Posts with tag the incredible hulk
Fan Rant: Let's Hear It for the 'Darker' Superhero Movies
Filed under: Action », Drama », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Fandom », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Remakes and Sequels », Fan Rant »
I was recently enjoying a fast-food lunch with my old friend Josh, and we were discussing the film we'd just seen. (A little something called The Dark Knight.) And in the middle of my ramblings I accidentally said something slightly insightful. It went a little something like this: "The thing about superheroes is that, on the outside, what with the costumes and the nifty gizmos and all the punching, they're kids stuff, which is great. But once you scratch the surface just a little bit, you're dealing with acres of subtext that kids can barely comprehend."
And then Josh asked me what my point was. It's this: We finally have some filmmakers who aren't afraid to handle superhero movies for grown-ups. I'd hardly call Hancock a family-type flick, both of the recent Marvel movies (Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk) managed to treat their "older" audiences with respect, last weekend's Hellboy 2 is chock-full of dazzling ideas, and now this: The Dark Knight. Dang. My review will arrive later this week, but I won't be the only one calling it the Godfather 2 of superhero movies. (In a lot of ways it's also a bit like The Empire Strikes Back! Tonally, anyway.) Best of all, the movie is a big meaty DRAMA, and I don't mean "drama" as in "masterpiece theater."
Was 'Hulk' Director Offered New 'Superman' Gig???
Filed under: Action », Deals », RumorMonger », Fandom », DIY/Filmmaking », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Remakes and Sequels »
There was an interview with Incredible Hulk director Louis Leterrier over at AlloCiné (via AICN) in which someone threw out a number of different sequels (Spider-Man, Superman, Indiana Jones), and (I think) asked if he'd be interested in directing any of them. Now, according to someone who wrote in to AICN, Leterrier stopped at Superman and said something like ... "maybe they have already asked me." We here at Cinematical have watched the video in question (you can too over here), and he definitely does look at the camera, smile and say something regarding the Superman sequel. I don't speak French, though, but it appears as if that's the correct translation.So, has Warners already talked to Leterrier about possibly directing the next Superman movie? And is Leterrier the big-name action director Wanted's Mark Millar mentioned when he recently talked up his own Superman project? As AICN points out, Leterrier is currently working on the Clash of the Titans remake for Warners, so it seems reasonable for them to also talk to him about Superman. Is DC trying to steal a Marvel guy? Interesting development ...
What say you? Would Leterrier do a better job than Singer on Superman?
UPDATE: Leterrier contacted AICN and said the following: "What I meant was that I had been told about a possible reinvention of Superman. Not that I was offered the job." Take that as you will ...
Are These the Top Fan-Made Superhero Costumes?
Filed under: Fandom », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Images »
C'mon, fess up. When you were watching Tony Stark construct his first Iron Man outfit in a desert cave, were you thinking: "Gee, I have some spare metal parts in my garage. Maybe I could make me one of those." Following that same impulse, Wired.com recently asked readers to submit their creations and has now posted the results, which you can check out over there.
Obviously, I'm not as knowledgeable about superheroes as some of our other writers and many of you reading this, but as I looked over the collection, my interest turned to incredulity. I mean: "Used Electronics Man"? "Captain Carpetfoam"? "Super David"? "Aquitards" (pictured)? Other than that last picture, Wired.com readers appear to have an aversion to spandex and leotards, which seem to be the building blocks for any good superhero costume
I would guess that our own Geek Beat columnist Elisabeth Rappe could whip up a better superhero costume with one hand tied behind her back. I was much more impressed by the Alamo Drafthouse Iron Man costume contest a couple of months ago. People in Austin evidently have a much greater grasp of their superheroes and/or have much more time on their hands. It's not a question of geography, though, it's a question of passion.
What do you think? Do you like the "winners" picked by Wired.com? Have you seen better fan-made (true) superhero costumes?
POLL: Was 'The Incredible Hulk' a Success?
Filed under: Action », Fandom », Newsstand », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Remakes and Sequels », Polls »
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As it stands right now, this year's The Incredible Hulk will most likely gross slightly more or less than Ang Lee's Hulk worldwide. The latter walked away with roughly $245 million, while the former is currently sitting at $220 million ... though it's still making the international rounds. In an article over at The Hollywood Reporter, they ponder why the new (and improved?) Incredible Hulk was considered a success when the 2003 Hulk wasn't (THR noted it was "widely dismissed as a commercial failure").
Both Marvel and Universal are saying they're happy with the way The Incredible Hulk performed at the box office, though there's been no word on a sequel and chances are we ain't gettin' another one. Critically, the two Hulk films aren't very far apart: Rotten Tomatoes has Ang Lee's Hulk at 61%, while The Incredible Hulk is currently sitting at 68%. Fan-wise, I feel it was fairly well-received because a) folks were still coming off the Iron Man high, and b) expectations for the new Hulk were pretty low. Thus, when the film turned out to be kinda, sorta pretty good, it gave us a reason to cheer ... finally ... for an Incredible Hulk live-action movie.
But now that we've had some time to step away from The Incredible Hulk (at least here in the states), what do you think: Was the film a success? And how do you define success? If they choose not to make a sequel, does that mean the film failed ... even though it took in well over $200 million at the box office? Sound off you green freaks ...
Weekend Box-Office: 'Wall-E' Takes to the Skies
Filed under: New Releases », Box Office »
Notwithstanding the best attempts of some to smear Wall-E as being somehow hypocritical or disdainful of consumers, the little robot gave Pixar the third-best opening weekend in its history, behind The Incredibles and Finding Nemo (and roughly tied with Monsters, Inc.). Its $62.5 million take was on par with expectations, though the lack of the usual family film Saturday and Sunday bump suggests that Wall-E attracted an impressive number of kidless Friday night moviegoers. And that bodes well for the weeks to come: the movie is quite sophisticated and not all that toddler-friendly, so word-of-mouth among adults will be key.Given Wall-E's apparent cross-demographic appeal, one might have expected Wanted to struggle a bit as the weekend's "adult counterprogramming," but nothing doing: at $51.1 million and a strong second place, we may have a new franchise on our hands. The two combined to make this the strongest three-day weekend of the summer at the box-office overall; in fact, to find a higher combined top 12 gross, we have to go back to Memorial Day 2007 and the debut of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.
The rest of the chart looks unremarkable. The Love Guru dropped almost 61% to 6th place, prompting the unsurprising conclusion that the Guru Pitka didn't connect with summer audiences. The Incredible Hulk continues to run behind Hulk, ruling out the possibility that it will have the staying power to do appreciably better than the embattled 2004 film. Wall-E gave Kung Fu Panda its first significant hit, dropping it to 4th place. Indiana Jones will break $300 million by the end of Monday, if Sunday's final numbers don't push it past the milestone. And The Happening looks like it will top out around $70 million.
The full numbers after the jump.
Weekend Box-Office: 'Get Smart' Wins; 'Love Guru' Can't Hack It
Filed under: New Releases », Box Office »
Both of last week's new releases dropped like a rock to make room for Warner Bros.' Get Smart, which landed smack in the middle of expectations with a nice $39.2 million bow. As many people guessed, toxic word-of-mouth on The Happening led to a steep drop -- 67% -- and a fifth place, $10 million finish for the Shyamalan thriller. The $50.3 million cume is far from an embarrassment, but the descent is hopefully a signal to the filmmaker that he needs to, if not go back to the drawing board, at least steal a glance at it. Slightly more surprising is the 61% drop for The Incredible Hulk, which finished third with $21.6 million. That's a measurable improvement on the 69.7% hit that Ang Lee's Hulk took in 2003, but the new film is still running behind the old one, and its lack of legs in a summer where big movies (Iron Man, Indiana Jones) have held up admirably might be an indication that the "less arty" reboot didn't solve the problem with the franchise, whatever that may be.
The Hulk That Almost Was -- Aaron Sims' Concept Art
Filed under: Action », New Releases », Universal », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Remakes and Sequels », Images »
Now that most of us have digested our showings of The Incredible Hulk (sans me, because now I can't find anyone to go with), I thought you might like a look at some concept art produced by the talented Aaron Sims. (It is also a rather timely piece, as Sims was one of Stan Winston's proteges, and co-founder of his studio.) Normally, I only give such things a cursory "Oh, cool" glance, but I find these quite fascinating, because one of my biggest complaints about any Hulk movie is how they render him. He just never looks real, which surprises me in a post Gollum and Davy Jones world. I know they have the technology to make him look, well, incredible. But no one ever seems to utilize it. Now, I still haven't seen the film, so you all will have to tell me if he looks better than in the clips and TV spots I have seen.
'Hulk''s Louis Leterrier Lines Up 'Strays'
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Deals »
Strays seems like one of those concepts that sounds very cool on paper but winds up being little more than a depressingly ordinary zombie movie (think Resident Evil). The Hollywood Reporter summary: "a group of young consultants on a business trip to Russia mysteriously wake up in an abandoned and radioactive city and fight to survive the deadly obstacles in between them and safety." The project, written by Michael Ross (the almost-decent Turistas), is described as an "eco action thriller," though who knows what that actually means. It sounds more like a "nuclear apocalypse action thriller." Summit Entertainment, the studio developing Strays, is trying to sign Louis Leterrier to direct the film. Since the Frenchman is a hot commodity after this weekend's The Incredible Hulk opened big -- and since up until now he was, as far as we know, unattached as far as his next project -- this probably means that Summit is serious about getting Strays to the screen. Works for me, even if I'll always know Leterrier as "the guy who was hired to make the Hulk dumber." (Bitter? Me?) As one of the few folks around who enjoyed The Happening at least somewhat, I'm in an eco thriller mood.
Monday Morning Poll: Who's Down for 'Hulk' Sequels?
Filed under: Action », Fandom », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Monday Morning Poll »
First off, I need to apologize because I was supposed to provide our second Incredible Hulk review late last week, but life got in the way and I never produced it for you. I know, I'm a horrible person and I've given myself 27 lashings as punishment, though I'm sure Scott's review of the film helped you decide whether to see it or not. Truth be told, I wasn't that crazy about it -- but I'm also not a huge fan of Bruce Banner or the Hulk as characters. Banner, to me, is too depressing; how do you root for a guy who wants to hide in the corner? Sure, there are other loners like Batman and Spider-Man, but both of those guys have some fun toys to play with (like a car and a web). Banner has the Hulk, who, well, smashes things. Yay!
But anyway, Marvel gave fans a good flick with tons of action, crazy special effects and more than a few geeky nods to the comics and to The Avengers. Following the successful opening weekend of Iron Man, all we talked about was the sequel. Now that The Incredible Hulk seems to have won back more than a few fans, what are your feelings on a sequel? I've heard some say they'd rather Hulk return as a villain in The Avengers film (tentatively due out in 2011), but would you rather the guy get another solo flick too? Where are you at with this character? Do you want a franchise? Can you picture one?
Weekend Box-Office: 'Hulk' Smashes... No, I Can't
Filed under: New Releases », Box Office »
I can't bring myself to type that headline; I'm sorry. First of all, every other movie website has used it already, and it wasn't that clever to begin with. Second, it's not really true: The Incredible Hulk did have a solid $54.5 million first-place finish, but it was The Happening -- which Hulk is supposed to have "smashed" -- that really exceeded expectations, cheerfully sitting in third place with $30.5 million. That's M. Night Shyamalan's third-best opening weekend ever, and the equivalent of the director holding up a sign reading "Not Dead Yet." If the annoyed groans I heard when the credits rolled at my opening night showing are any indication, word-of-mouth won't be good, so I wouldn't expect the film to approach the $100 million mark.The opening for The Incredible Hulk is about right. Ang Lee's "artsy" Hulk opened to $62 million back in 2003, and maybe the "reboot" is to blame for the Hulk-to-Hulk decrease. But by all accounts, this version should be more appealing to the masses, and so should do well in the weeks ahead. In other news, Iron Man should cross the $300 million mark in the next few days, ahead of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
The weekend numbers after the jump.
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