DC Cinematic Universe ( The James Gunn era)
- Thread starter Samurai8472
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Not sure if this is the right thread for it, but here's a trailer for the animated movie Aztec Batman: Clash of Empires:
That looks quite historically inaccurate. It appears to portray the Aztecs as a unified culture that the Spanish invaded by themselves, when the truth is that Cortez's conquistadores only assisted the indigenous populations in revolting against their tyrannical rulers, then inserted themselves at the top of the existing authority structure once they displaced Motecuhzomah II. The conquistadores' numbers were far too small to do it on their own; they needed to piggyback on the existing rivalry between indigenous populations. (Well, that and the smallpox.)
Really, I find it surprising to see the Aztecs presented as the good guys, given that this was the height of their militaristic expansion driven by human sacrifice. The conquistadores weren't much better, of course, but I think it would make more sense to make the Batman character an opponent of the rulers fighting to protect the common people from being taken for sacrifice or whatever, analogously to Batman protecting Gothamites from their corrupt government and police.
That looks quite historically inaccurate. It appears to portray the Aztecs as a unified culture that the Spanish invaded by themselves, when the truth is that Cortez's conquistadores only assisted the indigenous populations in revolting against their tyrannical rulers, then inserted themselves at the top of the existing authority structure once they displaced Motecuhzomah II. The conquistadores' numbers were far too small to do it on their own; they needed to piggyback on the existing rivalry between indigenous populations. (Well, that and the smallpox.)
Really, I find it surprising to see the Aztecs presented as the good guys, given that this was the height of their militaristic expansion driven by human sacrifice. The conquistadores weren't much better, of course, but I think it would make more sense to make the Batman character an opponent of the rulers fighting to protect the common people from being taken for sacrifice or whatever, analogously to Batman protecting Gothamites from their corrupt government and police.
James Gunn has posted a high quality picture of the mural from The Hall of Justice, so IGN went through who most of the characters are. Judging by her costume the Amazon is Exoristos from Demon Knights not Hippolyta. I know it shows her with a red costume on her bio, but she wore the green costume from the mural in the issues I read.
Those murals are based on the 1930s Winold Reiss industrial murals from the atrium of the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal, which was the inspiration for the original Hall of Justice in Super Friends (back when it was still a train station rather than a museum that moonlights as a train station) and which the movie used as a filming location. I assume they digitally altered the Reiss murals rather than tamper with museum pieces.
It's wild to see that a scene from this movie was filmed in a place I've actually been in numerous times in my life. I visited the Terminal a number of times in my youth, including once when my father hosted a radio broadcast from there, and in 1996 I worked there as a museum guide for the Star Trek Federation Science Exhibit, often taking my lunch break in the very atrium where they filmed. I haven't been there in quite a while, but I can see it from the overlook park near my apartment.
Although it's not the first time a movie has been filmed in a place I know well. When I was in high school, Johnny Cash and Brenda Vacarro filmed a TV movie there called The Pride of Jesse Hallam, about adult illiteracy. Some of my classmates were extras in the film, though I was too shy to apply. And once on the University of Cincinnati campus, I saw John Sayles filming a scene from City of Hope, with Joe Morton driving a car on UC's main road (the wrong way on what was a one-way road at the time). But somehow it feels weirder when it's a superhero movie taking place in such a familiar real-world location.
It's wild to see that a scene from this movie was filmed in a place I've actually been in numerous times in my life. I visited the Terminal a number of times in my youth, including once when my father hosted a radio broadcast from there, and in 1996 I worked there as a museum guide for the Star Trek Federation Science Exhibit, often taking my lunch break in the very atrium where they filmed. I haven't been there in quite a while, but I can see it from the overlook park near my apartment.
Although it's not the first time a movie has been filmed in a place I know well. When I was in high school, Johnny Cash and Brenda Vacarro filmed a TV movie there called The Pride of Jesse Hallam, about adult illiteracy. Some of my classmates were extras in the film, though I was too shy to apply. And once on the University of Cincinnati campus, I saw John Sayles filming a scene from City of Hope, with Joe Morton driving a car on UC's main road (the wrong way on what was a one-way road at the time). But somehow it feels weirder when it's a superhero movie taking place in such a familiar real-world location.
Cool to see Wesley Dodds' Sandman in the mix. He's the one person I recognized without IGN's help.
Is this why they call it "giving you the Finger"?
I read an article yesterday that had excerpts from James Gunn's interview on the Happy, Sad, Confused podcast.
He said he hated Shazam Fury of the Gods and Black Adam. It wasn't clear to me if that was because of the tag scenes, where characters from Peacemaker approached Shazam and Cavill's Superman went to confront Black Adam, or just because of the films themselves.
I'm not a huge Shazam fan, although I have a friend who was. I've read about the comics and I think I have an appreciation for the character, which, at the time in the Golden Age was outselling Superman. Geoff Johns revamp of Shazam for the New 52 was pretty drastic. Billy was really cynical, Sivana was turned from a weirdo scientist into a CEO of a company like Lex Luthor, and other characters were infused with the power of shazam besides Mary and Freddy. Plus, Fawcett City was replaced by Philly, right?
I think I agree with a lot of Shazam fans that this brought the characters too down to earth. There was something very innocent and whimsical about those original comics. I wonder if that's why Gunn didn't like those two films.
He said he hated Shazam Fury of the Gods and Black Adam. It wasn't clear to me if that was because of the tag scenes, where characters from Peacemaker approached Shazam and Cavill's Superman went to confront Black Adam, or just because of the films themselves.
I'm not a huge Shazam fan, although I have a friend who was. I've read about the comics and I think I have an appreciation for the character, which, at the time in the Golden Age was outselling Superman. Geoff Johns revamp of Shazam for the New 52 was pretty drastic. Billy was really cynical, Sivana was turned from a weirdo scientist into a CEO of a company like Lex Luthor, and other characters were infused with the power of shazam besides Mary and Freddy. Plus, Fawcett City was replaced by Philly, right?
I think I agree with a lot of Shazam fans that this brought the characters too down to earth. There was something very innocent and whimsical about those original comics. I wonder if that's why Gunn didn't like those two films.
His exact words were "They're not canon! I hate it!" Not "I hate them," but "it." I don't think he's saying he hated the films themselves, just that he hated the use of his Peacemaker characters in contexts he considers non-canonical and out of character (i.e. why would ARGUS agents recruit heroes to the Justice Society?). Or maybe he was saying that he hates people asking whether those films are part of his new canon.
I doubt that has anything to do with it. Despite being derived from the same source material, the Shazam movies and Black Adam are extremely different in tone and approach, so it doesn't make sense that someone would dislike them for the same reason.
I am going to have to see an actual quote because I really doubt he said that.
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