Marvel Studios: 10 Years On (Movie Retrospect)
#ThanosDemandsYourSilence This was the hashtag going round before, and even after the most anticipated movie in ever, Avengers: Infinity War. A movie so spoiler induced, so secretive, that a global plea was made by the filmmakers calling for all fans to NOT spoil anything from the movie, in order for those who haven't seen it to have that first time experience, after all, you always remember your first time.
And I'm going to adhere to this request from the Mad Titan himself, because despite seeing it myself I want others to experience the movie as I did, with virgin eyes. All I'll say about the movie is its unmissable, but you didn't need me to tell you that.
I won't be reviewing Infinity War, as such. Instead I'll be having a look back at the movie studio that changed the game.
Ten years ago nobody thought that a humble, comic book company, that keeps geeks occupied from the responsibilities of the real world (and I'm one of them, don't worry) would one day construct a movie studio to produce their own movies based on their own properties, because who knows the Marvel Superheroes like Marvel themselves? No one, that's who.
Starting in 2008, with the first iconic Iron Man movie, nobody knew there was a bigger plan at play here. We all thought it was your usual fun, summer Hollywood blockbuster, not the first piece of a larger puzzle, one that involved Earth's Mightest Heroes...The Avengers.
Taking place in the post credits scene (something that would be a tradition for Marvel movies), Tony Stark, played by the charismatic Robert Downey Jr, was confronted by a shadowy, secret agent known as Nick Fury, leader of S.H.I.E.L.D. (aka Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division), who told Stark of an idea he was putting together; a team of superheroes who'd defend the Earth from BIG threats. What those threats were were unknown at the time, but after a few other movies (Incredible Hulk, Iron Man II, Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger) the plan would come to fruition.
2012 saw The Avengers hit the big screen in all their colourful, spandex glory, exceeding fan expectations, and even teasing a future sequel with yet another post credits scene, one that involved a face we would become very familiar with; the Mad Titan, Thanos.
Six years ago, we got our first glimpse of the big purple brute, but we wouldn't see him in action until this years Infinity War, which brings all of The Avengers, the Guardians of The Galaxy, Black Panther and his Wakandan tribes people, and the Master of the Mystic Arts Doctor Strange to band together and stop this seemingly impossible threat to their existence, but not before appearing in their own movies so audiences can get a grip on just who these heroes are, and what they're capable of.
Now, that's what I call planning ahead.
Back in the day, something like the Marvel Cinematic Universe never would've happened, or even be discussed, due in part to greedy movie studios who refused to share the properties they had bought.
Now, Captain America and Iron Man can share the same screen, now we can see a superhero group like The Avengers come to pass, and now we can see the entire Marvel Universe rub shoulders with one another. You'd think having seen this sort of thing happen for the past ten years, that the thrill of would eventually wear off. Not so, if anything, it just gets better.
Being a fan of the Marvel Universe also helps, as it means your wildest dreams can now come true, and keep coming true. You want Spider-Man to shake hands with Doctor Strange? Done. You want Iron Man to have a chinwag with Starlord Peter Quill? Also done. You want Captain America and Black Panther to fight side by side? Do you know the answer? Its done. You can get these scenarios and so much more because Marvel Studios own all of their properties now.
I'm foaming at the mouth of what this means for the foreseeable future.
You have to consider, though, that the characters currently on Netflix (Daredevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist and The Punisher) could, and should, be helping out our favourite heroes. Along with TV's Agents of SHIELD, we could be looking at an even bigger cast of characters locking horns with the baddest of the bads. I, for one, would love to see May team up with Black Widow, or Daredevil and Captain America stand side by side, or Luke Cage and the Hulk fighting off bad guys together.
Of course, its all up to Marvel, and I think, at least for now, they want to keep the Cinematic-verse and TV-verse separate from one another (even though the TV shows reference the movies a bunch of times).
The option is there, but whether Marvel will conform to the idea is entirely up to them. All we can do is wait and see, and in the meantime enjoy what they put out for us because its absolutely awesome.
But what about the influence Marvel Studios have had on other film companies? Well, Warner Bros. have pulled the trigger with the DC Comics properties they own, and are in the middle of constructing the DCEU (Detective Comics Extended Universe) to a mixed reaction. The Justice League movie, and possible sequel, are now able to come together thanks to the successes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Columbia TriStar had a go at making a Ghostbusters Universe. Yeah, you read that right. The idea was to make the all female group, then make another with all males, culminating in a shared Ghostbusters movie with the mixed gender cast. Unfortunately, the harsh crictisim of the female Ghostbusters movie put an end to that. A shame, as I would've loved to have seen a dozen more Ghostbuster movies, no matter what the cast was made up as.
And the world of videogames hoped on board the movie scene, with Ubisoft, taking a cue from Marvel Studios, making an adaptation of their own franchise, Assassin's Creed. If you want something done, you do it yourself.
Its hard to believe that a comic company could out perform, and out strategize Hollywood, but they did and they're reaping the rewards, and the fans love it.
Avengers: Infinity War was the culmination of ten years hard work, but things aren't over yet. Not by a long shot. In August of this year, we have Ant-Man & The Wasp, then next year we'll see the debut of a new character to the Cinematic Universe, Captain Marvel, the as of yet unnamed Avengers 4, and the sequel to Spider-Man Homecoming.
Ten years ago, Marvel etched their plans for world domination, and ten years later they look to expand upon that original idea. Strap on in, its gonna be one hell of a ride.
And I'm going to adhere to this request from the Mad Titan himself, because despite seeing it myself I want others to experience the movie as I did, with virgin eyes. All I'll say about the movie is its unmissable, but you didn't need me to tell you that.
I won't be reviewing Infinity War, as such. Instead I'll be having a look back at the movie studio that changed the game.
Ten years ago nobody thought that a humble, comic book company, that keeps geeks occupied from the responsibilities of the real world (and I'm one of them, don't worry) would one day construct a movie studio to produce their own movies based on their own properties, because who knows the Marvel Superheroes like Marvel themselves? No one, that's who.
Starting in 2008, with the first iconic Iron Man movie, nobody knew there was a bigger plan at play here. We all thought it was your usual fun, summer Hollywood blockbuster, not the first piece of a larger puzzle, one that involved Earth's Mightest Heroes...The Avengers.
Taking place in the post credits scene (something that would be a tradition for Marvel movies), Tony Stark, played by the charismatic Robert Downey Jr, was confronted by a shadowy, secret agent known as Nick Fury, leader of S.H.I.E.L.D. (aka Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division), who told Stark of an idea he was putting together; a team of superheroes who'd defend the Earth from BIG threats. What those threats were were unknown at the time, but after a few other movies (Incredible Hulk, Iron Man II, Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger) the plan would come to fruition.
2012 saw The Avengers hit the big screen in all their colourful, spandex glory, exceeding fan expectations, and even teasing a future sequel with yet another post credits scene, one that involved a face we would become very familiar with; the Mad Titan, Thanos.
Six years ago, we got our first glimpse of the big purple brute, but we wouldn't see him in action until this years Infinity War, which brings all of The Avengers, the Guardians of The Galaxy, Black Panther and his Wakandan tribes people, and the Master of the Mystic Arts Doctor Strange to band together and stop this seemingly impossible threat to their existence, but not before appearing in their own movies so audiences can get a grip on just who these heroes are, and what they're capable of.
Now, that's what I call planning ahead.
Back in the day, something like the Marvel Cinematic Universe never would've happened, or even be discussed, due in part to greedy movie studios who refused to share the properties they had bought.
Now, Captain America and Iron Man can share the same screen, now we can see a superhero group like The Avengers come to pass, and now we can see the entire Marvel Universe rub shoulders with one another. You'd think having seen this sort of thing happen for the past ten years, that the thrill of would eventually wear off. Not so, if anything, it just gets better.
Being a fan of the Marvel Universe also helps, as it means your wildest dreams can now come true, and keep coming true. You want Spider-Man to shake hands with Doctor Strange? Done. You want Iron Man to have a chinwag with Starlord Peter Quill? Also done. You want Captain America and Black Panther to fight side by side? Do you know the answer? Its done. You can get these scenarios and so much more because Marvel Studios own all of their properties now.
I'm foaming at the mouth of what this means for the foreseeable future.
You have to consider, though, that the characters currently on Netflix (Daredevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist and The Punisher) could, and should, be helping out our favourite heroes. Along with TV's Agents of SHIELD, we could be looking at an even bigger cast of characters locking horns with the baddest of the bads. I, for one, would love to see May team up with Black Widow, or Daredevil and Captain America stand side by side, or Luke Cage and the Hulk fighting off bad guys together.
Of course, its all up to Marvel, and I think, at least for now, they want to keep the Cinematic-verse and TV-verse separate from one another (even though the TV shows reference the movies a bunch of times).
The option is there, but whether Marvel will conform to the idea is entirely up to them. All we can do is wait and see, and in the meantime enjoy what they put out for us because its absolutely awesome.
But what about the influence Marvel Studios have had on other film companies? Well, Warner Bros. have pulled the trigger with the DC Comics properties they own, and are in the middle of constructing the DCEU (Detective Comics Extended Universe) to a mixed reaction. The Justice League movie, and possible sequel, are now able to come together thanks to the successes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Columbia TriStar had a go at making a Ghostbusters Universe. Yeah, you read that right. The idea was to make the all female group, then make another with all males, culminating in a shared Ghostbusters movie with the mixed gender cast. Unfortunately, the harsh crictisim of the female Ghostbusters movie put an end to that. A shame, as I would've loved to have seen a dozen more Ghostbuster movies, no matter what the cast was made up as.
And the world of videogames hoped on board the movie scene, with Ubisoft, taking a cue from Marvel Studios, making an adaptation of their own franchise, Assassin's Creed. If you want something done, you do it yourself.
Its hard to believe that a comic company could out perform, and out strategize Hollywood, but they did and they're reaping the rewards, and the fans love it.
Avengers: Infinity War was the culmination of ten years hard work, but things aren't over yet. Not by a long shot. In August of this year, we have Ant-Man & The Wasp, then next year we'll see the debut of a new character to the Cinematic Universe, Captain Marvel, the as of yet unnamed Avengers 4, and the sequel to Spider-Man Homecoming.
Ten years ago, Marvel etched their plans for world domination, and ten years later they look to expand upon that original idea. Strap on in, its gonna be one hell of a ride.
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