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“Morbius” Trailer Review!

Is the Sony Spider-Verse adjacent to the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

Well, there’s no clear answer to that question right now, and there’s unlikely to be one for some time yet, but for the moment I think we all have to admit that somehow Sony has managed to get some pretty good stuff out of their tumultuous deal with Disney/Marvel, and part of that includes the rights to use certain MCU characters that one wouldn’t normally expect to see in a rival studio’s film franchise. Not only are they supposedly working out a way to have Marvel’s Spider-Man, played by Tom Holland, cameo in the upcoming sequel to Venom, but they’ve just sprung a big surprise on all of us and revealed that Morbius, their newest “in-association-with-Marvel” feature film, will mark the return of an MCU villain we last saw safely tucked away in prison.

As for the movie itself….well, it stars Jared Leto as the obscure Spider-Man villain with the powers of a bat: hunting for a remedy to his terminal illness, Dr. Michael Morbius stumbles upon a risky maneuver to save his life that involves…standing in a wind tunnel and letting bats drink your blood? Or something like that? Honestly, the specifics are a bit hazy, but predictably everything goes wrong and Morbius finds himself transformed into an insatiable vampire with the powers of echolocation (admittedly, very cool), night vision, and a bat-like appetite. Oh, and super strength, because that’s definitely something that bats have, right? And the whole trailer is set to Beethoven’s Für Elise because….reasons?

At one point in the trailer, it’s revealed that Morbius takes place sometime after the events of Spider-Man: Far From Home, as we see the vampire walk past wall murals that show the hero’s likeness painted over with the word MURDERER, referencing Spidey’s mistaken-identity crisis that has him on the run from the media, the government, and a newer, nastier bunch of villains than ever before. But it’s one of his older villains who shows up in this trailer’s stinger, setting up a potential MCU/Spider-Verse crossover that actually looks kind of interesting: Michael Keaton’s Vulture, introduced in Spider-Man: Homecoming, is seen wearing his prison uniform while greeting Morbius with a cheerful “what’s up, Doc?” (which would make more sense if this film had any association with Warner Brothers, which it doesn’t). Not only does this mean that Vulture has probably escaped from jail, but it also suggests that both he and Morbius could be future antagonists for Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. Then again, it’s hard to imagine the chipper, optimistic MCU Peter Parker battling this grim, ferocious beast of a man – but it’s also hard to imagine him battling Tom Hardy’s Venom, and that could become a reality very soon, so we’ll just have to wait and see whether Sony and Marvel can work something out, or whether this will turn into one of those weird setups for something that will never happen.

I’m sure we’d all love it if Jared Leto could carry this film on his own, but the film honestly looks just average, and only its connections to the broader Marvel universe are keeping it in the conversation for the moment. If Morbius turns out to be a sleeper hit with an avid fanbase, then obviously it’d be cool if the franchise could continue – a win for Morbius would also be a win for Sony’s Spider-Verse in general, which will soon debut feature films for other beloved Marvel characters like….like…like Madame Web, the inert and elderly oracle strapped into a life-support system who sends her pawns out into the world to accomplish her shady deeds! I’m looking forward to that, are you?

What do you think of the Morbius trailer? Share your own thoughts, theories and opinions in the comments below!

Trailer Rating: 5/10

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DC Takes A Whole New Approach With “The Joker”

Yesterday, at CinemaCon, Warner Brothers showed the first trailer for an upcoming release – The Joker, which stars Joaquin Phoenix and will open in October. The movie is going to be an origin story for the iconic Batman villain, and will be set in the 80’s, long before the DC universe as we know it: however, this may not be such a bad thing, as the DC universe is currently going through some renovations, to say the least, and the whole idea of a shared universe with all the DC characters is becoming more and more unlikely with every passing day – most recently, the Wonder Woman creative team have made headlines with their repeated statements that their next film, Wonder Woman 1984, won’t be a sequel: it will be a stand-alone film, for the stand-alone Wonder Woman universe, which apparently doesn’t actually exist in the DCEU proper – it’s all getting very confusing. Actually, it’s interesting to note that Wonder Woman 1984 and The Joker both take place in the 80’s, though I doubt there will be any connection. It’s unclear if The Joker will even have any connection to Matt Reeves’ Batman movie, which is still very much a top-secret project.

Anyway. Getting back to The Joker itself: the thing is, this movie clearly doesn’t want to fit into the DCEU at all. Just based from this trailer, we can see that this movie looks to be all the things that, at the moment, the DCEU is steering away from – dark and gritty realism with a dash of the macabre. It only makes sense when dealing with a character like the Joker: unpredictable, dangerous, defying expectations. We see in this trailer, in fact, the makings of a movie so unlike any previous comic book movie that I would not be shocked if it gets nominated for some Oscars next year – of course, it’s far too early to say that for certain, but it is definitely worth keeping an eye on. Black Panther was able to score a nomination for Best Picture this year: could The Joker be the next comic book movie to do so?

It might seem presumptuous to say “yes”, but take a look at this trailer: this is an intricate and profound character study of Arthur Fleck, the man who will become the Joker – there is sadness here, and a grim and unflinching portrait of a man scarred by emotional trauma. This Joker is not stylized or done up to fulfill comic book fans’ expectations: this Joker is stricken to the core by pain and anguish, he is depressed, tortured, on the brink of taking his own life. He has a job as a sign spinner outside a bankrupt store, where he dresses like a clown, intent on bringing “laughter and joy to the world”. He is robbed and beaten up, and even ends up at the Arkham State Hospital, an iconic location in Gotham City.  The locale looks like the New York City of the late 70’s and early 80’s, and its brutality is also reminiscent of that period.

But Arthur Fleck finds purpose in a new life – a life of crime, that gives him the opportunity to be free, careless, independent. He who once ran from the police now hounds them. He who once hid in the shadows now makes a dramatic entrance at a protest, somersaulting down a flight of steps. He who once slouched over, dressed in dark clothes, trudging through the filthy streets, now dons a new outfit: the painted smile, the green wig, the brightly colored suit. He no longer slouches – now, he leaps over taxi-cabs and strides elegantly down hallways, dancing for the great audience all around him, the people of Gotham. “I used to think that my life was a tragedy,” he says. “But now I realize it’s a comedy.”

And the people embrace him and take him as their figurehead in their rebellion against the forces of law and order. This is not a movie about a supervillain, this is a movie about a man who just happens to become a supervillain: it’s almost like historical fiction, uncovering the truth behind this classic character of comic book mythology and delving deep into his troubled psyche.

There is, however, one hint that may or may not indicate a connection to the wider DCEU – there is a scene, near the end of the trailer, of the Joker meeting a young boy, though the two are separated by the bars of a metal gate. This boy may not be the young Bruce Wayne, but there’s a strong chance that he is.

So no, aside from that one hint (that may not even be a hint), The Joker does not have a connection yet to the DCEU. But it doesn’t need one. It is entirely its own thing, its own bizarre and beautiful being, and it stands alone. The DCEU is moving towards being a fun, family-friendly environment – this stands out as a dark, harsh exception. But this movie (at least from the trailer) seems almost to enjoy and embrace its complete uniqueness.

Trailer Rating: 8.5/10

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Marvel’s “The Eternals” casting FIRST GAY SUPERHERO?

Some big news broke recently concerning Marvel’s The Eternals, a movie set to begin filming in August, which should be released next year. We had been getting some small teases as to what this film might be about, and which characters might be in it – for instance, we had received news that Margo Damian might be in the film, though this is unconfirmed and the female lead is still going under the alias “Karen”, while her character description is vague and says Marvel is looking for an actress in her early 30s, of any ethnicity (but especially African, Native American or Middle Eastern). Meanwhile, other character descriptions had also been revealed, which seemed to suggest that classic Eternals characters like Ikaris, Makkari, Sersi, Starfox, Thena, Zuras, Druig and Gilgamesh were being considered for roles in the movie: there were also surprising additions to the line-up like Elysius and “Piper”, who seems to be a take on the Eternals character Sprite. But one of the most interesting by far was the male lead, which didn’t even get so much as an alias, and was described merely as a Greek God. Now, thanks to a new report, we may have a clue as to who that character might be – and it bodes well for the future of LGBTQ superheroes onscreen.

Because, yes, the news that broke March 1st – and appeared to be given additional credence first by Marvel production chief Victoria Alonso, and then by Marvel mastermind Kevin Feige himself – was that Marvel is seeking to cast an openly gay male actor to play the male lead: who is set to become their first openly gay superhero. Combine that with the fact that this male lead is described as a Greek God, and what do you get?

Hercules, that’s what.

Marvel's "The Eternals" casting FIRST GAY SUPERHERO? 1
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The character, a Greek God who is somewhat similar to Thor (well, Thor post Thor: Ragnarok that is), has been bisexual in the comics – but it didn’t end very well, and attracted some backlash after the character was suddenly made straight again. Bringing Herc back, and making him definitively gay or bisexual in the MCU would be a great way to settle that issue. The character description, it seems, has been updated so that now Marvel is looking for an openly gay male actor age 30-49, who “physically looks like a superhero”. That last note is interesting: other actors have been able to bulk up for roles in Marvel movies, but Hercules is massively muscled, and would probably require an actor who is already at least similar in size.

So, considering all that we know so far, I’d say that Hercules is, if not a sure bet, than at least a definite possibility. It could be that Marvel is choosing to make Ikaris or another male character gay instead, and that Hercules won’t show up at all, but fans have definitely been looking forward to seeing him in the MCU, and having him be the first gay male superhero in their impressive roster would be pretty cool. But either way, this news is most interesting because it means Marvel will finally be delivering its first gay lead – scratch that, its first gay character, period. Another Marvel character, Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) has been confirmed to be bisexual, but this was never even hinted at in the films, and in fact a scene with some lesbian overtones was cut from Black Panther. This is a step in the right direction for the MCU, and I can’t wait to see where we’ll end up.