Tag Archives: Ben Affleck

Apr 17 2015

Official Teaser Trailer For Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice

poster bats

Below is the first official teaser for next year’s epic film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. As we all know this was supposed to come out next week, but some moron leaked today a really piss poor copy of this trailer, thus forcing Warner Bros./DC’s hand. It’s too bad they had to rush it out, but at least it makes us forget that limp teaser of a teaser shown yesterday that just showed the Superman and Batman costumes!

As a trailer it sells its point, but for some reason the pervading tone of the movie seems dark, not a bad thing, mind you. Just different from what we’ve been getting lately from Marvel (aside from the TV show Daredevil). But will the dark tone jibe with today’s fans? This mood was in vogue just a few years ago, especially when The Dark Knight was all the rage and fans have had bad to mixed reactions to the reboot of The Fantastic Four coming this summer for its bleak outlook based on its own teaser. So some may think this dark take of superheroes is outdated.

Nevertheless, this film won’t bomb. There are too many fans invested and the buzz is high. And its dourness helps sell the film’s motif that Superman is being mistrusted by the general public. It’s a refreshing direction to take with Superman and adds a touch of realism because let’s face it, in real life this fear of a super-powered alien among us would probably be the pervading attitude.

As for Batman, it seems as if director Zack Snyder is channeling Frank Miller’s seminal work The Dark Knight Returns and that by itself is great. It’s hard to judge Ben Affleck as an older Bruce Wayne, because we all got was one shot of him with a brooding look. But the shots of him as Batman and the Batmobile should satisfy most fans. Putting aside Ben Affleck and the new shots of Henry Cavill as Superman, honestly, the final moments of this trailer when it concludes with Superman and Batman about to face off with each other were the most scintillating parts.

This was a great week for trailers with Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Ant-Man, but this one for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a perfect capper!

Lewis T. Grove

Aug 22 2013

Ben Affleck Is The New Batman!

add

In a stunning move, Ben Affleck has just been picked to play Batman for the upcoming sequel to Man Of Steel. This is a truly stunning and daring casting pick considering how reviled he was for playing Daredevil a few years ago.

In fact, for years Affleck has gone out of his way to disavow his role in Daredevil and inferred that he was done with playing superheroes. His Hollywood career seemed to have suffered for playing the blind superhero, but he was able to switch gears and built an impressive resume as a film director. This culminated with his acclaimed directing job for the Oscar-winning film Argo. So for him to go back and playing another superhero, especially a high-profile one like Batman is a puzzling move.

Perhaps Warner Bros. threw a lot of money at him and he changed his mind. This is just speculation, but maybe he was offered a shot at directing the impending Justice League film and him playing the Caped Crusader was part of the deal.

batsIn a press release posted on Facebook, director Zack Snyder stated that “Ben provides and interesting counter-balance to Henry’s Superman. He has the acting chops to create a layered portrayal of a man who is older and wiser than Clark Kent and bear the scars of a seasoned crime fighter, but retain the charm that the world sees in billionaire Bruce Wayne. I can’t wait to work with him.”

This casting choice literally comes out of left field considering other more visible candidates seemed to be in the running to play Batman. It’s a bold and risky move that can alienate many fans. Can Ben Affleck pull it off? Will he be the next Christian Bale or the next Nicolas Cage? Does this also mean he will play Batman in other films? Stay tuned, same Bat time…you know the rest.

Waldermann Rivera

Feb 25 2013

Argo’s Sci-Fi Connection

Argo producer

One thing not really being talked about in the movie trades and news regarding the movie Argo winning the Oscar for Best Picture is Argo’s sci-fi angle. It’s the first time this has happened with a Best Picture winner.

For the unaware reader, the movie is about the CIA’s efforts during the Iran Hostage Crisis to rescue six Americans hiding in a Canadian embassy in Tehran. A crucial sub-plot in Argo has to do with Ben Affleck’s character of CIA operative Tony Mendez coming up with the off-the-wall idea of entering Iran to rescue the American hostages by posing as a film producer. This scheme involves him supposedly producing a fake “science fantasy adventure” movie called Argo and he wants to film the project in Iran because of its exotic location. Unbelievably this scheme works as Mendez is given permission by Iran to enter the hostile country for location scouting.

Actually Argo the fake movie was based on a never-made sci-fi movie called Lord Of Light (based on a book of the same name). Lord Of Light went far enough into pre-production that legendary comic book artist Jack Kirby was commissioned to draw some concept art for the film project.

kirby argo 2

The whole thing with the fictitious movie is just a gimmick while Argo is devoted to the efforts to smuggle out the Americans. The movie cannot be considered sci-fi at all, yet it has a sliver of a sci-fi connection. This is the closest that the disrespected genre (in Hollywood’s eyes) has come to date for being part of a movie that is a Best Picture winner. Not much, but it’s a first step.

Perhaps one day a genuine sci-fi movie will earn that Best Picture honor on Oscar night.

Lewis T. Grove