Tagged: Batman Begins

Wayne D. Chang: Judging “Joker” on Its Merits

There are several ways to look at Todd Phillips’ 2019 movie Joker. It is obviously grounded in DC Comics’ vast history, however it is not what most comic book aficionados would consider a “comic book” movie. Yes, it is set in Gotham City. Yes, there are references to Arkham Asylum as well as characters like Thomas Wayne, Alfred Pennyworth, and even a young Bruce Wayne. However it would be grossly unfair to judge this movie as a Batman movie or even consider it in the same frame of mind as the introduction of the Joker in Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman or Christopher Nolan’s 2008 The Dark Knight (and hinted at the end of Christopher Nolan’s 2005 Batman Begins). Both movies featured The Joker as the villain, and there was a clear relationship between him and Batman, but as I suggested, this does not appear to be a typical comic book movie.

For the record, I have not actually seen “Joker” yet. I am basing this op-ed piece on what news is currently available, video clips, trailers, etc. This piece may be flawed, but it is my opinion, and you are welcome to take exception with it if you choose to do so.

We see Arthur Fleck as someone akin to Arthur Miller’s “Willy Loman” in Death of a Salesman – a man of little perceived significance and yet to come to terms with who he is. Arthur Fleck is the kind of guy who gets the crap beat out of him in viral videos. He is a stand-up comedian who has had more bombs than Dresden. From what we see of him, there is a slow progression into madness or at the very least, we see him come to terms with his madness and rebirth as the Joker, something more than a stage persona. Arthur Fleck has accepted this as who he is as he becomes visible to a wider audience thanks to an appearance on “Live with Murray Franklin.” The fact that “Murray Franklin” is played by no less than Robert De Niro lends a gravity to what could have been a simple comic book movie, but even saying that is doing a gross disservice to Joker. The movie is a love note to Martin Scorsese’s 1982 masterpiece The King of Comedy.

Joker is as Warner Bros Publicity has stated, “a cautionary tale.”

So far Joker has enjoyed unprecedented critical acclaim and response from international film festivals, however it has also endured pre-judgment from comic book fans who are quick to dismiss it as NOT a comic book movie. A friend of mine was excited to see this when the teaser first hit social media, however recently he said he wouldn’t bother seeing it as it was not in his estimation a legitimate telling of the origins of the Joker as generations of comic books, TV shows, cartoons, and movies have portrayed it. There was Alan Moore & Brian Bolland’s timeless Batman: The Killing Joke (from which Joker seems to draw inspiration). There is also the older story element of Batman chasing a man in a red hood who falls in a vat of chemicals. Being immersed in chemicals apparently rendered this man’s hair green, his face white, and his lips red giving Gotham City the Clown Prince of Crime, The Joker. While the red hood was not integral to the Joker’s origin in some cases, Batman was, and in the case of  The Dark Knight, the Joker existed as a response to Batman establishing a symbiotic relationship.

A lot of dissatisfaction from comic book aficionados seems to come from the basic question of “Where’s Batman?” It is bad enough that adaptations of stories sometimes play fast and loose with established mythology, and some fans seem quick to voice that they’re not going to see Joker. I confess that I was one of these fans, however after deeper consideration, dismissing Joker as not a Batman movie would be just the same as what happens to Arthur Fleck in the movie – dismissing him as insignificant. Joker appears to be a frighteningly intimate portrayal of a man’s descent into madness and embracing it as others have not accepted him or his true nature. As such, I could easily see how this could and should receive massive amounts of critical success, however it is not what I would consider or accept as a comic book movie or a Batman story. Perhaps this version of the Joker would appear in an adaptation of DC Comics’ Crisis on Infinite Earths, and that certainly would be interesting, but I have reservations about that. It would be better to judge this as a character study.

REVIEW: Beware the Batman Season 1 Part 1

1000x1000_bewarethebatmans1-e1397424318907-8050370As much as there has been a fascination with Batman since his debut 75 years ago, lately, the trend has been to examine those vital origins. This began back with the Christopher Nolan Batman Begins and will most likely be on display next fall on Fox’s Gotham. In the comics, Scott Snyder is wrapping up his own take on that first pivotal year in the cape and even Cartoon Network took a stab at it with Beware the Batman: Shadows of Gotham. The latter debuted last July only to be unceremoniously yanked off the air in October after 11 episodes. A total of 17 are known to exist out of the 26 ordered but despite promises the show remains off the schedule.

Meantime, Warner Archive recently collected the first 13 stories onto a two disc Blu-ray set billing it as Season One, Part One. From a content standpoint, the idea of looking at those early days is ripe for exploration in any form. Interestingly, under Executive Producer Sam Register, the production team led by Glen Mirakmai, Mitch Watson, and Butch Lukic proclaim this is Batman (Anthony Ruivivar) after being in action five years. He’s no novice by then and depending upon which continuity you follow, he’s clearly a veteran hero. That length of experience puts him at odds with how he’s portrayed, somewhat unsure of himself, somewhat error-prone.

And unlike his one-man crusade as seen in the superior Year One animated film and graphic novel, he was on his own. Alfred was reluctantly aiding him but here, he’s a willing and very active participant as his one-0time experience as a secret agent handily comes into play. James Gordon (Kurtwood Smith) is still a lieutenant at the outset, graduating to commissioner during this season. What doesn’t work at all, for me, is the adding on of Katana (Sumalee Montano) as Alfred’s goddaughter and Robin surrogate. Batman should remain a loner if you’re exploring those first days and years and if he gets a sidekick, it should certainly not be someone from another culture with her own baggage but someone more organic to the story, such as Barbara Gordon, who merely crushes on the Caped Crusader here.

That said, the series gets kudos for avoiding the tried and true villains in favor of a wide assortment of lesser lights starting with Grant Morrison’s silly Professor Pyg (Brian George) and Mister Toad (Udo Kier). The second episode introduces a darker, more malevolent Anarky (Wallace Langham) who is the meta villain for the arc and has eschewed his comic book-based philosophy in favor of being a criminal mastermind. We also get a deadlier and less silly Magpie (Grey DeLisle-Griffin). On the other hand, we get Ra’s al Ghul (Lance Reddick), Lady Shiva (Finola Hughes), and the League of Assassins so the Dark Knight certainly has his hands full.

The series is also rich with other elements of the DC Universe such as Michael Holt and Simon Stagg; and if Stagg is on hand, you can bet Rex Mason (Adam Baldwin) is here, too. In fact, “Toxic” is one of the stronger stories as Mason becomes Metamorpho and is first seen as a threat dubbed the “Golem of Old Gotham”. There’s also Jason Burr, introduced in “Safe” but who recurs and sharp-eyed readers know he is destined to become Kobra.

The series looks different, with the figure work being more angular and distorted than one expects. The CGI-animation is somewhat off-putting but better than the last straight Batman series but nowhere near as good as the original Animated Series or The Brave and the Bold. The strong writing makes you overlook the odd visuals which is a benefit.

The Blu-ray disc looks and sounds just fine, as one has come to expect. And being from the cut-rate Archive arm, there are no extras.

Thor: The Dark World Comes to DVD on February 25

thor-the-dark-world-3d-combo-box-art-e1388761612600-8564090Synopsis:                Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World continues the big screen adventures of Thor, the Mighty Avenger, as he battles to save Earth and all the Nine Realms from a shadowy enemy that predates the universe itself.  In the aftermath of Marvel’s The Avengers, Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos… but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith returns to plunge the universe back into darkness.  Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.

Cast:                     Chris Hemsworth (Marvel’s Thor, Marvel’s The Avengers, Snow White and the Huntsman) as Thor, Natalie Portman (Marvel’s Thor, Black Swan, Star Wars Episodes I-III) as Jane Foster, Tom Hiddleston (Marvel’s Thor, Marvel’s The Avengers, War Horse) as Loki and Anthony Hopkins (Thor, Silence of the Lambs, Nixon) as Odin.

Director:                Alan Taylor (TV’s Game of Thrones, TV’s The Sopranos, TV’s Mad Men)

Screenplay:           Christopher L. Yost (Revolutionary Road, Snitch)

Christopher Markus (Pirates of the Caribbean franchise)

Stephen McFeely (Pirates of the Caribbean franchise)

Story by:                 Don Payne

Robert Rodat

Producer:                Kevin Feige, p.g.a. (Marvel’s The Avengers, Marvel’s Iron Man Franchise)

Executive Producers:     Louis D’Esposito (Basic Instinct, Marvel’s Iron Man, Marvel’s The Avengers)

Victoria Alonso (Marvel’s Iron Man, Marvel’s The Avengers, Big Fish)

Craig Kyle (X-Men: Evolution, Ultimate Avengers, Iron Man: Armored Adventures)

 Alan Fine (Marvel’s The Avengers, Marvel’s Iron Man, Marvel’s Thor)

                                        Nigel Gostelow (Batman Begins, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Da Vinci Code)

Stan Lee (Marvel’s Iron Man, Spider-Man, Marvel’s Thor)

Release Date:         February 4, 2014 for Digital 3D (Select Retailers) and Digital HD

February 25, 2014 (Direct Pre-book: TBC; Distributor Pre-book: TBC)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzDF9iktMzI&feature=youtu.be

Bonus Features:

(3D Combo Pack, BD, DVD & Select Digital Retailers)

·       Never-Before-Seen Extended and Deleted Scenes

·       Gag Reel

·       Exclusive Look – Marvel’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier

o   Get an exclusive first look at the latest installment in the Captain America franchise and its incredible cast of characters, including Scarlett Johansson as the Black Widow, Samuel L. Jackson as Director Nick Fury, Chris Evans, our hero Steve Roger’s, his new ally Sam Wilson, aka the Falcon played by Anthony Mackie, and a mysterious enemy from the past…the Winter Soldier played by Sebastian Stan.

·       A Brothers’ Journey:  Thor & Loki

o   In this 30 min feturette go behind the scenes with filmmakers and cast as we explore two of the most iconic characters in the Marvel Universe with stars Chris Hemsworth (Thor) & Tom Hiddleston (Loki), and journey through the key moments that have defined and endeared these characters to audiences around the world.

·       Scoring Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World with Brian Tyler

o   Go behind the scenes with the filmmakers and acclaimed composer Brian Tyler for a look at the creation of the movie’s stunning original score.

·       Audio Commentary with Director Alan Taylor, Producer Kevin Feige, Actor Tom Hiddleston (Loki) and Cinematographer Kramer Morgenthau

·       And More…

Ratings:                            PG-13

Feature Run Time:            1 hrs. 51 min. 53 seconds

Aspect Ratio:                   1.85:1

Audio:                              Dolby Digital Surround Sound

Languages:                     English, French & Spanish

Subtitles:                          English, French & Spanish

The Dark Knight Trilogy: Ultimate Collector’s Edition Coming in September

batman-begins_bat-signal-e1355519717719-9744394A day after Christian Bale confirmed he would not don the cape and cowl for a Justice League movie comes the official announcement of his three Dark Knight films being collected in time for the holidays. Christopher Nolan’s vision of Gotham City and its defender resuscitated Batman after a fallow stretch and showed us a darker view of heroism and its costs. Here’s the official press release:

Burbank, Calif. July 1, 2013 – Christopher Nolan’s reimagining of the Batman franchise beginning with 2005’s Batman Begins enjoyed phenomenal critical and box-office success.

Now on September 24, Nolan’s three Batman films – Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rises – will be released by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment as The Dark Knight Trilogy: Ultimate Collector’s Edition. The six-disc set will feature all three films with their existing extra content, two new featurettes and exclusive new collectible memorabilia. This must-own collection for fans of DC Comics’ Caped Crusader is available in premium packaging and will sell for $99.97 SRP.

TheDarkKnightRises_TeaserPoster-600x887About the Ultimate Collector’s Edition (UCE):

*Disc 1 – Batman Begins Feature and Special Features

*Disc 2 – The Dark Knight Feature

*Disc 3 – The Dark Knight Special Features

*Disc 4 – The Dark Knight Rises Feature

*Disc 5 – The Dark Knight Rises Special Features

*Disc 6 – Bonus Disc of New Special Features (details follow)

NEW Special Features:

  • The Fire Rises: The Creation and Impact of The Dark Knight Trilogy – The inside perspective on the fascinating story behind the creation of one of the most celebrated franchises and how it changed the scope of movie making….forever.  Full of never-before-seen footage, rare moments, and exclusive interviews with  Guillermo Del Toro, Damon Lindelof, Michael Mann, Richard Roeper, Zack Snyder and others.
  • Christopher Nolan & Richard Donner: A Conversation – For the first time, Directors Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight Trilogy) and Richard Donner (Superman) sit down to discuss the trials and triumphs involved in bringing the two most iconic superheroes of all time to the big screen, and how Superman influenced Nolan when developing Batman Begins.
  • IMAX® Sequences: The Dark Knight; The Dark Knight Rises – See your favorite scenes as they were intended in the original IMAX© aspect ratio

Exclusive NEW Memorabilia:

  • Premium Mattel Hot Wheels Vehicles: Batmobile, Batpod and Tumbler
  • Newly commissioned collectible art cards by Mondo featuring Scarecrow, Joker, Bane, Harvey Dent, and Ra’s al Ghul
  • 48-page hardcover book featuring production stills and behind the scenes images from all three movies

About The Films

Batman Begins (2005)

Batman Begins explores the origins of the Batman legend and the Dark Knight’s emergence as a force for good in Gotham. In the wake of his parents’ murder, disillusioned industrial heir Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) travels the world seeking the means to fight injustice and turn fear against those who prey on the fearful. He returns to Gotham and unveils his alter-ego: Batman, a masked crusader who uses his strength, intellect and an array of high tech deceptions to fight the sinister forces that threaten the city.

New Images and IMAX TV Spot Debut For The Dark Knight RisesThe Dark Knight (2008)

The follow-up to Batman Begins, The Dark Knight reunites director Christopher Nolan and star Christian Bale, who reprises the role of Batman/Bruce Wayne in his continuing war on crime. With the help of Lt. Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), Batman sets out to destroy organized crime in Gotham for good. The triumvirate proves effective, but soon find themselves prey to a rising criminal mastermind known as The Joker (Heath Ledger), who thrusts Gotham into anarchy and forces Batman closer to crossing the fine line between hero and vigilante. Maggie Gyllenhaal joins the cast as Rachel Dawes. Returning from Batman Begins are Oldman, Michael Caine as Alfred and Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox.

Dark Knight Rises (2012)

It has been eight years since Batman vanished into the night, turning, in that instant, from hero to fugitive. Assuming the blame for the death of D.A. Harvey Dent, the Dark Knight sacrificed everything for what he and Commissioner Gordon both hoped was the greater good. For a time the lie worked, as criminal activity in Gotham City was crushed under the weight of the anti-crime Dent Act.

catwoman poseBut everything will change with the arrival of a cunning cat burglar with a mysterious agenda. Far more dangerous, however, is the emergence of Bane, a masked terrorist whose ruthless plans for Gotham drive Bruce out of his self-imposed exile. But even if he dons the cape and cowl again, Batman may be no match for Bane. Christian Bale stars, along with Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Morgan Freeman.

THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY: ULTIMATE COLLECTOR’S EDITION (BD)

Street Date: September 24, 2013

Order Due Date: August 20, 2013

Catalog/UPC #: 1000372133 / 883929308002

Pricing: $99.97 SRP

Note: All enhanced content listed above is subject to change.

Blu-ray Disc™ and Blu-ray™ and the logos are the trademarks of Blu-ray Disc Association.

® & © 2009 IMAX Corporation. All rights reserved.

Warner Home Video Blu-ray Discs™ offer resolution six times higher than standard definition DVDs, as well as extraordinarily vibrant contrast and color and beautifully crisp sound. The format also provides a higher level of interactivity, with instant access to extra features via a seamless menu bar where viewers can enjoy features without leaving or interrupting the film.

Monday Mix Up: “Batman: The Animated Series” and “Arkham City”

  • News
  • December 19, 2011
bat_tas_cape-2353837

It’s been almost twenty years since Batman: The Animated Series hit the airwaves and kicked off the doors of what could be done with the character and with animation in general and television animation in particular, in the wake of the successful Michael Keaton movies.

Ever wonder what it might be like if they made The Animated Series today, in the wake of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight? Perhaps it would be something like this…

Just imagine if he made this using the Animated Series skins for [[[Arkham City]]]…

The Dark Knight Rises Teaser Poster Unveiled

  • News
  • December 10, 2011

Warner Bros. has sent us the teaser poster to next July’s The Dark Knight Rises, the third and final Christian Bale-starring film. Directed by Christopher Nolan, the film wraps up the story that began in Batman Begins. The first eight minutes will be shown in selected IMAX theaters this month, attached to Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol.

We’ll let the image do the rest of the talking.

Batman sequel on hold until 2011

  • News
  • February 12, 2009

darkknight-2518257According to E! Online, a sequel to The Dark Knight is two years away. At least.

Director Christopher Nolan has inked a deal with Warner Bros. to helm Inception, based on his own screenplay. The sci-fi action film "set within the architecture of the mind" aims to begin shooting this summer and hit theaters in summer 2010, according to the studio.

This probably shouldn’t surprise anyone, though. It was three years between Batman Begins, and last year’s The Dark Knight. In between, Nolan made The Prestige, starring Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman as rival magicians.

The only potential problem, of course, is if they want to do another Terminator sequel for 2011, which would keep Bale’s schedule very filled and could conceivable dilute the impact of each film in theaters.

Review: ‘The Dark Knight’ DVD

The Dark Knight stunned movie audiences by taking the mature themes and tone of its predecessor, [[[Batman Begins]]], and amping things up by a factor of 10. The movie was hailed by critics for around the world and theatres packed in the crowds to the tune of $1 billion in box office (or thereabouts).

In rewatching the film on DVD, now out from Warner Bros., the film remains very strong thanks to terrific lighting, set design, and riveting performances from Heath Ledger and Aaron Eckhart.  Yet, the story doesn’t hold together as well. 

First of all, Gotham looks and feels different from the first film from director Christopher Nolan. The city had been a character all on its own, with the architecture and monorail but now it just looks like, you know, Chicago. We don’t know how long its been since the first film, but since it ends with the Joker’s calling card, it can’t have been that long for a remake, and yet Batman’s legend is such that people are already out there being bat-masked vigilantes.

We know [[[Batman]]] is a presence, so much so that the criminal operations are suffering.  Enter, the Joker, a force of nature. The performance by Ledge is riveting because he makes you forget all about Cesar Romero and Jack Nicholson and creates something totally fresh. His desire to spread chaos in opposition to Batman’s sense of order becomes the film’s spine.

But, once you examine what happens next, things take an odd turn.

As the UK’s [[[Guardian]]] put it, when they named the film as having the most ridiculous plot of the year: “Wait, so the Joker really orchestrated that big truck chase just so that he could get caught and go to prison, then he could kidnap that guard and grab his phone to make the call to set off the bomb he’d previously sewn inside the henchman in the next cell? That would kill the guy who stole the mobsters’ money, thus enabling him to … er, what? Heath Ledger’s Joker may have been a psychopath, but he had a nerdish capacity for forward planning.”

(more…)

Academy Disqualifies ‘Dark Knight’ Score

  • News
  • November 13, 2008

the-dark-knight-6101596Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard collaborated on the score for The Dark Knight and now both men are being notified their efforts are being disqualified for consideration as Best Score by the executive committee of the Academy music branch. This matches their collaboration and disqualification for Batman Begins in 2005.

Zimmer, Howard, music editor Alex Gibson, ambient music designer Mel Wesson, and composer Lorne Balfe all were listed on the music cue sheet, the document judged by the Academy. They all signed an affidavit stating that the score was primarily the work of Zimmer and Howard but that was not good enough for the Academy. A different document provided to the Academy indicated more than 60%, but less than 70% of the score came directly Zimmer and Howard.

According to Variety, the Academy has spent hours and hours on the issue since the use of multiple composers is on the rise throughout theatrical production and this is not an isolated incident.

Zimmer told the trade “that listing multiple names on the cue sheet was a way of financially rewarding parts of the music team who helped make the overall work successful.”

Nolan Talks ‘Batman 3’

  • News
  • October 28, 2008

spike-tvs-2008-scream-awards-showBatman, Batman, who’s got the Batman? The Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan sure did, but according to a new interview with The L.A. Times, he might be hanging up the cape and cowl.

"There are two things to be said [in deciding whether or not to make a third Batman]," Nolan tells Geoff Boucher. "What’s the story? Is there a story that’s going to keep me emotionally invested for the couple of years that it will take to make another one? That’s the overriding question.

"On a more superficial level," he continues, "I have to ask the question: How many good third movies in a franchise can people name? [Laughs] At the same time, in taking on the second one [The Dark Knight], we had the challenge of trying to make a great second movie, and there haven’t been too many of those either. It’s all about the story really. If the story is there, everything is possible."

There are rumors all across the internet of what that story might be. Many suggest Catwoman, with Angelina Jolie as the most often discussed actress for the role, while certain news outlets such as the National Enquirer are convinced that Philip Seymour Hoffman and Johnny Depp are locked as the Penguin and Riddler respectively.

Nolan, on the other hand, doesn’t know much about what a sequel would entail. He admits that in filming The Dark Knight, his eyes weren’t set towards a third film, despite leaving The Joker alive.

"I only deal with one film at a time," states Nolan. "We’ve never attempted to save anything for a sequel or set up anything for a sequel. That seems improbable to some people because, particularly with Batman Begins, the film ended with a particular hook [with Jim Gordon showing Batman a Joker playing card announcing the arrival of a new villain in town]. But for me that was just about the excitement of people leaving the theater with the sense that now we have the character up and running. I wanted people to walk away with that sense in their head. You know, that he’s become the Batman in the movie. That’s why we had the title come up at the end, because it was Batman Begins, and it was all very specific to that. Then I got excited about seeing where that character would go. It was planned in advance, but it followed in that way."

(more…)

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