What Needs To Happen For A Green Lantern Sequel

What Needs To Happen For A Green Lantern Sequel

With expressing my thoughts on a Teen Titan movie franchise Karlel01 returns on my thoughts to a Green Lantern sequel

Editorial Opinion
By Karlel01 - May 23, 2012 04:05 PM EST
Filed Under: Fan Fic

What Needs To Happen In The Green Lantern Sequel

Ok let’s start off with the first movie, I personally thought it was a pretty good movie (but) it wasn’t a good Green Lantern movie so why did a film with a good cast, a big director, an estimated 200 million budget, a huge fanbase and tells the story of one of DCs most famous characters go so wrong, ‘well’ let’s think this through.


Ryan Reynolds- When he was first cast as Hal Jordan I thought to myself YES! I am a huge fan of him and knew he would be great but when I watched the movie I was disappointed. Now I have to be careful here because I wasn’t necessary disappointed with his performance however I noticed the way he was acting was so similar to other parts he played, the quick jokes the sarcasm and his acting in general were all very good and funny but I had seen it before from him in movies like Van Wilder, Just Friends, Xmen Origins, Blade Trinity, The Proposal etc and I noticed no matter how cool and funny he is, he does virtually the same character in most his movies.
Now there’s nothing wrong with that for some movies because it works as long as he remains funny and enjoyable he can play that part as much as he wants but when it comes to a movie like Green Lantern you have to give us something new, yes Hal is funny and yes he is sarcastic but there is so much that Ryan could have done with the character and it seems he just played it safe with what he has done before.

The Story- Now many have said that this was the reason the movie sucked the most and are they right?
Of course they are and I completely agree with them the story they gave us was Jordan becoming a Lantern, then not becoming a Lantern and then saving ‘Earth’ from Parallax was just silly.
For me the beginning was perfect it gave us an introduction to the Lantern core and then turned to Hal Jordan at the air base with Carol Ferris and engage in a dog fight with AI aircrafts. (This is the best part in the movie for me it was exciting, funny and beautifully shot but isn’t that a worrying sign, Hal hasn’t even got the Lantern ring at this point and yet it is my favourite scene in the movie so what happened after) we have Hal getting the ring of Abin Sur and being taken to the Oa this is when the story starts to fall apart, apart from Mark Strongs flawless performance as Sinestro I found Hal’s journey through Oa kinda dull and the training scene with Kilowag was a little boring, considering the pair had the most powerful weapons in the universe on their finger it was hardly exciting in any way, Hal than quits the core and goes back to Earth with Carol. (Right so he gets to learn who he is and all about the lantern core then after a dull training scene he quits, not exactly the hero complex is it.
Then he does a few saves on Earth one when he stops a helicopter with a racetrack projection and then Hector Hammond with a flamethrower and then the big finale see’s him fight Paralaax which in fairness was fairly exciting to begin with but soon became very silly again.


The End Credits- Now this may not seem like a big deal why would the end credits affect the movie well it doesn’t really but is again another reason why GL didn’t live up to the hype. In Iron Mans credits scene we got Samuel Jackson introduced as Nick Fury and the sequel gave us a look at Thor’s hammer, In Thor’s credit scene we found out Loki’s mischief on Earth and a glimpse at the Tesseract, and of course in The Avengers credits we get Thanos, every one of these were a little teaser of what’s to come and gave us hints as to where the story was going but what we did get from Green Lantern, a 10 second clip of Sinestro putting on the fear ring.

‘But wait that’s huge isn’t it Sinestro is now the bad guy this is great’, no no hang on this is the worst thing they could have done with the credits, when it first came out that Sinestro wouldn’t be the villain in the first GL movie it made sense he had to be established as Hals mentor first (though why they then chose Parallax for an origin villain I’ll never understand) but Sinestro’s fall is slow and comes from his illusions and his belief that he must now protect the universe through fear, in that credit scene all the potential of telling that story of Sinestro being drawn to fear and the betrayal from within scenario is ruined, they have sacrificed a whole bunch of great ideas for the sequel for just a quick 10 second end credit scene.


Ok so the first one in some respect and of course only down to personal opinion failed so does it deserve a sequel and how can it redeem itself to the fanbase or make it cooler to non comic readers?

Well this is hard, one could argue that Green Lantern had their chance and they blew it instead of putting more money into it for a sequel use that money to give another hero movie a shot ‘Wonder Woman or Flash comes to mind’.

Another could say that yes Green Lantern does deserve another movie but reboot it, the first one has ruined any chance or making a franchise and needs to be redone for sequels to work.

But is that necessarily true, now from at this point I have described mostly why I didn’t like the movie but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t credit what it has done and why a reboot may not be necessary.

First the origin is out of the way!
The potential here could be epic, we no longer have to see yet another hero go on a journey of self-discovery, we don’t have to go through Hal learning about the Lanterns and the characters in the Lantern universe, he’s already a Lantern, he’s already a hero and now we can get a true to from, powerful movie.

Learning from mistakes!
If a sequel ever does happen I am sure they will listen to the fanbase on what they done wrong, things like making the movie a space saga not a Earth to Oa and back to Earth again story, Hal has an entire sector of the universe to safeguard so lets see other planets, also the costume now it didn’t look so bad but can be improved however without a doubt that awful CGI mask has to go and there is no reason why it shouldn’t.


Make Sinestro the Villain!
The first movie did a half decent job portraying Sinestro as Hals mentor and Strong did a fantastic job giving him that dark edge, now about the end credits scene there is nothing to say he was at that point evil, in the movie the guardians created the fear ring and gave it to Sinestro so the end credits scene could be bluffed as him just trying on the ring and getting a taste of the power of fear, in the sequel the guardians could learn from their mistake, destroy the fear ring but with Sinestro now hooked on its power sets out to create his own fear ring and thus starts his downward path to evil.


Blue Lanterns or at least Saint Walker!

Ok so we’ve established that the sequel needs to move away from Earth and to include more of the universe, that Sinestro must be the villain in the movie and could even build the Sinestro Corps also we need to see Hal Jordan separate himself from the other Lanterns and succeeding at times where others would fail because as we all know he takes over Abin Surs former title as the greatest Green Lantern, but what else of course the Blue Lanterns.
‘Why include them’ because it would just make so much sense, they wouldn’t have to play a huge part in the movie but a part non the least, think about it Hal and the Green Lanterns are doing their thing protecting the universe along comes Sinestro wielding the yellow power of fear and cripples the core so how can the Green Lanterns ‘Hal Jordan’ overcome the attack and find a way to beat an enemy who not only knows all their strategies but also has a power they themselves have no knowledge of.

Theres a nice piece I read once when researching the Blue Lantern Core and that is that their power comes from Hope and whats special about them is they can infact increase the power level of a Green Lantern and decrease the power of a Yellow Lantern the message behind this, think about it in some ways it affects us all in real life, no matter how strong willed a person is when they a confronted with something that scares them or gives them fear than they will give into that fear, but when you are given hope then that then increases are will and belief to overcome that fear.
Also to introduce Saint Walker would be needed for Hals journey to stop Sinestro, With his former mentor turned into a traitor and enemy Hal would need someone else to seek guidance from which fits Saint Walkers description to the letter.

Ok so yes a better story can be found and with the origin done and dusted maybe a sequel has potential but why should Warner Brother risk even more money on the franchise when the first one flopped

Sure it is a risk but if it’s done properly as a true Green Lantern space saga then the possibilities and profits could be endless, not only could the sequel make a ton of money but people who appreciate it may also buy the first one and boosts that movies margin, also if it is a success then more sequels could be made for more profits, even with Hal Jordan as Green Lantern and Sinestro set up as his enemy we could have sequels including the Red Lantern Corps, Carol becoming Star Sapphire, John Stewart joining the Corps, The Manhunters, Parallax’s return and possess Hal Jordan and even the Blackest Night story involving the Black Lanterns and so much more.

So to conclude can a sequel work, of course it can the first movie had many flaws but it wasn’t awful, the fans who liked it did so because they like the character and supported him and the fans who hated the movie only did so because they believed their hero deserved better but at the end of the day were all just fans and I think I can say any DC fan has at the very least some appreciation for the Green Lantern characters and if your like me think of Green Lanterns as one of my favourite heroes ever and backed up by a powerful and imagined sequel the franchise can not only be saved but it can soar.

Thanks for reading and please comment your thoughts would love to hear them
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GreenHalJordan
GreenHalJordan - 5/23/2012, 5:22 PM
I actually like the movie, but more as a guilty pleasure. I thought Ryan's acting was spot on for Hal (especially when u take into account the mediocre writing, he did a pretty good job). The problems I had though were 3 main things: Hal and Carol's relationship/editing, Parallax being a BP oil spill cloud, and too little space scenes. I also didn't like the story or them killing hector Hammond off completely.
DukeAcureds
DukeAcureds - 5/23/2012, 5:59 PM
Nice article, Karle.
The worst part was how Sinestro's charactyer arc wrapped up with him being more devoted to the core and thankful to Hal than ever. Then suddenly, nah, actually I think I'll go bad.
I'm thinking a sequel should shopw his fall a lot slower maybe. Show what happened inbetween the end and the extra scene. And have some other villian introduced. Or two. I'm thinking Black Hand, maybe. Go back to the silver age. To the Hal Jordan that made us all fall in love with the Green Lantern.
DukeAcureds
DukeAcureds - 5/23/2012, 6:01 PM
I hope to [frick] they do a sequel. I mean they pretty much have to, now, right? I mean Avengers is now the 4th highest grossing film of all time and it's more popular than ever. I definately want to see it again at the cinema a couple more times. So a Justice League movie must be in the works. Green Lantern MUST be saved.
BANE5000
BANE5000 - 5/23/2012, 6:08 PM
If the rumors are true that Marvel Studios has a script ready to go for Ms. Marvel, then they beat DC to the punch again by making a film based on a female character and all DC has tried is a not-even-short-lived tv show based on Wonder Woman
DukeAcureds
DukeAcureds - 5/23/2012, 6:45 PM
2 Batman movie serials.
2 Superman movie serials.
8 Batman theatrical features.
6 Superman theatrical features.
1 Batman spin-off (Catwoman).
2 Superman spin-offs (Supergirl and Steel).
The Dark Knight Rises on the way.
Man of Steel on the way.
Wonder Woman much?

gmoney0505
gmoney0505 - 5/23/2012, 7:40 PM
I really do not understand why they couldn't do a page by page panel of Green Lantern Secret Origin. It has great character development of all the characters including Hal's family, great theme of fear, a good reason why Hal is fearless, and great build-up for future movies with Atrocitus and Blackest Knight story lines.

The only thing I would change in that would make Hector Hammond a bigger threat than he was in the book and fleshed out his character more form childhood.

Bumble
Bumble - 5/23/2012, 7:44 PM
for what it was, i thought green lantern wasn't that bad of a movie. did it live up to the expectations? heck no but few movies not named the avengers would have.
the issue with the film was lack of development; plain and simple. the opening was nice but after that it's like they took a short cut with the rest of the story. who and what kind of a person hal is is rushed through. his relationship with carol and their past is rushed through. parallax/kronos or whatever amalgamation that villain they called parallax was never fleshed out proper. sinestro's fall to the power of fear was slightly, and i mean slightly in the most minimal sense, with that montage with the guardians and the forging of the yellow ring. need i go on?
the look of the movie was very good. now the only thing that this potential franchise needs is some focus, that's all. let's not crowd the movie with villains ala spider-man 3 just to get some names in the film. keep things slim. focus on one hurdle at a time. make green lantern 2 what a green lantern movie should be about: space! exploring new worlds. seeing new creatures and civilizations. shows us more of the core and its history. introduce the man hunters and use the story to set up sinestro's fall properly. remember the film's cut scene just shows him putting the ring on. that doesn't necessarily mean he's fallen for its powers yet. if warner's is smart; they'll give this another go. just don't pull a fox and repeat the same mistake. green lantern has the potential to redefine the CBM in the same way that batman begins did; introduce the world to the cosmic side of things. but knowing wb's track record they'll stick to their same old same old and marvel will again beat them to the punch with guardians or something of the like.
comiccow6
comiccow6 - 5/24/2012, 3:48 AM
I actually liked Green Lantern. I heard terrible reviews on here, and decided to stay away, at least until the DVD came out. I got it, and watched. I actually liked it. The build up to Hector Hammond was good. There were good special effects. The action scenes were decent. I also want a sequel. I also like your ideas for them!
ralfinader
ralfinader - 5/24/2012, 4:37 AM
What Needs To Happen For A Green Lantern Sequel?

regardless of what anyone on this site thought of the movie, the answer is truthfully:

A miracle.
dcfanmalaysia
dcfanmalaysia - 5/24/2012, 5:51 AM
pros of GL: Abin Sur, Tomar-Re (Geoffrey Rush's voice really suited the role), Sinestro, AI aircraft dogfight, Oa Scenes, occasionally good soundtrack.

cons of GL: too short for an origin movie (120-130 minutes would have been ideal), poor character development (Hammond and Carol in particular), silly villain (Parallax)

I believe behind this movie, a much superior version exists(eg Kingdom of Heaven Director's Cut)

GL doesn't need a reboot, they can go the Hulk way, as in The Avengers. Just make a movie for Flash, the potential is there, and include GL in it as a cameo
DukeAcureds
DukeAcureds - 5/24/2012, 8:49 AM
Go the Incredible Hulk way. Simple. It just needs a really [frick]ing good script, now. And a director who actually cares.
Ha1frican
Ha1frican - 5/24/2012, 10:47 AM
TBH i only want a sequel because i want WB do push through with a DCU, if it weren't for wanting a Justice League film i would say REEEEEBOOOOOOT
Stumblin
Stumblin - 5/24/2012, 12:25 PM
No sequel, just let it die. Green Lantern was terrible in practically every aspect.
AC1
AC1 - 5/24/2012, 12:59 PM
What it needs is a reboot with a more suitable cast, script writers who know the comics and how to write a serious film, less comedy, a good director who actually wants to work on the film (I get the feeling Martin Campbell, despite being a good director, was reluctantly directing the first film). We shouldn't settle for sub-par films, especially if they're meant to lead up to something bigger.
If we have crappy films along the way, we'll end up with a crappy Justice League film. A good one will be worth the wait.
JustAnotherFilmGeek
JustAnotherFilmGeek - 5/24/2012, 4:25 PM
What would have been [frick]ING AMAZING for a Green Lantern movie is that they made it like Training Day in Space, following Hal and Siniestro on a case (The Rise of the Manhunters perhaps)and at the end Siniestro would be revealed to be a villain in his planet and be send away only o return in the sequal as a main villain.
Spidey1996
Spidey1996 - 5/26/2012, 8:45 PM
I liked Green Lantern; GL is one of favorite supeheroes of all time, but the only thing I didn't like about the movie was Hector Hammond. Hammond was displayed so horribly, every time I saw him I wanted to look away with shame. Other than that, give GL another chance.
Spidey1996
Spidey1996 - 5/26/2012, 8:47 PM
Good article! You have really good ideas. :)
PJ
PJ - 7/6/2012, 7:47 AM
I would reboot and have it more like the incredible hulk not an origin but a good movie nonetheless and make a sequel from that one because I love DC and DCU is a must.
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