What DO they say about the crazy ones
July 13, 2015 4:58 PM Subscribe
apparently the lesson DC learned from the Nolan trilogy was that superhero movies must be grim 'n' gritty in order to succeed
I sure hope they picked up the lessons about plot and complex characterization and acting too.
Also fuck that New 52 Harley Quinn bullshit.
posted by Anonymous at 5:10 PM on July 13, 2015
I sure hope they picked up the lessons about plot and complex characterization and acting too.
Also fuck that New 52 Harley Quinn bullshit.
posted by Anonymous at 5:10 PM on July 13, 2015
Batman is riding on the hood of a car about two thirds of the way through the trailer.
posted by Elementary Penguin at 5:17 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by Elementary Penguin at 5:17 PM on July 13, 2015
I asked my husband, my go-to comics nerd, about Harley Quinn after I saw the trailer. I was like, "Uhh, I hate to be indelicate, but was Harley Quinn always dressed, well, kinda slutty?" (NOTE: Not slut-shaming, FYI, so I should really find a new way to describe her outfits. Help me out there.) Matt: "NO. She used to wear this cute harlequin outfit with a joker's hat with bells and then Nu52 came along and now the creators have dressed her like every other damn female superhero: unrealistically and for dudes to jack it to."
It is a shame that a fascinating character is treated so poorly by writers and artists. So not surprised they went that route with her in the movie. Bummer.
posted by Kitteh at 5:20 PM on July 13, 2015 [15 favorites]
It is a shame that a fascinating character is treated so poorly by writers and artists. So not surprised they went that route with her in the movie. Bummer.
posted by Kitteh at 5:20 PM on July 13, 2015 [15 favorites]
I honestly don't know who any of these people are except for Batman and the Joker.
posted by infinitewindow at 5:23 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by infinitewindow at 5:23 PM on July 13, 2015
Kitteh: ""NO. She used to wear this cute harlequin outfit with a joker's hat with bells and then Nu52 came along and now the creators have dressed her like every other damn female superhero: unrealistically and for dudes to jack it to.""
To be fair, I'm not sure the harlequin outfit with a joker's hat with bells is any less "unrealistic" for a supervillain to go out and kick ass in. But I agree with the rest.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 5:27 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
To be fair, I'm not sure the harlequin outfit with a joker's hat with bells is any less "unrealistic" for a supervillain to go out and kick ass in. But I agree with the rest.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 5:27 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
It saddens me that DC finally got Amanda Waller so right and then managed to drop the ball so very hard with Harley and the Joker. I'd be looking forward to the rest of the movie regardless if they weren't playing up the clown duo so much.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 5:27 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 5:27 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
I hope they do enough to individualize the other members, because all I see right now are Smith, Robbie, batshit crazy Leto... "and the rest".
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 5:27 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 5:27 PM on July 13, 2015
"NO. She used to wear this cute harlequin outfit with a joker's hat with bells and then Nu52 came along and now the creators have dressed her like every other damn female superhero: unrealistically and for dudes to jack it to."
I don't take issue with the larger point, but realism was never a strength with Harley's original costume. (which was still a skin-tight bodysuit)
on edit: jinx
posted by leotrotsky at 5:28 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
I don't take issue with the larger point, but realism was never a strength with Harley's original costume. (which was still a skin-tight bodysuit)
on edit: jinx
posted by leotrotsky at 5:28 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
I love you all, you comics pedants.
posted by Kitteh at 5:30 PM on July 13, 2015 [15 favorites]
posted by Kitteh at 5:30 PM on July 13, 2015 [15 favorites]
Seconding Amanda Waller, she looks just right. But I'm still uncertain if I'll see this.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 5:30 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 5:30 PM on July 13, 2015
If Harley is badass and independent and beating dudes up, I don't care what she's wearing.
posted by King Bee at 5:30 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by King Bee at 5:30 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
Will Smith is completely miscast. So unnecessary.
posted by butterstick at 5:31 PM on July 13, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by butterstick at 5:31 PM on July 13, 2015 [6 favorites]
For me it's not... nasty enough, twisted enough. It's Yet-Another-Superhero-Movie just they've filled the protagonist hole with slightly bent pegs. It looks dull :/
posted by litleozy at 5:32 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by litleozy at 5:32 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
realism was never a strength with Harley's original costume. (which was still a skin-tight bodysuit)
I believe Cyclops had the last word on costumes.
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 5:32 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
I believe Cyclops had the last word on costumes.
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 5:32 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
At least it's physically realistic for a harlequin bodysuit to stay on a body.
posted by a car full of lions at 5:32 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by a car full of lions at 5:32 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
I believe Cyclops had the last word on costumes.
Cyclops' feelings on the matter have changed from time to time.
posted by sparkletone at 5:34 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
Cyclops' feelings on the matter have changed from time to time.
posted by sparkletone at 5:34 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
I'm not sure Will Smith is miscast as much as he's WILL SMITH. He just sort of sticks out.
posted by Elementary Penguin at 5:35 PM on July 13, 2015 [15 favorites]
posted by Elementary Penguin at 5:35 PM on July 13, 2015 [15 favorites]
Huh, in which continuity was Cyclops retconned into a clone of Shane Warne?
posted by No-sword at 5:36 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by No-sword at 5:36 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
While I'm sure Margot Robbie is good and all, I wish they would have gotten Yael Stone (Morello from Orange is the New Black) to be Harley. The voice she uses in that show is so Harley (at least to my ears).
posted by King Bee at 5:37 PM on July 13, 2015 [14 favorites]
posted by King Bee at 5:37 PM on July 13, 2015 [14 favorites]
I went down the youtube rabbit hole on this the other day and found some nerds fans commenting on the fact that Smith's clearly shown holding his rifle right-handed but the deadshot eye thingy is on his left eye... which makes no sense. And now I can't unsee it.
So, y'all are welcome, I guess.
posted by axiom at 5:39 PM on July 13, 2015
So, y'all are welcome, I guess.
posted by axiom at 5:39 PM on July 13, 2015
I wouldn't count Robbie out. Lady can act, and everything I've seen of her as Harley indicates she get it.
posted by leotrotsky at 5:40 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by leotrotsky at 5:40 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
Will Smith as Deadshot is frickin' hilarious stunt casting. I also had to go to the wiki page to verify that that was supposed to be Digger Harkness.
The sad thing is that if they wanted an anti-hero team with Harley Quinn on it, the Secret Six in its various incarnations are right there, rather than crapping on a book whose one memorable run was 20+ years ago.
posted by delfin at 5:41 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
The sad thing is that if they wanted an anti-hero team with Harley Quinn on it, the Secret Six in its various incarnations are right there, rather than crapping on a book whose one memorable run was 20+ years ago.
posted by delfin at 5:41 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
Wait, which incarnation of the Six had Harley?
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 5:43 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 5:43 PM on July 13, 2015
I know nothing about the Suicide Squad. This looks entertaining movie to see a year from now.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:44 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:44 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
I know I should probably just hope this movie does well and furthers the cause of shared universe movies, but all this grimdark is so tone-deaf and so 25 years ago that I can't help but await my delivery of Schadenfreude.
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 5:45 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 5:45 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
Well, if that's the kind of preview they wanted, they sure got one.
posted by MoxieProxy at 5:45 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by MoxieProxy at 5:45 PM on July 13, 2015
Huh, in which continuity was Cyclops retconned into a clone of Shane Warne?
I don't know who that is, but if it helps, the frame I posted is from one of Whedon's X-Men runs. I forget which.
posted by sparkletone at 5:46 PM on July 13, 2015
I don't know who that is, but if it helps, the frame I posted is from one of Whedon's X-Men runs. I forget which.
posted by sparkletone at 5:46 PM on July 13, 2015
I think all of the complaining about "grimdark" and comparisons to the "fun" of MCU are hilarious. Let's be honest, Marvel's put out three great movies (Iron Man, Winter Soldier, GoTG) and a bunch of interchangeable CGI snoozefests. I didn't like Man of Steel but I didn't hate it. I'll probably see this and the coming SuperBat movie with measured expectations. I don't mind the grim and I don't mind the dark if the characters are interesting and the action satisfying.
posted by echocollate at 5:47 PM on July 13, 2015 [9 favorites]
posted by echocollate at 5:47 PM on July 13, 2015 [9 favorites]
I'm still a bit baffled by the idea of having an "all the villains team up!" movie without establishing the characters as villains first. I feel like it kind of takes the teeth out of the premise.
posted by brundlefly at 5:50 PM on July 13, 2015 [16 favorites]
posted by brundlefly at 5:50 PM on July 13, 2015 [16 favorites]
Wait, which incarnation of the Six had Harley?
For about three issues of Birds of Prey, before Simone's non-limited series.
posted by delfin at 5:51 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
For about three issues of Birds of Prey, before Simone's non-limited series.
posted by delfin at 5:51 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
At least it's physically realistic for a harlequin bodysuit to stay on a body.
Given all the crazy inventions Batman has I dunno if sweat-proof double-sided tape is that much of a conceptual stretch.
posted by GuyZero at 5:58 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
Given all the crazy inventions Batman has I dunno if sweat-proof double-sided tape is that much of a conceptual stretch.
posted by GuyZero at 5:58 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
I'm not at all sold on this interpretation of the Joker, but you can't blame them from wanting to get as far away as possible from Heath Ledger's iconic version.
posted by Pater Aletheias at 5:59 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Pater Aletheias at 5:59 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
thank god hlolywood found a way to get BYEERRRRN into this trailer
posted by boo_radley at 6:09 PM on July 13, 2015 [8 favorites]
posted by boo_radley at 6:09 PM on July 13, 2015 [8 favorites]
The ideal Harley is always the animated one for me, and the animated one from TAS specifically. It was just perfect.
posted by the uncomplicated soups of my childhood at 6:09 PM on July 13, 2015 [7 favorites]
posted by the uncomplicated soups of my childhood at 6:09 PM on July 13, 2015 [7 favorites]
DC, you make butt films. You can't have any goddamn fun with your films and they're overwrought for no discernible reason.
posted by boo_radley at 6:10 PM on July 13, 2015 [22 favorites]
posted by boo_radley at 6:10 PM on July 13, 2015 [22 favorites]
I sold my full Ostrander run of Suicide Squad recently for a pretty penny. Glad I did it well in advance of this trailer, before they lost 1000% of their value.
posted by turbid dahlia at 6:10 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by turbid dahlia at 6:10 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
apparently the lesson DC learned from the Nolan trilogyZach Snyder and the Arkham videogame series was that superhero movies must be grim 'n' gritty in order to succeed
Maybe it's just the emphasis on Harley in the trailer, but this is coming off as Sucker Punch II: Suck Harder. They're presenting it as Harley, Will Smith apparently bringing nothing of Floyd Lawton's character (at least the version that Gail Simone had in Secret Six) except for the costume and guns, Killer Croc, and a bunch of skeevy looking dudes that I can't really tell apart. Oh, and Katana, for just a few seconds near the end. Viola Davis looks like she could be a plausible Amanda Waller, but I'm starting to get the feeling that Jared Leto learned all the wrong lessons from getting that Oscar.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:10 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
Maybe it's just the emphasis on Harley in the trailer, but this is coming off as Sucker Punch II: Suck Harder. They're presenting it as Harley, Will Smith apparently bringing nothing of Floyd Lawton's character (at least the version that Gail Simone had in Secret Six) except for the costume and guns, Killer Croc, and a bunch of skeevy looking dudes that I can't really tell apart. Oh, and Katana, for just a few seconds near the end. Viola Davis looks like she could be a plausible Amanda Waller, but I'm starting to get the feeling that Jared Leto learned all the wrong lessons from getting that Oscar.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:10 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
Here's hoping it bombs and they lose their shirt. But I doubt it.
posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 6:10 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 6:10 PM on July 13, 2015
(I should also add that I'm less hung up on Harley's appearance since Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti have been doing fun things with the character in her own series.)
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:11 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:11 PM on July 13, 2015
Given how down people on DC movies right now, I'm going to be contrarian and hope that this is a franchise that will knock the increasingly schmaltzy, bloated, and over-serious Avengers series off its feet.
posted by Apocryphon at 6:13 PM on July 13, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by Apocryphon at 6:13 PM on July 13, 2015 [6 favorites]
Wow, I thought that I hated the Batman vs. Superman trailer. Is that a dubstep version of Seven Nation Army? Ugh.
posted by octothorpe at 6:15 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by octothorpe at 6:15 PM on July 13, 2015
I'm still a bit baffled by the idea of having an "all the villains team up!" movie without establishing the characters as villains first. I feel like it kind of takes the teeth out of the premise.
No, no, no! If this was Marvel, they'd spend the next decade meticulously creating mildly witty, CGI-laden, formulaic trilogies for each of the characters, before releasing this one. This is economy in storytelling right here. Bootstrapping a story about a group without spelling out each individual's first. DC's weakness in films makes them an underdog next to the Marvel Studios juggernaut. I dig it.
posted by Apocryphon at 6:16 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
No, no, no! If this was Marvel, they'd spend the next decade meticulously creating mildly witty, CGI-laden, formulaic trilogies for each of the characters, before releasing this one. This is economy in storytelling right here. Bootstrapping a story about a group without spelling out each individual's first. DC's weakness in films makes them an underdog next to the Marvel Studios juggernaut. I dig it.
posted by Apocryphon at 6:16 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
I actually sort of like the tack they're taking. This is a universe where Batman has been created, fought his rogue's gallery for a decade or so, and retired. Costumed villains are just part of the background, I assume TV Arrow and TV Flash are part of this continuity as well, etc. But then Superman shows up, and he is so much more powerful than anyone else in the world that he has terrified Earth.
If only we could have gotten away without seeing Bruce's parents killed again.
posted by Elementary Penguin at 6:19 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
If only we could have gotten away without seeing Bruce's parents killed again.
posted by Elementary Penguin at 6:19 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
Maybe it's just the emphasis on Harley in the trailer, but this is coming off as Sucker Punch II: Suck Harder.
I think describing it as Sucker Punch, with its garish character designs and edggggggyyyyy 'tude is more accurate than calling it "grimdark." Nolan is grimdark. Snyder is grimdark. This looks like they're trying to affect a late-90s, early-'00s (but pre-9/11) pop punk sensibility. Not edgy enough to be Vertigo or Max, though. So I would rate it as hopefully less obnoxious and tawdry than Sucker Punch.
posted by Apocryphon at 6:20 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
I think describing it as Sucker Punch, with its garish character designs and edggggggyyyyy 'tude is more accurate than calling it "grimdark." Nolan is grimdark. Snyder is grimdark. This looks like they're trying to affect a late-90s, early-'00s (but pre-9/11) pop punk sensibility. Not edgy enough to be Vertigo or Max, though. So I would rate it as hopefully less obnoxious and tawdry than Sucker Punch.
posted by Apocryphon at 6:20 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
How does Jai Courtney even exist? He's so bland-looking and featureless and boring I'm surprised his parents didn't forget him on their way out of the post-birth hospital stay. He was in Genisys simply because they needed somebody to fill another on-screen jacket.
posted by turbid dahlia at 6:32 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by turbid dahlia at 6:32 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
Is that a dubstep version of Seven Nation Army?
Nah - "I Started a Joke" by the Bee Gees.
posted by scatter gather at 6:33 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
Nah - "I Started a Joke" by the Bee Gees.
posted by scatter gather at 6:33 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
I assume TV Arrow and TV Flash are part of this continuity as well
They can't be for reasons of spoilerage, starting with the Suicide Squad already exists in the DC TV verse. I'm pretty sure the DC TV folks have said they're not either. But I would love to have this Amanda Waller instead of the one in Arrow. She was the only good thing in that trailer.
posted by immlass at 6:41 PM on July 13, 2015
They can't be for reasons of spoilerage, starting with the Suicide Squad already exists in the DC TV verse. I'm pretty sure the DC TV folks have said they're not either. But I would love to have this Amanda Waller instead of the one in Arrow. She was the only good thing in that trailer.
posted by immlass at 6:41 PM on July 13, 2015
I'm not at all sold on this interpretation of the Joker, but you can't blame them from wanting to get as far away as possible from Heath Ledger's iconic version.
I fully support a different vision of the character after Ledger, but this is another murder-for-murder's-sake "agent of chaos" sadist. The difference from Ledger's version is all cosmetic (and all for the worse). The DC movies are so damn serious that a full-on Nicholson/Romero Clown Prince of Crime version of the Joker would be freaking perfect. He's the guy who thinks they all need to lighten up, even if it kills them (but maybe it'll just be a gag!).
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 6:47 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
I fully support a different vision of the character after Ledger, but this is another murder-for-murder's-sake "agent of chaos" sadist. The difference from Ledger's version is all cosmetic (and all for the worse). The DC movies are so damn serious that a full-on Nicholson/Romero Clown Prince of Crime version of the Joker would be freaking perfect. He's the guy who thinks they all need to lighten up, even if it kills them (but maybe it'll just be a gag!).
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 6:47 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
Imagine if they had gotten Jack Nicholson to take another turn as the Joker.
posted by humanfont at 6:58 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by humanfont at 6:58 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
the coming SuperBat movie
AKA the ManMan movie.
I totally understand that Harley is more fun as a jester, but unlike most female protagonists in these movies, I can at least see a satisfying reason that she would dress like a stripper. I mean look at the relationship she has with the Joker, he's just the kind of shitty boyfriend to push that on his love-blinded gal.
posted by idiopath at 6:59 PM on July 13, 2015
AKA the ManMan movie.
I totally understand that Harley is more fun as a jester, but unlike most female protagonists in these movies, I can at least see a satisfying reason that she would dress like a stripper. I mean look at the relationship she has with the Joker, he's just the kind of shitty boyfriend to push that on his love-blinded gal.
posted by idiopath at 6:59 PM on July 13, 2015
This is going to be a generation-defining film for the Juggalo demographic.
posted by interrobang at 7:03 PM on July 13, 2015 [40 favorites]
posted by interrobang at 7:03 PM on July 13, 2015 [40 favorites]
This is appropriate:
posted by Fizz at 7:03 PM on July 13, 2015 [27 favorites]
when a @marvel trailer leaks vs. when a @DCComics trailer leaks pic.twitter.com/ZlvrhZQIBE— Heath (@heathdwilliams) July 13, 2015
posted by Fizz at 7:03 PM on July 13, 2015 [27 favorites]
Pretty quick getting this trailer out - a few weeks ago they were still filming in Toronto (at 2:03 they're walking through Yonge/Dundas Square in front of the Eaton Centre which has barely been digitally camouflaged).
posted by Flashman at 7:04 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by Flashman at 7:04 PM on July 13, 2015
Nah - "I Started a Joke" by the Bee Gees.
I don't know if this is just me, but if I can see (or, more likely, think I can see ) the inspiration for something, it often makes me cranky and ill-disposed towards it, even if works well.
Maybe I'm wrong, but I just can't help see this as being "inspired" by the use of "I've got no strings" in the Avengers.
Trailers are extremely trend driven, and there's nothing wrong with artworks being in communication with one another - but this seems a little cheap, somehow.
posted by Jon Mitchell at 7:04 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
I don't know if this is just me, but if I can see (or, more likely, think I can see ) the inspiration for something, it often makes me cranky and ill-disposed towards it, even if works well.
Maybe I'm wrong, but I just can't help see this as being "inspired" by the use of "I've got no strings" in the Avengers.
Trailers are extremely trend driven, and there's nothing wrong with artworks being in communication with one another - but this seems a little cheap, somehow.
posted by Jon Mitchell at 7:04 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
Wow, I thought that I hated the Batman vs. Superman trailer. Is that a dubstep version of Seven Nation Army? Ugh.
Hmm, I think that I watched some fan made trailer by mistake. This one doesn't look terrible.
posted by octothorpe at 7:08 PM on July 13, 2015
Hmm, I think that I watched some fan made trailer by mistake. This one doesn't look terrible.
posted by octothorpe at 7:08 PM on July 13, 2015
I thought Chris Sims had a really interesting perspective on Harley: The Trouble With the Joker's Girlfriend Harley Quinn.
posted by skycrashesdown at 7:13 PM on July 13, 2015 [12 favorites]
posted by skycrashesdown at 7:13 PM on July 13, 2015 [12 favorites]
The ideal Harley is always the animated one for me, and the animated one from TAS specifically. It was just perfect.
To be fair, she was created in TAS.
One of the things I liked about Harley was that she was one of the few villainesses out there who may have been attractive but wasn't overtly sexual. Yeah, she wore a skin tight bodysuit, but it was full body, she got pants, and unlike Poison Ivy, Catwoman, Cheetah, and way too many other villainesses it was not in-character for her to spend half her time licking poles or spread eagle-ing or shoving her butt in the superhero's face. She was "bad girl" without it being a pure masturbation fantasy. New 52 decided to get rid of that aspect of her personality and stick her into the "blatant jack-off material" like everyone else. So it saddens--but does not surprise--me that that's the spin used for this movie.
posted by Anonymous at 7:16 PM on July 13, 2015
To be fair, she was created in TAS.
One of the things I liked about Harley was that she was one of the few villainesses out there who may have been attractive but wasn't overtly sexual. Yeah, she wore a skin tight bodysuit, but it was full body, she got pants, and unlike Poison Ivy, Catwoman, Cheetah, and way too many other villainesses it was not in-character for her to spend half her time licking poles or spread eagle-ing or shoving her butt in the superhero's face. She was "bad girl" without it being a pure masturbation fantasy. New 52 decided to get rid of that aspect of her personality and stick her into the "blatant jack-off material" like everyone else. So it saddens--but does not surprise--me that that's the spin used for this movie.
posted by Anonymous at 7:16 PM on July 13, 2015
ManMan
Uhh actually the correct title is Man vs Man: Mawn of Manstice.
posted by turbid dahlia at 7:23 PM on July 13, 2015 [15 favorites]
Uhh actually the correct title is Man vs Man: Mawn of Manstice.
posted by turbid dahlia at 7:23 PM on July 13, 2015 [15 favorites]
That was terrible. So portentous! Is this really going to be the tone of the movie? Slow cathedral singing over slow-motion grimacing?
I don't necessarily hate grim and gritty aesthetics. The Nolan Batman movies are fine. But I hate this particular grim and gritty aesthetic. The style and pacing make it feel like the music video to November Rain.
posted by painquale at 7:35 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
I don't necessarily hate grim and gritty aesthetics. The Nolan Batman movies are fine. But I hate this particular grim and gritty aesthetic. The style and pacing make it feel like the music video to November Rain.
posted by painquale at 7:35 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
Incidentally, the trailer for GI Joe 2 does use a Glitch Mob remix of Seven Nation Army.
posted by smackfu at 7:53 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by smackfu at 7:53 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
Are cops ever the bad guys in comicbook superhero movies? Serious question.
posted by oceanjesse at 7:59 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by oceanjesse at 7:59 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
I don't love Jared Leto, but apart from still shots we've only seen about 7 seconds of actual footage of his Joker so I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Can anyone recommend a good run on Suicide Squad if I haven't read any of the comics but am reasonably familiar with DC continuity? The Ostrander run someone mentioned upthread?
posted by whir at 8:09 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
Can anyone recommend a good run on Suicide Squad if I haven't read any of the comics but am reasonably familiar with DC continuity? The Ostrander run someone mentioned upthread?
posted by whir at 8:09 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'm sort of holding out hope this is a bad trailer for a sort-of-okay movie, but it does all seem VERY videogame cutscenes aesthetic.
posted by Artw at 8:10 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Artw at 8:10 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
Are cops ever the bad guys in comicbook superhero movies? Serious question.
The recent Dredd movie featured a whole bunch of corrupt antagonist Judges.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 8:13 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
The recent Dredd movie featured a whole bunch of corrupt antagonist Judges.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 8:13 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
In case anyone is wondering this picture of Amanda Waller shutting down Batman is why the Ostrander run is amazing.
posted by kittensofthenight at 8:20 PM on July 13, 2015 [7 favorites]
posted by kittensofthenight at 8:20 PM on July 13, 2015 [7 favorites]
Whir, Ostrander's run is the Suicide Squad run. He created the concept in the 1980s (an earlier team with the same name is otherwise unrelated) and he stuck with it until the series ended. Since then there's only been brief miniseries helmed by Ostrander (worth reading) and the New 52 dreck the movie seems based on.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 8:22 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 8:22 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
After the reaction to this and the BvS trailer I have come to the conclusion that Metafilter is not the target demographic for these movies. I'll try to find a Bergman retrospective or something for you guys.
posted by Justinian at 8:23 PM on July 13, 2015 [10 favorites]
posted by Justinian at 8:23 PM on July 13, 2015 [10 favorites]
I do like Sim's take on the New 52 Harley Quinn costume from the article skycrashesdown linked above:
posted by whir at 8:27 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
When Harley reinvents herself for the Joker, she dresses herself in a way that’s explicitly designed to be for him, and that fits with the way he presents himself. That classic Bruce Timm costume is great, and part of that is because those vivid, blocked colors look like they fit next to Timm’s Joker. One clearly follows from the other. If, however, Harley was reinventing herself to fit in with a version of the Joker who cuts his own face off and wanders around for a year with no face on and then ties his face skin to his head with a pair of belts, then she’s probably going to end up with something a hell of a lot dumber, which she did. I hate to admit it because neither one of those things is actually very good, but you have to admit they’re equally stupid. It might not look good, but it highlights the obsession, and that’s the key part.Thanks Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish, I hadn't realized it was one of those books mostly done by one creator.
posted by whir at 8:27 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
Eh, I'm willing to give it more of a chance than that.
(In part because its NOT all "Look! Superhero movies are totes like Bergman!")
posted by Artw at 8:27 PM on July 13, 2015
(In part because its NOT all "Look! Superhero movies are totes like Bergman!")
posted by Artw at 8:27 PM on July 13, 2015
After the reaction to this and the BvS trailer I have come to the conclusion that Metafilter is not the target demographic for these movies. I'll try to find a Bergman retrospective or something for you guys.
The ecstactic reaction to every Marvel movie would seem to contradict that. Perhaps, and I'm going out on a limb here, the terrible track record of DC and the crappiness indicated by the trailer is the problem?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 8:28 PM on July 13, 2015 [11 favorites]
The ecstactic reaction to every Marvel movie would seem to contradict that. Perhaps, and I'm going out on a limb here, the terrible track record of DC and the crappiness indicated by the trailer is the problem?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 8:28 PM on July 13, 2015 [11 favorites]
I've heard that the more recent Nu52 take is kind of sort of okay, but I never checked it out in person. The original Ostrander run is ridiculously hard to get hold of for no good reason - I'm hoping this movie spawns a couple of nice fat collections.
posted by Artw at 8:30 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by Artw at 8:30 PM on July 13, 2015
the terrible track record of DC
Is DC's record really that much worse than Marvel's? Marvel was on a hot streak from Iron Man through, I dunno, Winter Soldier but the stuff both before and after that period has been really rocky.
Except the awesome Daredevil show about which I will tolerate no dissent.
posted by Justinian at 8:35 PM on July 13, 2015
Is DC's record really that much worse than Marvel's? Marvel was on a hot streak from Iron Man through, I dunno, Winter Soldier but the stuff both before and after that period has been really rocky.
Except the awesome Daredevil show about which I will tolerate no dissent.
posted by Justinian at 8:35 PM on July 13, 2015
I have zero familiarity with the Suicide Squad from the comics, and I'm far more interested in this film than I am in BvS.
posted by scaryblackdeath at 8:44 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by scaryblackdeath at 8:44 PM on July 13, 2015
Costumes are a little samey, 'cept for Harley's. I'd like to see King Shark, with no exposition whatsoever about his sharkness.
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 8:46 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 8:46 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
The original Ostrander run is ridiculously hard to get hold of for no good reason - I'm hoping this movie spawns a couple of nice fat collections.
I know at least one place you can get it online, if you're willing to hoist the Jolly Roger. But yes, if it's as good as I hear, I'll probably be wanting a nice hardback collection myself.
posted by rifflesby at 8:49 PM on July 13, 2015
I know at least one place you can get it online, if you're willing to hoist the Jolly Roger. But yes, if it's as good as I hear, I'll probably be wanting a nice hardback collection myself.
posted by rifflesby at 8:49 PM on July 13, 2015
Pretty quick getting this trailer out - a few weeks ago they were still filming in Toronto (at 2:03 they're walking through Yonge/Dundas Square in front of the Eaton Centre which has barely been digitally camouflaged).
The trailer also has the unmistakable tiles of Lower Bay station, a subway platform that was open to the public for all of six months in 1966 but has gone on to a second life as That Subway Station you see pretty much whenever there is a scene in the subway in New York/Gotham/Beijing/wherever the Total Recall remake took place.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 8:54 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
The trailer also has the unmistakable tiles of Lower Bay station, a subway platform that was open to the public for all of six months in 1966 but has gone on to a second life as That Subway Station you see pretty much whenever there is a scene in the subway in New York/Gotham/Beijing/wherever the Total Recall remake took place.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 8:54 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
The Ostrander run someone mentioned upthread?
That would be my personal recommendation, it's really great comics. Available in trades, too, which are way cheaper. Start here for a tenner and see how you feel!
Edit: Uhh, whoops, looks like it's temporarily out of print. But I'm sure a comic store somewhere will have it on their shelves! Perhaps even the library!
posted by turbid dahlia at 8:55 PM on July 13, 2015
That would be my personal recommendation, it's really great comics. Available in trades, too, which are way cheaper. Start here for a tenner and see how you feel!
Edit: Uhh, whoops, looks like it's temporarily out of print. But I'm sure a comic store somewhere will have it on their shelves! Perhaps even the library!
posted by turbid dahlia at 8:55 PM on July 13, 2015
Marvel was on a hot streak from Iron Man through, I dunno, Winter Soldier but the stuff both before and after that period has been really rocky.
There have only been two Marvel movies since Winter Soldier, and one of them was Guardians of the Galaxy, which is a part of Marvel's hot streak if any movie is. The rocky period just consists of Age of Ultron.
posted by painquale at 8:56 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
There have only been two Marvel movies since Winter Soldier, and one of them was Guardians of the Galaxy, which is a part of Marvel's hot streak if any movie is. The rocky period just consists of Age of Ultron.
posted by painquale at 8:56 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
(Oops, forgot about Ant-Man. Still, it's a short rocky period.)
posted by painquale at 8:58 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by painquale at 8:58 PM on July 13, 2015
The rocky period just consists of Age of Ultron.
And in the TV world, Agents of SHIELD, which was very patchy. But balanced by the awesome Agent Carter.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:08 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
And in the TV world, Agents of SHIELD, which was very patchy. But balanced by the awesome Agent Carter.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:08 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
Also what period before? Iron Man was the first movie Marvel did under their own aegis. Spider-Man was all Sony and X-Men is all Fox. Marvel didn't control those and didn't have the kind of say they do in the MCU run. That's why working out a deal to get Spider-Man in future Avengers movies was news. They haven't had the movie rights to him in a long, long time.
posted by sparkletone at 9:09 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by sparkletone at 9:09 PM on July 13, 2015
There ain't been a good superhero movie since the Burton/Keaton Batmans but god help us they will be raining down on us in Fun and Grimdark flavors like Tetris blocks from now until the world dies
posted by prize bull octorok at 9:09 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by prize bull octorok at 9:09 PM on July 13, 2015 [4 favorites]
Marvel didn't control those and didn't have the kind of say they do in the MCU run.
This is a good point - of the many, many, many movie failures based on DC comics, how many can we attribute to DC itself and not a studio?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:14 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
This is a good point - of the many, many, many movie failures based on DC comics, how many can we attribute to DC itself and not a studio?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:14 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
Ant-Man hasn't even come out yet...seeing as how the screenplay is credited to Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish (bummer about Edgar bailing on directing) I think it deserves a chance.
posted by crashlanding at 9:18 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by crashlanding at 9:18 PM on July 13, 2015
Gail Simone herself predicted Ant-Man will be a hit.
I still have zero interest, but even so, I won't be shocked if it turns out to be a good film. It's just clearly not the one I wanted.
#JanetVanCrime NO I WON'T LET IT GO.
posted by scaryblackdeath at 9:21 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
I still have zero interest, but even so, I won't be shocked if it turns out to be a good film. It's just clearly not the one I wanted.
#JanetVanCrime NO I WON'T LET IT GO.
posted by scaryblackdeath at 9:21 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
WB presents: Man with gun, man with gun, moss lady, bad Japanese stereotype lady, main man with gun, Harley Quin by Hot Topic, Will Smith with gun, halloween costume The Thing, and Tattooed Hotline Miami.
posted by codacorolla at 9:36 PM on July 13, 2015 [11 favorites]
posted by codacorolla at 9:36 PM on July 13, 2015 [11 favorites]
Ant-Man hasn't even come out yet...
Well, not in America. Here in Switzerland, it's playing right down the street from me.
Reviews have been pretty mixed.
posted by painquale at 9:37 PM on July 13, 2015
Well, not in America. Here in Switzerland, it's playing right down the street from me.
Reviews have been pretty mixed.
posted by painquale at 9:37 PM on July 13, 2015
Are cops ever the bad guys in comicbook superhero movies? Serious question.
The recent Dredd movie featured a whole bunch of corrupt antagonist Judges.
The police are no one's friend in Winter Soldier
posted by The Whelk at 9:37 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
DC Should try making comics out of GMO's Doom Patrol or Animal Man. Or Moore's Swamp Thing. Or the Invisibles. You know, something that's actually halfway interesting.
posted by codacorolla at 9:40 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by codacorolla at 9:40 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
The source material really doesn't lack for interest here.
posted by Artw at 9:45 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by Artw at 9:45 PM on July 13, 2015
Except the awesome Daredevil show about which I will tolerate no dissent.
You're talking about the six episodes Netflix released, right? Those six episodes are great. I hope there's another season that satisfyingly completes those six episodes.
posted by Bistle at 9:53 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
You're talking about the six episodes Netflix released, right? Those six episodes are great. I hope there's another season that satisfyingly completes those six episodes.
posted by Bistle at 9:53 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
The shot at 1:43 makes this look like DC's version of The Warriors. Which I would watch.
posted by knuckle tattoos at 10:15 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by knuckle tattoos at 10:15 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
Are cops ever the bad guys in comicbook superhero movies? Serious question.
Not thinking of movies specifically, but Daredevil is part of the MCU and that show's just filthy with dirty cops.
Also depending on how you look at it, the cops aren't necessarily bad in the X-Men films but they certainly aren't friendly to the protagonists, either.
posted by scaryblackdeath at 10:26 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
Not thinking of movies specifically, but Daredevil is part of the MCU and that show's just filthy with dirty cops.
Also depending on how you look at it, the cops aren't necessarily bad in the X-Men films but they certainly aren't friendly to the protagonists, either.
posted by scaryblackdeath at 10:26 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
In fairness it's only a blip in a trailer, but does anyone else worry that Leto's Joker is just Johnny Depp's Willy Wonka if he was a lot meaner?
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 10:39 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 10:39 PM on July 13, 2015 [3 favorites]
The Gotham PD is almost always heavily corrupt.
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 10:46 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 10:46 PM on July 13, 2015 [2 favorites]
I'm far more interested in this film than I am in BvS.
I would watch BvSvBtVS. That said, superhero films, like big budget video games, have gotten so codified that I would watch almost any side story or alternative plotline rather than what is shown on screen.
Like:
* Post Man-Of-Steel Congress disaster planning, management and risk-mitigation for future super-incidents
* Hawkeye's children on the farm deal with bullies at school when they make claims their dad is a superhero. Iron Man shows up one day to smart-ass the bullies down a peg.
* Odin deals with a difficult policy issue and subsequent political intrigue involving a Petyr Baelish / Frank Underwood esque court powergrab mostly involving mead taxation in Asgaard
* Stark Industries tech support staff deal with ongoing complaints from SHIELD operatives after an experimental StarkOS update is found to be riddled with backdoors and viruses.
posted by Jon Mitchell at 11:01 PM on July 13, 2015 [12 favorites]
I would watch BvSvBtVS. That said, superhero films, like big budget video games, have gotten so codified that I would watch almost any side story or alternative plotline rather than what is shown on screen.
Like:
* Post Man-Of-Steel Congress disaster planning, management and risk-mitigation for future super-incidents
* Hawkeye's children on the farm deal with bullies at school when they make claims their dad is a superhero. Iron Man shows up one day to smart-ass the bullies down a peg.
* Odin deals with a difficult policy issue and subsequent political intrigue involving a Petyr Baelish / Frank Underwood esque court powergrab mostly involving mead taxation in Asgaard
* Stark Industries tech support staff deal with ongoing complaints from SHIELD operatives after an experimental StarkOS update is found to be riddled with backdoors and viruses.
posted by Jon Mitchell at 11:01 PM on July 13, 2015 [12 favorites]
I still think there's a huge missed opportunity to connect the devastation to midtown caused in The Avengers to Stark Industries overreach in rebuilding and fucking it up and having "Hell's Kitchen" ala Daredevil just being wherever they decided to house the refugees in what where supposed to be temporary housing in like Central NJ.
posted by The Whelk at 11:15 PM on July 13, 2015
posted by The Whelk at 11:15 PM on July 13, 2015
Also Darcy's popular tumblr of course
posted by The Whelk at 11:16 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by The Whelk at 11:16 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]
Not to play If I Was In Charge Of DC Movies but since in the post Man Of Steel Movie Universe the Joker doesn't exist? and it's Superman coming out that brings all these guys out of the shadows where they've been living for years, I'd totally use a Suicide Squad movie to backdoor a Harley and Joker movie -- they don't need origin stories! They're just this crazy ass criminal and his cohort/moll, being hired to do jobs but also planning to get out and go big. Return the Joker to his gangster roots and use all the best BTAS stuff for Harley, they rob a charity gem actual set to the Rubette's Sugar Baby Love and further arcs are how Joker's obsession with killing Batman are driving them apart and you could introduce all the other characters through them. Like use that dynamic as a framework.
Just start in the middle and you can go back to Mad Love if you need back-story, trailer starts with a long slow shot of a man walking up to a prison cell. In the Cell a woman looks forlorn, he reaches the bars of the cell, we pan up to see his ghoulish clown face, the woman turns and reacts in wide-eyed shock and then blurts out
"PUDDIN!"
C'mon you'd see that twice.
posted by The Whelk at 11:29 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
Just start in the middle and you can go back to Mad Love if you need back-story, trailer starts with a long slow shot of a man walking up to a prison cell. In the Cell a woman looks forlorn, he reaches the bars of the cell, we pan up to see his ghoulish clown face, the woman turns and reacts in wide-eyed shock and then blurts out
"PUDDIN!"
C'mon you'd see that twice.
posted by The Whelk at 11:29 PM on July 13, 2015 [5 favorites]
Whir, Ostrander's run is the Suicide Squad run. He created the concept in the 1980s (an earlier team with the same name is otherwise unrelated) and he stuck with it until the series ended.
Ostrander and the late, lamented Kim Yale, who was co-writing the series for at least the second half.
Together they also wrote the spinoff Deadshot miniseries which showcased why Floyd Lawton was so fucked up that he went up against Batman in the first place. Not to mention the Manhunter series, the first one, which starred an old JLA villain turned hero turned villain who got a second chance through the Suicide Squad programme and was now a bounty hunter. That was much better than it should've been, even with the kiss of death of Grant Miehn on art for the later part of the series.
All of those should be easy to score as back issues.
posted by MartinWisse at 12:59 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Ostrander and the late, lamented Kim Yale, who was co-writing the series for at least the second half.
Together they also wrote the spinoff Deadshot miniseries which showcased why Floyd Lawton was so fucked up that he went up against Batman in the first place. Not to mention the Manhunter series, the first one, which starred an old JLA villain turned hero turned villain who got a second chance through the Suicide Squad programme and was now a bounty hunter. That was much better than it should've been, even with the kiss of death of Grant Miehn on art for the later part of the series.
All of those should be easy to score as back issues.
posted by MartinWisse at 12:59 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Casting Will Smith as Deadshot is sort of like casting Jack McBrayer as Eeyore.
posted by kewb at 1:34 AM on July 14, 2015 [7 favorites]
posted by kewb at 1:34 AM on July 14, 2015 [7 favorites]
this movie has even more action heros then batman with superman
posted by threeants at 1:48 AM on July 14, 2015
posted by threeants at 1:48 AM on July 14, 2015
pretty awkward that there are two different super heroe movies this year, lol
can anybody say armageddon / deep impact
posted by threeants at 1:51 AM on July 14, 2015 [5 favorites]
can anybody say armageddon / deep impact
posted by threeants at 1:51 AM on July 14, 2015 [5 favorites]
It saddens me that DC finally got Amanda Waller so right and then managed to drop the ball so very hard with Harley and the Joker.
CCH Pounder in the McDuffieverse DCAU was Waller done well, IMHO. In general, I wish the Warner Brothers universe was more like the DCAU, which managed to communicate high stakes without the endless ramping and Instagram filters.
posted by running order squabble fest at 2:44 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
CCH Pounder in the McDuffieverse DCAU was Waller done well, IMHO. In general, I wish the Warner Brothers universe was more like the DCAU, which managed to communicate high stakes without the endless ramping and Instagram filters.
posted by running order squabble fest at 2:44 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Leto's Joker is just mental. Shepherd guesses that because Heath Ledger did such an incredible untouchable job in making the Joker his own, the best anyone can do is just different flavours of psychotic.
posted by Kitteh at 3:32 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Kitteh at 3:32 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I know nothing of this comic franchise, but that was a good trailer. I got the premise, the characters, shots of action, and the surprise reveal at the end. And great music--who did the score? Might check this out.
And yes, DC takes their comics too seriously, but whatever. It's not like The Avengers movies are all that great. Or even good.
posted by zardoz at 3:34 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
And yes, DC takes their comics too seriously, but whatever. It's not like The Avengers movies are all that great. Or even good.
posted by zardoz at 3:34 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
The rocky period just consists of Age of Ultron.
Hate to bring it back to this, but Thor: The Dark World was terrible.
Anyhow, add me to the list of people who will watch this, but, I'm far from convinced and don't think I've liked a single one of the DC movies so far. I watch the Nolan Batman movies but, there's so much wrong with them, Batman not being a great detective in them being foremost.
As for Man of Steel... So much incredibly stupid, including David Goyer not understanding evolution. Or science ("it's made from something not even on the periodic table so it must be alien"). Or people.
Sigh, I really hate David Goyer.
posted by opsin at 4:04 AM on July 14, 2015
Hate to bring it back to this, but Thor: The Dark World was terrible.
Anyhow, add me to the list of people who will watch this, but, I'm far from convinced and don't think I've liked a single one of the DC movies so far. I watch the Nolan Batman movies but, there's so much wrong with them, Batman not being a great detective in them being foremost.
As for Man of Steel... So much incredibly stupid, including David Goyer not understanding evolution. Or science ("it's made from something not even on the periodic table so it must be alien"). Or people.
Sigh, I really hate David Goyer.
posted by opsin at 4:04 AM on July 14, 2015
God dammit, can they just pull a square with the FF7 redux and finally give us a batman beyond movie instead of this fartpump?
This looks like a hulu-funded direct to VOD sequel of suckerpunch.
I realize that's the harshest thing said here so far, but seriously, i agree with the generation defining film for jugallos comment.
posted by emptythought at 4:37 AM on July 14, 2015
This looks like a hulu-funded direct to VOD sequel of suckerpunch.
I realize that's the harshest thing said here so far, but seriously, i agree with the generation defining film for jugallos comment.
posted by emptythought at 4:37 AM on July 14, 2015
Thor 2 was terrible with the occasional Hiddleston-shaped bright patch, Cap 2 was worse (yeah, I know, you're all wrong) but on balance the Marvel movies have at least been enjoyable. DC's just seem exhausting.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 4:49 AM on July 14, 2015
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 4:49 AM on July 14, 2015
I barely even remember Loki showing up, only the poor attempts at humourous Scooby Gang stuff.
I enjoyed all the stuff in Cap 2 that didn't involve the Winter Soldier, when he revealed his face I burst out laughing having no memory of the character from the first one and wondering just what this moody looking kid was doing there.
The whole movie was worth it though for the references made in the season six Community paintball ep, namely the invention of an elevator on campus for the Dean to use.
posted by opsin at 5:03 AM on July 14, 2015
I enjoyed all the stuff in Cap 2 that didn't involve the Winter Soldier, when he revealed his face I burst out laughing having no memory of the character from the first one and wondering just what this moody looking kid was doing there.
The whole movie was worth it though for the references made in the season six Community paintball ep, namely the invention of an elevator on campus for the Dean to use.
posted by opsin at 5:03 AM on July 14, 2015
Why is The Joker in any squad? He doesn't seem like a joiner.
posted by Splunge at 5:12 AM on July 14, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by Splunge at 5:12 AM on July 14, 2015 [4 favorites]
> I would watch almost any side story or alternative plotline rather than what is shown on screen.
* Minions-esque spinoff of IronMan, about Stark Industries field support staff.
* A day in the life of a geologist prospecting for exotic ores for Captain America's shield /Cyclops' shades /whatever the shit Lex Luthor needs at the time.
* User testing for the custom OS GUIs developed for Superheros' and Supervillains' command and control systems.
* Batman's lawyer.
posted by ardgedee at 5:18 AM on July 14, 2015
* Minions-esque spinoff of IronMan, about Stark Industries field support staff.
* A day in the life of a geologist prospecting for exotic ores for Captain America's shield /Cyclops' shades /whatever the shit Lex Luthor needs at the time.
* User testing for the custom OS GUIs developed for Superheros' and Supervillains' command and control systems.
* Batman's lawyer.
posted by ardgedee at 5:18 AM on July 14, 2015
If it gets him out of prison, he'd join Batman.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:18 AM on July 14, 2015
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:18 AM on July 14, 2015
Sigh, I really hate David Goyer.
*cough* First Blade movie *cough*
posted by alby at 5:19 AM on July 14, 2015 [3 favorites]
*cough* First Blade movie *cough*
posted by alby at 5:19 AM on July 14, 2015 [3 favorites]
I'd also like to point out that ever since seeing Harsh Times, I don't trust David Ayer as a film maker one bit. I expect everything he does to have some amount of unnecessary brutality.
*cough* First Blade movie *cough*
Both the Blade sequels outweigh any good he should be credited with for the first one's successes. And it didn't hold up as well as I wanted (or expected) it to when I rewatched it the other week.
posted by opsin at 5:24 AM on July 14, 2015
*cough* First Blade movie *cough*
Both the Blade sequels outweigh any good he should be credited with for the first one's successes. And it didn't hold up as well as I wanted (or expected) it to when I rewatched it the other week.
posted by opsin at 5:24 AM on July 14, 2015
And yes, what do they say about the crazy ones? That was incredibly awkward to leave it hanging.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:29 AM on July 14, 2015
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:29 AM on July 14, 2015
Oh my god I cannot get over everyone's tacit agreement that liking Bergman is a bad thing.
posted by shakespeherian at 5:43 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by shakespeherian at 5:43 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'm still a bit baffled by the idea of having an "all the villains team up!" movie without establishing the characters as villains first. I feel like it kind of takes the teeth out of the premise.
Didn't you hear the Oscar-worthy exposition in the trailer?
"But these are bad guys."
posted by schmod at 6:07 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Didn't you hear the Oscar-worthy exposition in the trailer?
"But these are bad guys."
posted by schmod at 6:07 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
And yes, what do they say about the crazy ones? That was incredibly awkward to leave it hanging.
They say they deserve compassion and help finding the treatment regime that works for them while at the same time should not be stigmatized, presumably.
posted by Artw at 6:13 AM on July 14, 2015 [5 favorites]
They say they deserve compassion and help finding the treatment regime that works for them while at the same time should not be stigmatized, presumably.
posted by Artw at 6:13 AM on July 14, 2015 [5 favorites]
I would watch almost any side story or alternative plotline rather than what is shown on screen.
The last MCU movie can be about "Damage Control."
posted by drezdn at 6:16 AM on July 14, 2015 [4 favorites]
The last MCU movie can be about "Damage Control."
posted by drezdn at 6:16 AM on July 14, 2015 [4 favorites]
> "Oh my god I cannot get over everyone's tacit agreement that liking Bergman is a bad thing."
Well, Bergman's superhero movies did go all grimdark all the time in the 60's. It used to be that you could go to a Bergman flick and get something like "Smiles of a Summer Nightwing" or "Wildfire Strawberries", and even "The Seventh Superman" was surprisingly not that much of a downer given the subject matter. But once dark 'n depressing got all trendy? It was all "Through a Flash Darkly" and "Hour of the Wolverine" and "Winter Soldier Light" and ugh HEY HOW ABOUT A JOKE INGMAR?
(Not to mention the ridiculous sexed up costumes he started putting Liv Ullmann in.)
posted by kyrademon at 6:19 AM on July 14, 2015 [11 favorites]
Well, Bergman's superhero movies did go all grimdark all the time in the 60's. It used to be that you could go to a Bergman flick and get something like "Smiles of a Summer Nightwing" or "Wildfire Strawberries", and even "The Seventh Superman" was surprisingly not that much of a downer given the subject matter. But once dark 'n depressing got all trendy? It was all "Through a Flash Darkly" and "Hour of the Wolverine" and "Winter Soldier Light" and ugh HEY HOW ABOUT A JOKE INGMAR?
(Not to mention the ridiculous sexed up costumes he started putting Liv Ullmann in.)
posted by kyrademon at 6:19 AM on July 14, 2015 [11 favorites]
And yes, what do they say about the crazy ones?
Depending on the direction they're going with this movie:
a) "They're the only ones that see the real world."
b) "They all fuck."
Really, it could be either based on that trailer.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 6:20 AM on July 14, 2015 [3 favorites]
Depending on the direction they're going with this movie:
a) "They're the only ones that see the real world."
b) "They all fuck."
Really, it could be either based on that trailer.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 6:20 AM on July 14, 2015 [3 favorites]
And yes, what do they say about the crazy ones?
I dearly hope i'm wrong in assuming this was a reference to that oh-so-charming phrase 'Don't stick your dick in crazy'.
posted by pseudonymph at 6:26 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I dearly hope i'm wrong in assuming this was a reference to that oh-so-charming phrase 'Don't stick your dick in crazy'.
posted by pseudonymph at 6:26 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'm still a bit baffled by the idea of having an "all the villains team up!" movie without establishing the characters as villains first. I feel like it kind of takes the teeth out of the premise.
Presumably we'll see some of the bad thing character-establishing moments first. Or have a flashback at a relevant plot point.
posted by leotrotsky at 6:27 AM on July 14, 2015
Presumably we'll see some of the bad thing character-establishing moments first. Or have a flashback at a relevant plot point.
posted by leotrotsky at 6:27 AM on July 14, 2015
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 9:20 AM on July 14 [1 favorite +] [!]
Every time I see your username I think it's my post and that I'm having a stroke.
posted by leotrotsky at 6:28 AM on July 14, 2015 [4 favorites]
Every time I see your username I think it's my post and that I'm having a stroke.
posted by leotrotsky at 6:28 AM on July 14, 2015 [4 favorites]
Well anyway, there's a new trailer for the Fantastic Four movie.
posted by Artw at 6:29 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Artw at 6:29 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
Presumably we'll see some of the bad thing character-establishing moments first. Or have a flashback at a relevant plot point.
Maybe the opening credit sequence can be a montage of all the principals getting the shit beaten out of them by Ben Affleck.
posted by Elementary Penguin at 6:37 AM on July 14, 2015
Maybe the opening credit sequence can be a montage of all the principals getting the shit beaten out of them by Ben Affleck.
posted by Elementary Penguin at 6:37 AM on July 14, 2015
they don't need origin stories! They're just this crazy ass criminal and his cohort/moll, being hired to do jobs but also planning to get out and go big.
It's about time for a Natural Born Killers remake. Now with more puddin'.
I have come to the conclusion that Metafilter is not the target demographic for these movies. I'll try to find a Bergman retrospective or something for you guys.
Oh don't worry about me, I'll be fine. There's an Agnès Varda series at my local later this summer.
posted by octobersurprise at 6:57 AM on July 14, 2015
It's about time for a Natural Born Killers remake. Now with more puddin'.
I have come to the conclusion that Metafilter is not the target demographic for these movies. I'll try to find a Bergman retrospective or something for you guys.
Oh don't worry about me, I'll be fine. There's an Agnès Varda series at my local later this summer.
posted by octobersurprise at 6:57 AM on July 14, 2015
Why is The Joker in any squad? He doesn't seem like a joiner.It doesn't look like he's part of the squad. He'll be the "bad" bad guy running around causing problems for the "good" bad guys and Harley will have to decide which kind of bad guy she wants to be.
posted by cnelson at 7:14 AM on July 14, 2015 [6 favorites]
octobersurprise: "they don't need origin stories! They're just this crazy ass criminal and his cohort/moll, being hired to do jobs but also planning to get out and go big.
It's about time for a Natural Born Killers remake. Now with more puddin'.
I have come to the conclusion that Metafilter is not the target demographic for these movies. I'll try to find a Bergman retrospective or something for you guys.
Oh don't worry about me, I'll be fine. There's an Agnès Varda series at my local later this summer."
Bite your tongue! They might hear you. Perfection needs no remake. Now a sequel with Harrelson and Lewis, done by Tarantino and Stone, that I could go for.
posted by Splunge at 7:20 AM on July 14, 2015
Are cops ever the bad guys in comicbook superhero movies? Serious question.
That was the premise of Batman Begins: the Gotham police and courts and government were so hopelessly corrupt and controlled by the Mob that the citizens had no one to turn to for help until Batman arrived to clean things up. Gordon was supposed to be one of the only good ones, which is why Batman works with him.
posted by Sangermaine at 7:47 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
That was the premise of Batman Begins: the Gotham police and courts and government were so hopelessly corrupt and controlled by the Mob that the citizens had no one to turn to for help until Batman arrived to clean things up. Gordon was supposed to be one of the only good ones, which is why Batman works with him.
posted by Sangermaine at 7:47 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
This is a good point - of the many, many, many movie failures based on DC comics, how many can we attribute to DC itself and not a studio?
His thoughts were red thoughts
The problem is that DC is a studio, or rather owned by entities that own studios, since it was brought into the Warner fold in 1969. DC has had a studio behind it producing its media for decades in a way Marvel didn't until very recently.
posted by Sangermaine at 7:55 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
His thoughts were red thoughts
The problem is that DC is a studio, or rather owned by entities that own studios, since it was brought into the Warner fold in 1969. DC has had a studio behind it producing its media for decades in a way Marvel didn't until very recently.
posted by Sangermaine at 7:55 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
This trailer looks like some movie bigwig said: "I want Guardians of the Galaxy, but instead of outer space and lasers, just immerse some team of charmless assholes in a lot of damp trash and water damage."
posted by picea at 8:02 AM on July 14, 2015 [10 favorites]
posted by picea at 8:02 AM on July 14, 2015 [10 favorites]
Cap 2 was worse (yeah, I know, you're all wrong)
I'm going to have to agree with you there, in terms of Winter Soldier being very overrated. As a popcorn thriller it was mildly entertaining and would be even better in a world where the Bourne films didn't already tread similar ground, and tread it better. The action scenes were good, though these days that's basically expected. Also, for a film about a Captain America and with him facing off against a corrupted federal agency I felt the patriotism in the movie to be rather muted and bloodless, lacking barely any iconography. I'm not saying it should be jingoist, it just seems all very bureaucratic and grey. Finally, they totally missed out on doing a Watchmen-intro-esque montage of just why the Winter Soldier is so badass- where's the footage of him doing the government's black ops dirty work? Was he on the grassy knoll?
posted by Apocryphon at 8:12 AM on July 14, 2015
I'm going to have to agree with you there, in terms of Winter Soldier being very overrated. As a popcorn thriller it was mildly entertaining and would be even better in a world where the Bourne films didn't already tread similar ground, and tread it better. The action scenes were good, though these days that's basically expected. Also, for a film about a Captain America and with him facing off against a corrupted federal agency I felt the patriotism in the movie to be rather muted and bloodless, lacking barely any iconography. I'm not saying it should be jingoist, it just seems all very bureaucratic and grey. Finally, they totally missed out on doing a Watchmen-intro-esque montage of just why the Winter Soldier is so badass- where's the footage of him doing the government's black ops dirty work? Was he on the grassy knoll?
posted by Apocryphon at 8:12 AM on July 14, 2015
Looking at that trailer makes me think again what a blow Ledger's death was. Nothing against Jared Leto, but imagine how the electricity would have spiked in that video if we had just heard Ledger's Joker laugh like he did when he entered the mob meeting (aka The Pencil Trick). Perhaps even the last movie in Nolan's trilogy would have been better.
posted by Ber at 8:17 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Ber at 8:17 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
Kitteh: NO. She used to wear this cute harlequin outfit with a joker's hat with bells and then Nu52 came along and now the creators have dressed her like every other damn female superhero: unrealistically and for dudes to jack it to.
Any outfit as skin-tight as that harlequin outfit was made with the male gaze in mind.
posted by Going To Maine at 8:22 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Any outfit as skin-tight as that harlequin outfit was made with the male gaze in mind.
posted by Going To Maine at 8:22 AM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
The Red Capes are coming! The Red Capes are coming!
What? Oh, wrong DC overwrought too-much-going-on trailer.
I've come to just accept that I'll see pretty much every comic book movie, even though so far only a few have been really good. I seem to be in the minority here but I thought the first two Nolan Batman movies fall into that category.
posted by cell divide at 8:37 AM on July 14, 2015
What? Oh, wrong DC overwrought too-much-going-on trailer.
I've come to just accept that I'll see pretty much every comic book movie, even though so far only a few have been really good. I seem to be in the minority here but I thought the first two Nolan Batman movies fall into that category.
posted by cell divide at 8:37 AM on July 14, 2015
NO. She used to wear this cute harlequin outfit with a joker's hat with bells and then Nu52 came along and now the creators have dressed her like every other damn female superhero: unrealistically and for dudes to jack it to.
It's not great, but I'll take how she's dressed in what we've seen of this movie over how she was dressed in Arkham Asylum. That's one of the best video games of its generation, imo, but... Ugh. That costume design.
posted by sparkletone at 9:02 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
It's not great, but I'll take how she's dressed in what we've seen of this movie over how she was dressed in Arkham Asylum. That's one of the best video games of its generation, imo, but... Ugh. That costume design.
posted by sparkletone at 9:02 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I've come to just accept that I'll see pretty much every comic book movie, even though so far only a few have been really good. I seem to be in the minority here but I thought the first two Nolan Batman movies fall into that category.
I wonder if Christopher Nolan is a directory that folks love right now but whose work is destined to age very poorly. No evidence, just my personal feeling.
posted by Going To Maine at 9:10 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I wonder if Christopher Nolan is a directory that folks love right now but whose work is destined to age very poorly. No evidence, just my personal feeling.
posted by Going To Maine at 9:10 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
Harley will have to decide which kind of bad guy she wants to be.
Last shot of the movie is Harley looking over her shoulder at Deadshot and/or Waller as she walks away with the Joker. Calling it now.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 9:23 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
Last shot of the movie is Harley looking over her shoulder at Deadshot and/or Waller as she walks away with the Joker. Calling it now.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 9:23 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
And yet no mention of the new F4 trailer that dropped...
I'm still a bit baffled by the idea of having an "all the villains team up!" movie without establishing the characters as villains first. I feel like it kind of takes the teeth out of the premise.
Have none of you watched "Dirty Dozen"?
posted by GhostintheMachine at 9:36 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'm still a bit baffled by the idea of having an "all the villains team up!" movie without establishing the characters as villains first. I feel like it kind of takes the teeth out of the premise.
Have none of you watched "Dirty Dozen"?
posted by GhostintheMachine at 9:36 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
Let's be honest, Marvel's put out three great movies (Iron Man, Winter Soldier, GoTG) and a bunch of interchangeable CGI snoozefests
That's kind of provocative to write off as the "honest" assessment. I mean, I loved most of the X-Men movies and even the bad ones were probably better than "okay". I loved The Avengers. The first couple of Spider Mans were pretty good. Iron Man 2 and 3 were entertaining, and the Thor movies were not really as bad as people are saying. Marvel has a pretty good track record in the last 15 years TBH.
I haven't been as big a fan of the Nolan Batman movies and I know I'm in the minority on that. Heath Ledger was great but man, growly voice Bale really did not do it for me. The Superman movies have been kinda meh.
IMO Marvel is winning this movie thing hands down.
But I haven't bought any superhero comics in like 25 years so maybe I'm not the best judge.
I wonder if Christopher Nolan is a directory that folks love right now but whose work is destined to age very poorly.
I liked Memento a lot but there is something about this films that doesn't do it for me. I wish I could narrow it down more than that but I guess taking Film Studies 101 15 years ago doesn't make me an expert.
posted by Hoopo at 9:40 AM on July 14, 2015
That's kind of provocative to write off as the "honest" assessment. I mean, I loved most of the X-Men movies and even the bad ones were probably better than "okay". I loved The Avengers. The first couple of Spider Mans were pretty good. Iron Man 2 and 3 were entertaining, and the Thor movies were not really as bad as people are saying. Marvel has a pretty good track record in the last 15 years TBH.
I haven't been as big a fan of the Nolan Batman movies and I know I'm in the minority on that. Heath Ledger was great but man, growly voice Bale really did not do it for me. The Superman movies have been kinda meh.
IMO Marvel is winning this movie thing hands down.
But I haven't bought any superhero comics in like 25 years so maybe I'm not the best judge.
I wonder if Christopher Nolan is a directory that folks love right now but whose work is destined to age very poorly.
I liked Memento a lot but there is something about this films that doesn't do it for me. I wish I could narrow it down more than that but I guess taking Film Studies 101 15 years ago doesn't make me an expert.
posted by Hoopo at 9:40 AM on July 14, 2015
Hoopo:
As pointed out above, the X-Men and Spider-Man films were produced by different studios (Fox & Sony, respectively), not Marvel, so the "Marvel Movies" really only include the Avengers-extended universe.
posted by Saxon Kane at 9:53 AM on July 14, 2015
As pointed out above, the X-Men and Spider-Man films were produced by different studios (Fox & Sony, respectively), not Marvel, so the "Marvel Movies" really only include the Avengers-extended universe.
posted by Saxon Kane at 9:53 AM on July 14, 2015
If DC were a more clever media conglomerate, they could use the Suicide Squad movie to explore the shittiness of the prison-industrial complex, the use of the death penalty as punishment, or kind of how enemies of the US government are not always so neatly pigeonholed as "villains". Of course, this is probably hoping for too much from a comic book film.
posted by FJT at 10:21 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by FJT at 10:21 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
Suicide Squad: breaking down the trailer
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 10:23 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 10:23 AM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
Is this what superheros movies look like nowadays?!
I have never seen a single superhero movie in my life, but now I'd like to! Which ones should I start with?
posted by growabrain at 11:00 AM on July 14, 2015
I have never seen a single superhero movie in my life, but now I'd like to! Which ones should I start with?
posted by growabrain at 11:00 AM on July 14, 2015
I'd start with the one where the superhero is sad because he had a bad childhood and beating up criminals doesn't heal the little boy inside him who still hurts, but maybe the pretty lady can? Then try the one where the hero is very powerful and he can't relate to people because he is so powerful and having power is a big responsibility cause sometimes there are unintended consequences to the things you do. You can follow that one up with the one where the bad guy hurts the superhero a whole lot and makes you wonder, are there really heroes anyway? Or is everything bad and broken? I'd wrap it up with the one where superhero fights The System which is corrupt and stops him from fighting the bad guy because of money and deals and bureaucracy. If you're still hankering for more superheroics after that one, try the one where superhero hangs out with other superheroes and they crack jokes and there's a rare appearance by lady superhero! Who doesn't do much, but hey she's there, what do you want. They fight the robot aliens and make more jokes and it's all good.
posted by prize bull octorok at 11:07 AM on July 14, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by prize bull octorok at 11:07 AM on July 14, 2015 [6 favorites]
The Dark Knight Rises definitely suffers from being overwrought and overshadowed by its predecessor, and both Inception and Interstellar suffer from Nolan's usual flaws, but I think his films' style won't age poorly. He was ahead of the curve in terms of bring back practical special effects back to the forefront, and the look of the films always have a slightly mythic look to them. His Gotham, like the Inception team's clothes, look kinda '30s-early '60s, timeless. They're not distracted by modern fashion or style, anything marking them as "this movie was made in the late-'00s." So at least the ones that make it to the Criterion Collection will look fine a couple decades from now.
posted by Apocryphon at 11:17 AM on July 14, 2015
posted by Apocryphon at 11:17 AM on July 14, 2015
I wonder if Christopher Nolan is a directory that folks love right now but whose work is destined to age very poorly
I enjoyed the first Batman, am in the minority that hated the second (I hate Killing Joke, too, so it's no surprise that I hated a movie with a characterization based on it) and didn't see the third. Inception was my second Nolan movie and I loved it, and I enjoyed the Prestige, but the charm was starting to wear off, so I passed on Interstellar as well. I think Nolan has too much similarity from project to project for me to really love his overall body of work.
Dragging that back around to DC movies: they've just announced they're doing a Bruce Timm Killing Joke animated film. I think the animated movies are pretty much a test run for the sorts of things they want to do in the live-action movies, and I don't think you could do Killing Joke on the big screen. It sets my continued low expectations for DC live-action movies for the foreseeable future. I can't imagine bothering to see what my favorite gossip blog calls Superhero Face Punch OR Suicide Squad, and when I read comics all the time, I was a big fan of Batman and Wonder Woman, and I liked what Suicide Squad I read. Instead I'll be watching DC's (much more fun for me) TV shows.
posted by immlass at 11:41 AM on July 14, 2015
I enjoyed the first Batman, am in the minority that hated the second (I hate Killing Joke, too, so it's no surprise that I hated a movie with a characterization based on it) and didn't see the third. Inception was my second Nolan movie and I loved it, and I enjoyed the Prestige, but the charm was starting to wear off, so I passed on Interstellar as well. I think Nolan has too much similarity from project to project for me to really love his overall body of work.
Dragging that back around to DC movies: they've just announced they're doing a Bruce Timm Killing Joke animated film. I think the animated movies are pretty much a test run for the sorts of things they want to do in the live-action movies, and I don't think you could do Killing Joke on the big screen. It sets my continued low expectations for DC live-action movies for the foreseeable future. I can't imagine bothering to see what my favorite gossip blog calls Superhero Face Punch OR Suicide Squad, and when I read comics all the time, I was a big fan of Batman and Wonder Woman, and I liked what Suicide Squad I read. Instead I'll be watching DC's (much more fun for me) TV shows.
posted by immlass at 11:41 AM on July 14, 2015
No, no, no! If this was Marvel, they'd spend the next decade meticulously creating mildly witty, CGI-laden, formulaic trilogies for each of the characters, before releasing this one. This is economy in storytelling right here. Bootstrapping a story about a group without spelling out each individual's first.
Hey, now. I dig Marvel, so watch your mouth! That said, I definitely understand where you're coming from. If nothing else it's good for DC to approach things in a different way, and I like that kind of storytelling in general. All other things being equal, "supervillains go straight against their will" is a fine standalone premise.
However, this is a MCU-style shared universe and in the context of that it still seems weird to me to go this route for the third film and use characters we haven't seen being truly evil yet. If nothing else, I'm curious to see how these characters will be handled in future DCCU movies.
posted by brundlefly at 11:54 AM on July 14, 2015
Hey, now. I dig Marvel, so watch your mouth! That said, I definitely understand where you're coming from. If nothing else it's good for DC to approach things in a different way, and I like that kind of storytelling in general. All other things being equal, "supervillains go straight against their will" is a fine standalone premise.
However, this is a MCU-style shared universe and in the context of that it still seems weird to me to go this route for the third film and use characters we haven't seen being truly evil yet. If nothing else, I'm curious to see how these characters will be handled in future DCCU movies.
posted by brundlefly at 11:54 AM on July 14, 2015
I thought Interstellar was TERRIBLE, but yeah, it was very pretty.
posted by Artw at 11:55 AM on July 14, 2015
posted by Artw at 11:55 AM on July 14, 2015
I actually have no idea how DC plans to do a shared universe, even disregarding the shows. I had assumed that Nolanverse Batman is its own thing (and now I'm imagining it coexisting with his other movies), and I was wondering if there could be a separate Snyderverse that y'all can safely write off and quarantine. But now it seems like they're namedropping Superman in this trailer, so maybe Man of Steel is in the same continuity as it?
posted by Apocryphon at 11:59 AM on July 14, 2015
posted by Apocryphon at 11:59 AM on July 14, 2015
What's the song in the trailer? I really like it, it's epic.
posted by gucci mane at 12:02 PM on July 14, 2015
posted by gucci mane at 12:02 PM on July 14, 2015
Yeah, Man of Steel is the foundation of their new DC movie universe. Everything before that (Nolan Batman, Ryan Reynolds Green Lantern, TV stuff) is separate, every movie from there forward is a shared continuity.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 12:08 PM on July 14, 2015
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 12:08 PM on July 14, 2015
Don't forget Jonah Hex, and Constantine (movie AND television)! Also separate.
posted by Elementary Penguin at 12:14 PM on July 14, 2015
posted by Elementary Penguin at 12:14 PM on July 14, 2015
So no Halle Barry Catwoman, then. Got it.
posted by Apocryphon at 12:16 PM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Apocryphon at 12:16 PM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I refuse to not forget Jonah Hex.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 12:31 PM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 12:31 PM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Quite enjoyed Copra, but man, this trailer… The opening Amanda Waller / military dude dialogue is just so, so clunky. I pretty much noped out at the fifty second mark, when we got to the bit about how it was her job to make people do things they didn't want to do. Came back for a bit more because of the positive feedback in the thread but basically noped my way out again when everything kept MOVVVVVIIIINNNNNNNGGGGG SLLLLOOOOWWWWWLLLLYYYYYY and seemed to have been lit by a designer whose budget only covered a wonky flashlight and a zippo.
posted by Going To Maine at 12:32 PM on July 14, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Going To Maine at 12:32 PM on July 14, 2015 [3 favorites]
Yeah, Man of Steel is the foundation of their new DC movie universe. Everything before that (Nolan Batman, Ryan Reynolds Green Lantern, TV stuff) is separate, every movie from there forward is a shared continuity.
Looking forward to the Superfriends and Justice Society of America ensemble movies!
posted by prize bull octorok at 12:35 PM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
Looking forward to the Superfriends and Justice Society of America ensemble movies!
posted by prize bull octorok at 12:35 PM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
A grim dark movie about the Superfriends would be a delight. (At least, as a trailer.)
posted by Going To Maine at 12:49 PM on July 14, 2015
posted by Going To Maine at 12:49 PM on July 14, 2015
A grim dark movie about the Superfriends would be a delight.
I'm picturing something sorta like Meet the Feebles, but with kid-friendly superheroes instead of Muppets.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 12:57 PM on July 14, 2015
I'm picturing something sorta like Meet the Feebles, but with kid-friendly superheroes instead of Muppets.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 12:57 PM on July 14, 2015
I'm not that psyched for this except for Viola Davis, who is a delight.
posted by rmd1023 at 1:48 PM on July 14, 2015
posted by rmd1023 at 1:48 PM on July 14, 2015
Observations.
1. My monitor needs recalibration. No, it ALL HAPPENS AT NIGHT.
I wonder if DC's stuff doesn't get as much traction as Marvel's is that they've bought their ticket on the Grimdark Express and they're not getting off. They're superheroes and all of their costumes have muted colours - man I hate that. I'm not all for the ultrabright comic style, but a little visual oooomph is fun. And because it's comics!
1a. Yep re-watched. There's ONE SCENE where Deadshot's rappelling down the side of a building in daylight. Every other scene is dusk, night, heavy shadows or artificial light. Idiots.
2. Harley. What were the designers thinking? "She's like a jester, right? Red and black? Dip her hair in the colours and chuck some makeup at her face. It'll be too dark to notice anything anyway. Put some diamond tattoos on her 'cause tattoos are EDGY! Well. old people think they're edgy, anyway. And fuck-me heels. So she can snap her ankles like kindling."
3. The Joker has to have tattoos because why? I can't see any reason for him to have tattoos. He'd look stranger without them. I'm sure it's old people thinking tattoos are edgy. If you had people in charge of the movies who had a clue about anything, they'd all be used to seeing tats on their friends and whatever and wouldn't give two shits.
4. Croc could've saved himself some angst if he'd just bought a loofah and moisturiser.
5. Maybe Will Smith needs a second boat.
6. There needs more superhero team-up flicks like The Mystery Men. It was fun, there were character arcs, there was drama, it had Tom Waits. Cool. If anything cool happens in the Suicide Squad, you couldn't even see it! gaaaah but but whhyyyyyy???
posted by Zack_Replica at 2:09 PM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
1. My monitor needs recalibration. No, it ALL HAPPENS AT NIGHT.
I wonder if DC's stuff doesn't get as much traction as Marvel's is that they've bought their ticket on the Grimdark Express and they're not getting off. They're superheroes and all of their costumes have muted colours - man I hate that. I'm not all for the ultrabright comic style, but a little visual oooomph is fun. And because it's comics!
1a. Yep re-watched. There's ONE SCENE where Deadshot's rappelling down the side of a building in daylight. Every other scene is dusk, night, heavy shadows or artificial light. Idiots.
2. Harley. What were the designers thinking? "She's like a jester, right? Red and black? Dip her hair in the colours and chuck some makeup at her face. It'll be too dark to notice anything anyway. Put some diamond tattoos on her 'cause tattoos are EDGY! Well. old people think they're edgy, anyway. And fuck-me heels. So she can snap her ankles like kindling."
3. The Joker has to have tattoos because why? I can't see any reason for him to have tattoos. He'd look stranger without them. I'm sure it's old people thinking tattoos are edgy. If you had people in charge of the movies who had a clue about anything, they'd all be used to seeing tats on their friends and whatever and wouldn't give two shits.
4. Croc could've saved himself some angst if he'd just bought a loofah and moisturiser.
5. Maybe Will Smith needs a second boat.
6. There needs more superhero team-up flicks like The Mystery Men. It was fun, there were character arcs, there was drama, it had Tom Waits. Cool. If anything cool happens in the Suicide Squad, you couldn't even see it! gaaaah but but whhyyyyyy???
posted by Zack_Replica at 2:09 PM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Mystery Men also had its own universe instead of cribbing from existing IP. When was the last original superhero movie- Salt? Hancock? Birdman?
posted by Apocryphon at 2:38 PM on July 14, 2015
posted by Apocryphon at 2:38 PM on July 14, 2015
Mystery Men was based on Flaming Carrot Comics.
I think the last original superhero movie that was released in theaters was probably Chronicle (2012). I'm not sure if Birdman counts.
posted by FJT at 3:04 PM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
I think the last original superhero movie that was released in theaters was probably Chronicle (2012). I'm not sure if Birdman counts.
posted by FJT at 3:04 PM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
When was the last original superhero movie
Kick-ass? Wikipedia says the comic and movie script were developed in parallel from scratch.
posted by GuyZero at 3:06 PM on July 14, 2015
Kick-ass? Wikipedia says the comic and movie script were developed in parallel from scratch.
posted by GuyZero at 3:06 PM on July 14, 2015
What's the song in the trailer? I really like it, it's epic.
It's a cover of I Started a Joke by the Bee Gees, but I don't know who's doing it.
I kind of like this new Joker and Harley deal, so far. Not crazy about the tattoos, but Leto does look genuinely creepy. As great as Heath Ledger was in the role, I was kind of worried we'd be stuck with the Chelsea smile thing for future depictions of the character. I've always liked the goofy crap about him falling in a chemical vat that turned him into a psycho albino with green hair and a rictus grin.
posted by Ursula Hitler at 3:51 PM on July 14, 2015
It's a cover of I Started a Joke by the Bee Gees, but I don't know who's doing it.
I kind of like this new Joker and Harley deal, so far. Not crazy about the tattoos, but Leto does look genuinely creepy. As great as Heath Ledger was in the role, I was kind of worried we'd be stuck with the Chelsea smile thing for future depictions of the character. I've always liked the goofy crap about him falling in a chemical vat that turned him into a psycho albino with green hair and a rictus grin.
posted by Ursula Hitler at 3:51 PM on July 14, 2015
Meanwhile… Marvel Comics Pay Homage to Hip-Hop Albums With Variant Covers
posted by Going To Maine at 7:25 PM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Going To Maine at 7:25 PM on July 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
The Joker has to have tattoos because why? I can't see any reason for him to have tattoos. He'd look stranger without them. I'm sure it's old people thinking tattoos are edgy. If you had people in charge of the movies who had a clue about anything, they'd all be used to seeing tats on their friends and whatever and wouldn't give two shits.
Seriously. This captures it perfectly.
This seems like it was made by people who were barely still cool when the original Matrix came out and are now thoroughly not just older, but like really uncool suburban mom/dad older.
Their idea of what's cool is like a combination of the punk rock they listened to growing up in the 80s combined with like, Queen of the Damned(which my mom, and seemingly everyone my ages mom thinks is the coolest shit ever*). It also has a weird early 2000s/90s like... i don't know, like Tripp pants wearing Johnny the Homicidal Maniac invader-zim-livejournal vibe to it.
I've said before i really wished that there were more movies that felt like that era of film, but not like this.
Look at this and tell me it doesn't seem like it could be from the same movie as that trailer.
This entire movie feels like someones midlife crisis thrashing. Someone who wore a lot of dark guyliner ~15 years ago, and they were probably already like 31 and sort of a creepy dork who wanted to hang out with way younger people when they were doing it.
*To be fair, it is cool, but so is like... Robocop. It's cool in a very dated of-that-era way. It screams late 90s/early 2000s in the same way The Fifth Element does.
posted by emptythought at 11:28 PM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Seriously. This captures it perfectly.
This seems like it was made by people who were barely still cool when the original Matrix came out and are now thoroughly not just older, but like really uncool suburban mom/dad older.
Their idea of what's cool is like a combination of the punk rock they listened to growing up in the 80s combined with like, Queen of the Damned(which my mom, and seemingly everyone my ages mom thinks is the coolest shit ever*). It also has a weird early 2000s/90s like... i don't know, like Tripp pants wearing Johnny the Homicidal Maniac invader-zim-livejournal vibe to it.
I've said before i really wished that there were more movies that felt like that era of film, but not like this.
Look at this and tell me it doesn't seem like it could be from the same movie as that trailer.
This entire movie feels like someones midlife crisis thrashing. Someone who wore a lot of dark guyliner ~15 years ago, and they were probably already like 31 and sort of a creepy dork who wanted to hang out with way younger people when they were doing it.
*To be fair, it is cool, but so is like... Robocop. It's cool in a very dated of-that-era way. It screams late 90s/early 2000s in the same way The Fifth Element does.
posted by emptythought at 11:28 PM on July 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Jeez, Emptythought, that is sure a whole lot of ageist weirdness. I don't know how the heck you get from this super-villain movie to villifying people who grew up listening to punk in the 80s or dudes who had the gall to wear eyeliner at 31. (Horrors!) And maybe your mom and her friends are all swoony about Queen of the Damned for whatever reason, but I can assure you that loving (or even remembering) that movie is hardly universal among aging goth types. You would have scored more points against those pesky olds by citing The Craft. That's the one I always hear about.
The tattoos are presumably supposed to look like the Joker got them in prison. You know, like real prisoners get. (The Joker having tattoos is also something that goes back to the comics.) I'm not crazy about them myself, and they do seem like somebody was trying too hard. The idea of prison tattoos was maybe kind of cool, but the execution isn't as scary as they wanted it to be. But hey, it's a relatively minor thing. They're trying to give the Joker a whole new look and that's getting kind of challenging since we've seen so many variations on the character. They seem to be going for kind of an androgynous rock star/prison chic deal, and that's a big swerve and a potentially interesting combo. I'll be curious to see it.
posted by Ursula Hitler at 12:58 AM on July 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
The tattoos are presumably supposed to look like the Joker got them in prison. You know, like real prisoners get. (The Joker having tattoos is also something that goes back to the comics.) I'm not crazy about them myself, and they do seem like somebody was trying too hard. The idea of prison tattoos was maybe kind of cool, but the execution isn't as scary as they wanted it to be. But hey, it's a relatively minor thing. They're trying to give the Joker a whole new look and that's getting kind of challenging since we've seen so many variations on the character. They seem to be going for kind of an androgynous rock star/prison chic deal, and that's a big swerve and a potentially interesting combo. I'll be curious to see it.
posted by Ursula Hitler at 12:58 AM on July 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
You would have scored more points against those pesky olds by citing The Craft.
Great, now I'm going to spend all day googling Fairuza Balk and sighing wistfully.
posted by mittens at 4:33 AM on July 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
Great, now I'm going to spend all day googling Fairuza Balk and sighing wistfully.
posted by mittens at 4:33 AM on July 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
The Joker having tattoos is also something that goes back to the comics
Yeah, but the comics in question are All-Star Batman And Robin The Boy Wonder.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 5:50 AM on July 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Yeah, but the comics in question are All-Star Batman And Robin The Boy Wonder.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 5:50 AM on July 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
I look at Leto's Joker and all I see is that fool from the Prodigy.
posted by entropicamericana at 8:39 AM on July 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by entropicamericana at 8:39 AM on July 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
Hmm, I wished I hadn't ragged on Ant-Man up above. I just saw it and thought it was a lot of fun. I think it's the only Marvel movie with a strong third act.
posted by painquale at 2:40 PM on July 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by painquale at 2:40 PM on July 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
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posted by leotrotsky at 5:08 PM on July 13, 2015 [1 favorite]