Which Avengers Characters Should Appear in the Next Movie?

Marvel’s The Avengers has just passed the billion dollar mark worldwide in just nineteen days. It has fast become one of the highest grossing films of all time and that should come as no surprise to anyone who knows anything about comic books or movies. With a sequel already green-lit by Disney, surprise surprise, there is the opportunity to introduce more characters both in the movies leading up to Avengers 2 and in the sequel itself, so who will appear? Here is my list of the characters I would most like to see and who I think would be a good and realistic casting choice.

 

Ant-Man: I’m talking the Henry Pym Ant-Man, not any of the reincarnations. An Ant-Man movie seems to have been in the works for as long as Marvel Studios have been making films but things are finally moving forward and you would expect this film to tie Ant-Man in to the already existing Marvel Universe seeing as though he is one of the original Avengers in the comic books. I know that Nathan Fillion’s name has been banded around for the part and with Joss Whedon now having a little input in casting maybe Fillion has a chance of getting the role; I would be in support of this.

 

Wasp: You can’t really have Ant-Man without having Wasp, the two are married in the comics and go hand in hand. She was one of the founding members of the comic book world Avengers and is likely to be introduced in the Ant-Man film. Combine this with the fact that the Avengers is lacking some serious female representatives then I think it is highly likely that Wasp will feature sooner rather than later. When Wasp was first being rumoured Eva Longoria was linked with the part and I would definitely back this casting choice. She is a wonderful actress and although her success in acting has been on television I think that she could hold her own in an ensemble cast.

 

Black Panther: Black Panther is one of my favourite comic book characters from Marvel and he was the first black superhero in mainstream American comics; he is African royalty and ruler of his own country with a long running association with the Avengers. I don’t know if Marvel would be able to afford this actor because he is absolute true quality but if he was to star in the role the movie would no doubt be a huge hit! My pick for this role would be Djimon Hounsou of Blood Diamond fame, I think he is the stand out candidate for this role out of the already known actors.

 

 

Ms. Marvel: I believe that Ms. Marvel is one of the best female characters that Marvel has on its roster. Carol Danvers, who dons the outfit in the comics, has been a member on Marvel’s two biggest teams, Avengers and the X-men so who owns the rights to the character is unknown but hopefully we will get to see her in future Avengers films. Female superheroes don’t have huge success in their individual films (I’m looking at you Elektra and Catwoman) but as part of a team she could work really well. I would love to see Katherine Heigl get the part because I like her as an actress but I don’t think anyone would be in support of that so instead I will pick Charlize Theron.

 

If you go beyond this point you are in serious SPOILER territory for The Avengers, but you should have seen it by now anyway.

Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

 

Vision: So the likelihood of Vision being included in the next Avengers film seemed less and less likely with the likelihood of Ultron appearing diminishing (you won’t understand that if you do not follow the comics but don’t worry). Anyway, as you will know if you have seen The Avengers Agent Phil Coulson of SHIELD died at the hands of Loki, yet he is still contracted to several more Marvel films and is remaining coy about his involvement with Iron Man 3. What’s more, people thought this was the work of Joss Whedon (a man known for killing off popular characters) but this was actually planned by Marvel’s man in charge Kevin Feige. Clearly Marvel have plans for Agent Coulson and in one interview they even said “I believe the letters L, M and D were mentioned somewhere’. L.M.D = Life Model Decoy. So will Agent Coulson come back as The Vision? There is no doubt that Clark Gregg has become a favourite of fans of the Marvel Universe as it is his appearance that helped to tie all the films together and make The Avengers possible. If Agent Coulson was reborn as The Vision I would think this was an absolute stroke of genius on Marvel’s part.

Why There Should be a New Power Rangers Movie

Recently, at a Lexington Comic and Toy Convention, Jason David Frank stated that he would like to see a Power Rangers movie made in a darker tone to the series and that he thinks it could work in the style of Batman or something similar. This may mean nothing, except for the fact that Jason David Frank is the best Power Ranger to ever grace the series; he is Tommy Oliver, green ranger, white ranger, red ranger and black ranger. He is an absolute legend. So could a Power Rangers movie work?

Children all over the world from Japan to the USA to Britain have grown up with the Power Rangers, it is one of the longest running series’ on television and has been running every year since the original series was shown way back in 1993. The fact that the series is still being made proves its popularity among younger audiences but is that really reasoning enough to turn it into a big film franchise. Well why not?

Film executives and studio big wigs nowadays seem to focus on the money aspect of things and there is no doubt that with the Power Rangers popularity and the merchandising deals that could be made, the films could bring in a lot of money. The only problem is in attracting older audiences. I believe that some people, like myself, will remember growing up with the characters and would go and see a film if it was made for sentimental reasons if nothing else.

The Power Rangers is a classic story of good and evil, every series and every episode follows the same strict formula. There is no reason why this formula could not transfer onto the big screen. Hollywood audiences love a good battle between the forces of good and evil as we have seen with Harry Potter and the recent trend of superhero films. And on that note, why not give the series a try as a film whilst audiences are obsessed with superheroes, there’s nothing to lose.

There is no reason why Power Rangers could not be made darker for a more mature audience either. With Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles getting a reboot and the Transformers trilogy being made, why not try adapting another children’s classic for a more mature audience. Set the tone darker, keep the fight between good and bad, but add more adult themes. It would work!

I, for one, would love to see a new team of Power Rangers on the big screen and there are a lot of young, talented actors coming through that could be given their big break in a film of this nature. But if a big budget Power Rangers movie does ever get made, Jason David Frank deserves at least a cameo!

The Woman In Black Review

 

***WARNING: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS***

The Woman in Black is a story I have known for years. In school I read the book and went to see the stage adaptation, which to this day remains one of the best experiences of my life. Since it was announced I have been looking forward to seeing the movie adaptation of one of my favourite stories, throw in the fact that Daniel Radcliffe was playing the lead character and my excitement levels go through the roof. Today, I went to see The Woman in Black and it did not disappoint.

Arthur Kipps (Radcliffe) is struggling in his life. His wife died giving birth to their son, Joseph, and he is now facing financial problems as well as being under pressure from his employers. Arthur is sent away to the North East of England to deal with the deceased Alice Drablow’s estate, Eel Marsh House, a task which the locals seem concerned with when Arthur arrives and they all instantly want him to return to London. Whilst dealing with all of the paperwork at the Drablow estate Arthur begins to have visions of ‘The Woman in Black’ and strange things begin to happen in the house, along with children committing suicide in the local village. Despite the villagers insisting that Arthur leave, he takes it upon himself to solve this mystery and try to put an end to the haunting events that plague this place.

It is a great ghost story, in my opinion, and one that needs to be passed down through generations. This film does a great job of staying authentic to the book and putting across a very creepy and chilling tale. Radcliffe portrays Arthur Kipps brilliantly as a terrified man being scared half to death by the strange goings on at Eel Marsh House, but then again, if I’d spent seven years on the run from Voldemort I’d be able to pull off being scared pretty convincingly too. He really does come of age with this film as he tries to be taken seriously as an actor away from the Harry Potter franchise, although I still have trouble believing him as a father, unfortunately.

The way the film is shot is terrific so credit to James Watkins who directed the film. There are lots of moments in the film that will make the audience jump and maybe even scream, but it is bound to be an enjoyable experience. Sometimes it feels as if there is a lot of effort put in to making the audience jump too much in a short space of time but I felt that there were long pauses where nothing scary, as such, would happen and so on balance the film carries itself very well. The second act in particular is very impressive.

The climax of the film does feel slightly rushed in places, although very satisfying. The very end, with Arthur being reunited with his wife as the Woman in Black watches on is sure to bring on some debate. Has she stopped killing the children of the village or hasn’t she? Is killing Joseph and Arthur her way of saying thank you to Arthur? Is it a sort of ‘you reunited me with my family so I shall do the same for you’ kind of thing? All audience members will have their own different interpretations of the ending but there is one thing we should all agree on. This film is great.

My Rating: 7/10.