Friday Film Festival Vol. 1

Welcome to the inaugural edition of F3. Each week, I'll write a bit about movies. Sometimes it will be something I have seen recently. Sometimes it will be about the week's new releases. Sometimes, like this week, it will be about upcoming films.

X-Men 3, Spiderman 3, Constantine, Sin City, Iron Man, Fantastic Four, Batman Begins, Superman Returns, Ghost Rider, Watchmen, V for Vendetta...Notice a pattern here? These are all films in various stages of planning or production, and all are based on comic books or graphic novels. Some of these are direct adaptations, while others simply draw from them as source material. These are just a handful of comic book movies that will be coming soon, on top of the astronomical number of comic films we have seen in the past few years.

Why is it that all of the studios are turning to comics for inspiration? Is it the built-in fan base? Are these movies guaranteed to be good? Are they a sure thing at the box office? Is it that studios are enthralled by the success of recent hits like The Matrix, Spiderman and X-Men? The built-in fan base, ready-made stories and characters certainly didn't seem to help give that same success to Daredevil, Elektra, The Punisher, The Punisher, Superman IV, Batman and Robin, Fantastic Four, Catwoman or The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

It seems that the studios have seen a few of the successes of previous comic book films and feel that it's a guarantee for a hit. Unfortunately, all too often they forget that these movies need some of the same things as every other movie, like good writing and character development.

I enjoy some comic book movies, but I wish studios would stop looking to them as the quick fix, and perhaps spend a little time and money on originality and quality.

Got something to say for the next F3? Email me here.


Until later...