Way, way back in 2008, a little film was making the rounds, sneaking into the global subconscious in a way no film of its kind had done to date. It went on to gross billions in box office over the course of a multi-film run, but its more lasting legacy is measured today not merely in dollars but in the undeniable influence it has had on what sort of films get greenlit, the star power those films attract, and the size and variety of the audiences lining up to watch. The film was Iron Man, and its startling success has changed the landscape of film, television, and Internet entertainment for nearly a decade now.
Say what you will about the Batman series — and it’s certainly likely that without it, Iron Man wouldn’t have been the hit it was — but Iron Man, unlike the Dark Knight, has had a true chain reaction, inspiring spin-offs, crossovers, and new stories about long-overlooked heroes. Today, the “Marvel Cinematic Universe” — the name given to the series of films and small-screen shows that showcase Marvel brand comic book characters like Thor and Captain America, the superspy Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, and Daredevil — ranges across mediums and styles yet still manages to retain a cohesiveness that creates a real sense of world for viewers, instead of the simplistic one hero/one villain setup common to so much of the genre.
This week, a new hero joins that universe when Paul Rudd suits up as Ant-Man in a new feature film directed by Peyton Reed (Yes Man). Something of a second-tier hero — like Iron Man was for many years — the Ant-Man title was carried by several comic book characters over the years, beginning in the early ’60s with scientist Hank Pym (here played by Michael Douglas), who discovered a way to shrink a man’s body while exponentially increasing his strength.
Rudd plays Scott Lang, a petty criminal whose first introduction to the suit comes when he steals it as part of a plan to save his daughter’s life. Deciding to turn his life around, he takes up the Ant-Man mantle from a retiring Pym in an attempt to do some good. The less than ideal hero — again, a detail that hearkens back to Iron Man and Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal of narcissistic womanizer turned hero Tony Stark — is a touch that helps ground the superhero antics in our world without turning the main character into a brooding, moping bore (the curse of Batman’s heavier moments).
Of course, simply being part of a successful series isn’t a guarantee of future success, and one need only look at the Marvel-based films before 2008 to realize how bad things could be (Howard the Duck; the Lou Ferrigno era of Incredible Hulk movies, etc). But by expanding the scope to tell larger, more intertwined stories across various franchises, the studio, now owned by Disney, has both created a recognizable universe and insulated itself from the risk of any one story clanging an off-key note. Not a bad few years for a “funny book” company.
Also this week: A trio of film classics comes to area screens, beginning with Friday and Saturday night screenings of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes at Shelburne Falls’ Pothole Pictures. Marilyn Monroe stars as gold-digger Lorelei Lee, who with travels to Paris with friend Dorothy (Jane Russell) in search of a rich husband.
And Amherst Cinema and Cinemark Theaters host special shows this week, with both theaters hosting Sunday and Wednesday screenings. At Amherst, the film is Monty Python and the Holy Grail. The wonderfully absurd comedy is celebrating its 40th anniversary, giving fans a chance to relive all their favorite bits — and there are many — on the big screen. At Cinemark, Billy Wilder’s 1944 noir Double Indemnity makes an appearance. Co-written by Wilder and Raymond Chandler (The Big Sleep) and starring Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck as a couple scheming to kill her husband for insurance money, the film is a sordid look at greed and guilt, far darker than many of the noir works of its era — and that is precisely what makes it so very good.•
Jack Brown can be reached at cinemadope@gmail.com.
