Author Topic: Green Lantern  (Read 21764 times)

Offline BillCable

  • Jedi General
  • *
  • Posts: 9883
  • CreatureCantina.com SUCKS!!
    • View Profile
    • CreatureCantina.com
Bill Cable - Steeler Fan & Star Wars Collector
  http://CreatureCantina.com       
"Cable is incapable of contributing anything positive to this world" - cstoj

Offline name

  • Jedi Apprentice
  • *
  • Posts: 1570
  • I ate your llama!
    • View Profile
This sticker is dangerous and inconvenient, but I do love Fig Newtons.

Offline Brian

  • Jedi Sentinel
  • *
  • Posts: 11749
    • View Profile
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #92 on: June 15, 2011, 11:11 AM »
Sounds like there were/are review embargoes until today (which is never a good sign I guess), and so far it looks like they're all pretty bad:

http://comicbookmovie.com/fansites/joshw24/news/?a=39474

IGN put their review up today as well (2 stars out of 5):

http://movies.ign.com/articles/117/1175316p1.html

I'm never one to put a whole lot of stock in reviews, but it is disappointing to see them being so overwhelmingly negative.  Anyways, I'm still planning on seeing GL this weekend, and I'm still looking forward to it.  Hopefully it isn't as horrible as it sounds, and it doesn't kill any potential for any non Batman/Superman DC movies (like Flash or JLA).

Here is one positive review that I found (so far):

http://www.ugo.com/movies/green-lantern-review
« Last Edit: June 15, 2011, 11:15 AM by Brian »

Offline BillCable

  • Jedi General
  • *
  • Posts: 9883
  • CreatureCantina.com SUCKS!!
    • View Profile
    • CreatureCantina.com
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #93 on: June 15, 2011, 11:32 AM »
Hopefully it isn't as horrible as it sounds, and it doesn't kill any potential for any non Batman/Superman DC movies (like Flash or JLA).

From the IGN review:

Quote
Green Lantern is a cosmic mess and a huge letdown given the source material it had to draw from. Indeed, X-Men: The Last Stand and Wolverine are better than Green Lantern. This was DC and Warner Bros.' best bet yet at establishing a deeper bullpen of big screen superheroes beyond Batman and Superman, but the film is bad enough to possibly kill any hope for ever seeing The Flash or Justice League.

Sorry, man. 

I was on the fence about seeing this, not being a huge DC fan.  Now I'm decidedly off the fence.  I might go see Super 8 instead.
Bill Cable - Steeler Fan & Star Wars Collector
  http://CreatureCantina.com       
"Cable is incapable of contributing anything positive to this world" - cstoj

Offline Nicklab

  • Jedi Sentinel
  • *
  • Posts: 13779
  • I saw we fight!
    • View Profile
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #94 on: June 15, 2011, 02:11 PM »
Ryan Reynolds as the star just doesn't work for me.  When I saw him attached to the project, my reaction was "Really?  That's too bad".    Aside from him the cast looks pretty strong:  Peter Sarsgaard, Tim Robbins, Mark Strong, Temeura Morrison, Jeffrey Rush (voice of Tomar Re).  He just doesn't strike me as someone who can carry a movie like this on his own, and I wonder if he was the producer and director's first choice for the role.  He's always come across as more of a smartass than anything else.  And in the comedies that he has done that can work.  On something like this?  Hmmm.

Sounds like there were/are review embargoes until today (which is never a good sign I guess)

That is usually a strategy to keep the reviews from hurting the opening.  IIRC, the movie opens on June 17th and we're 2 days away from that.  The movie probably tested poorly and that may have prompted the embargo on the reviews.

I think a big part of the problem is that the DC properties may have a hard time competing with the Marvel properties.  The DC characters have been around for a long time, but they have always lacked some of the grounding, reality and grit of some of the Marvel characters.  And I think that's one of the big reasons why movie studios have only tried to tackle Batman and Superman up to this point in time.  Jonah Hex might be a DC character, but I didn't get a sense that the film did all that well.

« Last Edit: June 15, 2011, 02:19 PM by Nicklab »
"Call up a Hammerhead Corvette.  I have an idea."

Feedback

Offline efranks

  • Jedi Knight
  • *
  • Posts: 2932
  • Eric Franks
    • View Profile
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #95 on: June 15, 2011, 02:20 PM »
Reynolds being a smart ass made him a good choice for Deadpool.

I have a ticket to see this Thursday night so it won't be too long till I find out if the reviews are right or not.

Bill, you should definitely go see Super 8, though.  I really liked that movie.

   E...
"I sell the drugs that keep you people from seeing dragons at night." - Gus "Psych"

Offline Jeff

  • Administrator
  • Jedi Elder
  • *
  • Posts: 26285
  • Leave me where I lie
    • View Profile
    • www.JediDefender.com
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #96 on: June 17, 2011, 11:25 PM »
I saw GL tonight.  I can totally see why some reviewers hated it, but I enjoyed it.  It was certainly no TDK, but at the same time it was no Nick Fury or Punisher either.  A nice, slightly above average super-hero movie.  If you love GL, you'll enjoy it far more than if you're a GL newbie.

I mean, I can see how all the set-up and origin stuff got a little long.  And I can see how some reviewers complained that the movie had a hard time deciding what it was (moody, hero learns responibility pic VS. all-out superheo action pic).  Luckily, that didn't bother me (probably thanks to my green-tinted glasses).  For me, I could have used more - more time on Oa, more time with Kilowog/Tomar/Sinestro, etc.  So yeah - I liked it.  Like I said earlier, not TDK good, but still fun.  :)


And, on the "after the credits" deal?  Awesome.  Totally pulled at my fanboy bone and TOTALLY makes me hope this thing does well enough to get that second movie. I think, if they do end up making a sequel, it's going to be one of those cases where the second one is even better.  ;D
Editor-in-Chief  - www.JediDefender.com
On Twitter?  Follow JediDefender -> @jedidefender

Offline JediMoses

  • Jedi Knight
  • *
  • Posts: 4050
    • View Profile
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #97 on: June 18, 2011, 12:06 AM »
Cool.  Jeff, you have restored my hope.

Offline Brian

  • Jedi Sentinel
  • *
  • Posts: 11749
    • View Profile
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #98 on: June 18, 2011, 08:26 PM »
Saw it this afternoon and was just going to come give my thoughts, but I think they echo Jeff's pretty much exactly.  I can understand why reviewers and some others may not be crazy about it, but I enjoyed it as well.  I also thought we could have used more of Oa, the other Lanterns, and maybe a little more action.  It was a bit slow in places, but you tend to see that in a lot of origin movies due to the "setting up".  As we left the theater, I actually told my wife exactly what Jeff was mentioning - if they do a sequel (and I really hope they do), I bet it will be even better.  If they can get more into the Hal/Sinestro dynamic (one of the strongest points of this movie, however brief it was) and make an all out action movie now that the origin is out of the way, I think they could make a heck of a movie.

One other thing...at least in our theater today, Hector Hammond's character seemed to be getting laughed at (and not in a good way).  A lot of the reviews I've seen have really skewered that character, and I can kind of see that.  It didn't bother me as much as others, but once he went through his transformation a bit a lot of people were just laughing at his appearance.  Again, like Jeff said, I think if you are familiar with GL you'll get more out of the movie than the "general audience".  Really hope it does well enough to warrant a sequel.  I think it will have a good weekend, but we'll see how it holds up.

Offline Brian

  • Jedi Sentinel
  • *
  • Posts: 11749
    • View Profile
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #99 on: June 20, 2011, 12:28 PM »
Doesn't sound like the movie did as well as hoped, despite winning the weekend handily:

http://boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3190&p=.htm

$52.7 estimated weekend.  Hopefully it will do well enough overseas and on DVD/BD to justify a sequel, because I know I'd like to see more from the GL world.  I can't see it having a very good "hold" this weekend going up against Cars 2 and then Transformers the middle of next week.  Just reading through this Box Office Mojo article, and it says that GL's estimate actual tickets sold numbers are even lower than Ghost Rider and Daredevil, and its gross numbers are lower than not only Thor and X-Men: First Class, but also Incredible Hulk and both Fantastic Four movies.  I know that it got poor reviews, and although I enjoyed it I can admit that it was far from perfect - but still, it is surprising that it has done so poorly.  This article mentions that it is because of GL being a "b-list" superhero, which he doesn't seem like to me (as a comic reader), but I suppose the general public has next to no idea who he is.  Anyways, I hope we see another movie, because I'd love to see some Hal vs. Sinestro action.

Offline BillCable

  • Jedi General
  • *
  • Posts: 9883
  • CreatureCantina.com SUCKS!!
    • View Profile
    • CreatureCantina.com
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #100 on: June 20, 2011, 12:51 PM »
I think GL's failure can be attributed to one thing:  26% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes.  It was just a poorly written, badly executed movie.  As such, it has no appeal outside fanboys who already like GL.  I was planning to see it until the reviews came in.  Studios can't get away with bad movies anymore, and in this economy people aren't nearly as willing to drop big bucks to waste an afternoon in the theater.

Similarly, I didn't really have any motivation to see X-Men First Class until the reviews came in.  When I saw so much praise I figured I'd give it a shot.  And it didn't disappoint.
Bill Cable - Steeler Fan & Star Wars Collector
  http://CreatureCantina.com       
"Cable is incapable of contributing anything positive to this world" - cstoj

Offline Morgbug

  • Old
  • Jedi Guardian
  • *
  • Posts: 16232
  • mmm. pemmican.
    • View Profile
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #101 on: June 20, 2011, 01:09 PM »
Unfortunate that it didn't do well.  I was looking forward to it based on the commercials but I'll wait for it to hit the $5 DVD bin now I'm afraid.  I'm sure I'd like it enough to see it in the theater, but my tolerance for the movie going public is so low that unless it's something bound to hold the interest of all (and shut them up, keep them from texting, etc.) it's just not worth going for me. 
Minivans: a sign of the apocalypse.

Offline efranks

  • Jedi Knight
  • *
  • Posts: 2932
  • Eric Franks
    • View Profile
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #102 on: June 20, 2011, 01:54 PM »
I thought GL was okay.  It didn't completely suck but mostly due to Ryan Reynolds and the time on Oa.  But the story was a mess, the Hector character may be important in the comics or something, but he was a waste of time in the film.  I think they also did a poor job of setting up the relationship between Ryan and Blake, at least in establishing how far the two of them went back.

Right out of the film afterwards we were talking about things that each of us missed during the film, and if three of us missed as much as we did, you know there was something wrong with the storytelling.  I think I understood "Inception" better than parts of this.

I didn't mind the setup at the beginning, and I know some reviewers had a problem with that for various reasons.  But one thing I didn't get was Sinestro's motivation at the end.  It seemed counter to his actions during the course of the movie.

We saw it in 3D, which I've not been a fan of so far, but I thought the movie popped off the screen pretty well for most of it.  Better than Thor and Tron anyway.

Overall I think the Harry Potter trailer at the start got more pop from the crowd than GL did.  I'd see a sequel, but I wouldn't recommend anyone spend money to see this one in theaters.  Get the DVD cheap in 6 months and see it then.

   E...
"I sell the drugs that keep you people from seeing dragons at night." - Gus "Psych"

Offline McMetal

  • Jedi Master
  • *
  • Posts: 7135
    • View Profile
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #103 on: June 20, 2011, 02:14 PM »
I'd have to agree with GL being a B list superhero. The character never intrigued me as a comic reader and even less so as a movie goer.

Though I have to admit it's hard to shake that DC bias from my days as a comic collector. I can't think of anything from DC that I would have any interest in going to see in theatres honestly.
A character’s face is melted by fantastical energy

Offline BillCable

  • Jedi General
  • *
  • Posts: 9883
  • CreatureCantina.com SUCKS!!
    • View Profile
    • CreatureCantina.com
Re: Green Lantern
« Reply #104 on: June 20, 2011, 02:41 PM »
I don't buy the B-list excuse.  Iron Man is (well, was) pure 2nd-tier B-list, and IM1 was HUGELY successful.  I think if GL had been a better movie it would have made a ton of money.
Bill Cable - Steeler Fan & Star Wars Collector
  http://CreatureCantina.com       
"Cable is incapable of contributing anything positive to this world" - cstoj