James Gunn releases Evil Superboy Elseworlds TRAILER called BRIGHTBURN?!!

So a new trailer just broke 15 minutes ago called BRIGHTBURN, labeled as produced by James Gunn.

Here is the trailer:

Okay.

So you do not have to be a superhero fan to recognize that this is the Superman/Superboy origin, except uh— evil.

Very clearly from the crashing ship, to the couple on the farm who discover a child they always wanted, to the ship buried in the barn, to the red cape , to the powers, these are very familiar Superman/Superboy tropes.

Now if this was April 1st I would say someone is having a laugh and this is an April Fool’s Day prank.

Why?

Because if I was DC, I would say… ” WTF?? Are you kidding, you are going to rename the characters and do an Elseworlds SUPERBOY story without paying us???!”

Actually, I love it.

I hope it is real, and there are enough changes that Gunn gets away with it. I think the concept of SUPERMAN not being in public domain after 80 years is simply ridiculous. So good on James Gunn if this trailer is legit.

It would not be the first evil superhero film to skate under the radar. Adam Wingard’s brilliant 2014 action film THE GUEST, very much is the tale of an evil Steve Rogers/Captain America, an evil Super Soldier.  And there is another mainstream film out there that plays either as a Joker origin story, or an evil Bruce Wayne story.

So these mash-ups do happen. I mean there is a reason that Copyright was set at 50 years. The lawmakers in their wisdom understood that if an idea had persisted after five decades it had become, like Robin Hood, or Mark Twain, or the three Musketeers, an indelible part of the cultural conversation and zeitgeist. And as such usable by all.

So yeah I don’t know if BRIGHTBURN is a real movie, or Gunn just having a laugh, either way I enjoyed him releasing the trailer!!

Movie News: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY is it worth seeing in 3D?

Marvel Studios 10th feature film, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY, is breaking on American shores this weekend, and the decision people have to make is… ‘is it worth seeing in theaters and more specifically, is it worth seeing in 3D?’

Well, dealing with the broader questions first, whether or not you are a fan of the Marvel Movies, you really have to tip your cap to Kevin Feige and the whole Marvel Studios machine for really doing what seemed if not impossible, highly farfetched; namely creating a critically and commercially successful movie empire based on the shared universe approach of comic books.

It, in many ways, is the return of serial movies, the type popular in the 1930s and 1940s, but done on a massive scale, undreamed of by those low budget quickies of yesteryear.

And Marvel Studios films have managed to be not only popular, but entertaining, sometimes impressively so. I would list their movies from best to worst as:

AVENGERS
CAPTAIN AMERICA WINTER SOLDIER
CAPTAIN AMERICA
IRON MAN
HULK

IRON MAN 2
THOR
IRON MAN 3
THOR 2

And now their 10th film, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY, is poised to carve out their place on the above list. I find myself largely uninterested in the film. Nothing about the premise, the characters, or the one trailer I’ve seen intrigues me at all. Add to that they have an unimpressive ‘Before the Window’ 3D rating from CINEMA BLEND, like all previous Marvel Movies, and it is no incentive to see this in 3D.

But what does stand out in opposition to all that disinterest is the director, James Gunn. James Gunn like many of the directors Marvel picks, lacks any pedigree in the action or blockbuster genre, but like other directors chosen, they have a personality to the films they have directed, and a way with actors and characters, they have glimmerings of potential.

I enjoyed James Gunn’s SLITHER and I do think Marvel Studios helmed by Kevin Feige have been nothing short of phenomenal in picking talent both in front of and behind the camera. For all the heat their choices engender prior to the film, their unconventional choices have proven movie after movie, to be great.

And it is hard to argue with great. I have no interest in GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY as a concept or as characters, but I am interested in seeing James Gunn do a big, fun, space hopping action picture.

So verdict: I’ll catch GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY on a matinee, or 2nd run, without 3D

Hopes this helps anyone on the fence, and feel free to chime in with your opinions. ENJOY!