By: Andrew Noonan
The summer of 2012 officially belongs to the superheroes. The combined might of “The Avengers,” “The Dark Knight Rises” and “The Amazing Spider-Man” busted their way through aliens, terrorists, a genetically-enhanced lizard and box-office records.
“The Avengers” took first place in the summer box office and currently stands as the third highest grossing film.
“The Dark Knight Rises” claimed second place this summer and just recently entered the spot for 10th highest grossing movie of all time.
“The Amazing Spider-Man,” which received mixed reviews, took third place this summer. It was far from the success of the number one and two movies from the summer: it earned just a little less than the original “Spider-Man” did back in 2002.
Although “The Dark Knight Rises” was the final installment in Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy, there are still plenty of superhero movies to look forward to in the coming years.
Marvel is currently a very busy studio with four sequels and two new films in the works for “Phase Two” of Marvel superheroes domination.
It goes without saying that “The Avengers,” the record-breaking film that left the 40-year-old-guy-who-still-lives-with-his-mother crowd literally foaming at the mouth like a pair of rabid squirrels fighting over a nut, will be getting a sequel and everyone should just pray to the superhero gods that Marvel can create something that super awesome again.
They’ve gone a long way in getting the director Joss Whedon to come back, and now all that is left to do for audiences is to cross fingers and wait.
Iron Man is also getting another movie as “Iron Man 3” (hmm…one would think they’d have gotten a bit more creative with the title by the third installment) is set to release May 3, 2013.
“Iron Man 3” has a new director, though, and promises to be better than the slightly disappointing “Iron Man 2.” Robert Downey Jr. made Tony Stark the most likable character of the “The Avengers,” but his contract with Marvel is set to expire after “The Avengers 2” comes out. One would hope that somehow studio and star can renegotiate. After all, the “Iron Man” franchise is nothing without Robert Downey Jr.
Captain America and Thor are also getting sequels, which are called “Thor: The Dark World” and “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and are being released Nov. 8, 2013, and April 4, 2014, respectively. Both of the sequels got new directors, as both of their previous directors dropped out for various reasons.
Now “Game of Thrones” director Alan Taylor is set to helm the Thor sequel and most superhero fanatics will likely agree with Marvel’s choice, given the similarities between “Game of Thrones” and “Thor.”
Marvel’s most questionable decision was actually to hire directing pair Anthony and Joe Russo, whose past projects include “Community,” “Arrested Development,” and “You, Me & Dupree.”
One can only think that Marvel is looking for a Captain America comedy when it obviously is action and they have to remember that the sequel should at least live up to the standards of the first film.
But if you’re thinking that “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” is doomed, have a little faith. Marvel has proven that they are capable of hiring unknown yet very capable directors (ahem, Joss Whedon) so there is a good chance that the Russos will produce something worthwhile.
Marvel’s two brand new projects sound interesting enough, but should prove to be a tough selling point for those who haven’t read the comics. The two new films are “Ant Man” and “Guardians of the Galaxy”, which seems to be somewhat like “The Avengers” but in the future and with lesser known heroes.
“Ant Man” on the other hand has a director, Edgar Wright. In the comic books Ant Man was an original part of “The Avengers.” He’s the size of an ant, yet somehow he kicks butt.
Hopefully Wright can create some science based reason as to why Ant Man is able to knock grown men flat on their back when he’s the size of their thumb and if not, who cares? It’s based on a comic book, so it doesn’t have to adhere to worldly norms.
After all of those movies, super nerds will have had their fill, right? Wrong. Well, it’s a good thing that Marvel isn’t the only comic book producer out there.
Don’t worry, if and when the upcoming Marvel movie slate doesn’t tide you over, there’s still DC comics and the forever upcoming “Justice League” movie that should fill that Hulk of an appetite (oh, superhero jokes).
