A few thoughts about the Future of the 007 Franchise

 Yesterday, I read the news that Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli would step down as creative leaders of the 007 Franchise. As stated:

Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson

Amazon MGM Studios, Wilson and Broccoli have formed a new joint venture to house the James Bond intellectual property rights. The three parties will remain co-owners of the iconic franchise but Amazon MGM will have creative control.

This means Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli step down as creative leaders of the 007 franchise. For Wilson, this is understandable. He is not a  young man anymore and I wish him well in his retirement. But Barbara Broccoli, stepping down at the age of 64, well, this set me to thinking. Could I recall another franchise successfully taken over by the studio? No.

Yes, you can mention STAR WARS, which is still raking in money, well after George Lucas stepped out of the franchise and sold it. But let's face the truth here: the last 3 films were absolutely atrocious. And STAR WARS is now doing better with the series than with the films. I have long ago already given up on that franchise. I was fearful the STAR TREK franchise would go the same way, but they are still stumbling on on television. But the movies, that whole thing has collapsed.

It seems to me that this is also going to happen to the JAMES BOND Franchise. Because in the hands of the studio, what can you expect? They are just out for your money. They don't care if it's good. As long as they can get your cash. Preferably next Tuesday.

Oh, sure, the first next film may even be good. But after that, they will soon dwindle into the same abyss of mediocrity the Star Wars films have gone into. Think of the possibilities: one might even get a BLACK James Bond, or even a GAY one. Or even worse, what if they come up with the stupid idea to make James Bond a woman? Excuse me while I toss my cookies.

Albert "Cubby" Broccoli

When Cubby Broccoli handed the franchise over to Michael and Barbara, he told them not to fuck it up. In my view, that is exactly what they are doing now. The whole process of having created James Bond with Daniel Craig and ultimately killing him off in the last film, NO TIME TO DIE, may have been traumatic to Barbara but in handing over the creative reigns to a Studio, Barbara Broccoli is doing exactly what Cubby Broccoli would never have wanted. 

I had always been wondering what was the hold-up? Why not simply begin again and choose an actor to carry on the franchise and have a few stories built up for his incarnation of the Bond character? I could imagine a new James Bond storyline for multiple films, beginning humbly as a young agent, earning his 00 status. Going on to dealing with major threats until finally opposing a Blofeld-like villain and defeating him.

I also saw the possibility to make the production less expensive by not relying on CGI to solve problems and bring the story in a realistically truthful manner. This would be a way to work easily on location and not having to do too much in special effects later which burns away one's budget. My favorite example would have been FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE as a template for new films for new missions. 

But then I am not a producer. I do not deal with production issues from day to day so I will not imply I would have been able to do a good job with it myself. I know nothing of the day to day business in movie production. And I do acknowledge that Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli have done an exemplary job with the production of the last 5 films. But giving it up?

To me, giving it up is a betrayal of everything that Cubby Broccoli stood for. I am sure that there have always been issues that have become harder and harder but stepping down is not the answer, Barbara. Stepping down is a betrayal of your father's trust in you. I hope, that when you pass on, in the hereafter you can still look your father in the eye and say: I didn't blow it.

But in my book, you have. 

I was one of the few who really liked NO TIME TO DIE. So many people dislike the film for it's "woke" touches. Me, I didn't see the problem. It allowed for a more diverse film. How prophetic it is now that, having seen James Bond (Daniel Craig) die in this film, we will now also see the franchise die. No Time To Die indeed. No time like today perhaps.

I would like to issue a challenge to AMAZON MGM: you have a franchise now in your hands that can be enormous in the measure of success. That depends entirely on YOU, now. So make it GOOD! I'll be waiting to see what you will be coming up with.

RIP John Romita Senior

 

JOHN ROMITA Sr. (1930-2023)

For as long as I have read comics, for as long as I have collected them, I have always had the utmost respect for the artists who were there in the early years of the MARVEL COMICS Renaissance of the 1960s. Big names such as JACK KIRBY, STEVE DITKO, NEAL ADAMS and JOHN BUSCEMA, all of these have left so much to their fans to enjoy. But all of the above have also already left this world.

It is with the greatest of sadness that I have to say now that my personal favorite of these big artists, JOHN ROMITA Sr, the father of John Romita Jr. has passed away. John Romita Sr. was the second major artist to be involved in SPIDER-MAN and he took over the title THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN when Steve Ditko left Marvel entirely. Romita was first tried out by Stan Lee on DAREDEVIL and when Stan saw how well Romita also drew Spider-Man, guest appearing in the DAREDEVIL comic, it was clear to him who would follow up on Steve Ditko.

John Romita took on the title and made Peter Parker from the geeky nerd that Ditko had brought us, into a young Elvis. Romita also glamourized the comic as his women were all gorgeous and Aunt May also seemed to get a little younger all of a sudden. (Ha ha ha !) He had worked previously for DC for their Romance Comics, which gave him ample training to make his women look good. 

For me personally, even though I loved Steve Ditko's take on Spider-Man, I felt Romita was the right guy to take on the comic. For me, Romita Senior was the best artist that Marvel had in those days. Oh yes, Kirby, Ditko, Adams and Buscema were all phenomenally good but something just really clicked with me on Romita's beautiful art.

John Romita with Jim Mooney who inked a lot of John's work on ASM

John Romita had already been drawing for some time in the business. He had also worked for Stan Lee previously in the 1950s on the revival comics of CAPTAIN AMERICA ( which was not a success at that time ) but for DC he worked on nothing else but the Romance Comics for 8 years. Romita has said this was really very boring and so he had to work hard to keep it interesting. And as a bonus he learned to draw really beautiful women. (At least in my opinion. I always thought his Gwen Stacy was the most beautiful girl in the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man. I have always felt it was a great shame that Gwen was considered boring and had to die in that most dreadful of comics, The Amazing Spider-Man 121. But his portrayal of Mary Jane was also nothing short of spectacular. )

 

 In the 1990s, John Romita visited a comic book convention in the Netherlands. I had the opportunity there to talk briefly with him and to have him sign an AMAZING SPIDER-MAN. Brief as this moment was, I am extremely happy that I now have had that moment with him, even though for him, I was just probably one of many.

John Romita Sr and John Romita Jr, father and son.

I also found it a shame that John Romita became the Art Director instead of just keeping on drawing for the best comics. But in this position he was also the guy who designed characters like LUKE CAGE, POWER MAN and WOLVERINE. And when he had the opportunity to work together with his son, John Jr, you may be sure to get the best artwork ever.

Yes, for me John Romita was the best artist ever on Spidey but he was also phenomenal on other characters. And over the years he has even done some work for DC again, even together with John Jr.

Thank you so much, John, for your wonderful art. And thank you for having done so much for Marvel and for Comics in general. You were the Best. 

You will be missed.

John Romita and Stan Lee in the 1970s

All artwork copyright Marvel Comics. All photographs copyrighted.

The Legacy of J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson on the franchise of STAR WARS

Mark Hamill in Star Wars The Last Jedi

In a new article on VARIETY, Rian Johnson states he is still proud of his STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI. To each his own opinion, I would say. You see, in my opinion STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI stank to HIGH HEAVEN and clearly indicated in what direction these new films would go. In the direction of the toilet !!!

Read the VARIETY article here if you want: 

https://variety.com/2022/film/news/rian-johnson-last-jedi-proud-star-wars-1235354410/

Even Mark Hamill at first did not want to play LUKE SKYWALKER as he was written by Johnson. He sincerely objected to Johnson's depiction of Skywalker having become a hermit who had shut himself off from the worlds around him. One can only respect Hamill's decision to still play him like that, because this series made him a well known actor and gave him a career. But it was clear, Mark Hamill had no real wish to see Luke Skywalker so vandalized.

And I have spoken to many, many fans who complained afterwards that Luke Skywalker dies at the end ! I point out to them that Skywalker does not die. He allows his physical body to expire so that his non-corporeal being can become part of the FORCE. This is How I Perceive The Ending of STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI. Why?

Because I too object to Rian Johnson's writing. His storyline does not fit with the story of the previous film and it is clear to me that Kathleen Kennedy had not considered this into her new trilogy, after George Lucas had been bought out. (The Biggest Mistake Ever !!!)

Mind you, I do not hold a personal grudge against Rian Johnson. I liked his LOOPER and I enjoyed KNIVES OUT. But what he wrote for his Star Wars film did not fit the big picture of what was going on after THE FORCE AWAKENS. With that, it may have received critical acclaim (to which I am immune: I will tell you here anyway what I think ) but it also served as a highly divisive film amongst fans. In total, that added very highly to my general appreciation of the Post George Lucas Star Wars films:

They SUCK BIG TIME !

On this blog, I have earlier also pointed to J.J. Abrams as a man I don't want to meet in person. (I just don't want to live the rest of my life in prison for having killed him when I met him. Is this exagerated? Maybe not. Ask the other fans !)

Rian Johnson does not need to worry. As long as he is also making other (good) films, I will give them all a serious look. It's just that I vehemently disagree with something he said: that he had something to be proud of. 

No, Rian, you don't.

Rest in Peace, Nichelle Nichols ( December 28, 1932 -July 30th 2022 ) !!!

Nichelle Nichols as Uhura in STAR TREK

As a fan of the Classic Star Trek show, I am deeply saddened we are now in a time period of great losses. Where we had earlier already lost DeForest Kelley ( he died in 1999 ), James Doohan ( died in 2005 ), Majel Barrett Roddenberry (2008) and Leonard Nimoy (2015), one month ago my world was again shattered by the passing on of Nichelle Nichols.  Nichelle Nichols played Lt Uhura in the Classic Series as well as in all 6 Original Trek Feature Films. 

Nichelle Nichols was not aware of it at the time but with her portrayal of Uhura, all of a sudden she was representing a minority group on a television show that was watched by millions of people worldwide. It was Dr. Martin Luther King who had to make her aware of this when he announced himself to be a fan of her, at a convention after the first season. Nichelle had told us she had intended to leave the show but Dr. King said she could not do that. Her symbolic value on this show was such that even Nichelle Nichols had to admit he was right and fortunately for us, she stayed on the show.

The show did not have all that much immediate success though. She worked for many years outside of the entertainment business on personal projects to call up new talent for NASA and was able to bring in a lot of women, as well as a lot of colored talent. But even if she would primarily be remembered for Uhura, her presence on the show meant something. Even I, watching them as a kid, sensed that.

 There are also a lot of other things that she can be remembered for. Other roles, her singing, other work that she engaged in. I myself praise myself lucky that I was able to see her live at several conventions. And she also always told us how much she appreciated that we, the fans, appreciated her and the show. I am also very pleased that she had the chance to see how Sonequa Martin-Green now honors her on Star Trek Discovery with her role.

There are not many left of those who were on the original Star Trek show. William Shatner, George Takei and Walter Koenig. Yes, these are sad times so the best thing to do is to remember her, to remember them at their best. And then, even now, STAR TREK LIVES !!!

A Personal Note to Kevin Feige

 

Personal Note to Kevin Feige,

People around me know me to be a fan of Marvel. Both in terms of the comics as well as the cinematic output. And yes, I acknowledge that. I do think Marvel presents us with Real Cinema.

Martin Scorsese said these films are not real cinema. Well, I can understand that from a celebrated filmmaker who has absolutely no background in comics. And I am also not offended by it. You see, having a background in comics also means you have read quite a few. And I have.

I have read a lot of the original Stan Lee & Jack Kirby Marvel Comics. They are now quite special of course, not only because they are worth a lot. But when Stan and Jack rebuilt MARVEL from scratch in the early 1960s, they created new worlds, new characters, new futures, new hopes. And with good stories and humor, you do get a long ways.

And of course the great art by people like Jack Kirby and later John Buscema. Those issues are very precious to me now, even if you can tell there are better stories and lesser ones. With some exceptions, I also find that Marvel has been able to really translate the comics to film rather well. With some exceptions.

I am not really that much of a fan of where Spider-Man is going now. Killing off Aunt May in my book is a BIG MISTAKE. But that's one thing. There's so much more.

But I do have a slight note to make with THOR: LOVE and THUNDER. You see, Thor is a really powerful God of Thunder and makes a formidable warrior. In hundreds of comics he has been seen fighting villains in ENDGAME style battles. Drawn by Kirby or Buscema, this looked awesome. 

But with Taika Waititi at the helm, you only get THOR the buffoon. Thor, the Butt of the Joke God. I also had some big notes to give about the earlier THOR: RAGNAROK. I objected to the PLANET HULK storyline being downsized to a meagre 20 minutes in this film, while this could have been a Great Mini-Series for the HULK. It could then have been followed with a film about WORLD WAR HULK that could have been awesome !!! But no, Taika Waititi was selected to direct and he chose to inject humor. 

I don't oppose humor but there is STAR TREK IV THE VOYAGE HOME humor (refined, sophisticated and genuinely funny) and there is STAR TREK V THE FINAL FRONTIER humor (dumb, crass, silly shit) and Waititi chose the latter to be used on THOR and make him the butt of the joke. Okay. The film was funny. 

But destroying all of ASGARD so fast??? We had hardly seen any of it in the earlier 2 films. Okay, at moments the film was exciting. But Thor was downgraded from a GOD to a Joke. I objected to that.

And now we have THOR: LOVE and THUNDER, again directed by Taika Waititi. And again, Thor is being treated as a comedy star, as a cosmic powered Mr. Bean ! 

I will grant that the Storyline for JANE FOSTER was well handled. I shed a tear for her when she passed into Walhalla. And Christian Bale is wonderfully fresh as a very different kind of Villain ! He was very good ! My Compliments to both Christian Bale and Natalie Portman: they represent the GOOD in this film.

But the jokes have worn off. And as for Russell Crowe as ZEUS, this was a horrendous skit, not even worthy of a Saturday Night Special comedy show. Enough with those goats already !

Mr. Feige, the numbers and the reviews are in for this film. The jokes have run their course. Once was enough. Do we have to keep kicking the dead dog? 

May we now PLEASE see THOR come back in a SERIOUS movie with battle scenes equalling or surpassing those of AVENGERS: ENDGAME, please ? Bring in PLUTO and his hordes to invade Manhattan or have Ulik come in with his trolls to invade New Asgard ! Have BETA RAY BILL fight alongside THOR against Zarrko, The Man From Tomorrow !! Sure, HERCULES could also fight Thor in a movie but in the end, they end up as FRIENDS so that is not what the whole film should be about.

This is what THOR is created for: GLORIOUS BATTLES FOUGHT WELL ON AWESOME BATTLEFIELDS ( be that on Earth or on another planet ). Come to think of it, THOR would make an awesome Klingon. 

But PLEASE don't let THOR become the Joke of the Marvel Cinematic Universe !

Thank You

Armentus

THE BATMAN : Robert Pattinson plays Bruce Wayne and Batman in a 3 hour Action Extravaganza, or so they say !

 

Matt Reeves' new film THE BATMAN is not one to take its subject lightly. The film takes 3 hours to explain us who this character is that is denying himself a normal life and takes on these criminals with nothing more than his protective suit and a souped up car.

The film THE BATMAN stars Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne and BATMAN but his characterisation seems to be that Batman is his true identity and Bruce Wayne his secret identity. As something rather new, Matt Reeves's film does show off Batman as a detective, which is something that we never saw before in any of the films. But where Pattinson is fairly interesting as Batman ( I think he comes across better than Christian Bale did at the time in the Nolan films), his Bruce Wayne leaves something to be desired.

I am not really impressed with the action. Not that we've seen it before but it is not really novel. Okay, this is a new look for the Riddler as well as a new look for Catwoman, (and Zoe Kravitz is quite interesting indeed as Selina Kyle) but three hours of rather relentless action, and the same continously droning noise that has to pass for music, no, thanks. Michael Giacchino is a composer who has done some memorable scores in the past (anyone???) but here, all he creates is 'mood noise' that does not give us any themes for the characters whatsoever. Give me DANNY ELFMAN any day !

But whatever I might be thinking of this film, it has its fans. And my opinion, even though that is the reason I am writing this, is not really of importance to those who like this film. Yes, there are good elements in this film. But if I recall properly, I was not particularly impressed with BATMAN BEGINS either. So if a sequel will be made, I hope it will be better than this film. I hope it will be of normal length and I hope Bruce Wayne will look like what Bruce Wayne should look like.

In the meantime, I have read that a sequel has already been greenlit. That means Pattinson and Reeves will be back for a Part 2. But I suppose that will take a good 2 to 3 years to make. I, for one, am not holding my breath. I do not see Pattinson as the future of Batman on film. Personally, I feel no one has yet surpassed Michael Keaton as Batman and I don't care what you say: I think Ben Affleck was terrific as both Bruce Wayne and Batman. But okay, I will see The BATMAN 2 when it comes. And You ???

ENNIO : a new documentary by Giuseppe Tornatore !

 

This is what we were waiting for all along. Director Giuseppe Tornatore has finally made his documentary ENNIO available in the cinemas and on streaming services. And what a treat it is! Not just for film music lovers, this documentary deals also with a good deal of film history, from 1961, when Morricone did his first work for film, until 2 to 3 years ago. 

Giuseppe Tornatore, who has worked with Ennio Morricone on films like CINEMA PARADISO, STANNO TUTTI BENE, THE LEGEND OF 1900, MALENA and THE BEST OFFER, takes us on a musical history lesson here by talking to Ennio himself about his earlier work. He also talks to other people who have been meaningful in the life of the Maestro: one of his teachers, Goffredo Petrassi is seen talking how proud he was to see his star pupil become so succesful in his lifetime. 

I have had the good fortune of seeing Maestro Morricone conduct his music in several concerts. Every time, it was a great treat of hearing his music performed live by a renowned orchestra. Quite something else than just playing your cd's. And even if Morricone may not come across as a very sympathetic character, he does tell of his work with great passion in this documentary. And why not? His music was his passion !!!!

In speaking with directors like Sergio Leone, Giuliano Montaldo and Quentin Tarantino, this documentary also delves a bit into the side of the making of a film and shows then how Morricone's music helps the film make a big statement. After all, how often do you not find out that the music is the last step in the film's production? 

Normally, the music also is not allotted a proper budget but with Ennio Morricone as the composer one would have a big name there. And in many cases, Morricone also composed the music on the basis of the screenplay and the music would be recorded and then played for the actors while performing. This would often influence the acting itself as well.

A good number of films that are mentioned I was fortunate enough to have seen. (Not a lot of Italian films end up in this part of European cinemas.) A good number of albums and cd's I have myself as well. This means that many points of recognition can be found in this documentary and Morricone's career is highlighted on every side. (Also his experimental music in the Nuovo Consonanza group, that I don't much care for, is talked about.) Also Morricone's fondness for chess is a nice moment, as we see him play with similar passion as he works on his music. 

The Mission, a historical drama by Roland Joffe, is definitely one of Morricone's best scores and when this film was nominated for Best Original Score, it was heartbreaking to see Herbie Hancock win that year for AROUND MIDNIGHT, a film about jazz music. 

Not that AROUND MIDNIGHT was not good in terms of music, but it was jazz music, not an Original Score and it should not have gotten the Oscar in the Best Original Score category. We (including Ennio, who left the ceremony early) were heartbroken to see this Morricone gem overlooked. 

The Academy later saw fit to give Ennio an Oscar for his whole body of work and in 2018, they awarded him the Best Score Oscar for Quentin Tarantino's film THE HATEFUL EIGHT. 

It was a great shock, 2 years ago, when we heard that Ennio Morricone had passed away. But in his long and wonderful life, he has left us so much wonderful music that I can only say: GRAZIE, MAESTRO, GRAZIE !!!

ENNIO is now in cinemas and can be seen on streaming services. Look for it, it is definitely worth it.