Constantine

[c.layne]

i just got finished watching this at a pre-release. honestly, i was really dreading it, because i despise keanu reeves' acting. but, surprisingly, his emotionless acting style seemed to fit his character pretty well. i was also surprised at a lot of the extremely dark themes for such a mainstream release. oh, and the vision of hell that was portrayed was stunning.. and awesome.

[jute gyte]

this movie rapes a really good comic.

[c.layne]

never did read the comic, unfortunately. movies based off of anything other than an idea in someone's head usually fall way short of doing the original any justice.

[sparks]

this movie rapes a really good comic.

Watch out, comic nerds can get a bit feisty when a so-so movie comes out to show the flaws present in a mediocre medium full of hack writers.

Wait, what was... oh, yeah, Constantine. A decent little movie. I could have even sat through another twenty minutes or so, I would imagine, without getting too antsy.

The film was, whatever the idiots will tell you, not serious in the least, save for the thin veil of drama it tries to put out. If you have even the slightest understanding of camp, you'll enjoy it--not because it's so bad it's good, but simply because it understands that taste and caters to it, as a film based on a comic about demon hunters probably ought to. It was worth my student-discount ticket, easily. 90-100 minutes of very slightly original fun with an old formula.


People are always saying Reeves is a -bad- actor simply because he's a limited actor. His limitations put a lot of pressure on the choice of role, which in this case was appropriate (i.e. the role was flat, Keanu is a bit flat, so nothing is lost to either failing).

[jute gyte]

If you have even the slightest understanding of camp, you'll enjoy it--not because it's so bad it's good, but simply because it understands that taste and caters to it, as a film based on a comic about demon hunters probably ought to.

my problem isn't that i have no understanding of camp, it's that the comic isn't even about demon hunters. they changed so much about the book that it seems strange that they even licensed it. i'm not asking for faithful recreation on a 'sin city' level. the marvel movies are a good example of how a comic book can be changed in translation to film without losing its spirit. constantine fails at this.

and while the comics industry is indeed bloated with mediocre titles, i don't understand your argument that the medium itself is mediocre.

[sparks]

Well, it's not a fault of the medium, I'll admit.

I see your point a bit better. I had a insomniac internet frenzy last night, and am finding myself apologetic in various threads.

I have to say I enjoyed the film, and the premise. I can share in your disappointment with bad title licensing practice in Hollywood today (I don't even need to name the book-to-movie failure of last year, do I?).


As for the industry, I'll have to say I am disappointed with it as a whole. "Graphic novels" seem like something that I'd love, but I simply can't find anything worth touching. Then again, I haven't tried very hard. I would basically equate the crap-to-amusement ratio of the comic industry with that of anime, at this point. Some people eat anything and everything up--others less... devoted to the genre are lucky to find one good piece.

[jute gyte]

i might be able to point you in the direction of some good graphic novels. what have you tried? despite the fact that the industry (like most) is saturated with crap, there is more than enough excellent work out there to warrant investigation.

[sparks]

I'm likely to start shooing your recommendations away if the first few turn out bad, you know.

Just throw a few bones my way, and I'll see about them, when the money makes itself available.

[Niveous]

I'm gonna add a graphic novels thread over in the book section and we can discuss this further.

PS- I enjoyed Constantine, even with the knowledge of how far it was from the comics.