| Leo656 |
11-20-2015 02:55 AM |
Oh my f*cking god already. I give you a long leash, Jake, but you're really making somethin' outta nothin' this time.
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First, No, nobody at WB put a rule on paper that says "Nobody smiles or cracks jokes". That's stupid.
What would be almost as stupid, would be doing the same exact kind of movies that Marvel is doing. For one thing, for all the money they make, they're all exactly the same and it's contributing a lot to the supposed "backlash" or "burnout" people say they have towards comic book movies. When you see five comic book movies a year, by the same people, with the same tone, style, and jokes, then yeah, it's redundant.
If the DCU movies are going to carve out a piece, they can't simply copy Marvel's way of doing things - despite a lot of people who don't pay attention insisting that's exactly what they're doing, despite all evidence to the contrary proving that they're doing almost everything different on purpose. Thus, if Marvel's films are "light and fluffy", DC's have to be more self-serious and grounded. And given the fact that DC's approach to super-heroes has always been more about Myth and less about Pop - when it's been done right - it's an approach that makes more sense. Corny sh*t like everyone getting plastered and seeing who can pick up Thor's hammer may be fine in Marvel's movies, with their general tone, but I really, really don't care to see sh*t like that from Superman and Batman and the rest.
Personally, while I grant that super-heroes are fantastical, I fail to see why that in turn makes them farcical. I mean, yeah, costumes, ooohhh. Stories about worlds blowing up and people with godlike powers trying to STOP them from blowing up, has never seemed to me like it was something farcical just because they were wearing capes. "It's already goofy, make fun of it some more. Just stop and crack jokes in the middle of the end-of-the-world fight scene." How about no, so we never get another "Batman and Robin"-type movie? Some of the Marvel films already tiptoe a little too close to that vein for my liking as it is. I'm perfectly fine and even excited whenever a movie comes out that actually tries to elevate super-hero stories beyond mere sensory assault, all bright colors and explosions and characters constantly winking at the audience like the whole thing's a big joke everyone's in on. Things like stories and actual drama and things having consequences are all good, too.
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Short answer: No, it's not a rule, but it is a good stylistic choice if they want to stand out in an already-crowded marketplace, and it better reflects the characters being adapted. Marvel's super-heroes, even in print, are more like "Super-Heroes As Pop Icons", or rock stars, where DC's always had more of a "Gods and Titans" vibe. Thus a more self-serious and reverent tone for the movies is simply more in step with the material being adapted.
DC's comics have always been more serious than Marvel's; it makes sense their movies would be as well. I see some people trying to make a big huge deal out of it, like it's somehow not exactly what they should be doing. "Nah, just do it goofy and silly like Marvel, it makes money." Yeah but I don't care about that, even though I'm fine with what they do I want and need something much different from DC's movies. Like I can drink light beer all day and night but I still need a shot of Jack once in a while to swish things around a little. Mix it up. That sh*t's good for ya.
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