Green Lantern: Grading, Review, Discuss, Tracking, Sequel?

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by Captain Craig, Jun 16, 2011.

?

How would you grade Green Lantern?

Poll closed Jan 2, 2012.
  1. A+

    5 vote(s)
    3.5%
  2. A

    7 vote(s)
    4.9%
  3. A-

    11 vote(s)
    7.7%
  4. B+

    20 vote(s)
    14.1%
  5. B

    18 vote(s)
    12.7%
  6. B-

    23 vote(s)
    16.2%
  7. C+

    10 vote(s)
    7.0%
  8. C

    15 vote(s)
    10.6%
  9. C-

    13 vote(s)
    9.2%
  10. D+

    4 vote(s)
    2.8%
  11. D

    3 vote(s)
    2.1%
  12. D-

    3 vote(s)
    2.1%
  13. F

    10 vote(s)
    7.0%
  1. davejames

    davejames Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 6, 2001
    Location:
    Sac, Ca
    I just assumed it was because the Guardians knew Hal would eventually come around; he just needed a little more time to think about it is all.

    Probably would have been nice if that was explained a little though.
     
  2. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Apr 15, 2000
    Location:
    In the lap of squalor I assure you.
    Ring selection is handled by "Mogo" the scentient planet Green Lantern who is probably as old as the Guardians or older.

    Although if you go by the purely anyone without fear vetting, then you have (the 80s) John Stewart's abusive testimonial that the reason the wasn't the first Green Lantern rather than whitey was a matter of "70 miles".

    Seriously.

    He was super pissed.
     
  3. Valley Forge

    Valley Forge Lieutenant Commander Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Jan 4, 2006
    Hi GG,

    Agreed. This WAS a Kyle story.

    It was also why I enjoyed his GL so much.

    Just an ordinary cat, put in a spot, and HAD to step up. There was no else.

    Kyle's knowledge of great fear is what made him able to overcome Parallax, and for the same reason is why Hal succumbed to it. (at least how I understand it...as always, the cannon is subject to change).

    Besides, who am I to argue with Batman?

    Vf
     
  4. Gaith

    Gaith Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    May 11, 2008
    Location:
    Oregon
    A top-level test pilot... yeah, those guys are real run-of-the-mill, unexceptional gents. :rolleyes: ;)
     
  5. Mr. Laser Beam

    Mr. Laser Beam Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    May 10, 2005
    Location:
    Confederation of Earth
    About that...

    Didn't Mogo just get killed off? So who handles ring selection now?
     
  6. Professor Zoom

    Professor Zoom Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 16, 2004
    Location:
    Idealistic
    His twin sister....
     
  7. The Borgified Corpse

    The Borgified Corpse Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Jun 4, 2000
    Location:
    Ouch! Forgotten already? You were just down ther
    Yeah. I remember when Jurassic Park came out, once you counted its time in the dollar theater, it was in theaters for about a year.

    Of course, I think part of the difference is that every movie that comes out now has aspirations of being the next big blockbuster and gets a big push at the beginning. Even successful movies disappear from theaters in a few weeks because the new stuff crowds it out. At a couple of the big Harkins Theaters in the Phoenix area, Thor is already down to about 1 screen, and that in 2-D.

    Well, they'd have to do a lot of re-tinkering with a Justice League movie. I mean, Batman would need to be recast, for one, since I don't see Christian Bale taking part in a larger DC universe. Warner Bros. is always struggling to get Superman right (and doesn't seem to recognize a good thing when they have it, considering Brandon Routh isn't coming back). They seemed to abandon their Wonder Woman movie plans in place of the David E. Kelly TV show, which got rejected by NBC. So right off, DC's 3 biggest heroes are in flux.

    It was a soft reboot. Fudge a few details in the flashbacks and The Incredible Hulk is surprisingly consistent with Hulk (apart from the recasting, of course). Hell, it's easier to reconcile the 2 Hulk movies with each other than it is certain portions of X-Men: First Class with X-Men: The Last Stand or Highlander with ANY of its sequels.

    Damn kids. :(

    I call them Talosians.

    True enough. It's taken a while, but 20th Century Fox has finally started moving on a new Percy Jackson & the Olympians movie.

    Fans hate Ryan Reynolds? I didn't know this. Frankly, even in such an uneven, controversial, frequently negative thread as this, people don't seem to be hating on Reynolds too much. (Certainly not when compared to how fanboys loved to dogpile on Ben Affleck when Daredevil came out.)

    Just out of curiousity, who do you think would have been a more accurate actor to play Tony Stark?

    I'd rate Iron Man on the same level as Green Lantern as far as engaging emotional complexity. The difference there, as has been frequently noted, is Robert Downey Jr. That man is endlessly interesting to watch being a clever, charming asshole (even moreso in Sherlock Holmes, IMO). He was such a surprising rapscallion and such an unlikely hero, nether boyscout nor brooding antihero, he's like the comic book movie equivalent of Captain Jack Sparrow.

    Ryan Reynolds is very good sometimes, but generally plays his heroes very straight with just a little bit of wiseass thrown in. He singlehandedly makes Blade Trinity watchable. I'd love to see him really cut loose in a Deadpool movie. However, there's a subdued, compromised attitude towards his performance in Green Lantern. The plot takes itself so seriously that he doesn't get a whole lot of opportunities to just start riffing. But then, Martin Cambell seems like a director intent on focused narrative momentum. He's not like David Goyer, who seemed to give Reynolds a very long leash in Blade Trinity.

    As for Richard Donner's Superman & Tim Burton's Batman, I would agree. Neither film really seems to get much of an emotional grasp of the character. They're more like a collection of random vignettes which capture the spirit, if not the psychology of the character. Frankly, Batman Begins is the only Batman movie out there that's actually really about Batman. But to Tim Burton's credit, I think he did achieve a measure of emotional complexity when dealing with damaged freaks like the Penguin & Catwoman in Batman Returns.

    As for Spider-Man, I'll admit it's a pretty simple story but it's also a profoundly eternal, universal one about the guy that can't get the girl to notice him. And it's done with such ambition, intending to be THE DEFINITIVE nerd gets the girl fantasy.

    Probably my biggest problem with Green Lantern is that it lacks ambition. It's clearly a comic book movie attempting to be one of many, cashing in on the popularity of the genre right now. I think, were we not so glutted with comic book movies right now, we might have gotten a more suitably epic treatment of the material. As is, no one stepped up to put their own stamp on the material because they were too busy making it fit in with all of the other comic book movies out there.
     
  8. Admiral Buzzkill

    Admiral Buzzkill Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2001
    The Guardians?

    Godsmurfs.

    Warner Bros is going to be okay.
     
  9. davejames

    davejames Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 6, 2001
    Location:
    Sac, Ca
    I won't argue that Reynolds probably wasn't the most ideal choice to play Hal Jordan, but I thought he still carried the movie quite well myself. The only unfortunate thing is that the movie insisted so hard on making him such a scared, fearful guy, when only a hint of that was really necessary.

    I won't argue there. While I really enjoyed the movie for what it was, I do think it probably played things a bit too safe (with the Iron Man-style rock score, for instance), and could have strived to be more unique somehow. I definitely would have liked to have seen the magic and wonder of the ring and it's powers played up a bit more.
     
  10. RAMA

    RAMA Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 13, 1999
    Location:
    USA
    Whoa, GL movie lacking ambition??? An origin story and one that spans the galaxy, with and an invader from outer space? I thought it was huge. While the result of the movie may have just been above avg, I think they really got the look and universe "right". The sequel doesn't need anything other than a good story.

    RAMA
     
  11. Eduardo

    Eduardo Captain Captain

    Joined:
    May 30, 2001
    Location:
    Buenos Aires, Argentina
    Nah, it is almost impossible to match the two of them. Save for starting in a similar point where Hulk ended, the entire backstory is different:

    - No experiments as a child on Banner as the source of his power
    - Banner is Banner, not under different name, pseudonym, etc.
    - Banner was working on a regeneration project.
    - In Hulk, the accident is due to saving a coworker, in IH he was experimenting on himself.

    Even if you dudge the flashbacks in IH, Betty has never seen Hulk transform before the campus incident, which is a big difference.

    You could try to reconcile the two... like you could try to reconcile Batman Begins with the four previous movies (this before Dark Knight).
     
  12. Admiral Buzzkill

    Admiral Buzzkill Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2001
    A Hulk movie is a Hulk movie, Batman is Batman, etc. They still belong to the same people, the money goes to the same corporations.
     
  13. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Apr 15, 2000
    Location:
    In the lap of squalor I assure you.
    But if Bruce Wayne is in a Hulk movie, he's going to wine and dine Betty Ross. Not that Batman is into that sort of thing, but it's Bruce Waynes "cover" although, Tony Stark is going to nail her in the toilet block between appetisers and mains.

    Ask Freddie Prince JR how that worked out for him?
     
  14. Professor Zoom

    Professor Zoom Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 16, 2004
    Location:
    Idealistic
    Just got back from finally seeing it.

    Holy crap. It's AWFUL.

    I know, I know, I should turn off my brain, but, I just can't... but even then... this movie is brain dead.

    And I hate to say it: but Ryan Reynolds isn't to blame. It isn't his fault. He's one of the better parts of this movie. And I am loathe to say it. But it's true. He does just fine.

    There's a lot of stupidity in this movie.

    Abin Sur, idiot. He's captured this being who is really powerful. What does he do? He buries it in the "lost sector." So, when it breaks out... no one knows for 6 months. Hey, idiot, there are these things called JAIL CELLS. Or CAMERAS, I'm sure they have them where ever you're from. They enable you to GUARD people you have captured. So you know RIGHT AWAY when they escape. OR, it makes it HARDER for them to escape.

    Parallax, idiot. So, if you eat everyone on Earth, you'll be strong enough to destroy OA... so... when that Green Lantern guy--who isn't even the same GL who stopped you--tries to lead you away... WHY DON'T YOU EAT THE PEOPLE OF THE EARTH... You're a CLOUD, while he's punching you, you can CONTINUE TO EAT PEOPLE. And, hey, being who can travel faster than the speed of light... why don't you DO THAT TO GET AWAY FROM THE SUN.

    The Director, idiot. And this might be petty. But the Asteroid Belt ISN"T between the Earth and the Sun. It's the OTHER direction. So, when Hal leads the CGI cloud THROUGH the Asteroid Belt, he can't look FORWARD and see the sun, he would see Jupiter. he would have to look BACK, BEHIND the CGI cloud and then pass THROUGH the Asteroid Field AGAIN. I know the audience is stupid, but, at least teach of facts.

    And thank GOD, Kilowog used the "Sun" trick while training Hal. Not only did it provide Hal with a pithy line to say at the end, but, it also explained to the Audience that yes, the Sun is hot and has gravity. (Of course, not apparently enough gravity to damage Oa...)

    Ferris Aircraft, idiots. Who tests secret aircraft and then notifies the press about it? Why would the press know anything about the testing of military jets?

    I will say this, there is one moment in this comedy that works:

    When Hal's dad gives the thumbs up just as his plane explodes. That was funny. Right out of Airplane!

    Awful, awful, X3 awful.
     
  15. Gepard

    Gepard Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 20, 2007
    The asteroid belt and secret aircraft test ones melted my brain. Ow.
     
  16. davejames

    davejames Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 6, 2001
    Location:
    Sac, Ca
    As for the second one, I thought it was pretty clear that Parallax was so focused and intent on killing Hal because he was the wearer of the ring that imprisoned him.
     
  17. Admiral Buzzkill

    Admiral Buzzkill Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2001
    There was dialogue addressing that specifically, yes.
     
  18. Trekker4747

    Trekker4747 Boldly going... Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jul 16, 2001
    Location:
    Trekker4747
    The news report on the "secret" aircraft test made me raise an eyebrow too.
     
  19. Professor Zoom

    Professor Zoom Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 16, 2004
    Location:
    Idealistic
    Oh, I got that Parallax was going after Hal because he was the ring bearer, that doesn't make his choice any less dumb. If Parallax ate the Earth and ignored Hal, he would be more powerful, and thus could dispose of Hal more easily.

    just because they try and justify something dumb doesn't make it less dumb.
     
  20. StarTrek1701

    StarTrek1701 Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2008
    Precisely. And if Parallax actually has the power for FTL travel, which by itself is kinda preposterous, he should have been able to devour the entire population of Earth in less than a second. Plus, if Abin Sur was able to (singlehandedly!) imprison Para, why couldn't a fleet of GL's do so as well? Or why couldn't Abin Sur do it again? Or why didn't Para go after Abin when he went out of the ship in the escape pod and was stupidly devouring an empty ship??

    As a GL movie it was horribly misfired. As just a movie, it was worse. :( I had such high hopes for this one.