unfaithful to the comics as any other superhero movie, and then some. And it was as serious as any of the Nolan bat-movies. And the cheese level was as low as in Nolan's movies as well. The action was good, but it has been so in many other movies.

Acting-wise nothing came close to Al Pacino or, let alone, Marlon Brando.

 

[bluearth]

Oh yes, I remember that at one point TDK was The Godfather and Avengers was the new Star Wars. Oh, and Hiddleston's Loki was as good as Ledger's Joker so it had to be nominated for an Oscar.

MOS is as unfaithful to the comics as any other superhero movie, and then some. And it was as serious as any of the Nolan bat-movies. And the cheese level was as low as in Nolan's movies as well. The action was good, but it has been so in many other movies.

Acting-wise nothing came close to Al Pacino or, let alone, Marlon Brando.

I feel like your criticizing some fans for 'jumping to conclusions', but everyone does this. James Cameron said Gravity is the best Space film ever made. Lots of people were saying Pacific Rim was this generation's Jurassic Park. Lots of people, ranging from someone like Cameron to an average fan jump to conclusions. Cameron or the fan could be right or wrong, but in the end its just opinion. Im trying to see how many opinions agree or disagree with the poll's question.

Also, the poll is Man of Steel the 'Godfather' of Comic Book films, not the Godfather of movies in general. It doesnt have to have better acting then The Godfather, just better acting then other comic book films, for example.

 

[sf2]

Is it asking whether MOS a better quality Comic book movie?

 

[bluearth]

Is it asking whether MOS a better quality Comic book movie?

Is Man of Steel the new standard of comic book films, in terms of the complete package, acting, action, story, faithfulness to the comics, etc etc.

 

[Batmannerism]

Honestly Dudes, No. I loved, loved LOVED MOS, but it's not a game-changer the
way the Godfather was. The Godfather transcends the gangster genre, hell
it changed movie-making itself.

if there was a comparison with a superhero movie, Godfather would have to be with
The Dark Knight -which was a game-changer and also transcended its genre
(as another poster pointed out a while back).

( on a different note, the book, The Godfather is just as good, if not better, it's amazing, I read it the first time when I was hospitalized for a serious illness.
That time reading the book was magic, it draws you into the story and away from the world.
BTW the Godfather book is where the expression "Revenge is a dish that tastes best when served cold" comes from (Wrath of Khan borrowed it).
If you haven't read it, and you're a male with an ounce of testosterone, read it,
you won't regret it. If you're a woman, you'll probably be horrified by the sexism and attitudes/treatment of women, sorry.

OH AND ......OF COURSE GUESS WHO WROTE THE GODFATHER ????

Mario Puzo, who also wrote the screenplay/story for......SUPERMAN THE MOVIE AND SUPERMAN II.

MOS will always be a great movie for me, and on a par with Superman the Movie, but it hasn't had the effect that Godfather had, not just in terms of reception by the public, but the Godfather changed film-making itself.

I think MOS has lofty aspirations, if anything its closest analogy is Batman Begins.
It does a very difficult task, it tries to reinvigorate Superman on the big screen, after that last piece of ****, Superman Returns. IMO it succeeded beyond my wildest expectations, but to really be compared with The Godfather, it would have to reinvigorate the whole Superhero genre for the public at large.

I watched it today, in the background, while working around the house, probably my 100th or so time seeing it, and it gets better every time.
While it did that for me, I don't think we can say it had the same public impact - well at least not if you believe the critics.

Tell you what, if Avengers was the new Star Wars (as in it was a game-changer for
superhero films) then MOS is to Avengers, what Star Trek was to Star Wars, a different direction in a similar genre - not the same genre, as Star Wars is definitely fantasy/sci-fi whereas Star Trek is sci-fi, but not that ****ing awful Star Trek the motion picture, although some critics make it sound that way. More like
Avengers was Star Wars and MOS was Wrath of Khan, well anyway, that's a stretch
but the best I can think of .

So in summary, MOS = awesomeness, but not the Godfather. Interesting comparison though.

 

[Senator Pleasury]

I feel like your criticizing some fans for 'jumping to conclusions', but everyone does this.

Does that make it reasonable or worthy?

In many cases, like the ones I mentioned, it's more like wishful thinking. Conclusion implies a reasoning behind the statement you can follow. So far I cannot see one single element in MOS that's truly comparable to The Godfather.

James Cameron said Gravity is the best Space film ever made. Lots of people were saying Pacific Rim was this generation's Jurassic Park. Lots of people, ranging from someone like Cameron to an average fan jump to conclusions. Cameron or the fan could be right or wrong, but in the end its just opinion. Im trying to see how many opinions agree or disagree with the poll's question.

Ok, I disagree for the aforementioned reasons.

Also, the poll is Man of Steel the 'Godfather' of Comic Book films, not the Godfather of movies in general. It doesnt have to have better acting then The Godfather, just better acting then other comic book films, for example.

Nolan's bat-movies still have that IMO. Not saying the acting in MOS was bad, but what Ledger, Caine, Freeman and some others did is still visibly better.

But I'd say that in many regards, I'd put MOS over many Marvel movies that are considered successful.

Is Man of Steel the new standard of comic book films, in terms of the complete package, acting, action, story, faithfulness to the comics, etc etc.

I'd say again that Nolan have this title. And, in fact, what MOS did (or tried to do) was following Nolan (the true referent/standard IMO).

Now, the faithfulness of MOS. I ignore if the Godfather was specially faithful to the book, or if its faithfulness is considered a special attribution of the movie. What I know is that MOS was not specially faithful (whether that is bad or good is a different thing); I'd say it had remarkable differences from the original story. In that sense, Superman the Movie is still much more faithful to the comics in comparison.

 

[The Endless]

Is Man of Steel the new standard of comic book films, in terms of the complete package, acting, action, story, faithfulness to the comics, etc etc.

Not it is not. It is a good film and I enjoyed it a lot. But it is not a masterpiece. Or anywhere near it. Has too many flaws in terms of characterisation, pacing and story structure for me.

TDK, Spider-Man 2 and The Avengers are still the best superhero films.

The Godfather is well... The Godfather. Everything about it is so tight. All films have flaws but with a film like The Godfather you have to go looking for them, they don't jump out at you. That is how you can tell a film is truly great or not.

 

[Motown Marvel]

Man of Steel isnt even good enough to be the Godfather part III of superhero films.

 

[socool]

Lol. No it isn't.

 

[Wildcard]

Nope, not even close. I love MoS, & when I say that, I do mean I love the **** out of this movie. But it is not the best comic book movie of all time, & there are quite a few others that are better.

If any comic book movie deserves the "Godfather" title, it's "The Dark Knight" without question.

 

[bluearth]

Very interesting reading everyone's opinions.

I'll start with the Dark Knight first, as it seems many give it the title. The biggest issue I have with the film is I feel it detoured too far from the comics, even in a general sense. Some camp is required IMO for a comic book film. Man of Steel has camp, the world engine defenses, the dress of the council on Krypton, etc. There is no camp in the Dark Knight. Everything is completely practical. The hero and villain could shed their costumes and it would still be the same film. Its too much of a crime/thriller and not enough comic book fantasy. Brilliant film, but I have trouble believing it is a real comic book movie. Its like its loosely based on the Batman mythology and thats it.

Never understood the the hype and love for Spider Man 2. I liked the first and even the third film better then #2. Why? I felt the first and third film showed powerful emotions from the characters, and there was none of that in the second film. The villain just gives up and commits suicide in the 2nd film and the weak story about him magically losing and regaining powers? I didnt buy it.

As for the Avengers, I agree, it is in the running. In fact, I consider it superior to Man of Steel, which is why I say the Avengers is the Raiders of the Lost Ark of comic book films and Man of Steel is the Godfather of comic book films.

As usual though it looks like my opinion is in the minority. Thats fine, just wanted to throw up a poll and see what others thought.

 

[The Batman]

You know most MOS fans have abandoned the MOS forum when the "no" option has the most votes.

 

[MrsKent26]

No. That title belongs to The Dark Knight.

But I liked MOS and it is in my top 5 superhero movies.

 

[sf2]

I find the dark knight isn't very enjoyable watching. Have never rewatched it after buying the dvd.

 

[MrsKent26]

Really? I still love it.

 

[Wildcard]

Really? I still love it.

Same here. I watch it at least several times a year. It's a classic that has held up incredibly well...it was the innovator.

 

[MrsKent26]

^ Classic is the right word. It will hold up for a while.

 

[sf2]

^ Classic is the right word. It will hold up for a while.

Maybe i don't understand the movie fully therefore i can't enjoy it much. I find myself questioning the movie when watching it. too unbelievable and unreal to me, a criminal who without wealth, superpower and background can terrorise the whole police department and the gangster groups, and do seemingly all the impossibles. The Gordon's assistant plot is kinda cheap to me too.

 

[titansupes]

The Dark Knight is the "Godfather of superhero movies". Man of Steel was okay.

 

[Keyser Soze]

Armond White loves Man of Steel? Oh God, that's the kiss of death. I liked Man of Steel, but professional troll-critic Armond White's stamp of approval actually makes me call its quality into question, given how he only claims to like cinematic turds while bashing the classics.

 

[Lord]

Eww, of course it's not. Last time i checked The Godfather wasn't trying to mimick some other films style because it was in vogue

 

[Green Goblin]

That's funny,

The whole thing was extemely influenced by Nolan.

 

[Lord]

That's funny,

The whole thing was extemely influenced by Nolan.

It's what i meant, The Man of Steal was adhering to a style instead of creating one of its oun. Though i'm sure some MoS apologists will tell me how unique its style was and how we haven't seen anything like this before.

 

[Senator Pleasury]

It's what i meant, The Man of Steal was adhering to a style instead of creating one of its oun. Though i'm sure some MoS apologists will tell me how unique its style was and how we haven't seen anything like this before.

Pun because MOS "took things from" Nolan's?