The perils of strip mining

Good afternoon all,

Today I sit in front of the computer, in the depths of the afternoon approaching the twilight days of lunch. I am here to discuss my feelings towards another article I have just read and gone through - ironically which has made it to be the title of this entry. The article is about the relationship between the huge movie conglomerations who market superhero movies and the films themselves, and how the exploitation of such lucrative genre is sucking it dry, metaphorically of course.

The article begins by describing comics, where the inspiration for the superhero comes from. Within its folded, colorful depths lies character, action, romance, and most of all - lots and lots of dosh. The author describes comics as "the currency in Hollywood" which I can honestly believe but not sure how this fits in with the changing representation of the superhero figure. Be patient and it will all become clear. Back in the early 21st century, the relationship began with two giants of the comic book world, whose appearance made all comic book fans wet themselves with excitement - that of "Spiderman (2002)" (not the most recent one, but the one starring Toby McGuire and Kirsten Dunst)

As an early example of the development of the Superhero genre, Spiderman is an infallible film, key to the progress the genre has made over the decade.

In addition to this hugely popular superhero "X-men (2002)" also raised its head to the world, all set for an action packed trilogy. 

X-men is one of those superhero teams that have inspired many superhero team films - Fantastic 4, Kickass, The Avengars (2012), Superhero film (2008)

Such success, which is drawing in millions upon millions of dollars for the Hollywood studios was fuelled by, one of my personal favorites, "Iron Man" which was 2008's highest grossing film.

Iron man, sure not a hero team movie but one of those films that one cannot ignore for its everlasting impact of revitalizing the superhero genre. Can you believe that a Iron Man 3 is coming out?


Joined by other classic heroes, "The incredible hulk" and the "Dark Knight", this adds to the perception that comic movie marketing is more "in- yer - face" to these huge, vertical integrated international conglomerates than anything else. But where did this callous mentality come from? From whence did such a cruel and horrific treatment of noble, heroic figures of fiction orginate?

In the past, the West stereotyped comic books to be as the author describes it "the lowest common denominator fodder [for an] uncritical audience" how that has changed. Here is where my point finally emerges - everything changed in 1978, when the "Superman" films came out (Superman, the superhero of marvel comics), "[setting the stage for] comic movies" the film itself was marketed at a then eye watering $55 million (amazing how common that is now, isn't it?). This was in contrast to the previous superhero films that had come before it - "L'Arroseur Arrose" (1895), the starting point according to Roger Sabin of when film started to exploit the superhero.

From that point onwards, aided by the medias new found attention to graphic novels, the superhero genre has gained a respectable reputation amongst the multinational conglomerations - creating the inevitable representation that would be tantalizing to any large film corporation in Hollywood, "that comics and graphic novels were a fresh source of material to be mined", link this in with the changing representation of superheroes and you have got a smoking gun ready to shatter such a rich and deep genre. Indeed, producers now longer saw them as unique movies creating a stand alone genre that divides opinion on whether they are good or not, instead as "spectaculars with the potential to underpin a studio's profits"

In addition, the darker tones of the superhero movies, for example Tim Burton's 1989 "Batman", who presented Batman as a shadowy figure of intrigue (just as Nolan has tried to do in his recent trilogy, and has so readily succeeded in my opinion). Following the comic book recession, in which the mighty Marvel company fell into bankruptcy, early in the decade the genre began its long road to recover - on the backs of Spiderman, and Xmen. Sure, a few duds have come along which haven't really helped the genre - Daredevil, Elektra and Fantastic 4. But Iron man changed that for the better, and even had a glimpse of "Captain America's shield" obviously foreshadowing the film Captain America, and the Avenger film coming out soon.

Articles I have read

I sit in front of this computer, having just read Cape fear, an article about how Batman, despite being one of those heroes that has constantly been revamped without getting boring is still an enduring figurehead for Comic book fans. Reading it, I found bullet points of interesting information that I wish to display in this entry and explain.

The article credits Batman begins, the first Christopher Nolan film on the revamped Dark Knight with links to Frank Miller, who draws on his work but never uses his name. The article describes Miller as "the Batman writer-artist to beat" his work has partially inspired Batman begins links to Tim Burton's 1989 Batman film, which started off the whole idea of the Batman Franchise in the first place and the many characters which he helped create, namely Bruce Wayne's bulter - Alfred, as well as other writers and artists creating other trade mark villains that have marked the Batman Universe as a rich heartland for supervillains. The most famous of this being the Joker (created by Jerry Robinson)

In addition though, the article also describes something about Nolan's attitude towards Gotham, which wasn't the original setting for Batman, back then it was just a sketchy New York. Nolan describes Gotham "as a film noir fantasy, but by showing the place as often at dusk as by night, rooting out the corruption in a supposedly ended 'Depression' and putting Arkham Asylum not outside the city limits but in a teeming slum area, Batman Begins creates a different noir cityscape epitomised by a rusting monorail which is Thomas Wayne's legacy to the town" this is shown in the film indeed, as a dark, foreboding place where corruption and ill practice is king and morality and justice has been long forgotten.

The villains as well in Batman begins are different to the prior idea of Batman's supervillains. In recent years, the Batman "freaks" as the author of the article describes them have been revamped, becoming more complex and more interesting. There is a better sense of character, shown in the precedence of the personality of Bruce Wayne over just Batman. The way Nolan has sculpted this movie perfects the ultimate criminal underworld. One of those principle villains in the Scarecrow.

Cillian Murphy plays a comparatively scarier Scarecrow, presenting both his corrupt, sinister desire to further his own ends but also to do the will of his own master in the film.

The article describes the Scarecrow as an "advance man for a worse villain...special[ising] in inducing fear..... this [being] a theme Batman begins returns to time and again" the way the Batman villains are created, developed and deployed furthers my own thoughts from this article. When Gordon speaks "about a war of escalation between cops and crooks" we know that there will be a sequel, furthering Batman status as the superhero to beat all superheroes. Batman will never be forgotten, by the everyday spectator or an avid comic book fan. Not ever. Christopher Nolan has now forever immortalised the figure of Batman again, the image of Batman restored from neglect, ready for the rise and conclusion of The Dark Knight Rises.

Random clips

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3SAeqgLfbg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqHp9vLCYzM

focus films and question that I will be researching in this project

This will be short entry, not much text compared to the my last one - which I think borders on the too long but oh well, I'll just have to edit it later. This entry will deal with the question I want to research for this research project and i have to say - I am very much looking to it.


My question is as follows:
How and why has the representation of superheroes changed over time? 


Focus films:

I have chosen four films to use in for this project, they are as follows:

Bringing you up-to-date

Recently the superhero movies I have seen are,

Watchmen

A good film, perhaps a bit bloody but if you put it in the context of a superhero film - it is an excellent example of how superheroes are presented politically and morally in a society of the 1980s, a time of great tension for the world with the cold war, the USSR's invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 and the election of Gorbachev in 1985 as head of the USSR. Personally, I like this film because it doesn't present heroes as clean, romantic heroes of excellence, of great moral standing and of clean political records. It is the other way round. I love how the superheroes are presented as that in the beginning of the film but how also they mutate into a hunted minority. This helps with my research in the way that getting a modern perspective helps clarify an age-old problem which no one could really solve up until that point. Could Superheroes really be villains? In this film, definitely I think so. Made relatively recently, following the success of The Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan, this follows a trend of, in my opinion of how film directors are now presenting the superhero as not such a god like figure anymore. More like a god like figure, and a devil all in one. This fits Watchmen ideally as the ending clarifies that message - though peace is established and the superhero is still presented as a good guy, superheros are also villains, as is shown by the next film I saw recently.

The Dark Knight

The second in Christopher Nolan's trilogy of Batman films - the third's teaser trailer having just come out recently. This film gives us a darker version of Batman, not so dark as those of Watchmen but still a clearly different view of how Batman is portrayed as a superhero. If you rewind to the first Batman film, where Jack Nicholson starred as the Joker (in a performance that some argue is on the same level as Heath Ledgers. However I disagree), Batman was perceived as a morally just, romantic superhero, you would be mistaken with Christian Bales portrayal. His version of Batman will do anything to capture criminals whilst also giving us further insight into the character of Bruce Wayne, a side of Batman ignored by most of the comic book world in preference to the Dark Knight himself. It seems that, recently in the superhero genre a change is happening, actors such as Christian Bale are showing us that to the superhero there are two sides - the alias and the true identity and in hindsight, often the alias got precedence in such a genre. Up until now.

Batman Begins

The rise of Batman has become like any fairy story - everyone knows it and can quote it off by heart. But this is what I am stressing, and what I am showing throughout this research project. The portrayal of superheroes as a one way, straightforward superhero has gone out of fashion. Christopher Nolan has done what Micheal Bay did to narrative cinema. Only in a good way. As I have said previously, the alias gets precedence often in this movies - that's all changed with movies such as Kickass, Scott Pilgrim, and the Batman trilogy (two out of three I like greatly, and I have great respect for the directors) the reason for this? The showing of more character depth, that sense of a three dimensional character compared to the two dimensional superhero whom you only found out his identity in tiny, insignificant scenes scattered throughout the movie.

The Incredible Hulk (2008)

Is the incredible hulk even a superhero? Whatever the answer, I think this movie is much better than the previous one, and helps my argument which has been developing over this entry (which is much shorter by the way), the film explores the character of Bruce Banner further (I rest my case), fleshing out a more human desire to live freely and to cure himself of the hulk. At the same time, the antagonist fits the role of a villain perfectly, chasing him and indirectly creating a monster which only Bruce Banner can defeat. Watching this movie, I enjoyed it enormously, as for once a superhero movie is not just mindless violence with a few romantic scenes thrown in. Its something more. You feel almost as if the Hulk has a soul, I suppose in order to prepare him for the Avengers movie, which is coming out from Hollywood  I think in 2012. The fact that he has a soul is a good thing though, creating an empathy between the spectator and the monster. Out of the superheroes in the DC and Marvel universe, of which many have been made into a film, I think this is an excellent film and well worth watching if you want the human story, mindless violence, and romantic scenes thrown in.

Scott Pilgrim vs the world

I have to be honest with you - I disliked this movie instantly when I saw it. I'm not sure if its even a superhero movie at all, just a naff japanese arcade game about a mumbling buffoon who battles 7 ex-boyfriends in order to gain the woman he loves (with love scenes thrown in recklessly in order to pull in the audience by the scruff of their unfortunate necks), yeah - gold medal for worst plot of the year award. I don't give two monkeys if it was made in Comic-con, it is a naff movie, having no bearing on my research whatsoever!!!!!!!! The only reason I'm putting it in is because its a loosely fitting superhero movie (extremely loose) with superhero genre tentacles. Furthermore, the main character mumbles. A tiny point maybe that has no bearing on my research, but in order to watch the movie - and to get a sense of character from this movie you need to turn the movie up to extra loud on your TV. Or shout at the TV - "Speak up!" to jog the actor of a key skill in acting - projection. To my mind, this is not a superhero movie, I've seen better movies but i have to keep in mind that this a low budget movie (but to the cynical mind, who made it - chimps whose ears are so delicate that they can pick up the tiniest vibrations and they made a movie where the main character mumbles. Who were the directors? Pingu (I know hes a penguin, but hes deaf and as far as i can tell he as no ears) and Bongo the gorilla?)

Anyway, as a final note - this film has a loose bearing on my research, acting as the natural contrast to the previous films, showing how not to make a superhero movie. The only link I can find is the fight scenes which are the only good thing there. It would the only thing i watch in the movie if I could bear watch such as waste of money ever again.

Articles of interest

Whilst surfing the waves of the world wide web, I have found many sites of interest to the topic of the superhero genre. Many of these sites or blogs are decidedly cynical towards the superhero genre as a whole - indeed they more slag off the genre rather than show the transformation of the superhero figure. However, the information posted on the pages does offer some useful context about the superhero figure, and can be used to represent how the representation has changed of these mythic figures.

Information below is from:
http://io9.com/5166889/are-superhero-stories-even-a-genre
Grant Morris, the writer of Superman, has this to say about the superhero genre;
"The basic idea of the superhuman is a very malleable one – you can do ‘realistic' superhero stories like say Watchmen, which takes a hard-nosed look at how these creatures might alter the social and political landscape of our own world, or you can – as I prefer to do – position them as archetypes that allow us to talk about the world using the language of symbolism and allegory. There have been ‘realistic' superhero stories, ‘surreal' superhero stories, superhero westerns, superhero war stories, superhero detective stories, superhero horror stories, superhero romances etc"

" I'm not even sure if there is a superhero genre or if the idea of the superhero is a special chilli pepper-like ingredient designed to energize other genres"

"costumed superhero has survived since 1938, constantly shifting in tone from decade to decade to reflect the fears and the needs of the audience. The current mainstream popularity of the superhero has, I think, a lot to do with the fact that the Terror-stricken, environmentally-handicapped, overpopulated, paedophile-haunted world that's being peddled by our news media is crying out for utopian role models and for any hopeful images of humankind's future potential!"


Sad but true I'm afraid. The idea of the superhero is a good one, the article showing the difference between the realistic superhero films - such as Kick ass, Super (two of the films I am looking into for this project) which have the potential to offer the social and political effects such masked vigilantes would have on our society. Perhaps Watchmen is a better example of these two features, but the representation of the superhero in all three movies is the game - gritty, real, and having a feel of an indie movie with it.

However, another way the quote positions the superhero, in direct contrast to the realistic stereotype is the representation of superheroes as a mythical archetype, or as Morris describes it - The current mainstream popularity of the superhero has, I think, a lot to do with the fact that the Terror-stricken, environmentally-handicapped, overpopulated, paedophile-haunted world that's being peddled by our news media is crying out for utopian role models and for any hopeful images of humankind's future potential!"

In such terms, Morris implies that the reason for the popularity of mainstream superhero films is that the media is persuading us of the inequalities of society - of the dangers hidden around every corner, or in the shady corners of our minds; the murderers, and the bad men. In short, it makes us worship these figures as idealised figures of human excellence, giving us superficial hope that there are some who are signs that humanity has a bright future, detracting from the more gritty, and realistic image of superheroes and casting them into the shadows.

 

But this quote also offers us some context by which we can compare between these two, markedly different types of superhero movies, the fact that they represent the shifting in tone from decade to decade to reflect the fears and the needs of the audience. Despite having been around since 1938, it seems this genre has a timeless quality to it - with universal themes that seem to apply to us all. We all want to be superheroes, maybe in our dreams perhaps but such different types of superheroes, one gritty, and the other romantic both have those same qualities - that apply to us all.

What am I going to research?

You will forgive if this post doesn't sound as confident, or as sure as the previous. I am trying to work out how I will do this project and how I will carry out the research. Throughout this project, my plan is to look into the change that the Superhero genre has undergone in the decades in which it has occupied the hearts of many film fans. The representation of the superhero has indeed changed drastically over the years, from the romantic figure of Batman and Superman to the more easier to empathize with characters of "Kickass" , which paints a very different picture of a superhero. It shows them as an everyday, average bloke that all of us in some way can relate too, interestingly all are outsiders - as is the stereotypical image of a superhero, one who is isolated from the rest of society.

However, I am not limiting this to just men, far from it - I am exploring how the female heroine is represented as well - examples of this include Catwoman (specifically from the Batman universe, and who is set to make a comeback in the latest Batman movie). But, in a more interesting light - in contrast to the romantic and frankly objectifying appearance that female heroines is shared by the independent as well as the High concept movies. However, as noted in the article from the second link below, the author notes that there have been  "no good female super hero film", that i agree to be kind of true. The film Industry definitely has a dim view of women, more portraying them as sex objects, or as love interests to the protagonists.

Poster of Anne Hathaway being cast as Catwoman in the latest Christopher Nolan Batman film - the Dark Knight rises.

However, I am of the opinion that just like the superhero protagonist, the role of the female heroine is also changing - transforming into something overall more interesting and exciting. The example I use for this is Hit Girl from Kickass. It shows the maturing of such characters into regions where they create empathy between the audience, spectator and that character. They are also getting more dirty, serious and less romantic - an excellent example being a rather gruesome clip of Ellen Page on Super, where the spectator gets a real sense that her character isn't entirely there.

Poster of Hit Girl from Kickass

Ellen Page playing the slightly crackers Libby, also Boltie in Super, which I  have just found out is being released in this country on the 1st August - Yeah!!!!

What these two examples show, Ellen Pages character being an additional example by which I can draw upon.

These links are always important in my research - apart from the importance of books which of course I will use, but even so the internet plays an equally important role:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_superheroines
http://dirtywithclass.wordpress.com/2011/01/06/why-has-there-been-no-good-female-superhero-film/
This is a link to a list of superheroines, from television and popular media


http://io9.com/5166889/are-superhero-stories-even-a-genre
http://cinemaroll.com/cinemarolling/superhero-genre-the-sub-genre-of-the-action-film/
http://www.coronacomingattractions.com/news/directors-cut-whats-wrong-superhero-movie-genre
http://www.pajiba.com/think_pieces/its-time-to-kick-the-superhero-genre-in-the-ass-.php

First post

Welcome to my small scale research blog for my A2 film studies. The point of this blog is to become the medium by which all the research that I will carry out in order to find out all the facts I need for the project. This, in my opinion is what film Studies is all about - the evaluation of a genre, actors signature, or technology. Sure, the latter two are interesting, but to my mind genre takes my fancy more. The fact you can evaluate and look into a certain genre of film, which there are thousands of. It can be horror, comedy, superheroes, the list goes on. The purpose of this first post is to create a sense of the brain waves that went through my mind whilst I was thinking and partially deciding what question I should focus on.

My interest for this project lay at first in a character type - which I have changed now due to that being not allowed. I thought of doing the outsider character, an interesting figure in a film to me in particular as I have always felt like one. Odd. This was prompted after watching "How to train your dragon" (2010, directed by Dean Deblois, and Chris Sanders). Below I will paste a link to the trailer, as it is actually quite a good movie and I recommend seeing it. It may be pixar, some of their films are naff in themselves but this film in my mind is one of their best.

 

One of my favorite scenes from the movie. Really. I am not kidding, this is one of my favorite scenes in the entire plot, showing my attraction towards the outsider figure - the subtle surprise one gets from finding out the hidden depths of a figure.

But then, came the superhero genre. An unexpected surprise, I found myself instantly attracted to this cliche genre, which is flooding our cinemas with the latest release of "Green Lantern" (2011, Martin Campbell). This is an open ended question, but with the key to an treasure trove of information that can be extracted and added to my previous assumptions. However, in addition to the attraction of the genre there was also the appearance of "Super" (2010, James Gunn). The film had independent vibes but was a flop not reaching the same level as "Kickass", but still I believe it is an example of how the Super hero genre has come into its own, maturing into something intriguing and compelling. Released around the same time as "Kickass" (2010, Matthew Vaughn) it takes on the character of an average man becoming a superhero. I will attach the trailers for both movies, as well as additional clips of "Super", which sadly is not released on DVD. The film is violent, and there is swearing in it. Less than in "Kickass" admittedly but I like it nevertheless. You may dislike it, but I advise an open mind - look at it for its merits and what it has contributed to the Superhero genre. Or hasn't, in the case of the viewings and its gross profit.

Watch these clips, watch the trailers. You may be subtly surprised by the good quality of of "Super", but also off the performance of Ellen Page in it, sure it wasn't one of her greatest films but film fans all agree that her performance in this movie, playing a disturbed, desperate, and slightly wacky character in this motion picture. Sadly, I repeat it is not on DVD, but it will be one of my movies that I will study, specifically the clips I have. Its on Video on Demand, whatever that is. Anyhow, I hope you like them, I know I do and I think that I have stumbled upon a topic which I will love to look into and enjoy writing about. With that, and excellent  research I am sure to succeed. If you put your mind to something, work hard at it, you will do well.