Christopher Nolan has done an amazing job with this current run of Bat-films. The stories are smart, the acting is great, and he has really delivered a darker Batman that many fans wanted to see. I'm glad he's done. Nolan has announced, quite emphatically, that he is not making any more Batman films. Often, this is a director or actor's best bargaining chip for more money. I think, and I hope, that this isn't the case.
There is something to be said about knowing when to stop. The series has been amazing, and if the 3rd movie is anywhere near as good as the first two - he's done something that we rarely get from movieland. I think it is honorable to finish when things are good. Look at Star Wars. While I never hated I, II and III - critics and fans have vilified Lucas for these films. Nolan could keep going, make more great movies, or he could slip up, add nipples to the costume, and it's game over.
Just like every comic book artist has a vision for what a character should look like, I want to see what other film makers can do with Batman. Tim Burton provided us great Batman movies in the 80s/90s that were completely different than Nolan's Batman. We know there will be more Batman films, and I want to see what someone else does.
It's harrowing writing a sequel. A lot of writers hate their work. Yeah, well, I don't. I'm fond of Angst, I think it's fun. I want the sequel to be better, which I've found to be a daunting task. I seriously considered not writing more Angst novels for the same reasons I am wary about Hollywood sequels, but I always had a vision in mind of how to continue the adventure.
I think that's what makes it work. Writers and producers and directors that milk a franchise for every dime often lose sight of their original intent and end up tarnishing the series. This is why I believe that Nolan will give us an amazing finale to the Dark Knight series, and this is why I'm going to keep writing Angst - until I'm done.
I wonder if some do sequels because they're afraid they won't achieve the same success with something new...
ReplyDeleteHollywood has no originality! All they do are sequels and retreads...or as they are so stupidly called "reimaginations", which is just a cop-out way of saying we can't think of anything new and are too much of wussies to take a chance on brand new material and want a built in audience. Yeah I liked some of the Batman movies. I favor the older ones when there was more story and less flash and dazzle. Hollywood thinks the public is idiots at large. How many times have they just whipped up some action flick with a ton of special effects and explosions and passed it off as something new? It's the same damn movie as that last fx laden piece of garbage! Go back to story. Go back to good cinematography and characters we care about. Then maybe I'll start watching your movies again, Hollywood. Till then, hand me the DVD remote or the Tivo remote for Netflix. I'll watch some classic on-demand from when they used to know how to make movies!
ReplyDelete@Marie - you are right. The truth is it is all about money. Spider-Man didn't need a reboot, but it is my understanding that if Sony didn't continue making Spider-Man movies the license would revert to Marvel. I saw the reboot, I was entertained enough, but I think a reboot could have waited another decade or 2.
ReplyDelete@rhuneke Since it is about money, the good news is we don't have to go see those movies. If enough people get tired of these reboots, they won't spend their hard earned cash on these films and Hollywood will need to seek out new material. It makes me curious about the Total Recall remake. It looks pretty, and, well, Kate Beckinsale. :) I still won't see it because it is way too early to remake it in my opinion. Will others feel the same way?
On the other hand, I'm probably the guy you hate when it comes to watching these movies. I'm the opposite of critical, I long for the escapism and sometimes it comes easy when there is familiarity. I simply want to be entertained. I don't want to see a movie about what is going on in real life, that's what the news is for. It may be shallow and short sighted - but I simply want entertaining fantasy. If a new writer/producer/director has a unique spin on an old story and it catches my fancy - I'll probably love it. I, too, enjoyed the original Batman movies, and I've loved the new ones. Completely different perspectives on the same tale, and I was still entertained. Same thing with the Star Trek reboot. Give me more… I just want the writers to stop when they can't make the stories clever enough for me to enjoy and they are just squeezing the last dimes out of the franchise.