Film actor Russell Crowe takes issue with performers who think comic adaptations will be a life-changing experience
Actor Russell Crowe, who had roles in comic movies like Man of Steel and the 4th Thor entry, was recently interviewed by Gentleman's Quarterly (via Variety), and criticized performers who think starring in a comics movie is the ticket to the big time:
And while Man of Steel may have gathered plenty at the box office over a decade ago when the overrated Snyder first produced it, most of what followed in hopes of building a DC cinematic world certainly didn't fare as well, artistically or financially. The 4th Thor movie was the least successful, based on the woke pattern it went by. Which doesn't seem to matter to Crowe, probably because - surprise, surprise - what he really cares about is a paycheck. Calling it all "silly" is putting it mildly, because it was worse than that - it was embarrassing, as it decidedly is to put an emphasis on villains, as movies like the Kraven film in the works is doing, and previously, the Joker movie. I have no interest in paying to see films spotlighting villains, because glamorizing crime and evil is only bringing down morale, and not helping in an era where society is losing sight of better values like heroism.
If comics movies are waning now, it's honestly for the best, but what's not for the best is if committees are being employed for building art in Hollywood. That certainly won't avail art of any kind in the long run, and won't make for a better experience for actors and directors either.
Dakota Johnson recently said that she struggled filming Madame Web, and how those big-studio superhero movies can feel like art “made by committee”. I wanted to know what your experience is.Well I don't understand what makes a comics superhero blockbuster such a big deal compared to a drama, or even a stand-alone action-adventure movie like the ones Arnold Schwartzenegger used to appear in. Make what you will of Martin Scorsese and Francis Coppola past and present, but there was once a time when the dramas those two directors were famous for were well regarded, and never came at the expense of adventure fare. Today, the superhero movies come at the expense of dramatic fare, though the worst part has to be the increasing use of writing committees. No wonder the abortive Green Lantern movie from over 13 years ago, with as many as 4 or 5 writers, was such a disaster.
I don’t want to make any comments to what anybody else might have said or what their experience is, but… you’re bringing out the impish quality of my humour. [Laughs.] You’re telling me you signed up for a Marvel movie, and some fucking universe for cartoon characters... and you didn’t get enough pathos? Not quite sure how I can make this better for you. It’s a gigantic machine, and they make movies at a certain size. And you know, I’ve experienced that on the DC side with Man of Steel, Zack Snyder, and I’ve experienced it on the Marvel side via Disney with Thor: Love and Thunder. And I’ve also experienced the [Sony-produced] Marvel dark universe with Kraven the Hunter. These are jobs. You know: here’s your role, play the role. If you’re expecting this to be some kind of life-changing event, I just think you’re here for the wrong reasons.
It can be challenging, working in a blue-screen world, when you have to convince yourself of a lot more than just the internal machinations of your character. But for anything to be... and you can’t make this a direct comment on her because I don’t know her and I don’t know what she went through, and the fact that you can have a shit experience on a film… Yeah, you can. But is that the Marvel process? I’m not sure you can say that. I haven’t had a bad experience. I mean [on Thor], OK, it’s a Marvel movie, but it’s Taika Waititi’s world, and it was just a gas every day, being silly.
And then, with JC Chandor on Kraven, I’m just bringing a little weight to the circumstances, so the young actors have got an actor they can bounce off. Going to work with JC was fun. You know, so many of these directors have a certain skill level – freaking genius people. Think about what’s required, right? It’s everything: the composition, the framing, the colour, the music, what’s left outside the camera. Whether it’s [Proof director] Jocelyn Moorhouse or it’s Ridley Scott, you’re talking about hanging out with geniuses.
And while Man of Steel may have gathered plenty at the box office over a decade ago when the overrated Snyder first produced it, most of what followed in hopes of building a DC cinematic world certainly didn't fare as well, artistically or financially. The 4th Thor movie was the least successful, based on the woke pattern it went by. Which doesn't seem to matter to Crowe, probably because - surprise, surprise - what he really cares about is a paycheck. Calling it all "silly" is putting it mildly, because it was worse than that - it was embarrassing, as it decidedly is to put an emphasis on villains, as movies like the Kraven film in the works is doing, and previously, the Joker movie. I have no interest in paying to see films spotlighting villains, because glamorizing crime and evil is only bringing down morale, and not helping in an era where society is losing sight of better values like heroism.
If comics movies are waning now, it's honestly for the best, but what's not for the best is if committees are being employed for building art in Hollywood. That certainly won't avail art of any kind in the long run, and won't make for a better experience for actors and directors either.
Labels: dc comics, golden calf of villainy, history, marvel comics, msm propaganda, politics
