Superherohype has the four minutes of Green Lantern: First Flight, showing Hal Jordan's fateful meeting with Abin Sur. Looks very good to me. The animation has an almost CG quality to it at times which I think is a good fit to the character. Abin Sur looks a bit more alien than usual; probably done to differentiate him from other animated shows like New Frontier.
And Rogue, if you're out there, I'm curious as to what the Marvel Sisters are thinking now that DC/WB have stolen Reynolds from them. )
Count my son in on that as well. All three of them were irritated to the casting choice. As if wedging the release of the film so closely to Thor's premiere wasn't grating enough... )Reynolds is now a traitor in their eyes. )
Personally, I think casting Reynolds was a stroke of genius. Naysayers think that he's limited to the wise-cracking comedic roles that he's famous for but I've seen him in a couple of serious films and the guy has range so don't be fooled. Combined with Campbell at the helm, GL looks set to steal the summer of 2011.
I'm glad they didn't go with Bradley Cooper; I think he's overrated and well...when I see him, I just don't see Hal Jordan.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Watched the 4 minute clip which Tony was nice enough to post, found it to be compelling enough to keep me interested in seeing the whole film. I noticed Michael Madsen does one of the voices, always liked him. I will be checking First Flight out when it is released.
And Rogue, if you're out there, I'm curious as to what the Marvel Sisters are thinking now that DC/WB have stolen Reynolds from them. )
Count my son in on that as well. All three of them were irritated to the casting choice. As if wedging the release of the film so closely to Thor's premiere wasn't grating enough... )Reynolds is now a traitor in their eyes. )
) I kind of thought their reaction would be along those lines; but I wasn't expecting your son to go to the dark side so easily. Oh well, maybe First Flight will turn him back on the righteous path.
Personally, I think casting Reynolds was a stroke of genius. Naysayers think that he's limited to the wise-cracking comedic roles that he's famous for but I've seen him in a couple of serious films and the guy has range so don't be fooled. Combined with Campbell at the helm, GL looks set to steal the summer of 2011.
I'll admit I wasn't wild about it at first, but the more I think of it the happier I am. He's definitely a better pick than some of the other names and overall a safe choice.
I'm glad they didn't go with Bradley Cooper; I think he's overrated and well...when I see him, I just don't see Hal Jordan.
My brother wasn't wild about Cooper either; he said he reminded him of some annoying kid he went to high school with the most grating, nasally voice. Much like a bad penny, he keeps turning up in the most unlikely of places every 10 years or so. )
Watched the 4 minute clip which Tony was nice enough to post, found it to be compelling enough to keep me interested in seeing the whole film. I noticed Michael Madsen does one of the voices, always liked him. I will be checking First Flight out when it is released.
I'm pretty sure Madsen is the voice of Kilowog, who is something of a drill sargeant in the GL Corps and becomes one of Hal's closest friends. He's one of the more interesting characters in the GL mythos and I'll be curious to see what they do with him both here and in the live action movie.
Nice bit of fan art. Reynolds looks pretty convincing.
Vox clamantis in deserto
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
They could definitely do worse than that... B-)
I'm looking forward to this one
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
There's another very positive review for green Lantern: First Flight over at DVDTalk.com; there's also some info on the extras included on the disc. Here's the link:
My copy of Green Lantern: First Flight arrived today ( one day late, thanks for nothing Amazon X-( ) and I just got thru watching it. In short, a kick-ass animated film with some very solid voicework and good animation that is all quite true to the Green Lantern mythos.
The story centers around Hal Jordan, who inherits the mantle of the Green Lantern of Sector 2814 from his predecessor, a dying Abin Sur. Though the Guardians of the Universe are leery of letting a human (who they view as an inferior species) wield the ring, the respected Green Lantern Sinestro offers to take Jordan under his wing and evaluate him. Together they set out to track down Kanjar Ro, who has stolen the Yellow Element - the only power source that is a threat to the Green Lanterns. Of course, any self-respecting GL fan will quickly figure out that Kanjar is only a pawn in a much larger scheme, with the control of the universe literally hanging in the balance.
The story is quite faithful to many of the GL mythos I'm familiar with. The origin plays out exactly as it did in GL's first appearance back in 1959 and many familiar characters such Carol Ferris, Kilowog, Tomar Re and even Ch'p make appearances. Green Lantern is very much a sci-fi book that usually takes place in outer space and the show stays true to that as well as we are quickly wisked away to Oa, home of the Guardians and the GL Corps, and other corners of the galaxy including the anti-matter world of Qward.
The film's 75 minute running time means that character development and relationships take a back-seat to the action, but all the necessary beats are covered and the show does a good job of bringing the viewer up to speed on the mythos behind the character without getting bogged down in exposition.
The animation is a mix of hand-drawn art augmented with CGI elements like spaceships, giant robots and the like. While clearly not at the level of a Disney or Pixar film, it has a suitably futuristic look that fits well with the subject matter. I picked up the BluRay version and the presentation was colorful and razor-sharp throughout.
The voicework is uniformly solid; Christopher Meloni and Victor Garber are both quite convincing and earnest as Hal and Sinestro and in a nice touch, classic character actors like William Schallert and Malachi Thorne provide the voices of the Guardians.
As a longtime GL fan, I just ate this movie up and certain sequences, including...
a section where Hal absorbs the power of the Central Battery to fight Sinestro and the recitation of the Green Lantern oath at the end
... just had me beaming. I've been waiting for a solid treatment of this character for a long time and this didn't disappoint. The people tasked with the live action GL movie could do worse than use this effort as a blueprint as it gets so many things right. In my view its easily the best of WB's direct to DVD animated efforts. If you're at all curious about the character (there are also a bunch of extras on the disc), by all means check it out. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
You know Tony, when I checked out the Off Topic threads this morning, I noticed the Green Lantern thread had worked its way down to the bottom of the page and I thought to myself, I know Green Lantern First Flight came out yesterday and I am sure Tony would have seen by now, so how come he didn't write a review. Well now I know. Glad you enjoyed it.
Sounds like the film is quite good and I will being checking it out. As a Green Lantern novice, I am sure I will learn a lot.
) I was at a Target store this morning and saw the BluRay. It took all of my willpower to not buy a copy right then and there even though I knew mine was in transit and would probably arrive today.
Rest assured that my beaming review is not the raving of a blinded GL fan. When the character is handled poorly - as he was in so many of the Justice League animated shows - I was not shy to say so. This one gets it right. My brother, who is a fan but not nearly as much as I am, watched it with me and also loved it.
I'll be curious to read your impressions when you have a chance to see it.
I saw Green Lantern First Flight last night and enjoyed it.
Quick explanantion how I managed to see it. Every now and then my family will decide they want to watch a movie while having dinner, usually pizza or something. So yesterday my wife called me at work and said that was the plan for the night and was there anything I wanted to see. I mentioned Green Lantern and was surprised when it wasn't shot down. Hard to find something everyone likes, but they went to the video store and rented it, so thanks to my family for going along with my selection.
What I was hoping for in the film was the back story to how Hal Jordan became a Green Lantern and a general overview of the whole Green Lantern world. Happy to report I got it and enjoyed it.
Tony does a better job than I could telling the movies story and reviewing the technical aspects of the film, so I will just add that I found the Green Lantern character to be quite interesting. A little cocky, but not overly so, a sense of right and wrong, a free spirit and a sense of humor, all of which I enjoyed. Tony mentioned that the 75 minute running time limited some character develpment which I agree with, but as a Green Lantern newbie, I still feel I got a good understanding of the character. I think the romantic relationship that was just hinted at, at the start of the film could be intersting as it appears to be a little more adult than your usual comic book romance.
All in all I enjoyed, as did my kids. The wife dozed off, bt this isn't her cup of tea, so I appreciate her effort.
Just two more quick notes, Jon Laroquette of night court fame did some voice work and a short piece of the soundtrack near the end sounded quite like the QoS soundtrack. Thumbs up from me. Looking forward to the lve action film.
Glad to read that you liked the DVD Barry and kudos to your family for broadening their horizons. As to a couple of your observations...
Your description of Hal as "a little cocky, but not overly so, a sense of right and wrong, a free spirit and a sense of humor" pretty much describes the character during most of his run in the comics and as a longtime fan I was happy to see that the producers caught those qualites without making him annoying or obnoxious.
Hal and Carol Ferris did indeed have a relationship in the comics. Since this current incarnation of Green Lantern has been in publication for 50 years now, their relationship went thru some changes over the years. In the early books, Hal had a crush on Carol, but Carol only had eyes for Green Lantern (never realizing that Hal was GL) so you had a kind of love triangle with two people. Later on, she discovered Hal's secret and as different creative teams took over the books, their relationship went thru more ups and downs than I could count, with each character eventually going off in their own direction.
If you liked first flight and are curious about Hal Jordan, you may want to check out the DVD of Justice League: New Frontier at some point. That's another direct-to-DVD movie that features Hal prominently (though he only becomes Green Lantern at the very end, just in time to help save the day). The movie is about a threat to Earth that requires all of its heroes to cast aside their differences and band together to confront the threat. It is very much a standalone story that takes place during the cold war and reconfigures the characters to inhabit that era. It goes into far greater detail into Hal's backstory and his relationship with Carol Ferris. It also puts the spotlight on some other notable DC characters like the Flash.
It will be interesting to see what kind of a live action Green Lantern movie we eventually get and how it compares to this latest effort. Things have been very quiet on that front (there was no news at all at comic con). Hopefully, the positive reviews and solid sales for First Flight (its one of the week's top sellers on Amazon.com) will spur WB to move production forward.
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
edited August 2009
I'm shamefully late to purchasing my copy of Green Lantern: First Flight seeing that I'm koo-koo for this kind of stuff but bought mine yesterday afternoon.
Me and the kid watched it last night and we're pleased with the film on a whole. However, I wasn't happy with some of the liberties taken in this like:
The handling of Boodikka. I know that it was for shock value but she just wouldn't do that and that angle was already used in a previous DC DTV that we both quickly recognized. I didn't think that they'd go there again .
This is one of very few films in which the villian out-shined the hero. Victor Garber's Sinestro was deliciously evil in a calm and articulate way; this is a tremendous improvement from the Superfriends version that was almost laughable. He definetely made the film worthwhile even if you're familiar with the direction of where the plot was inevitably headed. Sinestro was my favorite character in the film hands down. B-)
The art design was good despite some Anime sensibilities added to it and the flow of the action was nothing short of amazing. Although I'm glad that character development took a backseat to action, I would've loved to have seen more of Carol Ferris in this and from an old school standpoint, although it might not be politically correct to exploit, an appearance from Hal's buddy Pieface even if briefly.
One complaint that cannot be ignored is the blantant disregard for a decent back history of GL on the special features disc like WB has done with their other superhero DTVs. Instead we get a 15 minute interview with writer Geoff Johns on his current run of the character. No mention of Alan Scott, nor artist Gil Kane's early run on the book and not even recognizing my boy Neal Adams' 70s run on the title THAT WON AN EAGLE AWARD MIND YOU X-(. I felt that was rather lazy and lame. X-(
I rank this latest DC venture up there with the likes of WONDER WOMAN (pretty much a tie for first place IMO); it easily surpasses JL: NEW FRONTIER because its story focuses on the main character and doesn't condense its storyline for the sake of time like Frontiers does.
Now this might change by the time Superman/Batman: Public Enemies comes out in September.
Early prognosis for that one all point to total win. B-)
All in all, GL gets a solid 3 1/2 stars out of 4 from me as a movie but the 2-disc set was rather lacking and grades lower.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
I'm shamefully late to purchasing my copy of Green Lantern: First Flight seeing that I'm koo-koo for this kind of stuff but bought mine yesterday afternoon.
Me and the kid watched it last night and we're pleased with the film on a whole. However, I wasn't happy with some of the liberties taken in this like:
The handling of Boodikka. I know that it was for shock value but she just wouldn't do that and that angle was already used in a previous DC DTV that we both quickly recognized. I didn't think that they'd go there again .
This is one of very few films in which the villian out-shined the hero. Victor Garber's Sinestro was deliciously evil in a calm and articulate way; this is a tremendous improvement from the Superfriends version that was almost laughable. He definetely made the film worthwhile even if you're familiar with the direction of where the plot was inevitably headed. Sinestro was my favorite character in the film hands down. B-)
The art design was good despite some Anime sensibilities added to it and the flow of the action was nothing short of amazing. Although I'm glad that character development took a backseat to action, I would've loved to have seen more of Carol Ferris in this and from an old school standpoint, although it might not be politically correct to exploit, an appearance from Hal's buddy Pieface even if briefly.
One complaint that cannot be ignored is the blantant disregard for a decent back history of GL on the special features disc like WB has done with their other superhero DTVs. Instead we get a 15 minute interview with writer Geoff Johns on his current run of the character. No mention of Alan Scott, nor artist Gil Kane's early run on the book and not even recognizing my boy Neal Adams' 70s run on the title THAT WON AN EAGLE AWARD MIND YOU X-(. I felt that was rather lazy and lame. X-(
I rank this latest DC venture up there with the likes of WONDER WOMAN (pretty much a tie for first place IMO); it easily surpasses JL: NEW FRONTIER because its story focuses on the main character and doesn't condense its storyline for the sake of time like Frontiers does.
Now this might change by the time Superman/Batman: Public Enemies comes out in September.
Early prognosis for that one all point to total win. B-)
All in all, GL gets a solid 3 1/2 stars out of 4 from me as a movie but the 2-disc set was rather lacking and grades lower.
Rogue, glad to hear you and your son enjoyed the show. I agree with most of your comments but for me the whole was vastly greater than the sum of its parts. Some of GL's scenes (like when he first gets the costume or when he learns about Sector 1215) did have an anime vibe to them but they didn't overpower the movie as was the case with Gotham Knight. To be honest, I was kind of surprised at what happened with Boodikka. I had avoided spoilers on this one to keep it as fresh as possible so that was a little bit of a surprise to me. I was also kind of surprised when Tomar-Re bought the farm (a lot of fans seem to be really upset by that more than Boodika). As for Carol Ferris, we got plenty on her relationship with Hal in New Frontier so I didn't mind her taking a backseat here. Pieface would have been fun to see though of course they could never use that nickname; they would have simply had to call him Tom. I also agree that the extras as they related to GL were lacking on this disc compared to other entries. Seeing as this is a Hal story, they could have also picked some better JLA episodes to bundle. Ring Toss from The Batman would have been uniformly better than any of the selections included. Still, overall, as a hopeless Hal Jordan fan this one really struck all the right chords with me and the final battle with Sinestro was really well done.
BTW, I picked up Wonder Woman today; the BluRay was $13 at BestBuy and at that price it was a no-brainer. I hope to watch it before the weekend is out.
EDIT: I just saw Wonder Woman. In short a good movie with good action but the way she's drawn still bugs me at times. I liked the references to Greek mythology. I didn't like the feminism bits as they seemed quaint and naive. Steve Trevor was a buffoon most of the time (typical Nathan Fillion, thank God he's not GL). In the end, I guess I just like my heroes more high tech and cosmic. It's good and I'll definitely keep it, but it doesn't hold hold a candle to Green Lantern: First Flight. SpectreIsland concurs. Sorry (runs away...). :v
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
EDIT: I just saw Wonder Woman. In short a good movie with good action but the way she's drawn still bugs me at times. I liked the references to Greek mythology. I didn't like the feminism bits as they seemed quaint and naive. Steve Trevor was a buffoon most of the time (typical Nathan Fillion, thank God he's not GL). In the end, I guess I just like my heroes more high tech and cosmic. It's good and I'll definitely keep it, but it doesn't hold hold a candle to Green Lantern: First Flight. SpectreIsland concurs. Sorry (runs away...). :v
I swear to God, Tony, my son and I both predicted your review of WW would fall along these lines; you didn't fail to disappoint. We just knew!!!! Wait till I tell him. ) ) )
Reluctantly, my son doesn't care for WW in her individual episodes on Justice League for obvious reasons (he usually leaves the room when her eps are on) but once he saw her DTV, he had to breakdown and say that's the best movie by WB/DC so far. Bear in mind he'd rather have Marvel winning the DTV war (and hopes they'd get on the ball and produce more films for the sake of competition) but he loved it. So do I. That's why I gave it such high marks.
Like you said previously of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts, the art didn't bother us as much as it did you and as for Diana's feminist ravings, that fits pretty much with the character whether it's favorable or not.
I guess the producers decided Fillion's Trevor was simply there for comic relief but it was effective; I'm not a vested reader of the comic anyway so that left me free of persecuting. I could just enjoy it for what it was...
I respect you loving your boy's film over this one but for me, they kind of run neck and neck depending on my mood. They're both clearly above the previous ones I own and being a Batman fan, that's hard to admit. But hey, thanks for at least admitting that it was good and a keeper; no need to take off and run. That's just how you feel.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Green Lantern: First Flight arrived via Netflix yesterday and I watched it last night. I have to say I was a bit underwhelmed. Yes, it's fun and an agreeable way to kill 75 minutes, but for my money there was too much GL Corps and not enough GL. I was hoping there'd be something more about Hal's "day job" and his life when he's not in the green suit, and never once was Earth in danger--it was all space opera, and I get the feeling the makers of GLFL are big fans of the Star Wars saga, given the number of riffs. That said, there's a lot here that makes me think the GL movie can be downright awesome--just keep the focus on the man and not on the aliens.
Well in all fairness HB, a lot of the stuff that you mentioned was already covered in the Justice League: New Frontier DVD, which went into Hal's fighter pilot backstory and his relationship with Carol Ferris quite a bit. The earth was even in peril in that one and if this new release covered that same kind of territory I'm sure there would be people complaining that they'd seen it all before.
When the writers of GL famously (or infamously) made Hal go crazy and wipe out the Corps in the mid 90s, they tried to turn the book into a more earthbound series and the sales just kind of went flat. The book really languished until Jeoff Johns concocted a story to revive the Corps and Hal and exonerate him of his past actions.
If it ever gets off the ground, I'm sure the live action movie will have a significantly longer running time and will give the audience more backstory. At the same time, I hope it continues to embrace the more cosmic aspects of the character. The spacebound stories have long been a staple of the GL comics, as has the fact that Hal is part of this larger force, and for my money that's what really set the series apart from DC's other characters like Superman, Batman, Flash and Wonder Woman, all of whom are largely Earthbound characters that operate alone.
Those are good points, Tony, and I respect them. Don't get me wrong: I'm well aware of GL's outer-space milieu (and I even read the comic during the changeover from Hal to Kyle Whatzisface--what the HELL were they thinking?), and I'm not asking for an earth-bound adventure. What I'm saying is Hal is OUR Green Lantern, and it would have been great seeing him do something--say, toward the end of First Flight--to save the Earth and all he cares about. But that's criticising what the filmmakers didn't make as opposed to what they did, so take it for what you will.
However, I still feel that the moviemakers reduced Hal to a secondary or tertiary role in this. All too often he's just standing (or hovering) around and making wiseass comments as the other GLs do their thing. Also, as is common in a lot of these super-hero shows, the villain far outshines the hero. Sinestro was more developed than Hal, had better dialogue, and a more interesting character arc. I just wasn't rooting for Hal as I should have been.
Again, I thought the show was fun and on the whole, I liked it--I just didn't think it was what it could have been.
Well in all fairness HB, a lot of the stuff that you mentioned was already covered in the Justice League: New Frontier DVD, which went into Hal's fighter pilot backstory and his relationship with Carol Ferris quite a bit. The earth was even in peril in that one and if this new release covered that same kind of territory I'm sure there would be people complaining that they'd seen it all before.
Glad you pointed this out. Like HB, I have Green Lantern in my netflix queue, but haven't seen the new Justice League DVD so I'll have to bring that one in too.
Outside of a single Green Lantern/Green Arrow comic book that I had about 30 years ago, I have had zilcho experience on the GL mythos. I'm hoping the recent animated adventure will prep me a little for the upcoming live-action event.
Those are good points, Tony, and I respect them. Don't get me wrong: I'm well aware of GL's outer-space milieu (and I even read the comic during the changeover from Hal to Kyle Whatzisface--what the HELL were they thinking?), and I'm not asking for an earth-bound adventure. What I'm saying is Hal is OUR Green Lantern, and it would have been great seeing him do something--say, toward the end of First Flight--to save the Earth and all he cares about. But that's criticising what the filmmakers didn't make as opposed to what they did, so take it for what you will.
However, I still feel that the moviemakers reduced Hal to a secondary or tertiary role in this. All too often he's just standing (or hovering) around and making wiseass comments as the other GLs do their thing. Also, as is common in a lot of these super-hero shows, the villain far outshines the hero. Sinestro was more developed than Hal, had better dialogue, and a more interesting character arc. I just wasn't rooting for Hal as I should have been.
Again, I thought the show was fun and on the whole, I liked it--I just didn't think it was what it could have been.
Best to try to forget that whole Kyle Rayner era. The writers tried their hardest to turn him into DCs' version of Peter Parker (complete with work and relationship hangups) and that just made me sick - maybe that's another reason why I'm so hard on the wallcrawler (plus I enjoy pushing Dan Same's buttons).
I was also thinking about the whole "Earth in peril" issue as it relates to these shows and one of the things that bugged me about the Superman: Doomsday and Wonder Woman animated DVDs is that when the big confrontation occurs with Metropolis and Washington DC respectively hanging in the balance - Superman goes it alone and although WW gets help from her fellow Amazonians, no other superheroes are to be seen anywhere either. Most of these animated efforts really take place in a vacuum and appear to be mutually exclusive of one another. I've always found that kind of odd since the audience they're geared to probably wouldn't be at all bothered or confused if some other costumed wonders made an appearance.
In the end, seeing how DC's animated efforts had given Hal such short shrift over the years, it was nice to finally see the character front and center, even if the story was a little uneven. But don't mind me and my rationalizations HB, I just get a little defensive when it comes to GL, especially Hal Jordan (much like RogueAgent does with Batman).
Glad you pointed this out. Like HB, I have Green Lantern in my netflix queue, but haven't seen the new Justice League DVD so I'll have to bring that one in too.
Outside of a single Green Lantern/Green Arrow comic book that I had about 30 years ago, I have had zilcho experience on the GL mythos. I'm hoping the recent animated adventure will prep me a little for the upcoming live-action event.
Just be aware that, like the book upon which it is based, New Frontier is set up as a period piece; even though the characters behave as you would expect and their backstories are pretty accurate, the entire story takes place around 1959. As such, just like every other one of DC's direct to DVD releases it is very much a standalone effort with no hooks to the other shows.
Unfortunately, as RogueAgent pointed out, DC and WB kind of dropped the ball with the extras on the Green Lantern DVD. While their other shows had some good pieces on the history of the characters, here you get stuff that is more in the way of advertising for DC's current projects than a real analysis of GL's history and his rogue's gallery. That's too bad because the GL book has one of the more interesting histories and has gone thru a lot of twists and turns during the years and the DVD extras give you none of that.
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
I hope this doesn't turn into something cumbersome. I really want this project to hit the ground running. Maybe this is a minor issue?
Erik Amaya reports from CBR News:
GREEN LANTERN
Australian website Inside Film (via Production Weekly's twitter feed) reports recent gains in the Australian dollar puts the production in jeopardy. "While most offshore productions lock in finance when a project is green-lit, it is understood that ongoing work on the Green Lantern script delayed that move. Pre-production on the film was originally scheduled for July and filming for November," states the article. This could mean the film will have to shift its release date if the production is forced to relocate and any number of crew changes.
Link: http://comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=22682
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
I hope WB isn't spinning their wheels on this one. They've already pushed the release date back once and things have been very quiet on the live action GL front since the announcement of Ryan Reynolds' signing (maybe too quiet?). As was the case with the JLA project, where there were a lot of "announcements" but nothing concrete was ever actually confirmed by WB, I still haven't heard a peep out of an actual suit when it comes to solid facts about this movie.
Making a good GL movie will cost big bucks so I can understand wanting to film where you'll get the most bang for your dollar, but WB is notorious for their indecisiveness. I just wish they'd make an announcement - one way or another - and stick with it.
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
The Marvel Sisters brought this article to my attention....as they were painfully gloating.
They want this film to fail because of the Reynolds casting...and being somewhat threatened by a probable DC franchise that isn't Batman that has the potential to be as big or bigger than Iron Man.
Two bitter guys in desperate need of female companionship. )
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
The Marvel Sisters brought this article to my attention....as they were painfully gloating.
They want this film to fail because of the Reynolds casting...and being somewhat threatened by a probable DC franchise that isn't Batman that has the potential to be as big or bigger than Iron Man.
There was a bit about this on AICN; the info is somewhat dicey because the original article got the director wrong (they said it was James Cameron, not Martin Campbell). We'll see what happens; if we don't hear anything by Thanksgiving then its safe to say the movie got put on the backburner.
Two bitter guys in desperate need of female companionship. )
Yeah, but they probably won't get any. Let's face it, there aren't that many women out there who would actually be willing put on a White Queen getup to get a rise out of those two. )
this looks like WB is still pushing the GL film lets hope it doesn't spent too much time flip-floping between the states and Australia before filmimg starts though
Yeah, but they probably won't get any. Let's face it, there aren't that many women out there who would actually be willing put on a White Queen getup to get a rise out of those two. )
As your friend I think it only fair to warn you that they have read your response and are probably planning a retort for you...which in their case means something in Photoshop.
One of them just glared at me then knocked over Little Hal before walking back to his cubicle... )
this looks like WB is still pushing the GL film lets hope it doesn't spent too much time flip-floping between the states and Australia before filmimg starts though
Thanks for the link, Agent_M. I just want this thing on the way to getting filmed.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
I agree with the writer of that article that a southwestern backdrop would be perfect for the test-pilot sequences...
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
Here's a manip floating around the net that definetely should be the official poster:
Sweet, wouldn't you agree? Looks like Hal to me. B-)
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Comments
Here's the link: First Flight Opening
Personally, I think casting Reynolds was a stroke of genius. Naysayers think that he's limited to the wise-cracking comedic roles that he's famous for but I've seen him in a couple of serious films and the guy has range so don't be fooled. Combined with Campbell at the helm, GL looks set to steal the summer of 2011.
I'm glad they didn't go with Bradley Cooper; I think he's overrated and well...when I see him, I just don't see Hal Jordan.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
I'll admit I wasn't wild about it at first, but the more I think of it the happier I am. He's definitely a better pick than some of the other names and overall a safe choice.
My brother wasn't wild about Cooper either; he said he reminded him of some annoying kid he went to high school with the most grating, nasally voice. Much like a bad penny, he keeps turning up in the most unlikely of places every 10 years or so.
I'm pretty sure Madsen is the voice of Kilowog, who is something of a drill sargeant in the GL Corps and becomes one of Hal's closest friends. He's one of the more interesting characters in the GL mythos and I'll be curious to see what they do with him both here and in the live action movie.
I'm looking forward to this one
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/37975/green-lantern-first-flight/
The story centers around Hal Jordan, who inherits the mantle of the Green Lantern of Sector 2814 from his predecessor, a dying Abin Sur. Though the Guardians of the Universe are leery of letting a human (who they view as an inferior species) wield the ring, the respected Green Lantern Sinestro offers to take Jordan under his wing and evaluate him. Together they set out to track down Kanjar Ro, who has stolen the Yellow Element - the only power source that is a threat to the Green Lanterns. Of course, any self-respecting GL fan will quickly figure out that Kanjar is only a pawn in a much larger scheme, with the control of the universe literally hanging in the balance.
The story is quite faithful to many of the GL mythos I'm familiar with. The origin plays out exactly as it did in GL's first appearance back in 1959 and many familiar characters such Carol Ferris, Kilowog, Tomar Re and even Ch'p make appearances. Green Lantern is very much a sci-fi book that usually takes place in outer space and the show stays true to that as well as we are quickly wisked away to Oa, home of the Guardians and the GL Corps, and other corners of the galaxy including the anti-matter world of Qward.
The film's 75 minute running time means that character development and relationships take a back-seat to the action, but all the necessary beats are covered and the show does a good job of bringing the viewer up to speed on the mythos behind the character without getting bogged down in exposition.
The animation is a mix of hand-drawn art augmented with CGI elements like spaceships, giant robots and the like. While clearly not at the level of a Disney or Pixar film, it has a suitably futuristic look that fits well with the subject matter. I picked up the BluRay version and the presentation was colorful and razor-sharp throughout.
The voicework is uniformly solid; Christopher Meloni and Victor Garber are both quite convincing and earnest as Hal and Sinestro and in a nice touch, classic character actors like William Schallert and Malachi Thorne provide the voices of the Guardians.
As a longtime GL fan, I just ate this movie up and certain sequences, including...
... just had me beaming. I've been waiting for a solid treatment of this character for a long time and this didn't disappoint. The people tasked with the live action GL movie could do worse than use this effort as a blueprint as it gets so many things right. In my view its easily the best of WB's direct to DVD animated efforts. If you're at all curious about the character (there are also a bunch of extras on the disc), by all means check it out. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
Sounds like the film is quite good and I will being checking it out. As a Green Lantern novice, I am sure I will learn a lot.
Rest assured that my beaming review is not the raving of a blinded GL fan. When the character is handled poorly - as he was in so many of the Justice League animated shows - I was not shy to say so. This one gets it right. My brother, who is a fan but not nearly as much as I am, watched it with me and also loved it.
I'll be curious to read your impressions when you have a chance to see it.
Quick explanantion how I managed to see it. Every now and then my family will decide they want to watch a movie while having dinner, usually pizza or something. So yesterday my wife called me at work and said that was the plan for the night and was there anything I wanted to see. I mentioned Green Lantern and was surprised when it wasn't shot down. Hard to find something everyone likes, but they went to the video store and rented it, so thanks to my family for going along with my selection.
What I was hoping for in the film was the back story to how Hal Jordan became a Green Lantern and a general overview of the whole Green Lantern world. Happy to report I got it and enjoyed it.
Tony does a better job than I could telling the movies story and reviewing the technical aspects of the film, so I will just add that I found the Green Lantern character to be quite interesting. A little cocky, but not overly so, a sense of right and wrong, a free spirit and a sense of humor, all of which I enjoyed. Tony mentioned that the 75 minute running time limited some character develpment which I agree with, but as a Green Lantern newbie, I still feel I got a good understanding of the character. I think the romantic relationship that was just hinted at, at the start of the film could be intersting as it appears to be a little more adult than your usual comic book romance.
All in all I enjoyed, as did my kids. The wife dozed off, bt this isn't her cup of tea, so I appreciate her effort.
Just two more quick notes, Jon Laroquette of night court fame did some voice work and a short piece of the soundtrack near the end sounded quite like the QoS soundtrack. Thumbs up from me. Looking forward to the lve action film.
Your description of Hal as "a little cocky, but not overly so, a sense of right and wrong, a free spirit and a sense of humor" pretty much describes the character during most of his run in the comics and as a longtime fan I was happy to see that the producers caught those qualites without making him annoying or obnoxious.
Hal and Carol Ferris did indeed have a relationship in the comics. Since this current incarnation of Green Lantern has been in publication for 50 years now, their relationship went thru some changes over the years. In the early books, Hal had a crush on Carol, but Carol only had eyes for Green Lantern (never realizing that Hal was GL) so you had a kind of love triangle with two people. Later on, she discovered Hal's secret and as different creative teams took over the books, their relationship went thru more ups and downs than I could count, with each character eventually going off in their own direction.
If you liked first flight and are curious about Hal Jordan, you may want to check out the DVD of Justice League: New Frontier at some point. That's another direct-to-DVD movie that features Hal prominently (though he only becomes Green Lantern at the very end, just in time to help save the day). The movie is about a threat to Earth that requires all of its heroes to cast aside their differences and band together to confront the threat. It is very much a standalone story that takes place during the cold war and reconfigures the characters to inhabit that era. It goes into far greater detail into Hal's backstory and his relationship with Carol Ferris. It also puts the spotlight on some other notable DC characters like the Flash.
It will be interesting to see what kind of a live action Green Lantern movie we eventually get and how it compares to this latest effort. Things have been very quiet on that front (there was no news at all at comic con). Hopefully, the positive reviews and solid sales for First Flight (its one of the week's top sellers on Amazon.com) will spur WB to move production forward.
Me and the kid watched it last night and we're pleased with the film on a whole. However, I wasn't happy with some of the liberties taken in this like:
This is one of very few films in which the villian out-shined the hero. Victor Garber's Sinestro was deliciously evil in a calm and articulate way; this is a tremendous improvement from the Superfriends version that was almost laughable. He definetely made the film worthwhile even if you're familiar with the direction of where the plot was inevitably headed. Sinestro was my favorite character in the film hands down. B-)
The art design was good despite some Anime sensibilities added to it and the flow of the action was nothing short of amazing. Although I'm glad that character development took a backseat to action, I would've loved to have seen more of Carol Ferris in this and from an old school standpoint, although it might not be politically correct to exploit, an appearance from Hal's buddy Pieface even if briefly.
One complaint that cannot be ignored is the blantant disregard for a decent back history of GL on the special features disc like WB has done with their other superhero DTVs. Instead we get a 15 minute interview with writer Geoff Johns on his current run of the character. No mention of Alan Scott, nor artist Gil Kane's early run on the book and not even recognizing my boy Neal Adams' 70s run on the title THAT WON AN EAGLE AWARD MIND YOU X-(. I felt that was rather lazy and lame. X-(
I rank this latest DC venture up there with the likes of WONDER WOMAN (pretty much a tie for first place IMO); it easily surpasses JL: NEW FRONTIER because its story focuses on the main character and doesn't condense its storyline for the sake of time like Frontiers does.
Now this might change by the time Superman/Batman: Public Enemies comes out in September.
Early prognosis for that one all point to total win. B-)
All in all, GL gets a solid 3 1/2 stars out of 4 from me as a movie but the 2-disc set was rather lacking and grades lower.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Rogue, glad to hear you and your son enjoyed the show. I agree with most of your comments but for me the whole was vastly greater than the sum of its parts. Some of GL's scenes (like when he first gets the costume or when he learns about Sector 1215) did have an anime vibe to them but they didn't overpower the movie as was the case with Gotham Knight. To be honest, I was kind of surprised at what happened with Boodikka. I had avoided spoilers on this one to keep it as fresh as possible so that was a little bit of a surprise to me. I was also kind of surprised when Tomar-Re bought the farm (a lot of fans seem to be really upset by that more than Boodika). As for Carol Ferris, we got plenty on her relationship with Hal in New Frontier so I didn't mind her taking a backseat here. Pieface would have been fun to see though of course they could never use that nickname; they would have simply had to call him Tom. I also agree that the extras as they related to GL were lacking on this disc compared to other entries. Seeing as this is a Hal story, they could have also picked some better JLA episodes to bundle. Ring Toss from The Batman would have been uniformly better than any of the selections included. Still, overall, as a hopeless Hal Jordan fan this one really struck all the right chords with me and the final battle with Sinestro was really well done.
BTW, I picked up Wonder Woman today; the BluRay was $13 at BestBuy and at that price it was a no-brainer. I hope to watch it before the weekend is out.
EDIT: I just saw Wonder Woman. In short a good movie with good action but the way she's drawn still bugs me at times. I liked the references to Greek mythology. I didn't like the feminism bits as they seemed quaint and naive. Steve Trevor was a buffoon most of the time (typical Nathan Fillion, thank God he's not GL). In the end, I guess I just like my heroes more high tech and cosmic. It's good and I'll definitely keep it, but it doesn't hold hold a candle to Green Lantern: First Flight. SpectreIsland concurs. Sorry (runs away...). :v
I swear to God, Tony, my son and I both predicted your review of WW would fall along these lines; you didn't fail to disappoint. We just knew!!!! Wait till I tell him.
Reluctantly, my son doesn't care for WW in her individual episodes on Justice League for obvious reasons (he usually leaves the room when her eps are on) but once he saw her DTV, he had to breakdown and say that's the best movie by WB/DC so far. Bear in mind he'd rather have Marvel winning the DTV war (and hopes they'd get on the ball and produce more films for the sake of competition) but he loved it. So do I. That's why I gave it such high marks.
Like you said previously of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts, the art didn't bother us as much as it did you and as for Diana's feminist ravings, that fits pretty much with the character whether it's favorable or not.
I guess the producers decided Fillion's Trevor was simply there for comic relief but it was effective; I'm not a vested reader of the comic anyway so that left me free of persecuting. I could just enjoy it for what it was...
I respect you loving your boy's film over this one but for me, they kind of run neck and neck depending on my mood. They're both clearly above the previous ones I own and being a Batman fan, that's hard to admit. But hey, thanks for at least admitting that it was good and a keeper; no need to take off and run. That's just how you feel.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
When the writers of GL famously (or infamously) made Hal go crazy and wipe out the Corps in the mid 90s, they tried to turn the book into a more earthbound series and the sales just kind of went flat. The book really languished until Jeoff Johns concocted a story to revive the Corps and Hal and exonerate him of his past actions.
If it ever gets off the ground, I'm sure the live action movie will have a significantly longer running time and will give the audience more backstory. At the same time, I hope it continues to embrace the more cosmic aspects of the character. The spacebound stories have long been a staple of the GL comics, as has the fact that Hal is part of this larger force, and for my money that's what really set the series apart from DC's other characters like Superman, Batman, Flash and Wonder Woman, all of whom are largely Earthbound characters that operate alone.
However, I still feel that the moviemakers reduced Hal to a secondary or tertiary role in this. All too often he's just standing (or hovering) around and making wiseass comments as the other GLs do their thing. Also, as is common in a lot of these super-hero shows, the villain far outshines the hero. Sinestro was more developed than Hal, had better dialogue, and a more interesting character arc. I just wasn't rooting for Hal as I should have been.
Again, I thought the show was fun and on the whole, I liked it--I just didn't think it was what it could have been.
Glad you pointed this out. Like HB, I have Green Lantern in my netflix queue, but haven't seen the new Justice League DVD so I'll have to bring that one in too.
Outside of a single Green Lantern/Green Arrow comic book that I had about 30 years ago, I have had zilcho experience on the GL mythos. I'm hoping the recent animated adventure will prep me a little for the upcoming live-action event.
Best to try to forget that whole Kyle Rayner era. The writers tried their hardest to turn him into DCs' version of Peter Parker (complete with work and relationship hangups) and that just made me sick - maybe that's another reason why I'm so hard on the wallcrawler (plus I enjoy pushing Dan Same's buttons).
I was also thinking about the whole "Earth in peril" issue as it relates to these shows and one of the things that bugged me about the Superman: Doomsday and Wonder Woman animated DVDs is that when the big confrontation occurs with Metropolis and Washington DC respectively hanging in the balance - Superman goes it alone and although WW gets help from her fellow Amazonians, no other superheroes are to be seen anywhere either. Most of these animated efforts really take place in a vacuum and appear to be mutually exclusive of one another. I've always found that kind of odd since the audience they're geared to probably wouldn't be at all bothered or confused if some other costumed wonders made an appearance.
In the end, seeing how DC's animated efforts had given Hal such short shrift over the years, it was nice to finally see the character front and center, even if the story was a little uneven. But don't mind me and my rationalizations HB, I just get a little defensive when it comes to GL, especially Hal Jordan (much like RogueAgent does with Batman).
Just be aware that, like the book upon which it is based, New Frontier is set up as a period piece; even though the characters behave as you would expect and their backstories are pretty accurate, the entire story takes place around 1959. As such, just like every other one of DC's direct to DVD releases it is very much a standalone effort with no hooks to the other shows.
Unfortunately, as RogueAgent pointed out, DC and WB kind of dropped the ball with the extras on the Green Lantern DVD. While their other shows had some good pieces on the history of the characters, here you get stuff that is more in the way of advertising for DC's current projects than a real analysis of GL's history and his rogue's gallery. That's too bad because the GL book has one of the more interesting histories and has gone thru a lot of twists and turns during the years and the DVD extras give you none of that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xcMxnNzp2I
Erik Amaya reports from CBR News:
GREEN LANTERN
Australian website Inside Film (via Production Weekly's twitter feed) reports recent gains in the Australian dollar puts the production in jeopardy. "While most offshore productions lock in finance when a project is green-lit, it is understood that ongoing work on the Green Lantern script delayed that move. Pre-production on the film was originally scheduled for July and filming for November," states the article. This could mean the film will have to shift its release date if the production is forced to relocate and any number of crew changes.
Link: http://comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=22682
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Making a good GL movie will cost big bucks so I can understand wanting to film where you'll get the most bang for your dollar, but WB is notorious for their indecisiveness. I just wish they'd make an announcement - one way or another - and stick with it.
They want this film to fail because of the Reynolds casting...and being somewhat threatened by a probable DC franchise that isn't Batman that has the potential to be as big or bigger than Iron Man.
Two bitter guys in desperate need of female companionship.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
There was a bit about this on AICN; the info is somewhat dicey because the original article got the director wrong (they said it was James Cameron, not Martin Campbell). We'll see what happens; if we don't hear anything by Thanksgiving then its safe to say the movie got put on the backburner.
Yeah, but they probably won't get any. Let's face it, there aren't that many women out there who would actually be willing put on a White Queen getup to get a rise out of those two.
http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/08/26/will-green-lantern-move-out-of-australia/
www.scottacademymartialarts.co.uk
One of them just glared at me then knocked over Little Hal before walking back to his cubicle...
Thanks for the link, Agent_M. I just want this thing on the way to getting filmed.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Sweet, wouldn't you agree? Looks like Hal to me. B-)
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -