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We went to see Guardians of the Galaxy on opening night. I was skeptical, I admit it. A talking raccoon with a gun? Not usually my cup of Earl Gray, what can I tell you.
But.
Trying to explain the reason for that greatness to someone who hadn't seen the film left me a little bit perplexed though. Because if Marvel can make a film starring a talking, gun-toting raccoon, surely someone can make a decent film with a woman lead? (Cough, Wonder Woman, cough. I'm looking at you D.C.)
Which brings me to another point. As good as this movie was -- and it is going to be shown at my house frequently, trust me -- what I loved most about it was that the female character actually got to drive the bus. This isn't Gamora's movie, don't get me wrong. Zoe Saldana plays just one piece in an ensemble cast, but that piece is the one who proves the motivation and the heart for the team to do what it must (see how non-spoilerly I made that?) to overcome the bad guy. And frankly, without her, the team's involvement with the bad guy would basically have been summed up in a few words: get the thing bad-guy wants, then run like hell.
What else did I love about Gamora? She's sexy, sure, but despite a couple of almost-moments with Star-Lord (as played by Chris Pratt), she doesn't succumb to insta-love. The tension is building and you can see it coming, maybe, but Marvel didn't cheese up the script by including a gratuitous romantic sub-plot that was just too fast to work. Instead, they focused on pulling together a bunch of loners and making them into a team.
That's warm. That's human--even if only one of the characters involved was actually homo-sapiens. (Or half, anyway.)
And that brings me to my topic of the day. It seems to me that there are two schools of approach emerging vis a vis comic book adaptations.
Marvel has a repertoire of films that stars characters who seem to think all is more-or-less okay in their world, and then get dragged into something that's clearly not okay. How they deal with their changed situation forms the underpinnings of the story and creates the extra layer of warmth that connects us to them.
Recent Marvel Films include:
- Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
- X-Men, Days of Future Past (2014)
- The Amazing Spider Man 2 (2014)
- Captain America - Winter Soldier (2014)
- Thor: The Dark World (2013)
- The Wolverine (2013)
- Iron Man 3 (2013)
DC on the other hand includes:
- Man of Steel (2013)
- The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
- The Green Lantern (2011)
- Jonah Hex (2010)
I keep trying to put my finger on what's missing in the DC films for me. I think it comes down to humor. There's a certain amount of wallowing in darkness that the DC films dive into that Marvel leavens with just enough humor to keep the characters from getting broody.
Don't get me wrong: I write dark. My characters (duh, they're cursed, right?) have some pretty crappy lots in life. But even if they feel sorry for themselves, they don't like feeling sorry for themselves. And from now on, I'm going to refer to that as a Marvelous way to handle character.
So what do you think? Do you see a difference in how the two studios portray character? Handle characters ARCs? Bring human into their scripts?
And now for some winners : )
The winner of the Pick 3 Arcs #1 is:
Patricia Lopez
She can pick three of the following: BZRK, The Walled City, Sinner, Ghost House, of Scars and Stardust, Lament, I'll Give You the Sun, Unmarked, Lux, White Hot Kiss, Falling into Place, Scintillate.
The winner of the Pick 3 Arcs or Books #2 is:
Rebecca Greer
Pick Any Three: Unmade, Perfected, Beauty of the Broken, Til Death, Unravel Me, Compulsion, Shatter Me, The Raven Boys, Diamond Boy, Allies and Assassins, The Walled City, Black Ice
The winners of the two ECHOES OF US ARCs by Kat Zhang are:
Anne VanLoon
Heather Ratlin
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