MARVEL STUDIOS: Going Big on Entertaining us Mortals

Marvel on a Superhero roll

It's all about Marvel at the moment; the other day we had a Thor, Iron Man 1 & 2 movie marathon. I really got into the Shakespearian style conflicts, the good old will-or-won't they chemistry between the leads and the pretty amazing soundtracks. Plus, I do enjoy techno-gadget-costume fantasy sequences, apparently the military are actually testing out an Iron Man suit for combat, read here about the XOS2 suit - pronounced 'exo'. With all this in mind, I thought it'd be interesting to take a quick look at Marvel's success and story to date.

Thunderous Box-Office Performance
Thor looks like it will storm the Box-Office and replicate the kind of takings for Marvel Studios, that Iron Man achieved. So far it has collected £6.4 million already in the UK and $93 million in the US. Iron Man 1 & 2 collectively made over a BILLION. It hasn't always been this successful for Marvel comic creations, I took a look over their box-office receipts since the release of their first feature in 1986, the legendary dud, Howard the Duck.

Howard the Duck cost Universal $30 million to produce and took just $37 million worldwide. So the film broke even but the studio took a huge hit financially and critically. It took eleven years before another Marvel creation made it to the multi-plex, this time Sony took the risk. Men in Black, produced for $90million made a staggering $590 million world-wide. Then in the summer of 1996, Marvel Studios was set-up. They re-claimed their comic book creations and produced a mix of high profile, Spider-man, X-Men, and lesser well known comic book hero films, The Punisher, Elektra.

Disney's Epic Strategy
Interesting to note Marvel Studios produced two Hulks, both made with comparable budgets and generating similar Box Office. I'm curious why they re-made it - did they expect a bigger success on second outing? I think Marvel know now to never have a Duck in their movie title, and stick to featuring the words 'Man' and 'Men'.

In 2009, Disney bought Marvel Studios for $4billion, so that kind of explains their strategy for releasing in quick succession Thor, Captain America, Iron Man over the last few years. They are acquiring and building audiences for this EPIC outing: 

All-Star Superhero Film 'The Avengers'
I am really late on this, however Marvel studios announced at the 2010 at Comic-Con how they are putting all of their top heroes into one movie, The Avengers. 'That's the most ambitious movie ever seen', quipped Robert Downey Jnr at the all-star press announcement. See the press call video, it's quite exciting.

It's going to be HUGE. Then again, I have been writing lately about giving fans too much of what they want, which is not a bad thing, but the danger of over-kill. I really hope this is not a super-hero packed nightmare of s competing stories and OTT marketing. It will be really interesting to see how they integrate the different worlds of the heroes. In the meanwhile, check out this fan-made poster, I mean look at it, I am already picking on being on the Hulk's side.

WALL-E: My Film of the Year

WALL-E: A film with a lot of heart and invention.

A cynical part of me was prepared for WALL-E, a lonely waste disposal robot, to be another piece of arch emotional manipulation from Disney. As I sat there waiting for the film to start, I was thinking "Come on Disney, what have you got? You are going to orphan something, I know it...BUT I am adult now, I can HANDLE it." Then within minutes of the film opening, tears were steaming down my face. I admit it, I was totally won over by WALL-E and the story. The film had so many great messages about life, the environment and really fighting for a better world and values.

I couldn't help reflecting on WALL-E's mission to clear up unwanted materialism, whilst helping out at the Children's Society this week. The store was shut for two weeks and there was a huge backlog of clothes, toys and books, most of which we couldn't fit into the shop. I ended up bagging most of it for an international charity and when their collector came I was curious about what happened to it all? (mostly Primark, cheap toys etc). He explained that they air-drop the stuff in containers on-to African villages. Or as a friend summarised to me, "So poor Asians make stuff that eventually ends up dumped on poor Africans?" Yes it is a bit surreal....

TWO Great Women Pics: 'Juno' and 'I Could Never be Your Woman'

Michelle: 'But I'm a 40-something!'
Guy: 'Hello Cat-woman!'

I watched these two movies back to back, which was interesting viewing, starting with the teenage comedy-drama Juno. Okay so Juno is 16 and pregnant and plans to give her baby to a woman who is desperate for her own. I liked Juno for having so much to say for herself and interests, and I missed being 16 and wondering Who am I? and just having a bunch of loves, films, music, and that youthful enthusiasm. All Jennifer Garner's character was interested in was the serious business of being a Mum. Would Juno end up like that? When Jennifer's character says 'I always knew I'd be a Mum', it sounded kind of creepy, and I really sided more with being Juno. The film for me made me think; at different life stages, you might for for different things, but I hope the core of you stays the same. I couldn't imagine my identity just being 'Mum'.

Michelle Pfieffer stars in a straight to DVD cougar comedy, I Could Never be your Woman, is still so beautiful, that it's hard to buy into the premise that she is a 40-something who is 'passed it'. When her character is pursued by a 29 year old, Pfieffer is so down on herself and says things like 'but youth outranks age each time' and fights the attraction to the guy. She has a 13 year old daughter (played by the young girl from Atonement) who is very good in it. The rest of the cast is like a who's who of British comedy; Graham Norton, Smack the Pony girls, Peep Show guys & League of Gentlemen and Gareth from Office. They keep the laughs coming in and it's directed by Amy Heckerling, who did Clueless. I thought the film was delightful and sparkly, so I would say it is worth renting, as Pfieffer is really good in it, and they actually have a mother-daughter story that seems real and works well. It definitely wants women in their 40's to feel good about themselves, and had some really laugh out loud moments. I guess it went straight to DVD because of trouble marketing it to cinema audience - perhaps hey should have promoted on the back of Sex and the City?

A Monsoon, Good Film and a Rabbit

Most peculiar day. After leaving a friend for lunch, I was just crossing at Oxford Circus towards Hamley's, when a rabbit hopped across the main crossing, which made me feel slightly Alice in Wonderland, until it went under a red bus, then it hopped away, towards H & M. I continued walking down Regent Street in the English Monsoon ( as reported in the paper yesterday ), and back to the tube when my umbrella snapped, just gave up , and was getting completely soaked. So whenI I saw the Odeon in Leicester Square, I dashed in for cover, and ended up seeing Gone Baby Gone. I had wanted to see it after friend recommended it. It was a pretty gut wrenching about a little girl that is abducted, similar to the Madeleine McCann story, really dark, but very thoughtful and well worth watching.

Bram Stoker's Dracula the Collector's Edition

Be Still my Beating Heart - Yes a Remastered Dracula and New Goodies

A two-disc special, including a commentary by Francis Ford Coppola. This is one of my all time favourite films; a truly sumptuous and operatic visualisation of Stoker's novel.

Julie Delpy - the return of the Before Sunset actress in her own opus

She's back - this time she has written, directed, produced and starred her own film '2 days in Paris'
Julie Delpy attended on August the 7th the AFI's Director's screening of her own film, and I couldn't be happier to hear about it! I loved her in the Sunrise and Sunset films, especially Sunset, the dialogue and chemistry between her and Ethan Hawke was really something. It articulated so much about the nature of love, and that ending... Well having read some reviews of this, and watched the trailer, I think there is something very reminiscent of Sunset. No doubt that was the marketing angle, especially the mentioned time constriction in the film title. The film is released in the UK on 31st August and I am sending out all my invites now, it promises to be a gem. Watch the trailer: http://www.2daysinparisthefilm.com/

The real life behind 'The Holiday'

Christmassy-feel-good film 'The Holiday' featuring Cam, Kate,
Jack and Jude, filmed in Surrey / LA.

Picture post-card Surrey - Kate Winslet's cottage - who is
a journalist on those mysterious 'Carrie Bradshaw' wages

LA babe Cam does a house swap to the UK and ends
up straight away in Kate's bed - could it get any cosier!?

Apparently so! Look you have to be a small English woman to get in that tub.

The real Surrey vs Hollywood Surrey
I absolutely adored this film, it was a complete fantasy about what LA and London/English living is like. It takes two of my fav actresses out there today, Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet, and sets them up as newly single and in desperate need to escape their exes for a 'holiday'. The two just happen to find each other on the net, agree to swap their homes for Christmas, and well, we just sit back and enjoy the unfolding Hollywood drama. Cameron Diaz ends up in deepest Surrey - filmed in parts of Goldaming and Shere - and Kate Winslet in LA. It is really fun watching them adapt to their new lifestyles and struggle with their new homes. Look above at Cameron decked in hat and scarf, her sunny LA bones freezing to death in Kate's oldy worldy cottage, she resorts to taking numerous long soaks in some sort of tin tub. I bet the set-dresser had good time on this film, it looks so pretty, and I can just see the brief for Kate's house - shabby-bohemian-chic- everything says cosy ! Plus she has wonderful neighbours, a lovely local pub and Jude Law just hanging about.  My friend and I explored the town of Shere ( a month back ) and around Surrey yesterday - you can certainly recognise parts of the film. Apparently the rural idyll of Kate's was built especially for film, then torn down. I was quite sad to read this, just goes to show that even with all the lovely properties in Surrey, they are just not 'picture-perfect' enough for 'Hollywood'.

Would someone swap their LA Mansion for my room in London?

Now, I am not sure if this is on the back of the film, but there is a real-life UK-USA house-swap. The 'visitbritain' site tells Americans that perhaps you can find your 'own charming cottage' in England with a property swap like in the movie 'Holiday' . So I started thinking perhaps some fab rich American woman would like to swap with my characterful flat-share in London for her dreamy US home. Of course she wouldn't dupe me back and I end up in Missouri with a bunch of Mormons . .