Comic book movies I'm surprised haven't been made

Not that I'd want to see Hollywood's take on any of these characters. I'm just surprised, given the hot market for super-movies over the past few years, that none of them have been exploited yet.

Before you comment or e-mail, I know movies featuring some (maybe all) of these characters have been rumored. Some may even be in the works. But until they're actually on the screen, there's no certainty we'll ever see them. You know how Hollywood operates.


Plastic Man

Come on, can't you see Jim Carrey in this role? Maybe he kinda, sorta did it already in "The Mask." But I can see him or some other manic, rubbery comedian playing the part in a flick that would, ideally, draw from witty, satirical Jack Cole comics. Most likely, though, it'd be just another dumb comedy. But with a really stretchy guy in it. Jack Black could be Woozy Winks.



Doom Patrol

Hollywood did pretty well with the "X-Men." The first two movies weren't even that bad. So why not give these freaks a try? I'm thinking the standard Silver Age version, not the whacked out Grant Morrison take, although that one would make for a wild film.


The Flash

Yeah, this is one of those possibly in-the-works flicks. It's about a guy who runs really fast. You can go pretty much anywhere from there. I, of course, would stick closely to the original Silver Age version. Give us a quick origin and show the Flash beating a baddie.


Sandman

I'm thinking the Neil Gaimin version, although it'd be pretty hard to adapt. The stories don't lend themselves to quick-and-simple movie-style plots. But you could do a pretty cooly pulpy, noir flick with the "Sandman Mystery Theater" version, instead. If so, it should be set in the 1940s and should play up the low-tech aspects of the hero: Trench coat, gas mask, sleeping gas. It'd be nifty in black and white.


Deadman

Maybe the most striking entry on this list: How can nobody in Hollywood not know how freaking cool this hero is? Man. Just get some special effects guys, some actors and a copy of that big, hardcover Neal Adams "Deadman" comics collection and make it.

Deadman is basically a ghost that can inhabit other people's bodies, right? So why not get a cool cast of interesting/notable actors and actresses who can all take turns being possessed?


Thor

This one's supposedly in the works. I'm not really sure how to do a compelling Thor movie. It'd be hard to set up all the Lee-Kirby mythology and string an audience along. If you dispense with that and place Thor on Earth, it could be dull. I suppose a Thor-Loki smackdown would be the best "plot."


Metamorpho

I wouldn't really want to see a Metamorpho movie. I just don't think Hollywood could do anything fun or interesting with him. And maybe he's too much of a low-level character to sustain a feature. But he does have interesting powers that would make for cool special effects.


Challengers of the Unknown

Get four hot actors, one hot actress and a bunch of purple jumpsuits. It's sort of like "Oceans 11." With monsters.


The Atom

Doesn't everyone like to imagine what it'd be like to be really tiny? Start building the giant props now.


Aquaman and/or Sub-mariner

Yes, the Aquaman thing has been joked about ad nauseum. And, yeah, "Aquaman" is a stupid name if you think about it for half a second. So is "Sub-Mariner." And half of the people can't even pronounce that one right.


But make a cool underwater movie with good effects and a decent story and there's no reason something like this couldn't be successful. If you go with Sub-Mariner, you can just call it "Namor" and avoid the whole name problem.


Green Arrow

Like Metamorpho, here's another character I can't really see carrying a feature movie. But that doesn't mean Hollywood couldn't try.


Green Lantern

This one's been rumored. You could do an interesting movie with the Silver Age version of the character. I'd focus on the sci-fi aspect, with the Guardians and the whole nine yards.

What do you think? Are there any other comic book properties Hollywood should hurry up and exploit? Post your thoughts in the comments section.

1 comment:

  1. Pretty much any of the classic Ditko versions of his character creations could be fascinating if done "faithfully": certainly film versions of The Question, The Creeper or Shade "The Changing Man" would all insure my ticket purchase, especially if they left in enough of Ditko's (kinda nutso to me, but always compelling) world views intact. I'd actually always hoped for a really loopy Dr. Strange movie (done as a early/mid 60's period piece ideally, you know -- assuming the "real world" had to be a component at all), but that animated DVD a year or two ago sorta killed off my belief that anyone would even try pulling it off (heh, the same thing happened with all of my Man-Thing dreams).

    Beyond that my mental list is an bigger rogue's gallery of poor financial investments: Herbie the "Fat Fury", Omega, Nova, Hot Stuff, Bizarro, Kookie, and just about any of the more insane Jimy Olsen stories from the Mort Weisinger era.

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