Among the highest-grossing movies of all time are numerous landmark films, such as Titanic, Avatar, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Taking their place alongside these cultural touchstones are mammoth blockbusters of a new breed: action-packed superhero epics. Each year, the number of superhero movies due for release seems to grow exponentially. One glance at a list of upcoming movies for this year reveals that the box office is absolutely saturated with superhero films. Some highly-anticipated installments feature heroes already well-acquainted with the big screen, such as Captain America and the X-Men, while others are introducing relatively unfamiliar characters to contemporary movie-going audiences, as in the cases of Doctor Strange and …show more content…
However, this popularity has fluctuated throughout history. In the past few decades, demand for comics in the print media had been falling, in part due to the successes of other children 's media, such as cartoons. “Our biggest fear was that that audience was going to get to a point where we weren 't able to build it up again,” says Dan DiDio, co-publisher of DC Comics, “and a lot of what we do would be branded lost because there was nobody out there reading it" (Martin 14). Luckily, comic creators realized that the stories were perfect for screen adaptations: "they 're full of spectacle [and] adventure with an emotional arc for the hero. That 's what movies have always been about” (Humphries). The promise of lucrative merchandise sales and cross-promotion undoubtedly encouraged production, as well. Comic books were first adapted for television in the 40s and 50s, and met with huge success. Thus, superhero television programs set the stage for the inevitable point when comics took to the big screen with the first Superman movie in 1978 (Humphries). This cinematic moment ushered in a tricking of other superhero feature films, which eventually became the flood of superhero films that is taking place in the 21st
We are currently living in the Golden Age of Superheroes. They dominate our cultural life, and have become seemingly permanent fixtures in modern media. Since X-Men burst onto the screen fifteen years ago, we have witnessed the release of over forty superhero movies. By 2020 we will have seen the release of more than twenty-five more. Today, the much anticipated film Superman vs. Batman has come to theaters. Though a plethora of superhero movies have been released, it is to the dissatisfaction of many, having long been exhausted by the stories of the Hulk, Batman, and Spider-man. Although I must agree that it is quite easy to get bored with the constant action, and flashing colors of these films, if one looks deep enough into the story they will discover universal themes and metaphors. Though they may be fighting off alien invasions, these heroes are also battling with their personal challenges, challenges which we can
“Some men aren’t looking for anything logical, like money. They can’t be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just wanna watch the world burn...”
In Superhero Worship by Virginia Postrel published in The Atlantic explores the glamour of comic heroes coming to live, and what that glamour really is. From paper to screen superheroes have caught the wonder of the American people. The most wellknown superheroes were introduced in the 1930s through the late 1950s, during the time of warfare and national pride. Superman was welcomed in America in 1937 to keep spirits alive during the breakout of WWII, fighting Nazis or the Japanese Imperial Army. These heroes that were created used propaganda
Chabon asserts that comic books used to be extremely popular among people of all ages, but children were the main audience. Through the years, authors aimed to get a larger adult audience interested in comics. They started changing
Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight (2008) is representative of key changes in contemporary media conglomerate Hollywood in terms of marketing, distribution, and production because of the steps it took to turn a standard superhero film into a worldwide phenomenon that not only succeeded as a standalone film, but also helped to revitalize an entire franchise, paving the way for many more of its kind. This was accomplished through the breaking of typical marketing trends by utilizing various vigorous viral marketing campaigns and interactive, fan-powered “scavenger hunts”, both online and in the real world, that led to the revelation of new scenes, ads, and teasers. Additionally, the film’s domestic and foreign distribution was so massive at the film’s release, that it still holds records today as the 4th highest total grossing box office and 5th highest grossing opening weekend in North America, 4th widest domestic opening (showing on 9,200 screens in 4,366 theaters), and 18th highest all-time grossing box office worldwide record. Needless to say, The Dark Knight was the highest grossing film of the year in 2008. Supplementary material, including animated films and video games, were also created and distributed between the releases of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight as a simultaneous method of franchise reinforcement as well as promotion for the upcoming second installment of Nolan’s Batman universe. It can be asserted that as a result of these fresh new marketing and distribution trends, Christopher Nolan has played a significant role in helping to usher in successful new production practices that will shape the way films will be produced over the course of the transitional blockbuster/digital production era in Hollywood during ...
In the film Man of Steel, director Zack Snyder produces an alternative interpretation of the famous superman film, as this version more heavily focuses on the early stages of Superman and his journey on Earth at a young age. Original or traditional settings of him in films are typically set during his reporter employment in the later years in Metropolis. Man of Steel retells the superman myth from the very beginning giving compressed exposition about Krypton, along with the expected outcome of baby Superman (a.k.a. Clark Kent or Kal-El) been sent to earth, with him acquiring his super powers throughout his younger years (Grossman 50). His development of powers included the abilities of flight, strength, heat vision, speed, and even durability. Despite Superman having all these various types of physical abilities, it will be the dichotomy of his character between being the superman hero and the mild-mannered everyday man that will make him exceedingly amazing and admirable to the public, as compared to the average hero. The personal qualities of him being self-controlling, highly moral and responsible will be the qualities that give the audience a sense of his marvelous character.
The documentary Waiting For Superman I think is a perfect example of the current school system in the United States. We have too many students getting poor education from bad teachers that cannot be fired. The schools that do have great teachers often are not accepting new students, or you need to be in the district. The very limited spaces available often go through a lottery system that is almost impossible to win due to the high number of students applying. The bad schools are often called “drop out factories” because of the high number of students who dropout. The main cause for dropouts is due to falling behind and not being able to catch up. I personally went to a school that this film would consider a drop out factory and it was not
Marvel has been releasing blockbuster after blockbuster for over the last decade. Marvel movies have action, a great story line, and even some comedy. Some of my favorite movies that Marvel has released are: the Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, and the Amazing Spiderman. DC movies, on the other hand, are awful and boring. Most of them don’t have a story line, they’re slow in telling the superheros story, and they aren’t based off the comics. Some disappointing DC movies that I thought would be great but weren’t: Green Lantern, Man of Steel, and the Dark Knight Rises. While the future of Marvel movies are looking bright (Dr. Strange, Captain America 3), the DC movies will probably crash and burn (Batman vs Superman, Suicide
Carl Jung called archetypes the ancient patterns of personality, which are constant throughout and help us to know characters’ purpose in the story. The dark knight is a movie, which is very related to Jungian Archetypes. Protagonist is Bruce Wayne and his actual hero role, Batman and he fights crime to save his city from chaos, which is the joker’s (the shadow) overall plan and motive. Batman has always a wise old man by his side Alfred Pennyworth as his mentor and Batman is in love with Rachel Dawes (animus). These characters all have different developed parts of their mind as we see from their actions.
Every child in the United States has heard or read the Marvel and DC comics books. If you have not then you have probably have heard of their characters like the famous star spangled hero, Captain America, or the Dark Knight himself, Batman. Both Marvel and DC has influenced the children and adults of American in its darkest times. The great wars affected many by its poisonous grasps, and its victims sought comfort with the antidote provided by the marvelous illustrators and writers of comic books. Now their cinematic counterparts are here to inspire the 21st century. The Marvel and DC cinematic universes have similar content, they both have unique characteristics that set them apart.
The conflict theory in this case discusses the lack of resources that are down to nearly nothing and about how the lower classes are having to constantly compete for them. It shows you how the poor are controlled by the rich. The film “Waiting for Superman” takes a closer look into the public school systems around the United States from the poorest of the poor all the way over to the suburbs. The parents of these students are obviously sending their children to school with the high hopes that they are going to excel academically, but the reality of it is that most of the children that are either born into or somehow end up in a position of poverty end up either dropping out rather than graduating. The upper class will place their children into schools where they are offered quality education. With the way that our nation is growing, I am confident in being able to say that the gap will only expand and the poor will continue to suffer in the educational department as well as others. While the lower class students in public school are failing and dropping out, the upper class students are too busy bettering their future. Our country states that “every child has a dream”, and that “no child will be left behind”. How true is that claim exactly? Yes, it is true that every child has a dream, but how many children are being left behind because they are stuck in poverty? There was one scene in the movie where the charter schools had to draw numbers just to give a child a chance at a better education. That is highly disturbing that a child has to suffer through something as humiliating as that. Our public system does not encourage academic growth, it hampers it. Over the years a lot of money has been put into trying to fix our public schoo...
In our society, certain ideals are held in high regard. Individuals relentlessly pursue these ideals to achieve a perceived perfection. These principles are often depicted in media that further glorifies and establishes a desire to pursue these paragons. In a medium such as comic books, however, these standards and perceptions are heavily distorted by the characterizations and settings. Particularly, the superhero genre absorbs the ideals we strive towards and regurgitates them in an extreme and unrealistic manner. The superhero genre is often reflective of societal changes in ideas and morals. These ideals are then molded into misleading representations that influence the behaviors of viewers. Comic books absorb elements of our society and transform them. For example, as the enemies of America change, so do the enemies of our superheroes. However, the enemies are transformed into supervillains that are extremely dark and villainous. Such characterizations cloud people’s understanding of real threats and enemies affecting our society. Also, to cater to the value that American society places on intelligence, attractiveness, and physical strength, comic books create characters that epitomize these characteristics. Though the represent society’s ideals, these characters manipulate the ideas and convey them back to the audience in an unrecognizable manner. In developing such distorted representations, the superhero genre affects human behavior and perceptions of these ideals.
Nowadays, we can see so many hero type people in our society. Different culture and different countries will appear different types of hero. Hero gave us confident and we can trust them. I have chosen two heroes to compare and contrast based on cultural aspect and what they act. The two heroes are The Batman and Iron Man.
Waiting for Superman is a 2010 documentary that focuses on the wrongs and solutions to the education system that has been instilled in America. The film features Geoffrey Canada and his importance is obvious but at the same time completely obscured. Michelle Rhee takes a front in this documentary as both the hero and the villain, in the sense that in order to fix what has been wronged she has to make choices and decisions that others view as unnecessary. The documentary itself focuses on the lives of those the education systems has wrong which include 5 children (Anthony, Daisy, Francisco, Bianca and Emily) who in some way, shape, or form have need the education system to save them and give them the kind of education that they need. We follow
First of all, I would like to go over my expectations of movies in the future: