What I'll probably be watching this summer.

This summer is going to be exciting for a nerd like me. There are a few comics-based movies out I'm desperate to see. Saying that, though, I need to curb this sort of behaviour as more than a few comics-based movies have left me bitterly disappointed in the past. I'll live, though. (Actually,that sounded a bit dramatic.Don't be too concerned. I'm not going to slash my wrists because of the treatment Galactus got in that last Fantastic Four movie.)

Anyway, I'm a sharing, caring kinda guy, so I thought I'd put some of the trailers up so you can get excited about them too.

First up is Iron Man. This is Marvel's first self-financed film, and that makes me hopeful that the source material will be treated respectfully. I hope so, because I love Iron Man. The old Iron Man, anyway, before he got turned into basically a villain in Civil War. I've got a load of '70s Gene Colan Iron Man (when his helmet had a nose on it) comics that I love to bits. The trailer looks great, anyway. Robert Downey Jr. looks just the part as Tony Stark (not so sure about Gwyneth Paltrow as 'Pepper' Potts, though. I'm allergic to Ms. Paltrow and her whingey husband, and all) and having Brummie metal legends Black Sabbath on the soundtrack is both bleedin' obvious and utterly fantastic. The Audioslave and AC/DC songs used are alright, as well:


Right. The second in my trailer roundup is Guillermo Del Toro's follow up to the generally well-received by everyone Pan's Labyrinth. Yep, it's Hellboy 2. This film looks great. I'm a big fan of Del Toro anyway, and I liked the first one, but this one looks like it might be a cracker, a giant monster mash-up, with Lovecraftian tentacled creatures and Luke Goss' bad guy looking a lot like Moorcroft's Elric.
Also, there's a nice bit of Rammstein on the soundtrack at the end. What is it with heavy metal and comic-book movie trailers? I seem to remember Dimmu Borgir being on the trailer for the first Hellboy movie. God, I am such a geek, remembering stuff like that! Anyway, have a butchers:


Next up is Marvel's second self-financed movie, a reboot of the Hulk. Ang Lee's version of the Green Goliath has its fans, but I'm not one of them. It was an interesting attempt, but ultimately flawed. This new one has a great cast, and looks like there might be a bit more 'Hulk Smash!' than the Ang Lee one. Also, there's rumours of a crossover with the Iron Man film, creating a silver screen mini-Marvel Universe. However, I'm disappointed that there's no heavy metal in this trailer, and I'm also disappointed that Ed Norton doesn't seem to wear the purple trousers that the comics Bruce Banner is fond of wearing. (While I'm on the subject of the Hulk's pants, I hate it when people who think they're being clever ask 'How come the Hulk's trousers never rip ?' when the answer is bloody obvious: You can't have the Hulk's big green cock swinging about in a kid's comic, or for that matter, in a movie. It gives a new meaning to the term 'tentpole blockbuster', though.)



Next up is the one I'm probably looking forward to the most. It's a small independent film based on a little known character called 'Batman'. Yes, it's The Dark Knight, In which Christian Bale's funny jaw will be overshadowed by the tragic untimely death of his co-star. Besides Heath Ledger's Joker, the Scarecrow makes a comeback, and Two-Face also turns up (his appearance is still a mystery at the moment) and usually, lots of villains makes a rubbish movie (Spider-man 3, both of the Schumacher Batman movies) but I loved Batman Begins, and I reckon Christopher Nolan knows what he's doing. And, also, Katie Holmes is gone! In my opinion, she was the weak link in the first one, Maggie Gyllenhaal can only be an improvement. No metal on the soundtrack of this one either. Don't these people know that you need heavy metal to sell you a comic book movie?! Honestly!


And last, but not least, is a bit of a Secret Identity exclusive. It's the first look at Matthew Vaughn's upcoming Thor movie:

(Not really. It's an old Thor cartoon from the '60s dubbed with Derek and Clive. I felt the need to tell you this because I've found out recently that a few people who read this blog do so at work, and this clip has VERY strong language and I wouldn't want any of you to get into trouble. So, I can sleep easy now, because I did warn you!)

Also must-see this year, from my nerd's point of view, anyway, are Indy 4 (the trailer for that can be found elsewhere on this blog) , and Bond 22 , but those aren't comicky enough to be included, and besides, Quantum Of Solace hasn't got a trailer out yet.

Thank you for watching.