Iron Man Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Five Folks Who Could Direct 'The Avengers' Instead of Jon Favreau
Filed under: Action », Fandom », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Lists »
I know it's a huge bummer that Iron Man director Jon Favreau told MTV that he's not going to be directing The Avengers, Marvel's forthcoming superhero omnibus film that'll feature the likes of The Hulk, Nick Fury, Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, and whoever else the now Disney-owned studio wants to create a new action figure for. Favreau would love to do it, and he'll executive produce, but logistically he is just not going to be available to direct. Obviously that's not going to stop Marvel from moving forward with the guaranteed moneymaker, so here are five humble suggestions for replacement.
Before we let the fanboy inside us explode at the possibilities, let's keep things a bit grounded. They've got to be directors who could tackle something in the fantasy-action realm and they have to be available; so even though I'd be game for them, busy A-listers like Christopher Nolan or J.J. Abrams just aren't practical.
'Iron Man 2' Might Be Flying in 3-D
Filed under: Action », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Disney », Paramount », RumorMonger », Tech Stuff », DIY/Filmmaking », Newsstand », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Remakes and Sequels »
I believe I've had to type 3D more times this week than I have in my Cinematical career thus far, and it's only Wednesday. I'm also seeing the birth of a new trend towards 3D rumor mongering and speculation which I want to say began with The Hobbit, but I would probably be very wrong. But I digress. Today, Ain't It Cool News is reporting that we might see Iron Man 2 converted into 3D. According to Harry Knowles: "Right now, there is a 1 minute demo of Iron Man 2 converted to high quality digital 3D ... Right now the suits at Marvel & Paramount & now also Disney are considering this 1 minute. At the same time that this is happening, they are fishing for bids with 3 different companies to see what the cost and time it would take to convert Iron Man 2 to a complete 3D film." There's also talk that if they actually pay to convert Iron Man 2 to 3D, they might also do the same to the first Iron Man and rerelease it into theaters next May. Watch Jon Favreau's Twitter to see if this comes true or not.
As Knowles points out, if it does come to pass it would certainly be a game-changer for the upcoming Marvel slate. You might see Captain America, Thor, or The Avengers behind a pair of dorky glasses. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that, as I find the format too distracting to be enjoyable. But it would be a hell of a lot of fun to see Iron Man rereleased in 3D, and revamping an existing film seems better suited to this ongoing novelty than designing a film around some pop-out effects. I seem to be in the cranky minority when it comes to the 3D style though, and those who are enthusiastic for it are certainly winning the war for it.
Louis Leterrier Talks 'Captain America' and 'Avengers' Dreams
Filed under: Action », Paramount », Universal », RumorMonger », Newsstand », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Remakes and Sequels »
A few weeks ago at ComicCon, Marvel Studios' president Kevin Feige and Jon Favreau gave some hints as to what we could expect from the movie Marvel universe. Now, I bet you want to hear from a director who gets a little left out in all this crossover talk: Louis Leterrier.Leterrier sat down with the LA Times and talks all about what it's like to play in the onscreen Marvel universe. Turns out, he was once in talks to direct Thor but declined (he's just not a fan of early Thor), and would love to have helmed Iron Man or Captain America. "But, c'mon, a Frenchman doing Captain America? They would burn my passport." But Leterrier has seen the designs for Joe Johnston's Cap, and what he describes is pretty intriguing. "I have seen some of the design work they're doing for Captain America and it looks amazing. It's a period piece and it's like Raiders of the Lost Ark and with more gadgets ... It's Raiders meets Rocketeer and Saving Private Ryan. It's going to be so cool."
Saturn Awards for 'Iron Man,' 'Dark Knight,' Leonard Nimoy
Filed under: Horror », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Awards », Fandom », Angelina Jolie »
Some critics' groups rush to hand out awards weeks before the year of eligility is over. Other groups, like the Academy of Science Fiction Fantasy & Horror Films, prefer to take their time. The 35th annual Saturn Awards were presented last night in beautiful downtown Burbank, California, honoring the best in genre films for the 2008 calendar year. The top awards, as listed by FearNet, went to Iron Man (Science Fiction), The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (Fantasy), Hellboy II: The Golden Army (Horror), and The Dark Knight (Action / Adventure / Thriller).
The Academy also found room to honor Angelina Jolie as Best Actress for Changeling, which makes me wonder how that film could possibly qualify as a genre flick. Horror, perhaps? More major awards went to Robert Downey, Jr. as Best Actor and Jon Favreau as Best Director for Iron Man, Heath Ledger as Best Supporting Actor, and Tilda Swinton as Best Supporting Actress. Wall-E took home Best Animated Film and Let the Right One In was presented with the Best International Film award. And here are the awards that make the Saturns stand out for genre fans: Lance Henriksen received the Life Career Award, and Leonard Nimoy nabbed the Lifetime Achievement Award.
I was following the awards show via Twitter, and the most entertaining account was the one by loquaciousmuse; she made it sound like a blast. If you're out of state, $40 buys an Academy membership with award voting privileges. The least expensive in-state membership is $150, which also grants access to more than 100 special screenings.
Are These the 75 Movies Every Man Must See?
Filed under: Classics », Fandom », Newsstand », Lists »
Summertime seems to be movie list-making time in just about every publication. I imagine it's because once you slap Chris Pine or Christian Bale onto a summer magazine cover, you're stuck waiting for the fall buzz to kick up ... or anxious film writers out there are hoping to remind audiences that they can ease the pain of mindless blockbusters with meat-and-potato classics. Either way, we get a lot of lists.
Esquire has a particularly interesting one up, though. They've compiled a collection of 75 movies they feel every man should see in his lifetime, and go so far as to suggest they've all shaped American manhood in some fashion. Some of the choices are obvious classics: In the Heat of the Night, 12 Angry Men, Chinatown, The Godfather, North by Northwest, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, The French Connection. Some are a little more on the forgotten side, like Fitzcarraldo and Run Silent, Run Deep.
But some of the choices are a little questionable. Iron Man? Three Kings? Runaway Train? Lone Star? Enjoyable sure, but are they must watch classics? Did Lone Star really shape modern manhood? I'm pretty sure Iron Man didn't considering it came out oh, exactly one year ago. Surely Easy Rider or Death Wish should have two of those spots. Doesn't John McClane deserve a rank above Johnny Dangerously? No Goodfellas? Why only one John Wayne (The Searchers) and no Jimmy Stewart or Gregory Peck?
Check out the list and ponder whether you think watching all 75 of these makes (or has made) a true man, as Esquire's version has me a little worried. Then come back and tell us what films you think are more essential than these.
*And no, clearly no one thinks there's an essential list for women. We may have to put that one together here on Cinematical.
First Look at Downey Jr. as Iron Man in Sequel
Filed under: Action », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Newsstand », Movie Marketing », Remakes and Sequels », Images »
Downey Jr. is really looking more and more like the Stark of the comics -- I can't put my finger on what it is except that he looks older. It hasn't been that long since he shot Iron Man, but here it looks like he's got some new lines to the face. Fighting War Mongerer will do that to even the most eternally young of faces, I guess.
It's so geeky to say so, my childish heart of hearts just leaps at a photo like this. Iron Man was definitely an amazing way to kick off last summer, and it helps erase the pain of this year's superhero film to know that Iron Man 2 is in the wings.
Now come on, Favreau! Give us a photo of Scarlett Johannson or Mickey Rourke in costume! We have a long way to go, and we need something to make the long, long months even more unbearable.
Weekend Box Office: 'Wolverine' Beheads McConaughey
Filed under: New Releases », Box Office »
It is of course impossible to say whether the much-discussed work print leak damaged Wolverine's box office take, nor whether Fox's cockamamie strategy of tacking on different mid-credits codas to different prints of the film helped matters. All we can conclude is that if piracy hurt, it didn't hurt that much (which really has been the refrain for the movie industry all along), since I don't think too many people will be unhappy with an $87 million first weekend. For those keeping score, that's well ahead of X-Men, marginally ahead of Bryan Singer's X2, and roughly $15 million behind Brett Ratner's X-Men: The Last Stand. Wolverine is not likely to hold up well, but it's hard to imagine a scenario where it doesn't get to $200 million domestic. And after all the angst, that's a victory. One thing to consider is what this means for the straight action model of the comic book movie. I didn't dislike Wolverine like a lot of people did, but it undoubtedly did away with the nuance, intricacy and character focus that we've gotten used to seeing in major comic book adaptations. I bet it's much easier to make a Wolverine than a Iron Man or an X2 or a Watchmen, and it seems not to be much less financially rewarding.
I very much enjoyed not watching Ghosts of Girlfriends Past this weekend, and it seems so did a bunch of other people. The Matthew McConaughey romantic comedy picked up $15.3 million, which isn't bad, but puts the film way behind the last three identical Matthew McConaughey romantic comedies. And the 3D-animated Battle for Terra, while not a Delgo-level bust, couldn't break the top 10 and ended up with just over $1 million on around 1,200 screens. It's tough out there for animated features not bankrolled and marketed by huge studios.
The weekend's top 10 after the jump.
New Dates for Thor, Captain America, and The Avengers
Filed under: Action », New Releases », Newsstand », Comic/Superhero/Geek »
It has been a busy couple of weeks for Marvel. After signing Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury for the rest of the man's natural born life and stalling on Iron Man casting (although that all worked out in the end), their behavior might have looked a little crazy -- but, it appears it was all a part of the plan. Deadline Hollywood Daily has posted a press release from Marvel today announcing "an adjusted release pipeline for its self-produced feature film properties that reflects the first time individual Super Hero characters and story arcs will be inter-woven and culminate in a multi-character motion picture."So what exactly do they mean by adjusted? According to the new schedule, Thor will now be released June 17, 2011 (previously the big guy was slated for July 2010), The First Avenger: Captain America will now hit July 22, 2011 (one year later than expected), and the big bad daddy of them all, The Avengers has been moved to May 4th, 2012. Marvel even got a little feisty and stole some of Sony's thunder by announcing Spider Man 4's release date of May 6th, 2011. The good news for Marvel is this new schedule means that they will have a summer blockbuster entry every year between 2010-2012.
The Best and Worst Superhero Costumes ... Ever?
Filed under: Fandom », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Images »
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With Watchmen arriving in theaters this weekend, it's once again time to start talking superheroes. But instead of listing the coolest weapons or names or fight scenes, Moviefone wants to know which superhero costumes are the best ... and worst. How does Michael Keaton's Batman suit compare to, say, Jennifer Gardner's Elektra look? Which costume turns you on more: Silk Spectre II or Catwoman? Or what about Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man suit up against ... um, Ben Affleck's Daredevil? (I'm sorry, but I still can't believe Affleck played a superhero at one point - worst casting choice ever.) So check out the costume gallery below, and let us know your favorites (and least favorites [cough] Clooney's Batman [cough]) in the comments.
Superhero Costumes - Vote for Your Favorites
Superpowers are nice and all, but just as vital to the superhero mystique is the costume. Can you imagine someone trying to save the world in a sweatshirt and jeans? Wouldn't stand a chance.
'Watchmen' hits screens with some slick new additions to the costume department, leading us to wonder which crimefighters have donned the coolest outfits. Click through to vote on which of these 30 superheroes' costumes are super cool, and which are super lame.
Warner Bros.(2) | Paramount | 20th Century Fox
Batman
Played by: Michael Keaton in 'Batman' (1989)
Before Christopher Nolan entered the scene, Tim Burton took the Bat a bit darker (no more Bam! Kapow!). We've long thought Michael Keaton's personification in Burton's 1989 flick is under-rated, as is his getup. The neoprene suit made us believe 'Mr. Mom' was a superhero. Talk about Bam! Kapow!
Everett Collection
Nite Owl II
Played by: Patrick Wilson in 'Watchmen' (2009)
As Batman has proved time and time again, gadget-loving men who dress up like flying animals are not to be messed with.
Warner Bros.
Iron Man
Played by: Robert Downey Jr. in 'Iron Man' (2008)
It takes a righteously inventive dude like Tony Stark to fashion a suit of red and gold that gives him the power of flight, fight and might. He has no special abilities at all without it, making it a super costume indeed.
Paramount
Daredevil
Played by: Ben Affleck in 'Daredevil' (2003)
For a blind superhero, Ben Affleck's Daredevil sure does know how to dress ... although we wonder if he'd choose the same shimmery red leather fabric if he could see.
20th Century Fox
Superman
Played by: Christopher Reeve in 'Superman' (1978)
Christopher Reeve proves that wearing neck-to-toe red-and-blue Spandex doesn't make you any less of a man -- or badass Earth-saving Kryptonian, as the case may be.
AP
The Invisible Woman
Played by: Jessica Alba in 'Fantastic Four' (2005)
All of the members of the super group calling themselves the Fantastic Four sport the same garb -- blue unitards with black detail. For some reason, we like it best on the Invisible Woman.
20th Century Fox
Blue Raja
Played by: Hank Azaria in 'Mystery Men' (1999)
Possibly colorblind (there's no blue in his costume), Blue Raja is just the hero that hapless diner who's just dropped his fork on the ground needs.
Everett Collection
Wolverine
Played by: Hugh Jackman in 'X-Men' (2000)
The X-Men's superpowers are derived from genetic mutations, but there's nothing freaky about the team uniform. Luckily all the good mutants can rock a tight black one-piece -- none more pleasingly than Wolverine.
20th Century Fox
Darkman
Played by: Liam Neeson in 'Darkman' (1990)
The bandage-wrapped avenger takes his title a little too literally in the costume department, but his getup is still flashier than that other superhero Neeson played, Oskar Schindler.
Everett Collection
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The Geek Beat: Our Own Worst Enemies
Filed under: Fandom », The Geek Beat »
Somehow, I wasn't worried about seeing "too much" of X-Men Origins: Wolverine. I know the character inside and out, I have way too many spin-offs and essential volumes, I've done a whole column based purely on a trailer -- and now another out of two minutes of footage. Except this isn't really about Wolverine, exactly, it's about wishing that summer blockbusters (and fall, winter, and spring) left a little more to the imagination.
It's silly to whine about being spoiled when it comes to Wolverine or Watchmen -- like I said, I know these stories. I can quote them. I have the characters on t-shirts and hoodies. But when your favorite character or story appears onscreen, there will (hopefully) be something fresh in the telling. At the very least, it will blow your mind to see that scene acted out in all its big-budgeted special effects glory. That's the experience that I go to the movie theater for, and it's the experience that's disappearing slowly with every television spot and viral marketing campaign.
It's February ... and I already know the finer points of Wolverine. I know where the story is going. I've even seen Logan grieving over Silver Fox. Yeah, these are things I already knew about, but given that the film is reinventing his origin, I wanted to be surprised in the way they did it.
The same thing happened last summer with The Dark Knight and Iron Man. I was spoiled on Rachel Dawes' death thanks to a newspaper article needing geek hits by way of Aaron Eckhart. We all saw Tony Stark declare "Yeah -- I can fly" on our laptop screens, not on the big screen ... and we also watched the best moments of Hulk smashing before we paid our 10 bucks to actually watch it.. We just can't help ourselves.
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