Today's News: will the real Mandarin please stand up?

Remember the MovieScene news I posted here earlier about that secret Marvel project Sir Ben Kingsley was working on? You better, since I only posted it last week. Seems the beans have been spilled over this one earlier than anticipated, as it has now become apparent what exactly the project involves:

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/151265/ben_kingsleys_marvel-project_onthuld

Way to respond to controversy, Marvel. You finally realized you screwed up a classic bad guy -  something the fans had to tell you themselves - so now you feel like making amends. Too late, the damage has been done: Iron Man 3 was a hugely disappointing movie. You could have saved face if you had attached this one-shot as an epilogue to that film, instead of making it available on the BD-release of an upcoming Marvel flick (which will then also be soured by this heavily polarizing topic). Now it just appears as if you are capitalizing on the misery of your loyal followers by offering them an alternative to your own failure. Nevertheless, I am gratified Iron Man 3 wasn't the end for the Mandarin, since it never even included a proper beginning for this powerful and popular member of the Golden Avenger's rogue gallery. It was a farce, plain and simple. And maybe, jusy maybe from the ashes of this farce a new villain shall rise to claim his revenge (which might include killing Ben Kingsley's character, which would be fine by me). Considering the number of equally ticked-off Marvelites that want their Mandarin hot and bothered, this sort of conflict marketing might work in the studio's favour in the longer run. But for now, it seems like a clear sell-out to please as many people as possible.

But who will play the genuine Mandarin article? It could be Ben Kingsley himself, which would both be ironic and repugnant, considering the complete waste of his talents involved in his previous excursion into the Marvel Cinematic Universe which would continually be brought to mind. Another grand actor seems more likely. Perhaps even an actual Chinaman. Though if he must be of oriental origine, the studio will no doubt turn to Ken Watanabe as he's the go-to-Asian for Hollywood. It matters not, as long as this fake Mandarin will soon be forgotten. Who cares about actual incorrect social and racial casting if fictional characters' legacies are harmed?

Today's Double News: return of the bad 'bad guys'

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/151096/ben_kingsley_werkt_aan_geheim_project_voor_marvel

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/151098/stephen_lang_terug_voor_avatar_sequels

Two bits of news that don't really rock my boat. I didn't like Ben Kingsley's character (at the ultimate reveal of the exact situation in the movie at least) in Iron Man 3 and I wasn't fond of any characters from Avatar in general. Both movies were poorly written and delivered only mild entertainment. That said, I am intrigued by Sir Ben's further involvement in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As is usual, he's not allowed to give anything away, so as to keep the fanbase guessing ad nauseam. For all we know he's playing the same prank on us the writers of Iron Man 3 did in terms of writing his character. I doubt Kingsley is referring to Captain America: The Winter Soldier or Guardians of the Galaxy. The former is deep in post-production by now, while the latter is well underway in terms of shooting so it seems a little late to add more actors. The Avengers: Age of Ultron or Ant-Man seem more logical choices, since they're still only prepping and haven't been fully cast yet. What Kingsley could play in either of them is anyone's guess at this point. Then of course there's the option of Sir Ben popping up in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on telly: many would call it unlikely such a grand actor of the big screen would lend himself for something like that, but it's a fact by now quality television series are getting ever more prestigious for actors and similarly big names have done TV before. Heck, if Samuel L. Jackson can appear in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (he did!), Kingsley's eventual guest star occurrence isn't that improbable. Last but not least, there's the possibility Kingsley is referring to a project as yet unknown to the general audience. Let us not forget, Marvel is already preparing Phase 3, as well as four (!) more TV shows. Sir Ben could appear in any one of them. It simply remains to be seen which project, and what he's playing. After the huge letdown that was his "Mandarin" in IM3, I sincerely hope he's playing a new character instead. He's certainly capable enough to look different enough from a character we already know. Whatever we can gather from his few tiny crumbs of information, the truth is exactly as he said: we'll have to wait and see.

As for Lang: really? His character is dead, but Cameron nevertheless wants him for three more Avatar sequels? Lang is a good actor, but his character in Avatar, the greedy and predictably nefarious Colonel Quaritch, was quite two-dimensional and I was glad to see him disposed of at the end of the film. Apparently, Avatar being science fiction, as Cameron confirmed (as if we didn't realize that!), gives the director free range of resurrecting any old character instead of getting creative and come up with more interesting new villains. I'm sad to hear it. It doesn't bode well for the next few Avatar movies in terms of a well developed story, what is what I (and many others) had hoped for this time around. Sure, it all looked great, but if it isn't put to inspired use, what's the point? Cameron was basically regurgitating Dances with Wolves and Pocahontas. It seems that by reintroducing Quaritch he's now regurgitating Avatar itself. After all, by the time Avatar 2 finally sees a release, we're sure to have forgotten Avatar's so-called 'plot' entirely.

Today's Mini-Reviews: downfall of the rich and powerful

Iron Man 3: **/*****, or 5/10

Most disappointing of the Marvel Studios movies so far. Shane Black (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) took over the director's chair from Jon Favreau who did the first two installments. Maybe it's Black's tendency to go over the top a bit too far, maybe the writers and producers just got terribly lazy in the creative process after the sucess of the predecessors, but Iron Man 3 proves a dud. Tony Stark finally has found a decent equilibrium between his eccentric playboy life and his public role as the armored superhero Iron Man, but soon his world is turned upside down after he deliberately picks a fight with the vicious terrorist leader Mandarin (“played by Sir Ben Kingsley”) who wounded his former bodyguard Happy (still performed by Favreau himself at least). The Mandarin comes down hard on Tony, destroying his mansion and seemingly obliterating his various armors. With only his wit, his engineering skills, his insufferable character flaws – he was never more irritating than he is here – and the aid of some kid in a shack, he soon turns the tables and confronts his new nemesis and his silly army of exploding people, only to find out the situation is not what it appeared to be, as the Mandarin is just a fraud (way to ruin a classic bad guy, Marvel!). Another adversary, A.I.M. leader Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) is behind it all, out to revenge himself on Stark, literally for making him cry ten years earlier (now that's what I call a solid motivation for aiming to conquer the world!). During the film's climactic showdown, Tony can fortunately count on his girlfriend Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) to save his ass, plus he had another 40 armors inexplicably hidden up his sleeve. Iron Man 3 pretentiously delves into semi-philosophical territory when it keeps asking whether the suit makes the man or vice versa, but the fact is we simply don't care. All we knew was that Robert Downey Jr. made Iron Man and now sloppy writing has allowed him to be unmade, for which Downey reportedly received the sum of 50 million (!) dollars, probably for looking the other way as it happened. At least Stark is basically still the same after four films, as it was clear what audiences wanted and expected from the get-go. The same can't be said for the Mandarin, whose presence was alluded to in the prevous two Iron Man films, but all of a sudden proves to be someone else entirely halfway through the film. Don't trust the trailers for this film that insinuated that we were in for a major epic villain played by Kingsley, since that's all a lie and you'll end up disappointed. Blame it on the Chinese involvement, as Iron Man 3 was co-produced with Chinese studios to cut costs (Downey's salary had to come from somewhere after all). And in such a case, you simply can't afford to have a Chinese villain claiming to be after the destruction of western civilization. Interestingly enough, the Chinese market received a slightly different cut of the film including scenes not seen in the regular version, to make it even more attractive for Chinese audiences. Iron Man 3 bodes ill for the rest of Marvel's Phase 2, but there's gotta be better upcoming movies to make up for this huge letdown. Ant-Man maybe? 

 

The Great Gatsby: ***/*****, or 7/10

Another visual feast by Baz Lurhmann (Moulin Rouge, Australia). The fifth version of the classic book by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and definitely the most extravagant, as we would have expected from Luhrmann, who always tends to lavishly overstylize his films. This is his first foray into the realm of 3D, and fortunately it's a successful one at that. From a narrative viewpoint, the movie predictably feels less intriguing. In the early Roaring Twenties, war veteran Nick Carraway (a rather dull Tobey Maguire, as is the norm) moves to Long Island, next door to a giant mansion belonging to the seemingly incredibly wealthy but enigmatic Jay Gatsby (Leonardo DiCaprio, another one of his hugely rich and influential but emotionally tormented big screen souls). Drawn to the unreal world of fabulous upperclass decadence, Carraway soon gets his taste of high society as he attends one of Gatsby's unbelievably amazing parties. Gatsby soon purposefully reveals himself to Nick and recruits him to arrange a meeting between himself and Nick's attractive cousin Daisy (Carey Mulligan), a long lost love of Gatsby from before the Great War whom he lost contact with and who has since gone on to marry a rich but quite dislikeable land owner (Joel Edgerton). Hoping to respark their love thanks to Nick's involvement bridging their past, Gatsby and Daisy soon reunite and haphazardly start an affair that can only end in tragedy. But despite his attempts to basically bang a married girl, you hope Gatsby succeeds as he is a sympathetic character, once a boy who came from nothing but worked himself up to incredulous heights, while still favoring the lower class folks who live decent lives worth living, instead of engaging in the monotony of endless partying. Gatsby appears to make a stand for the poor, hard working labourers with his understanding attitude and actions, which can only lead to his downfall from the rich ruling classes and their corrupting power over everything and everyone. But what a downfall it is, shot with such dynamic vibrancy and wild colour schemes, presented in three jaw-droppingly beautiful dimensions! Nevertheless the blatant melodrama at the core is hard to be effectively sugarcoated, even in Luhrmann's elaborate ways. The Great Gatsby emulates its titular character, in the sense that it's packed with bombastic bravoura and laced with visual flair throughout, detracting you from the lack of a refined, satisfactory plot, which is notably absent if you care to see beneath the mask of its sensational appearance. Beneath the surface it's all fairly hollow, but not without a certain charm. This movie is a feast to behold as much as the parties it depicts would no doubt be a thrill to attend, but ultimately, it proves a fairly forgetful experience in the long run. And so Hollywood can keep remaking Fitzgerald's novel once every few decades to ever more spectacular results.

Today's News: Marvel's Phase 2 sneak peek

Here's a news flash for ya:

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/145974/eerste_beelden_marvel_phase_2

As a comic book lover, I'm obviously very excited about these, though my enthusiasm for Guardians of the Galaxy remains restrained, considering I never really got into that cosmic stuff and none of these characters honestly appeal to me (especially Rocket Raccoon, which I think is just a lame JarJarBinksian concept). Plus, it just seems so out of whack with the rest of the current Marvel Cinematic Universe. It's good to see Marvel isn't afraid to explore other avenues from its 70+ years of comic books run than just the regular superhero stuff though, but I have yet to be convinced.
Thor: The Dark World looks pretty decent, as I expected it to be after Thor's first foray onto the big screen which turned out so well. Nice to know Natalie Portman is still onboard despite her near falling out with the studio over the departure of the original (female) director. Little vexation regarding Captain America: The Winter Soldier either, even though I understand this overly patriottic super soldier isn't everybody's cup of tea. I'm not all that high on the Falcon being a participant, though considering his long history with Cap (the pair shared a comic book series for a long time) his presence is far from surprising. His look is pretty slick (definitely Ultimate Universe inspired, which I can appreciate), but he remains a guy with metal wings on his back, which isn't a really fancy ability to say the last. Plus, his appearance in this particular Marvel movie might spell doom for an eventual (and quite often foretold) presence of the Vulture in a future Spider-Man movie. In the latter's case, again, not much of a loss for moviegoers.
Ant-Man: now that's something I look forward to! A tough nut to crack, considering his rather awkward powers: getting small, growing tall and communicating with ants. However, also a deeply flawed though brilliant personality (depending on which particular Ant-Man they will use, since there have been multiple over the years) with a plethora of human traits making him that much more identifiable. Wife beating, voyeurist activities, having people eaten by army ants: all in a day's work for the not quite so heroic Ant-Man! Coupled with capable, witty and stylistically intriguing director Edgar Wright (of Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim v.s. the World fame), this might very well turn out to be the most delectable and off-beat character of the bunch. It could also suck bug balls big time of course, but let's keep a little optimism here, Wright certainly deserves it.

Make Mine Marvel Phase 2! Iron Man 3 gets to kick it off in three weeks, The Avengers 2 will finish it in a few more years (2015 probably).

Today's News: final Iron Man 3 poster

No new movie list today, hope to get back to that in the weekend. But I posted this on MovieScene the other day, so as usual I just have to post it here as well:

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/144976/nieuwe_poster_iron_man_3

I don't have much to add to what I already said about the subject in the actual news flash, other than the fact I'm increasingly excited about the project. It's got the old characters we've come to love (Stark, Pepper, Rhodey, etc.) plus several new ones played by top actors like Guy Pearce and Sir Ben Kingsley. Whether the Mandarin, played by the latter and already hinted at in the first film, is gonna be an intriguing villain remains to be seen but at least there's a solid actor behind the part, which is never a bad thing (then again, Kingsley did play Thunderbirds adversary the Hood in the 2004 Hollywood adaptation, and that wasn't a particularly good thing...). This new poster certainly looks appealing, making it clear Iron Man isn't gonna go down without a decent fight despite the previous poster portraying him in a death defying skyfall (while on fire), making a good outcome on his part unlikely. Also visible on the new one-sheet is the Iron Legion, which is an element from the Marvel Universe I'm surprisingly unfamiliar with. I suspect Rhodey is involved with them, as it has been made clear he will be featured again as Iron Man's military counterpart War Machine, but other than that I have no clue. I don't mind, I can stand to be surprised for once.

Of course the big question now is; how will the flick, being the first installment in Marvel's eagerly anticipated Phase 2, tie in with other upcoming Marvel movies? It has to hint to The Avengers, that much is undeniable. But will it feature new superheroes we've been hoping to get a break on the silver screen? For that matter, will it feature previously established characters that first appeared in the previous Iron Man films, like Nick Fury or Black Widow? Time will tell, but it's obvious we've still only seen the tip of the iceberg where Marvel's cinematic shared universe is concerned. Make Mine Marvel!