The Official Green Lantern Review Thread - Part 4

[Poni_Boy]

None of these statements indicate that Secret Origins was used as a blueprint for the story of the film. Only that Ryan Reynolds thinks its a good starting point for people who don't know what GL is in general, and that Marc Guggenheim read it, and may have drawn some inspiration from it for certain elements. Ryan flat out says "It's a good reference because its also an origin story", but he never says anything about the film being based on it. I'm sure they drew from elements of it, as they appear to have drawn from several Green Lantern origin stories. But I don't think it can be called the blueprint for this film. Mostly because this film doesn't resemble it that much.

I'm curious as to what people think a "solid" Green Lantern film with decent characterization looks like.

Sorry, it's late and I'm attempting to multitask here lol those were the top three Google search results, I'm sure you can find plenty more from Johns, Reynolds and Campbell about it if need be.

As for a solid GL movie, well, pretty much the same as any good movie. Coherent story structure, crisp well-executed dialogue, actors that bring their roles to full potential, realistic and engaging visuals, clear and concise plot and overall entertaining

EDIT: I don't feel like retyping it or clogging the section with all the text, but I broke down three or four character pieces from the film that I did not appreciate and explained how I think they would have worked better: http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=357117 I have plenty more to add, but all you guys' comments are distracting me lol

 

[moviedoors]

Seems to me that folks wait around for reviews with bated breath and give them a great deal of credence, after all YOU are appealing to bad reviews for authority, and that in turn shapes their perceptions going in and going out of said film. It's why "the public" isn't connecting with the movie. They read a negative review and they decide to stay away from it without ever thinking that the reviewer just might be full of **** and that they might actually really enjoy the film. Likewise, many go into movies on negative reviews because well, they've just gotta see it regardless and never the less they are primed to look for flaws rather than be truly open to enjoying what is presented to them.

It's basic psychology. Not some "grand plot." That's how people are affected by media. You listen to a political pundit with a particular spin and if you aren't bothering to investigate beyond that(and most do not) your sole view on the question at hand is going to be shaped by that one pundit.

I mean, a week and a half before the movie came out some folks who managed to get in on the critic screeners posted on their Facebook pages how much they liked the movie and there were posters saying "those are nobodies" and yet they'll appeal to authority for critics listed on RT just because they are "somebody." It's weak.

And the folks in the theater I was in seemed to genuinely enjoy the movie. Including a 60 year old friend of mine that went with me who knew nothing about Green Lantern. The audience seemed to connect to the movie when I went to see it.

Give me a break, there's plenty of **** slinging on both sides. How many times have people said those that didn't like it have their "heads up their ass" or just straight up "**** 'em." The extremes of both sides are being asshats.

Prime example. Yeah, it's not a quick two word insult, but the basic point is still "you didn't like it because you're a moronic sheep." I didn't actually dislike it, I was fooled into not liking it. Clearly, that's the only reason somebody wouldn't have a good time.

How am I not supposed to be insulted by this? I'm not accusing people who liked it of being idiots and I expect the same courtesy in return.

 

[The Guard]

Watchmen, two Batman films (so far), Superman Returns, Catwoman and Jonah Hex. That's it.

And Constantine and Green Lantern. They've also got a third Batman and another Superman film coming next year.

If WB's film division were more organised, they could have put more DC characters on film other than Batman and Superman. If Marvel could do it, why not WB?

There's a very simple answer to this.

1. Marvel got a clear head start on them. Marvel has been trying to get its current projects off the ground for almost a decade now, ever since the success of SPIDER-MAN and X-MEN and their realization that they wanted a piece of the pie, really. WB has only recently really put effort into its superhero projects, partially because it took a few more years to have a success with BATMAN BEGINS. We're talking the last two or three years here.

2. What has to be considered (and never is for some reason) is that WB is a studio that, while it probably ultimately having more resources than Marvel, also has to consider making movies that aren't just superhero/fantasy ones. It doesn't have the luxury of a Marvel Studios, where the focus is only superhero projects. Yet.

It's only now WB has noticed that Harry Potter is ending and Nolan's Bat Trilogy is finishing, that they need another cash cow.

Yeah, I don't think WB is only now noticing these things...

Smallvile is not really a ratings success. If it was on one of the main networks, it would have been cancelled. Lois and Clark was good when it was on in the 90's.

SMALLVILLE ran for ten years. It was a successful show, period.

DC's animated output has been excellent, since Batman The Animated Series, especially the DTV animated movies.

This is true.

 

[Doc Phosphorus]

Yes. Yes they are. Because a solid movie with some decent characterization for the hero isn't enough for them. Good isn't enough. They wanted very good to great.

Well, yeah.

But seriously, snark aside, isn't that what everyone should want? "Solid" and "decent" are qualifiers indicating the bare minimum. I would think we'd strive for a little more than that, no?

No, you shouldn't absolutely rail on something as a piece of garbage just because it's okay and not amazing, but I don't agree with settling either. If it's meh it deserves a meh response. If I'm paying $12 for a ticket, yeah, it better be great.

 

[Frodo]

I can say as a fan of DC and Marvel comics , i'm not happy it isn't performing up to expectations. I think we can question peoples motives all day but in the end it doesn't really matter. What does concern me is the possibility that their may be a saturation point with these all of these kinds of films flooding the market at the same time roughly, and that if Cap America doesn't do well , you'll start hearing more of the"we're getting tired of this" calls from the audience and the critics. It may be more of an issue next year since all the heavy hitters are being released .

 

[Spider-Fan]

Once again, LET'S PLEASE DISCUSS THE MOVIE IN A RESPECTFUL MANNER AND STOP CALLING PEOPLE WHO HATED/LIKED IT NAMES OR INSULT THEIR INTELLIGENCE!!!

It is a movie. It's an interpretive art form. If you can't take differing opinions, then you will hate a site for people of ALL opinions!!!!

 

[cryptic name]

You can like the movie all you want, but it's bad reviews are not some grand plot, or other reviewers subscribing to "peer pressure" or whatever people are saying when this movie isn't getting the response they think it should be getting. For whatever reason, this movie is not connecting with the public the way Batman Begins and Iron Man were able to do.

critics are not the public. this movie has actually made more on opening weekend that Begins did.

I just saw this again and I honest to god can not understand the hate for this movie. I mean there are movies that I like that I know suck and I can plainly see why people don't like them, like G.I. Joe. But this...is a good movie. I just don't get it.

 

[Poni_Boy]

critics are not the public. this movie has actually made more on opening weekend that Begins did.

I just saw this again and I honest to god can not understand the hate for this movie. I mean there are movies that I like that I know suck and I can plainly see why people don't like them, like G.I. Joe. But this...is a good movie. I just don't get it.

I think the general consensus is that, this summer especially, "good" isn't enough to draw major audiences.

 

[FreeRadical]

I can say as a fan of DC and Marvel comics , i'm not happy it isn't performing up to expectations. I think we can question peoples motives all day but in the end it doesn't really matter. What does concern me is the possibility that their may be a saturation point with these all of these kinds of films flooding the market at the same time roughly, and that if Cap America doesn't do well , you'll start hearing more of the"we're getting tired of this" calls from the audience and the critics. It may be more of an issue next year since all the heavy hitters are being released .

Yeah, it's possible there is fatigue occurring seeing as so far this year there hasn't been a superhero movie so far this year opening with over $90million. It's good that there is a wide variety of comic book films now, but when audiences think there are more common in theatres, thinking if they are all similar like a generic Jennifer Aniston/Kate Hudson rom-com, then the worrying should start.

It rests with Captain America now, even though it's released a week after the final Harry Potter film......

 

[DaveMoral]

^I think Cap's performance should be in serious question. It's also got a stacked Blockbuster time frame. Cap comes out the week after Harry Potter.... and it's not likely going to out perform Potter. Potter is bigger than all of this, without a doubt. Plus I think Transformers 3 will still be performing well, and I have no care for that movie or franchise at this point.

I think there is a saturation point. We are at a time when it's really possible to make comic characters come to life they way they should. GL executed that aspect really well IMO. It's been how many years since Superman Returns? Man of Steel, even with Snyder and Nolan's names attached, could suffer from a kind of "oh no, not this again" thing... even if they shy as far away from harkening back to Reeves as possible. Batman will be compared, perhaps not favorably, to TDK. Amazing Spider-Man already suffers from the whole idea of getting a reboot this soon, and I have to wonder how the general audience will react to that. I haven't bothered with X-Men First Class because I'm kind of burnt out on X-Men movies. Though I am interested in Wolverine 2.

To boot, the fact that all these comic movies are coming also lends credence to the currently bandied about idea that Hollywood is at an all time low for creativity. Not only is Hollywood churning out remakes of old movies and TV shows, but now it has to turn to comics for ideas and those end up cliche ridden. And in many ways, they have to be.

For GL to be free of the cliches of origin films it would have had to skip the whole origin thing in the first place. And then what problems would there be?

 

[cryptic name]

I think the general consensus is that, this summer especially, "good" isn't enough to draw major audiences.

No movie is doing gang busters. the only movie to make a serious impression so far is Hangover 2, and that (while funny) is just a pretty lousy remake of the first one. But other comic adaptations have at least gotten the positive reviews they deserved.

 

[Karelia]

critics are not the public. this movie has actually made more on opening weekend that Begins did.

I just saw this again and I honest to god can not understand the hate for this movie. I mean there are movies that I like that I know suck and I can plainly see why people don't like them, like G.I. Joe. But this...is a good movie. I just don't get it.

I'm with you, bud. The weird thing is, the two times I've went to see it in theaters, most people came out enjoying it.

 

[AndrewGilkison]

Didn't Begins ultimately gross $200m when it was all said and done? If GL does that, I'll be very surprised.

 

[Spider-Fan]

No movie is doing gang busters. the only movie to make a serious impression so far is Hangover 2, and that (while funny) is just a pretty lousy remake of the first one. But other comic adaptations have at least gotten the positive reviews they deserved.

Pirates is really the only true BO explosion we've had this summer (and that is mostly from International BO). All other successful films have just been successes. Not huge films. But, TF3 and Potter will no doubt be huge films. Cap I think will do well, but end up making Thor-esque money.

 

[Poni_Boy]

No movie is doing gang busters. the only movie to make a serious impression so far is Hangover 2, and that (while funny) is just a pretty lousy remake of the first one. But other comic adaptations have at least gotten the positive reviews they deserved.

Don't forget Pirates 4

Also, this has to be one of the most blockbuster saturated summer movie seasons of all time. Very few films will have impressive opening weekend gains; for the most part only the ones continuing popular franchises will bank (TF3, HP7.2, Hangover, Cars, Pirates)

Good news for Captain America is that the production cost is fairly low and, in a way, it is part of a franchise. People who have seen IM, IM2, TIH and Thor are already vested in the Marvel movieverse

 

[Poni_Boy]

Cap I think will do well, but end up making Thor-esque money.

The saving grace? That's all Marvel expects from it. Plus, it doesn't have any major films coming up behind it. Imagine if it was released the weekend before HP7.. that would have been much worse

 

[Frodo]

^I think Cap's performance should be in serious question. It's also got a stacked Blockbuster time frame. Cap comes out the week after Harry Potter.... and it's not likely going to out perform Potter. Potter is bigger than all of this, without a doubt. Plus I think Transformers 3 will still be performing well, and I have no care for that movie or franchise at this point.

I think there is a saturation point. We are at a time when it's really possible to make comic characters come to life they way they should. GL executed that aspect really well IMO. It's been how many years since Superman Returns? Man of Steel, even with Snyder and Nolan's names attached, could suffer from a kind of "oh no, not this again" thing... even if they shy as far away from harkening back to Reeves as possible. Batman will be compared, perhaps not favorably, to TDK. Amazing Spider-Man already suffers from the whole idea of getting a reboot this soon, and I have to wonder how the general audience will react to that. I haven't bothered with X-Men First Class because I'm kind of burnt out on X-Men movies. Though I am interested in Wolverine 2.

To boot, the fact that all these comic movies are coming also lends credence to the currently bandied about idea that Hollywood is at an all time low for creativity. Not only is Hollywood churning out remakes of old movies and TV shows, but now it has to turn to comics for ideas and those end up cliche ridden. And in many ways, they have to be.

For GL to be free of the cliches of origin films it would have had to skip the whole origin thing in the first place. And then what problems would there be?

True, and if we look at this year alone we've had Green Hornet, Thor, X men, and now GL with Cap only a few weeks away. They're all origin films for the most part and you're gonna start seeing similarities in terms of origins, character motivations , villan archetypes, love interest, etc. That also adds to the feeling that hollywood is basically churning out the same film each time with a different hero in each flick.

 

[Spider-Fan]

The saving grace? That's all Marvel expects from it. Plus, it doesn't have any major films coming up behind it. Imagine if it was released the weekend before HP7.. that would have been much worse

Exactly. It's opening weekend might be hurt by Potter, but that is better than Cap coming out just before it and not getting legs because Potter smashes it. Besides, Potter films tend to have high 2nd weekend drops in the US. Plus, Cap was the cheapest of the comic films to produce.

 

[cryptic name]

The saving grace? That's all Marvel expects from it. Plus, it doesn't have any major films coming up behind it. Imagine if it was released the weekend before HP7.. that would have been much worse

I think cap may surprise us. It's got really strong early buzz.

 

[Manwithoutpeer]

I'd give it a score of 83%. I think the sequel(s) will be much better.

 

[Poni_Boy]

Exactly. It's opening weekend might be hurt by Potter, but that is better than Cap coming out just before it and not getting legs because Potter smashes it. Besides, Potter films tend to have high 2nd weekend drops in the US. Plus, Cap was the cheapest of the comic films to produce.

Marvel Studios knows what they're doing. They had to adjust a few things (Thor) but it's always smart to have a roadmap. It's all... part of the plan

 

[Marvin]

makes me even more curious as to how cap will perform over seas.
japan
Germany
Russia
Libya
Iran
Kuwit
Baghdad

seriously though, if potter is going to be killing it over there I hope there is enough room for cap

 

[webhead921]

I'm with you, bud. The weird thing is, the two times I've went to see it in theaters, most people came out enjoying it.

I saw it at a pre screening in a very large theater with a mega screen. There was an overwhelming positive reaction to the film. I was very pleased. If people did not like it, they are entitled to their opinion. I disagree with most of the reviews that I have read. I'd say it is not nearly as good as thor, BB, spider-man 2 or iron man, and is easily on par with TIH, IM2, and the first x-men.

 

[Poni_Boy]

I think cap may surprise us. It's got really strong early buzz.

Yep, and the fact that Cap doesn't need HUGE opening BO numbers makes that a nice bonus

makes me even more curious as to how cap will perform over seas.
japan
Germany
Russia
Libya
Iran
Kuwit
Baghdad

seriously though, if potter is going to be killing it over there I hope there is enough room for cap

Potter films usually have a substantial drop off in their second weekend; most of the diehard fans see it two to three times that first weekend anyway

As for Cap, I have a collection of Cap comics printed in Arabic, Spanish, Italian and Farsi. It's actually a popular character overseas.

 

[S.A.A.D.]

I know that it's not compelling but I like the touch that is Hector trying to go to sleep at home after getting his butt handed to him by Hal. I found it very refreshing.