On geek movies (and why studios can’t get away with what they used to)

So The Wolverine came out this weekend.  Big budget, blockbuster, comic movie (I mean – it’s Wolverine, come on!) – that’s going to rake it in, right?

And a fun poster.  Makes you want to see it?

It made $55 million in the domestic box office (for perspective: budget was $115 million and for a movie to be profitable at the box office it has to double its budget).

Now, over all (meaning worldwide), it didn’t have a horrible weekend.  Apparently foreign movie goers really like American action movies?  Because it managed to gross $86-ish million overseas for a decent opening that will make the studio happy – $141 million, and it will make more (it hasn’t even opened in China or Japan yet).  It should beat that “profitable” mark.

Now, the original X-Men, when released in 2000, made almost $55 million in its domestic opening.  X-Men: First Class, which came out in 2011, made about $55 million in its domestic opening. That’s comparable, and they are part of the same universe.  But X2: X-Men United made $85.5 million domestic opening weekend, X-Men: The Last Stand made over $102 million domestic opening weekend, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine made over $85 million domestic opening weekend.  But, in recent years, what with The Avengers (May of last year, $207 million domestic, global opening of $392 million), Iron Man 3 ( May of this year, $175.3 million domestic, global opening of $373 million), and, well, most of the Marvel Cinematic Universe releases (I don’t think any have opened before $65 million), to be honest, the studio was expecting much, much more.  So why didn’t they get it?

Simple: we (the geek- and fandom) aren’t going to support something just because it is or has a geek culture nod or basis.  It still has to be GOOD.

The Lord of the Rings trilogy started showing that “geek” movies can be profitable.  Fans turned out in droves to see what they’d been dreaming of for over 30 years.  Amazing landscapes, decent acting, gorgeous costumes, the story we all knew and loved (even if there were changes – that’s a topic for another time), and the amazing-ness (especially for the time) that still is Gollum…  Well, let’s just say the studio had a happy waltz to the bank on those (total domestic gross for all three: over $1.035 billion dollars, plus another $300 million for The Hobbit.  Worldwide for the trilogy: $2.917 billion.  Current worldwide gross on The Hobbit alone is $1.017 billion). 

All of a sudden, movie studios realized that those silly kids that grew up with Star Wars and geeky books and comic books had, you know, actually grown up.  And had money to spend.

And were, or, at least, had the potential to be, an extremely marketable demographic.

But those were epic sweeping stories.  Fantasy worlds with full story lines that began and ended and didn’t reboot a million times.  That meant that fans 1) knew pretty much what they were getting walking into the theater and 2) knew there was an end to it (meaning, at least on some level, knew that the studio couldn’t just keep churning out crap with the name stuck on it, hoping to rake in more cash).  Once the story was done, it was done.

They were also good movies.

Movie studios have tried to get the “geek” demographic in the past.  There were the original Batman movies.  Numerous other comic book movies – Fantastic Four, Captain America (the old, horrible movie), the Spiderman movies.  But none of them did, well, that. 

Then came the first three Spider-Man movies, and the X-Men movies, doing “comic book” movies decently well.  Budgets that allowed the effects / make up / talent to do justice to the characters.  Somewhat campy stories, but they were comic book movies, so we expected that and could deal with it.

Then Christopher Nolan happened.

Personally, I think Christopher Nolan may be one of the best things that has happened to comic book / superhero movies in a long time.  With Batman Begins (and continuing in The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rises) Nolan proved that comic book / superhero movies don’t have to be “comic book / superhero movies”.  They can be good movies, with a good story and acting (especially with some spot on casting) and an actual message, that happen to be about a superhero or comic book character.  They can matter.  They can be amazing.

They can be worthy of Oscars.

Then came Marvel with a cinematic universe that ties from movie to movie without every movie feeling like the exact same thing (and, again, dead on casting.  They couldn’t have cast Iron Man better).  There are references that only die hard fans get and there are throw away remarks that tie them all together beautifully.  It’s a world that you could live in, that inhabits superheroes.

Amazingly fun ones.

X-Men tries to do that (the sweeping universe from one movie to the next) and falls flat.  The references feel forced, the story lines seem rushed.  I liked First Class much better than The Last Stand, but I will admit, a very large part of that was because of James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender.  Had they not played Professor X and Magneto as they did, I likely would not have enjoyed the movie nearly as much as I did, if at all.  They were still making comic book movies and we, as viewers, had moved past that.  We expect good scripts and good movies and aren’t going to accept less just so we can see comic book characters we love.

It appears that The Wolverine suffers from this.

I will admit, I have not yet seen the movie.  I’ll likely try to see it once it’s released on DVD / OnDemand, but I’m not going to pay $10 to watch it in the theaters.  But reviews seem to be mixed (I’ve heard a lot of “It’s got fun fights”) and most say there really isn’t any, well, story.

So movie studios should now be put on notice:  “Geeks” are a very marketable demographic.  In general and as a whole, there is disposable income waiting to be spent.  We like movies.  We like our characters.

We do not like the assumption that we’re going to be happy to spend $10 just to see said characters on screen.

So take some of those millions and invest in a good screen writer.  And maybe directors that know the material.  And, in general, make good movies.

If you make good movies, we will come.

In droves and often.

Reasons why I want to go to Comic Con (cause things like this happen!)

San Diego International Comic Con was last weekend. 

I hate hate hate that I wasn’t there.  Truly.

I want to go to that thing, someday.  My goal is that, sometime in the future, my children beg me to take them to Comic Con like many children beg their parents to take them to Disney World (and, of course, I will find a way to make it happen, like parents find a way to make Disney happen, because I love my kids and it would be totally for them and I wouldn’t enjoy a minute of it.  Really).  It shouldn’t be too hard, considering that my children already love Doctor Who, superheroes, comics (what I’ve let them see) and so much else that goes on there.

Including costumes.  Oh they love costumes.

Punky would have been in fangirl heaven had she seen those two.  Probably her two favorite Disney princesses!

But that being said, there are many many things that happened this weekend.  Many many things that I wish I could have seen and been a part of.  But, from what I’ve seen, these are some of the things I most wish I could have seen this weekend.

— Karen Gillian revealing that she pulled a Matt Smith with her hair – it’s gone.  GONE.  When she showed up, she still had the red hair, long, but it looked like it had been cut.  Still beautiful.  But then a panel leader asked about her playing Nebula (who is bald) in Guardians of the Galaxy and all of a sudden the hair is off and there she is with a bald head and her red hair is in the crowd.

Wow.

—  The DW fan meet up.  I’ve seen and heard about this but I don’t think it was the actual Doctor Who panel.  But fans were getting to ask Matt and Jenna and Moffat questions and they were just being frank and honest with them.  There was a phone call from another writer (Gattis I think) for Moffat and I’m pretty sure this is where Matt begged fans not to forget him and, in a moment of weakness, said he might have made a mistake in leaving (though we all know it was just a moment of weakness).  I just would have loved to be there. 

—  The actual Doctor Who panel.  With the trailer and everything.  Oh how I wish I had seen that!  (And Moffat apparently admitted to “lying [his] arse off” about the 50^th so as to keep things secret, so maybe my hope that John Hurt ISN’T the Time War Doctor might come true!)

—  The Walking Dead panel with the Season 4 trailer.  While, of course, I’ve seen it now, I would have loved to be able to be there and hear the questions and maybe get to ask some.  I love that show (yeah…we’ve been over that) and I want anything and everything I can get my hands on about it.

—  Andrew Garfield pulling his Spiderman stunt.  He showed up to a panel in a cheap Spiderman costume, talking about how he always wanted to come to Comic Con dressed as Spiderman and here they were letting him and then, all of a sudden, the mask comes off and there’s Andrew Garfield, the current Spiderman.  I can only say that is awesome and wish I could have seen it.

—  Also, Matt Smith walking around as Bart Simpson?  Yes please!

—  Loki.  Really do I need to say more?  But Tom Hiddleston, in full Loki regalia, showed up, in character, to introduce the trailer for the next Thor movie, and got the fans to kneel and chant his name.  Watching the video is rather amazing and oh how I wish I could have been there for it.

—  The X-Men: Days of Future Past panel.  I’m pretty sure this was rather a surprise panel?  Or maybe we just weren’t aware of who would be there?  But really – pretty much all the X-Men – both “current” and “past” – were there.  Stewart, McAvoy, McKellan, Fassbender, Dinklage, Jackman, Berry, Lawrence, Paquin, Ashmore, Hoult, Page, Peters – they were all there.  And apparently McKellan (current Magneto) was hitting on Fassbender (past Magneto).  Oh the fangirling I’m SURE that caused!  (But really, I’d just love to see McAvoy.  How I adore that man.  Never thought I would have to admit to having a crush on Professor X!)

—  Catching Fire trailer.  Yes.  Please.  God wish I had been there for that.

—  And Marvel Agents of SHIELD?  They totally showed the entire pilot to the panel!!  Gah.  (And Agent Hill totally appeared.  Yes please!!!!)

There’s more, of course.  So many things.  Everything.  EVERY.  THING.  And, of course, all the costumes and the amazing fans.  But really, I mean really.  These are the reasons I would love nothing more than to have been there for.

I even think Punky would have loved – or at least appreciated – most of it!