2012: The Begining of The End For Comic Book Movie Genre?

2012: The Begining of The End For Comic Book Movie Genre?

No, no, I don't mean as in it's being thought of as the end of the world. I mean that come 2012 tons of films will be coming all at once in the genre which could lead to the downfall of comic book movies. Hell, just hear me out!

Editorial Opinion
By GiFF - Sep 17, 2010 02:09 PM EST
Filed Under: Action


First of all, let me just say I am new here. I just made my account minutes before writing this article. I just wanted that fact known in case there are certain things I do wrong in my articles.

The subject is that a number of comic book films are all being set for 2012. Comic book movies have been dominating in cinema for a good while now, and like all fads, it is certain that some day comic book movies will begin to downfall. Could 2012 be the beginning of the end?

To refresh all of our minds, here is the release dates set so far in 2012:

February 17, 2012 - GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE

May 4, 2012 - THE AVENGERS

June 29, 2012 - STAR TREK 2

July 3, 2012 - SPIDER-MAN

July 20, 2012 - BATMAN 3

December 2012 - SUPERMAN

Added to those, THE FLASH, FANTASTIC FOUR, WOLVERINE 2, JUDGE DREDD, and even RUNAWAYS (based on the fact it is going to be filmed in February 2011, 2012 would be most realistic to release the film) have been all talked about for 2012 (specifically FANTASTIC FOUR and JUDGE DREDD).

That is a lot of comic book films. It seems awfully hard to believe the movie goers would NOT get sick of the genre with all this being thrown down their throats seemingly at once.

Especially when you count the fact that Spider-Man may be hard for many to accept due to the fact that many of us today grew up with Tobey and the other crew in the films. Thus, seeing new actors in the reboot may hurt it. Another important (though more unlikely) thing to point out is many movie goers have complained that "The Avengers" has been pushed down our throats too much, most notably with "Iron Man 2." Also, it may be a bit too much for some people to stand with all the comic book elements being there.

Batman 3: while it will be a great film given how great Nolan is, it could disappoint. Why? "The Dark Knight" is very overrated, and people may expect Batman 3 to be even better, but without the Joker (the main reason TDK was so well liked), can it do as well?

Superman, Ghost Rider, and Fantastic Four have all gotten shady portrayals recently. It is debatable as to whether these films will really rake in any real money. "Ghost Rider" did moderately well, and the FF films were just fine. Superman, on the other hand, is the one that needs the most fixing being that people just hate Superman as a character, added with the fact "Superman Returns" was a huge failure.

"Star Trek 2" is debatable whether it is actually looked at as a comic book film. I would say "Star Trek 2" will be fine. Same goes for Judge Dredd.

"Wolverine 2" may just be a bore. Runaways is hard to say how it will do. It could be a hit or miss, unfortunately.

Then there is "The Flash," which could be good if Warner Bros. and co. figure out a realistic way to bring him to the screen and make him interesting.

Funny enough, being that we are only in late 2010, there still is the next three months and a year left for even more 2012 comic book movies to be announced.
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airbeyonder18
airbeyonder18 - 9/17/2010, 3:02 PM
Good points, but I doubt this is the end. Maybe the end for Major Marvel names like no more Spidey, Iron Man films but it certainly is the beginning for DC household names like Flash, Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, Justice League.
tazmaniak
tazmaniak - 9/17/2010, 3:08 PM
Don't agree.As long as you put quality into films, or as long as the good outweigh the bad, they will prosper.Doesn't really make sense that we'd get tired of good movies.People who don't like the movies won't see them, while people who do will.Comic books have been around for about 74 years, but we've really only started getting good movies the last 10 years.

Alot of your points seem to be personal opinions, or opinions of comic book fans, not the general audiences.

We haven't even scratched the surface yet No way is this genre ending anytime soon.
Dynamo
Dynamo - 9/17/2010, 3:09 PM
@airbeyonder18
that maybe a very likely possibility.
oOLaterDazeOo
oOLaterDazeOo - 9/17/2010, 3:10 PM
...no

marvel72
marvel72 - 9/17/2010, 3:14 PM
i don't think it will be the end,i think it could peak though.

if you have twelve in 2012 you won't get twelve in 2013.
patriautism
patriautism - 9/17/2010, 3:15 PM
Great article man!!!
tazmaniak
tazmaniak - 9/17/2010, 3:29 PM
"They've done it before, most recently with the vampire and zombie genres."

Those are completely separate things.For one, vampires and zombies are not a genre, they are part of the horror/fantasy genre.Anyway, the movies are going to be about one thing.How many different stories and ways can you tell a vampire or zombie story before you just start retreading old territory.

On the other hand, the comic book movie is a genre in the fact that it is made of of alot of different types of subgenres.That's the beauty of it.All the movies aren't the same.Look at how different the lineup is.

Ghost Rider - horror fantasy
Superman - traditional hero
Batman - semi-realistic action thriller
Kick Ass - realistic action comedy
Ninja Turtles - martial arts film
Runaways - teen sci-fi action film
Avengers - superhero team movie
Star Trek - space adventure
Dredd - gritty sci-fi adventure

Those movies are part of the same genre, but they are completely different.Sure, if all CBM were just about one thing(like vampires and zombies) the well would quickly run dry.But because it encompasses many types of stories, I don't see that happening.Not anytime soon, at least.

Look at other genres.People haven't gotten tired of dramas, comedies, thrillers or sci-fi movies.As long as we get a wide variety of them, they are here to stay.
jazzman
jazzman - 9/17/2010, 3:30 PM
how The Dark Knight is very overrated that was a great movie.

anyway good article i do find we have so much or too much comic book movies in 1 year. these type of superhero comics could get a major backlash cause people want to see something different.

heres another thing Hollywood now wants to do board game movies. yes that will be the next genre we going to have i.e.

- Battleship movie
- Magic 8 ball movie
- Monopoly movie
- Candy Land, etc

@Sooner09

it was Sylvester Stallone who blame Batman for the decline of 80s Action movies

http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/movie-talk-sylvester-stallone-blames-batman.html
marvelguy
marvelguy - 9/17/2010, 4:37 PM
I think your argument is flawed. You should distinguish between superhero movies, comic book adaptations, and then sci-fi (Star Trek). Every summer is going to have blockbusters. Some years it's comedies, some years it's Disney, and some years it's a cornucopia. Now, there is the chance that similar properties will split the box office. Thor may impact Cap, etc. The reality is even the ones the CBM crowd watched but didn't like, made a lot of money ("Returns, Spider-Man 3,and X3"). Remember, Spider-Man has had to battle Shrek and the Pirates movies. Your argument groups them all together. They all raked in the cash.
The real worry should be if Marvel or DC's seeming overproduction loses the quality of a "Spider-Man 2" or a "Dark Knight."
Last: I don't believe "The Dark Knight" was overrated. I didn't like "Titanic," but its box office couldn't be a complete fluke.
Please take this as constructive criticism.
Thanks!
tazmaniak
tazmaniak - 9/17/2010, 4:41 PM
See, I think it's the general public that doesn't care that it's a comic book movie.They just want to see action movies.Hell, sometimes they don't even know it's a comic book movie.

I think it's the comic book community who are having problems with these movies.

The people I know, who don't read comics, didn't know Ghost Rider, The Losers, Watchmen, Scott Pilgrim, Hellboy, Surrogates, 30 Days of Night, Sin City, V For Vendetta or Wanted were based on comic books.They just liked them as movies.
OdinsBeard
OdinsBeard - 9/17/2010, 5:50 PM
i think your making the fundamental mistake that a lot of people in Hollywood make (and forgive me if someone else already said it) and that is that "Comic Book" in it of itself is not a genre. Sometimes it's a subset of the fantasy genre but there are also many genres within comics. Crime, Fantasy, Mystery, Sci-fi, Action, Romance, Family, and many others... Road to perdition, History of Violence, The Mask, Men in Black... all comics.

Just because "dear John" bombed that doesn't mean anyone would say "well, that's it for the novel genre!"

No Offense GiFF, it was a great first article. don't apologize! lol
OdinsBeard
OdinsBeard - 9/17/2010, 5:53 PM
tazmaniak knows whats up
TheDarqueOne
TheDarqueOne - 9/17/2010, 6:12 PM
Predictions for pretty much all of those movies are more personal preference than judgment. We simply know almost nothing about some and less than that about others.

Not bad for a first Article though.

TheMyth
TheMyth - 9/17/2010, 6:14 PM
Tazmaniak has the best point of all I feel. It is us comic readers that have the problem. To reiterate his point, all those movies he listed... of all the people I hang with, I was the only one that knew they were all CBM's. To further my point, the only people I hear screaming that Wolverine sucked is comic readers, everyone else loved it that I know. One of my friends thought it was the best CBM ever! And I quote, "That was waaay better than that boring Iron Man movie, y'know, where he just fights a BIGGER Iron Man at the end, that shit was stupid." This is a direct quote from a close friend of mine who has never picked up a comic in his life, other than to move one from a chair so he could sit down in my house lol. The point is, it will never really be the end, at least not for the reason's in this article, and our perception of a CBM gone bad is radically different from the public's idea of one. If anything it will be constant reboots that do it as far as the non-comic reading public is concerned. They will get sick of seeing Spidey's origin rehashed with a younger (cheaper) face every decade.
TheDarqueOne
TheDarqueOne - 9/17/2010, 6:51 PM
@Sooner09

I have to wonder which Fans exactly should the Studios listen to? In my experience every CBM produces a range of about 5 different basic sets of opinions. Mostly because the group is so diverse. People who were reading comics 30 years ago tend not to like the same things as those who started this decade for example.

Comics appeal to a such a small segment of the population it is just hard to make movies for us.
jbak368
jbak368 - 9/17/2010, 8:02 PM
How long have they been making mafia movies? Zombie movies (which have been getting made pretty consistently since the 60's)? Vampire movies (30's)? Historical epics? Spy movies (hell even just James Bond)? Westerns? (Note that all of the genres mentioned can be thrillers, action films, comedies, etc.) The fact is, we've only recently gotten to a point where most comic books actually CAN be made into movies. There isn't any reason that, as long as they are well-crafted films with the necessary level of emotional realism to relate to audiences, comic-book films can't keep getting made for the foreseeable future.
illdubb
illdubb - 9/17/2010, 11:29 PM
@Gaston Agree with you on 2011 being the start of new CBM revolution. With all the reboots and runaways, I'm pretty sure one of them will be a great movie we can sink our teeth into. I just found this site, enjoyed what I have read so far. I find it hard to see The Flash as a hit CBM. Too much CGI leaves me wanting my money back, and it's hard to see The Flash not being another TMNT. With that off my chest, 2012 will be a great year for CBM's. The Avengers, and Batman 3 in the same year? SOLD. Star Trek 2 will be great as well, I just didn't have the heart to list it as a CBM. I believe 2012 will be the beginning, not the end for CBM's.
TheMyth
TheMyth - 9/18/2010, 12:15 PM
BrazillianBatman, I agree. My example was just to contrast the differing opinions regarding CBM's from a comic readers standpoint to a non-comic readers standpoint.

Sooner, Stallone is the one who said that.

As far a TDK being overrated, it was a great movie so I don't think it was overrated as you say. However, TDK is a good example of a CBM that doesn't follow the source, but managed to amalgamate some of Bat's history into a worthy story. TDK is proof that a CBM doesn't have to adhere to the source to be great.
dancingmonkey08
dancingmonkey08 - 9/18/2010, 4:29 PM
Great article. But I agree with a couple of you guys, if there is variety in comic book movies, they could go on forever. How many horror or romance movies has there
been and they keep being popular because they have variety. That means Marvel and DC has to keep making different comic book movies. This is going to be tricky when making movies about Hawkeye and Green Arrow or Aquaman and Namor. The general public will see them as pretty much the same character and it will be a turn off. Same for the Martian Manhunter, leave him in a Justice League movie but not in his own movie, to the general public, he is too similar to Superman. However, when it comes to making movies about the members of the Justice League and the Avengers, they couldnt be anymore different so they will have great variety.

Another thing is studios will have to recognise when
there is an end point for comic book characters before movies about them become the same thing over and over again. For franchises like Iron Man, this is a possibility meaning it really should only run for a trilogy.

In my opinion, its not the amount of comic book movies that is being created is the problem, the problem is the constant bloody reboots. A reboot should only be implemented when a franchise is beyond saving. Spider-Man 3 wasnt a good movie but they could of easily brought in this Webb guy to direct a continuation which could of continued on from Spidey 3 instead of the studio bosses looking up their extremely limited dictionaries and going straight for the word "reboot"! Spider-Man needed to be given a rest and if they still wanted to reboot it, leave it for another 5 years or so.

Reboots were badly needed when Batman went crap. A reboot is definetly needed with Superman because Bryan Singer [frick]ed that up beyond repair. With Superman Returns, Singer should have made an Incredible Hulk-type movie, by this I mean he should have made a movie that referenced the past but tried something new with the character. I respected Bryan Singer for showing respect to the original two brilliant Superman movies but the Incredible Hulk was able to respect its past without ramming it down people's throat and ruining the character at the same time!

If studios made their comic book movies with a little more respect, we wouldnt need constant bloody reboots. Thats why I am hoping for an awesome third Batman movie, it will show other directors and studios how to make a proper comic book movie trilogy. And another thing, I wish everyone would stop wishing for a reboot after Batman 3. They could easily keep going with a continuation of the Batman movies after Batman 3. Future movies could be under new directors and new casts but they could be loose sequels to Nolan's movies without having to refer to Nolan's movies at all. If Batman 3 doesnt [frick] any characters up or anything else, then the current Batman franchise could continue on with a new director who could transition the franchise into Justice League territory.

I would rather not see a X-Men reboot either, leave Fox to [frick] up their own franchise and then Marvel could do a proper reboot eventually
ThunderCougarFalconBird
ThunderCougarFalconBird - 9/19/2010, 1:34 PM
Welcome to the club bud! Nice article and interesting thoughts. I don't think the average movie goer will get bored with CBMs as a genre. Movies have always had the good vs evil, the hero (superpowered or not) struggling to save the day. The only difference is most movie heroes these days have started in print or computer games rather than thrown onto the screen straight from the creators brain. There is such a deep and diverse well of characters and stories in comics that the possible movie applications are more than enough to sustain the genre indefinitely. If these movies become stale it will be down to the studios mishandling of the property or simply the overuse of one character rather than new heroes coming to screen.
dcpaper
dcpaper - 9/25/2010, 2:03 PM
I think it could get boreing only if its the same charecter with the same concept. If say Fox never gives up x-men or Marvel doesnt find a way to snatch it back. I feel that x-men will get old but because of the way it keeps gettin made. So really we could never get tired of CBMs cause their not all the same.
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