Marvelous Moviemakers: Rethinking the Authorship of the Avengers Agenda

In a previous post, I suggested that Marvel Studios had been partially "playing it safe" in assembling directorial talent for its ambitious crossover agenda. While it's true the studio has hired some auteurs in the shape of Kenneth Branagh (Thor) and Edgar Wright (Ant-Man, if it ever gets made), I argued that the filmmakers at the helm of the other three major Avengers films (Iron Man's Jon Favreau, The Incredible Hulk's Louis Leterrier, and Captain America's Joe Johnston) had yet to prove themselves true artists with a consistent vision across their canon of work. That is not to downplay their talents as craftsmen. Indeed, each is perfectly capable of putting together a quality film. Upon further reflection, however, I realized that I may have misjudged certain filmmakers, and also overlooked the fact that the auteur is not always necessarily the director. Indeed, a screenwriter, actor, or even producer can also claim the signature of a film. That said, as more and more details have emerged about Marvel's upcoming slate, I have come to recognize the artistry that we can expect, or at least hope for, with each individual film.

The Avengers (2012)

First, I'll address the recent news that Joss Whedon (pictured right) is in final negotiations to direct The Avengers, the culminating point in Marvel's master plan. A revered pioneer of geekdom (mostly in the realm of television), Whedon is known for his instantly recognizable dialogue style and ability to juggle ensembles of lovable characters. He should have no problem handling the already-charming likes of Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, and Samuel L. Jackson. Some are concerned that Whedon's involvement might not guarantee commercial success because his only film to date, the impressive(-to-me) Serenity, failed to hit with either critics or moviegoers. The fact remains, however, that the star-studded Avengers will have had five surefire blockbuster hits advertising its main characters by the time it is released. A director's name rarely has much to do with box office success. Nobody knew who the director of New Moon was, nor did they care that his only prior movie was the disappointing Golden Compass. At least Whedon has a rabid cult following. Ultimately, the name brand is probably enough that director of The Avengers doesn't matter. It just so happens that this director is extremely talented.

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

In addition, it looks as if Whedon will get to polish the scripts for both The Avengers AND Captain America. So while Joe Johnston may or may not offer a visionary take of his own, Whedon could ensure an auteur's stamp on the film after all. Before Whedon's involvement, Captain America was continually shaping up to be the "safe" movie that I suspected it might be. The choice of Chris Evans in the lead role - an undoubtedly great actor, but one who will have starred in five comic book adaptations, including another Marvel property, before Captain America - seemed a bit too obvious. As did the casting of Hugo Weaving, who has made a name for himself playing maniacal villains. Such choices sometimes have the tendency to be predictable to the point of boring, but hopefully the writing will be strong enough to play to the actors' strengths in a refreshing way.

Iron Man (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010)

The true auteur of the Iron Man series is Robert Downey Jr. (pictured left), who gives the films their heart and soul. It is his improvisation on set that brings the character to life and creates a comic tone unique for the superhero genre. Jon Favreau seems to encourage this improvisational approach, which is extremely risky for a big-budget action film of this kind. Such courageousness must be admired, and with a can't-lose star like Downey Jr. guiding the rest of the cast, it will be hard to mess up the upcoming Iron Man 2. Unless, of course, Tony Stark is given less screen time due to a possible overload of characters and plot lines, which some are worried might be the case. But as long as Favreau puts as much care into bringing the new characters to life as he did with Tony Stark and Pepper Potts in the first film, Iron Man 2 just might be invincible.

The Incredible Hulk (2008)

Like Downey Jr., Edward Norton is an actor-auteur, although Norton's contributions to The Incredible Hulk are slightly more tangible, as he performed a page-one rewrite of Zak Penn's screenplay, making several changes in dialogue and adding pivotal scenes of character development. The actor also worked with Louis Leterrier "in every phase of production, including the editing." Leterrier even described his role to Entertainment Weekly as more of a mediator between Norton and the studio than a director guiding the creative trajectory of the film. If included in the Avengers film, I wonder how much control Norton (and Downey Jr., for that matter) would have as an actor-auteur.

In conclusion, I rescind my claim that Marvel is playing it safe, as it seems there are able auteurs behind each of their films, be they directors, writers, or actors. The mere fact that they are attempting a massive cinematic crossover of such magnitude is in fact quite the opposite of playing it safe. Marvel is attempting a feat as courageous as the heroes they are trying to bring to the screen. What matters in the end, however, is whether or not the films are good, and the impressive talents they have assembled certainly increase the chances of these movies being good, or at least interesting.

Franchise Flexibility: How DC Can Be Distinct

I have mentioned in other posts Warner Brothers' intent to emulate the crossover technique recently initiated by Marvel Studios in their upcoming DC-Comics-based adaptations. The plan is to "[release] a single film for each character, and then [use] those movies and their sequels to build up to a multicharacter film." This move is clearly an attempt on the part of Warner Bros. to capitalize on current industry trends and compete with Marvel. After all, DC and Marvel have been rivals in the comic book world for years (as represented by the epic battle depicted to the right). It is only logical that their respective film studios should challenge each other as well. While the temptation for any business might be to replicate what is already successful, Warner Bros. can in my view better counter Marvel's efforts by differentiating itself from the opponent rather than copying them.

If anything, Warner Bros. should look to the critical and financial accomplishment of its own summer sensation, The Dark Knight, as an example of abstaining from popular convention. The movie works as a complete, self-contained story without any promise of future character crossovers, unlike Marvel's two interrelated films from this year, Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk, which serve as precursors to the upcoming Avengers film. Director Christopher Nolan even recently told the L.A. Times, "I don’t think our Batman, our Gotham, lends itself to that kind of cross-fertilization." Furthermore, regarding future Batman-related projects, leading man Christian Bale has said that he finds it "tricky to imagine working on it without it being a collaboration with Chris." As such, it is unlikely that fans will see Bale's version of the Caped Crusader in a non-Nolan-directed Justice League film unless the studio can manage to lure the actor with either an irresistible screenplay or a huge paycheck. This may certainly be the case if Armie Hammer ends up filling the role in George Miller's possible Justice League adaptation, which remains in pre-production limbo but might resume at some point.

Rather than interpreting it as a detriment to the existing Batman franchise, the recasting of the character could be seen as an opportunity to tell an entirely different self-contained story, removed from the continuity of Nolan's films altogether. By concentrating on just creating the best and most complete narrative rather than trying to connect it to other movies for the sake of crossing over, the Justice League film could prove a more worthwhile effort than some people expect. For this to happen, the adaptations for each individual character from the superhero team would have to be isolated from the Justice League movie. If Mark Millar is able to make his proposed eight-hour Superman trilogy, which would follow the character from the beginning to the end of his life, it would, like Nolan's films, leave no room for crossovers. As far as the Justice League picture goes, this means Warner Bros. might have to use a different actor for Superman than whoever they decide to go with in the upcoming reboot. Planned films for League members like Green Lantern, The Flash, and Wonder Woman must also remain separate from the superhero team in terms of both casting and continuity.

Another way Warner Bros. could distinguish itself from Marvel is to take the idea of reboots to a whole new level. Rather than milking every superhero franchise to its last drop, the studio could actually plan on definitively ending a series and then taking it in an entirely different direction with a new series. In other words, they could treat their superhero properties like the everlasting James Bond franchise, which cycles different actors through the title role over time, constantly changing flavors and reinventing itself with each leading man. As IGN points out, the Batman films to date have actually been remarkably diverse with each incarnation (symbolized by the multiple Batmen from the comics to the left), though not until Nolan had any been treated as a storyline with a definitive ending. Adam West and Joel Schumacher both interpreted the concept as a campy comedy, Tim Burton's films channel 1930's film noir and Gothic fantasy, while Nolan's installments reflect more of a realistic crime drama sensibility. There are multiple possibilities as to where the Batman franchise can go after the conclusion of Nolan's films, aside from changing actors. For instance, it would be interesting if the next wave of Bat-films drew from supernatural horror or perhaps even placed the character in a different time period. A live action rendition of the futuristic sci-fi animated series "Batman Beyond," which was at one point considered, might be in order. This franchise flexibility would also leave room for adaptations of individual stories from the comics like Batman: Year One, The Long Halloween, or The Dark Knight Returns, which in my view could hold their own as distinct, unrelated films.

Ultimately, this method of constant reinvention can work, if the lasting success of the Bond franchise is any indication, with its six actors and twenty-two films over a period of forty-six years and counting. Such reboots open up doors for quality storytelling and creative freedom, as superhero films would not be limited by the need to awkwardly align with other movie continuities. Perhaps more importantly, it offers an alternative to the current Marvel mode of doing things, with which audiences might become disillusioned should the studio's crossover agenda prove less satisfying than expected. With the promise of constant fluctuation, DC Comics fans could always look forward to a new and refreshing take on their favorite characters instead of waiting for the current series to go sour. If nothing else, Warner Bros. could at least avoid seeming desperate in an attempt to copy Marvel and actually give their rival studio a run for the money.

Crossing Over: How Comic Book Films Are Starting to Look More Like Comic Books

Fueled by the recent financial and critical successes of superhero films like Iron Man and The Dark Knight, both Marvel Studios and Warner Brothers have begun to lay out their future plans for more movies based on Marvel and DC Comics properties, respectively. In the next few years, the two studios will employ a strategy that has been used in comic books for decades but until just this year has been absent from comic book films: the crossover, wherein characters from one property interact with characters from another within the same continuity. Marvel's next three films (Iron Man 2, Thor, and The First Avenger: Captain America) will be made with the intention of bringing each titular character (pictured to the left) together as a super-team in the ultimate crossover film, The Avengers. This year, both Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk introduced the idea of a shared filmic universe. In a post-credits scene in Iron Man, S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury makes a brief cameo to inform protagonist Tony Stark of the "Avenger initiative," planting the seeds for the future team-up. Later in the summer, The Incredible Hulk featured a surprise appearance from Tony Stark himself, who passes the word along to General Thunderbolt Ross about the team, further setting up the eventual crossover. Marvel's plan is to continue including character cameos in their films even before the Avengers movie. For instance, the superhero Thor will be introduced in Iron Man 2 before starring in his own film. Warner Bros. has decided to follow in Marvel's footsteps and include crossovers in their own films based on DC properties. The Wall Street Journal reports that the studio "has quietly adopted Marvel's model of releasing a single film for each character, and then using those movies and their sequels to build up to a multicharacter film." This trend of crossovers illustrates one way that contemporary comic book films have begun to look more like the comic books from which they are derived.

One of the more intriguing new trends in comic book films is the wave of "reboots," in which previous storylines are disregarded to start anew. This reflects the multitudes of overlapping and contradicting continuities in the comic book industry, in which the origins of superheroes are constantly being retold. The concept of restarting already established film franchises was likely popularized by 2005's Batman Begins, which completely re-imagined its title character from scratch after an eight year hiatus following the critical failure of Batman & Robin. Such intervals between franchises have become increasingly shorter. Marvel waited five years between the relatively unsuccessful Hulk and this summer's unrelated The Incredible Hulk, and only four years between Punisher and the upcoming Punisher: War Zone. Similarly, Warner Bros. has already announced a Superman reboot two years after the release of Bryan Singer's Superman Returns, as well as a live action reinvention of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise just one year after the animated TMNT.

With the gap between reboots rapidly narrowing, it is entirely possible that in the near future, multiple film incarnations of the same characters will be produced simultaneously. Such an idea nearly came to fruition when Warner Bros. recently planned a Justice League adaptation, which would have included another version of the Batman character, as actor Armie Hammer was cast instead of Christian Bale, who stars in Christopher Nolan's current Batman series. The film would have also excluded Brandon Routh, the Superman of Bryan Singer's now-canceled franchise, in favor of actor D.J. Cotrona. Thus, fans would have been left with two versions of each character at the same time. However, the Justice League film was tabled due to the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, although development has since resumed, meaning the two continuities may in fact still become a reality. If this were to become a trend, the comic book film genre would again more closely parallel the comic book industry, where multiple titles involving the same characters co-exist while telling different stories. For example, Spider-Man has appeared in a variety of different series such as The Amazing Spider-Man, The Spectacular Spider-Man, Peter Parker: Spider-Man and others at the same time. Perhaps it is only a matter of time before we see two actors portraying Spider-Man in separate film franchises.

The convergence of cinema and comics has been enhanced by another recent convention, "translating" panels of graphic novels directly to the screen rather than merely taking inspiration from them. In other words, studios have started to "adopt" the comics rather than "adapt" them, essentially treating them as storyboards. Films not only borrow story techniques from the comics, but literally look like the comics. For instance, director Zack Snyder's upcoming adaptation of the limited series Watchmen will religiously adhere to the comic's illustrations (as evidenced by the image to the right comparing a panel from the graphic novel and a still from the film). Snyder was just as strictly faithful in adapting Frank Miller's 300 in 2007. This trend of copying the comics frame for frame began in 2005, however, when Robert Rodriguez adapted Sin City. Given the financial successes of these two films and the potential profitability of Watchmen, the comic book film fans could continue to see an influx of translations rather than adaptations.

One can only wonder if the comic book film will adopt more qualities from its canon of source material as the genre continues to develop. Perhaps the formal strategies of cinema will be utilized to further reflect the visual style of graphic novels. Ang Lee's Hulk, for instance, featured a stylized form of editing, including split screens and dynamic visual transitions reminiscent of the panels of a comic book page. The film was not well received, however, and studios have likely hesitated to revisit these cutting techniques for fear of financial failure. However, it is possible that such editing strategies will soon be revisited as the realms of cinema and comics more tightly intertwine. Perhaps new formal techniques will emerge from the fusion and enrich the genre even more. The future path of comic book films will certainly be interesting to follow as these two industries themselves continue "crossing over."