Monthly Archives: June 2023

Jun 24 2023

The Flash’s Stumble Signals The End Of The DCEU

This was not supposed to happen. Even though The Flash, the latest film in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), had many delays and behind-the-scenes obstacles, the solo film debut of the superfast DC hero had a lot going for it. From over-the-top praise from early screenings and the return of Michael Keaton as Batman, the film was expected to perform well in the box office when it premiered last week. Yet, here we are with the film being a massive box office flop that could not even earn $70 million in the U.S. for its opening weekend and with even more dismal earnings expected this weekend. No mistake here, folks. The limping and wounded DCEU cannot be salvaged in any form because of the failure of The Flash.

It is all too easy to blame the failure of The Flash to superhero film fatigue, but that is just an easy answer. After all, Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse performed very well when they premiered earlier this year. So, what happened? It will take some time to determine what went wrong, but for now here are some reasons as to why The Flash was a dud in theaters.

Bad DCEU Reputation

Let’s face it, although the DCEU has had a few great films, too many of them had problems when it came to quality. After Shazam! In 2019, the DCEU films that followed, with the exceptions of The Suicide Squad and Zack Snyder’s Justice League, were ravaged by fans and critics. They also performed poorly in the box office, especially The Suicide Squad. In fact, the last DCEU film that was a bonafide hit was Aquaman, which was back in 2018. The recent failures gave the cinematic universe a poor reputation that caught up to it and left The Flash with an insurmountable obstacle.

Adding to the poor reputation was that The Flash starred Ezra Miller, an actor who has gotten into trouble for alleged criminal activities, a lot of it was violent. Ordinarily, Miller would have been and should have been fired from the role, but the film studio, Warner Bros. did not recast the role. Instead, the film proceeded with Miller continuing to play the title superhero because it was not financially feasible to restart production with another actor. Miller’s toxic behavior turned off many fans who refused to pay money to see the film since doing so would in a sense condone Miller’s actions.

Overhype & Missed Opportunities

With the recent failed DCEU films, The Flash was seen as the last, best hope for the DCEU. It had many hurdles to overcome, but the film’s team got through them. There was some hope for the film as early screening reactions were positive. Celebrities like Tom Cruise and Stephen King raved about the film. There was excitement over Keaton’s return and promises of cameos from past DC films and TV shows since the film dealt with the multiverse.

Unfortunately, while The Flash is one of the best DCEU offerings and a solid superhero film, it had its share of issues, such as its script. Without going too much into spoilers, why didn’t the Flash use his time travel powers to find out who killed his mother? Also, at the end of the film, it’s clear that the superhero did not learn the hard lesson about interfering with time based on what he did at the end.

Also, some of the special effects were downright awful. How bad? Arrowverse bad! Speaking of the Arrowverse, it is puzzling why the film did not feature an appearance by Grant Gustin, who played the Flash for several years on TV or even John Wesley Shipp, who played the superhero in the early ‘90s. In the TV version of The Flash, Ezra Miller appeared briefly and met the Grant Gustin version of the Flash. So, why wasn’t Gustin in the film?

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Jun 18 2023

The Flash Is A Fun Sendoff For The DCEU

After years of delays and behind-the-scenes controversies, The Flash, the “final” film of the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), is finally here. Fortunately, despite its flaws and the real-life, alleged criminal actions of its star Ezra Miller, the film was worth the wait.

The Flash is a very loose adaptation of the Flashpoint DC Comics mini-series where time-travel actions by the Flash disrupt his timeline. The film takes place during a day-in-the-life of the titular character, Barry Allen aka the Flash (Miller), who performs his superspeed heroics while carrying on in his lonely civilian life. He is trying to find evidence to prove that his father, Henry (Ron Livingston) is innocent of killing Barry’s mother, Nora (Maribel Verdú), when Barry was a child. During a moment of grief, Barry runs so fast he momentarily time travels. This gives him the idea to use his abilities to go further back in time to save his mother. Even though his friend Bruce Wayne/Batman (Ben Affleck) warns him of the dangers with tampering with time, Barry decides to go through his plan anyway and succeeds.

During his journey back to his own time, Barry becomes stranded ten years in his past. After reuniting with his mother and father, Barry soon encounters his younger self and realizes he arrived at the day when he got his superspeed powers. The attempt to ensure that the younger Barry gets his powers succeeds, but the present-day Barry loses his powers. What’s worse is that a short while later, the Kryptonian warlord Zod (Michael Shannon) arrives with his army on Earth to conquer the planet. Barry learns that in this world Superman, who defeated Zod in Man of Steel, does not exist and the only existing superhero is a retired Batman (Michael Keaton). It is up to the three to find a way to defeat Zod and recreate Barry’s powers.

There is so much to enjoy in The Flash, which is one of the best DCEU films. Let’s start with Miller’s performance as both Barrys. Yes, the DCEU version may be too strange and quirky, but Miller is able to create two distinct versions of the same character. One who is immature and very obnoxious, while the slightly older version is more mature, sensible and even sympathetic, although his brash actions created the temporal crisis. The way the film had the actor interact with his film was flawless thanks to clever editing and effects.

Speaking of effects, they are the one major flaw of The Flash. Several sequences are masterful and eye-popping, especially whenever the Flash travels through the speed force, or when our heroes and Supergirl (Sasha Calle) battle Zod and his forces. But other times it is painfully obvious that bad CG is being used. This happens in the film’s opening scenes when the Flash tries to save a bunch of fake-looking infants who are falling from a high-rise hospital and at one point later in the film when several characters are showcased in other universes. It’s not clear what happened, perhaps the producers ran out of money and the film studio Warner Bros. refused to provide more funds. Director Andy Muschietti offered a nonsensical explanation that this was intentional so we could see how the Flash sees the world around him while he is traveling at hyper speeds. Bullshit!

We’ll probably get the real story years from now. But seriously, it would have been better if stock footage from other films and TV shows were used during the scenes where the Flash views other universes. This worked in the recent episode of Titans when Beast Boy glimpsed other universes including the DCEU. What was surprising was that we did not see the CW/Arrowverse version of the Flash played by Grant Gustin. This was unusual since Miller made a brief cameo as the Flash during the Arrowverse’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” event a few years ago. The other cameos seen are fun especially for DC fans.  

Uneven special effects aside, The Flash is a fun, surprisingly humorous and spirited superhero film that has a lot of heart. Its last merit is rather surprising and credit goes to Miller and Muschietti. The emotional beats are very aching during the film’s final act when Barry has to acknowledge some painful truths about life. There was one scene near the very end that was so heart wrenching even though it was inevitable.

As well as Miller was in both roles, the other performers like Keaton and Calle also turn in fine performances. Obviously, it was great seeing Keaton reprise his iconic role as he found a new spark and purpose in his life, which was to help Barry.  The relationship between the two was the heart of Flashpoint and was essentially recreated in this film, although the film has little to do with the comic book storyline. It was also a treat to see Affleck reprising his role as Batman, as well, even though this will be the actor’s final performance as the superhero. The one brief moment we see his version of Bruce interacting with Barry showed the two have a natural chemistry and it will be missed.

Without going into spoilers it is not clear where the film leaves off in terms of the disrupted timeline. There was an original ending that was nixed in favor of what turns out to be a joke, and a bad one at that for those who loathe some of the older Batman films. Given its dismal box office performance and Miller’s situation it is doubtful this version of the Flash will return as this is the end of the DCEU. Still, The Flash is an enjoyable time-travel/superhero yarn that sends off the DCEU on a high note.

Jun 12 2023

Man Of Steel & The Failed Promise Of The DCEU

This week marks the tenth anniversary of the film release of Man of Steel, which was released on June 14, 2013. It not only served as a reboot for the Superman film franchise but as the vehicle to launch the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). Now the superhero film universe based on DC superheroes comes to an end this year starting with The Flash, which will serve as a soft reboot of the DCEU and transform it into the DC Universe (DCU).

One of the casualties of the DCEU reboot will be Superman himself, which is ironically fitting since his film launched the DCEU.

Man of Steel was directed by Zack Snyder, who presented a darker and more grounded version of Superman in a world filled with muted colors and stark lighting. At the same time, the film and other Snyder-centric DCEU films cast the title hero with mythological, god-like imagery that did not resemble comic book images but rather epic paintings with static poses and even more harsh lighting.

This became more prevalent in future DCEU films such as Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League, while Man of Steel was more grounded.

This unique approach to Superman was supposed to make him more relevant and relatable to modern audiences. As to whether or not that worked, is open for debate. Before Man of Steel, Superman was seen as a noble, larger-than-life do-gooder as best personified by the Christopher Reeve Superman films of the ‘70s and ‘80s. Thanks to Reeve’s classic performance it was difficult to imagine the superhero in any other kind of light. Even Superman Returns, the last Superman film before Man of Steel, did not veer from the Reeve interpretation of Superman, which led to a lot of criticism. In trying to make this version of Superman distinct from the traditional Boy Scout persona, it can be argued that Snyder veered too far from what made Superman so special. He is supposed to be a beacon of hope for humanity, which was ironic because he was actually an alien who grew up on Earth. Despite humanity’s faults, Superman adopted the best traits of his adopted species and served as an exemplar for the promise of humanity.

In Man of Steel, Superman aka Clark Kent (Henry Cavill) went through something of an identity crisis in an updated origin story. The film went through the typical Superman origin tropes but with new twists. Superman’s home planet, Krypton, was not the cold, crystalline and sterile civilization seen in the Christopher Reeve films. This Krypton was a planet embroiled in civil strife with a warring society that used what seemed to be technology based on programmable matter.

Superman’s origin was more tied to that of his nemesis, General Zod (Michael Shannon), in that Zod was at odds with Superman’s father, Jor-El (Russell Crowe). With the planet dying, Jor-El sends his newborn son, Kal-El, to Earth to have a chance at a new life. Before Kal-El is sent, he is embedded with genetic material called the Codex, which will provide the genetic means to recreate the Kryptonian race on another world.

After arriving on Earth, Kal-El is adopted by a human couple and grows up in a farm in Kansas. He struggles to fit in with society because of his developing super powers, which he has to keep hidden. Once he reaches adulthood, Kal-El who is now called Clark, sets out in the world to find himself and a purpose in life. During his journeys Clark clandestinely uses his powers to help people during emergencies.

Eventually he comes across the wreckage of a Kryptonian scout ship and activates an AI program that takes the image of Jor-El, who reveals to Clark his Kryptonian heritage. Under the guidance of the Jor-El AI, Clark learns to properly use his powers and adopts the famous Superman identity.

Soon after, Zod and his army arrive on Earth and establishes first contact with humanity, with the demand that Superman be turned over to him. Zod earlier learned that Kal-El was implanted with the Codex and wants to retrieve it to rebuild Kryptonian civilization on Earth, which he plans to terraform.

This creates an identity crisis for Superman as he is torn over siding with the human society he struggles to fit in with versus the Kryptonians, who he knows are malevolent. What complicates Superman’s decision is that once he is revealed to the world, he is immediately mistrusted by most of humanity who only see him as an alien threat.

What was interesting about this version of a Superman film was that the superhero was not received by the general public with open arms, but with suspicion. This is what would probably happen in reality if some unknown person was suddenly revealed to the world as an alien with superpowers.

While Man of Steel lacks the light-hearted humor and heart of previous Superman films, it makes up for it with its grounded and frankly more honest approach to the comic book legend. This approach by Snyder and writer David Goyer turned out to be divisive among fans.

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Jun 4 2023

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Embarks On A Stunning, Visual Journey Throughout The Spider-Verse

When it was announced that the release date for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was delayed, there was reason for alarm. Originally the sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was supposed to have come out last year, but its release was pushed to this year. Often such significant delays mean that the production of a film is troubled and the finished product winds up being a disappointment. Thankfully, that is not the case with Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which excels past Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in so many ways in terms of story and visuals.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse opens with Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld) recounting her life as Spider-Woman (or Spider-Gwen) in her own universe and why she left it to explore other universes with different variants of Spider-Man and Spider-Woman. After the lengthy prologue, we meet again Miles Morales (Shameik Moore), the Spider-Man of Universe 1610. He has the typical Spider-Man struggles of juggling his civilian life as a teenager with that of fighting crime as Spider-Man.

On his way to meet his parents, Rio (Luna Lauren Velez) and Jefferson (Brian Tyree Henry), Spider-Man comes across a supervillain called the Spot (Jason Schwartzman), whose body is covered with removable spots that are portals throughout inter-dimensional space. For example, if Spider-Man punches him in the chest and there is a spot there, Spider-Man’s fist will go through the spot and emerge behind Spider-Man to end up hitting the superhero instead.

The Spot is obsessed with getting revenge on Spider-Man because he blames the superhero for his dilemma. It turns out he was one of the scientists present in the first film where Miles and other Spider-powered heroes destroyed a collider machine that allowed travel between universes. The Spot gained his powers after being caught in the explosion of the collider and we also find out that the scientist was partly responsible for Miles becoming Spider-Man.

After the Spot is defeated and humiliated by Spider-Man, he gains the ability to travel throughout the multiverse and seeks out other colliders in those universes to empower himself even more. This decision will not only endanger the multiverse but severely affect Miles’ personal life.

As the Spot explores other realities, Miles is visited by Spider-Gwen, who is now part of the inter-dimensional Spider-Society that guards the Web of Life and Destiny by seeking out dimensional anomalies throughout the multiverse. She was looking for the Spot, who has become an anomaly traveling throughout several universes. Miles soon joins her as she returns to Spider-Society headquarters on Earth 928 and meets numerous variants of Spider-Man and Spider-Woman, including their leader, Spider-Man 2099 (Oscar Isaac).

Spider-Man 2099 explains to Miles that all the universes are intertwined in a delicate metaphysical web with canon events, which are important moments in time for those universes. Disrupting those events will eventually unravel universes and this affects Miles in a crucial way after learning that in all of the Spider-Men and Spider-Women universes have canon events that involve the deaths of distinct police captains. Miles deduces that his father, who was just promoted to a captain, will soon die. He comes into direct conflict with the Spider-Society since he resolves to save his father at all costs, canon event be damned.

In this day and age of overhype from fans and critics it is easy to dismiss praise for many films. However, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse lives up to the hype because it is truly one of the finest animated and superhero films ever produced. Like the first film, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is a visual feast that incorporates different animation styles and frame rates. The best examples of this are with how Spider-Gwen is represented with soft watercolor palettes, while Spider-Punk (Daniel Kaluuya) is animated with harsh punk rock art whose clothing is animated at a different frame rate than the character himself. In other examples, the heroes fight a Vulture (Jorma Taccone) from a Renaissance-styled universe looks like a Da Vinci sketch that has come to animated life with sepia colors; we also meet Ben Reilly/Scarlet Spider (Adam Sanberg), who is animated as a ‘90s-style character with overripe muscle lines and bright colors.

The visual canvas of the film is very busy with wild animation and numerous Easter eggs. Some scenes feature actual panels from classic Spider-Man comics and even images from live-action films. It will take numerous viewings of this film for anyone to fully spot all of them. Each scene is so painstakingly animated and colored, which leaves us with a film that is just dazzling to the eyes.

Of course, all of the visuals would be meaningless without compelling story and characters, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse also excels in this area. So much emotion is conveyed that is either subtle or outlandish. Just like the first film, this sequel is a coming-of-age yarn only with our hero having harder choices to make in his life as he grows into adulthood. Anyone is readily able to relate to Miles’ ethical dilemma of the needs of the many outweighing those of the few and we would probably make the same choice he made. What also helped with the film’s emotional stakes is that it took time to develop Miles’ relationship with his parents, which is full of angst and love. We understand their point of view as they struggle to relate to their son who is growing up to be a man.

Another character who has her own emotional arc is Gwen, who feels alienated and alone in her world. Unable to connect to her father, she in a sense runs away, only in this case she runs away from her universe. The deepening friendship she has with Miles is a true emotional anchor in the film and feels so natural as these two alienated teens are able to connect to one another.

Peter B. Parker (Jake Johnson), who served as a mentor to Miles in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse has a reduced role in this film, which is regrettable. Still, it was a delight seeing him again and what he was been up to. Hopefully, he will have a larger role in the second sequel coming next year.

As many have learned, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ends on a cliffhanger and it is an intense one. But fear not, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse will come out in theaters in March 2024, which is less than a year away and we were able to handle the wait between these films. Given how Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is much better than the original, which in itself was a classic, we can only hope that Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse will excel past this sequel or at least stick the landing.

 José Soto