DCU Movies

[Refrax5]

Jordan, that's unfair, you know that's not the reason. Some people don't live in such a black and white world. You can like someone but also feel dubious about the stuff they write online. At the end of the day this is a rich guy trying to sell people on a movie put out by a massive corporate-run studio. Almost everything he says is for the purpose of getting people in theaters to see the movie. It's normal for people to be suspicious and question some of the claims he makes; it doesn't automatically equate to those people hating that person. Please be fair and stop stirring the pot. At the very least you can respond to people without making inferrences.

Yeah, pretty much. And it's a guy who literally said he loved reading comics when he was a kid, but thinks superheroes are "the dumbest thing ever" and didn't want to make a serious, straightforward superhero film because he couldn't take it seriously. Obviously he's read comics and likes some of them, but it's also ignoring other things he's said and how, for someone who loves these characters, he's dramatically altered them from the source material, almost beyond recognition in a lot of cases.

He's definitely exaggerating his love for a lot of these characters and everything he says about Superman sounds incredibly simplistic and basically what he thinks people want to hear.

He's constantly BS-ing about something to sell whatever he's working on. I doubt he thought the Flash was one of the greatest superhero movies of all time and we know it wasn't going to reset things for the new DCU as he claimed. He also claimed he didn't change the ending, which turned out to be false.

It's not about liking or disliking the guy. I love Andrew Garfield and think he's a terrific actor, but I doubt he was this huge fan of Spider-Man like he claimed back when he was cast.

Hollywood people BS when they're trying to earn goodwill, especially with comic book stuff.

I'm sure he's reading a bunch of this stuff nowadays for research, but it's weird how desperate people are to believe he's some hardcore comic nerd. He's a rich studio CEO. I'm not sure why people are so defensive of him. It just reminds me of the Snyder guys swearing up and down that Snyder did the most accurate Superman and Batman ever and he's this misunderstood genius. Like I said, the weird cult of personality that surrounds these guys is so bizarre to me.

[Confuzzled]

I guess Raven confirmed

[Agent Z]

Yeah, pretty much. And it's a guy who literally said he loved reading comics when he was a kid, but thinks superheroes are "the dumbest thing ever" and didn't want to make a serious, straightforward superhero film because he couldn't take it seriously. Obviously he's read comics and likes some of them, but it's also ignoring other things he's said and how, for someone who loves these characters, he's dramatically altered them from the source material, almost beyond recognition in a lot of cases.

He's definitely exaggerating his love for a lot of these characters and everything he says about Superman sounds incredibly simplistic and basically what he thinks people want to hear.

He's constantly BS-ing about something to sell whatever he's working on. I doubt he thought the Flash was one of the greatest superhero movies of all time and we know it wasn't going to reset things for the new DCU as he claimed. He also claimed he didn't change the ending, which turned out to be false.

It's not about liking or disliking the guy. I love Andrew Garfield and think he's a terrific actor, but I doubt he was this huge fan of Spider-Man like he claimed back when he was cast.

Hollywood people BS when they're trying to earn goodwill, especially with comic book stuff.

I'm sure he's reading a bunch of this stuff nowadays for research, but it's weird how desperate people are to believe he's some hardcore comic nerd. He's a rich studio CEO. I'm not sure why people are so defensive of him. It just reminds me of the Snyder guys swearing up and down that Snyder did the most accurate Superman and Batman ever and he's this misunderstood genius. Like I said, the weird cult of personality that surrounds these guys is so bizarre to me.

Only a vocal minority of comic fans care whether or not a director is a comic fan. Gunn has nothing to gain from answering these questions. If he says he is a fan of them, I see no reason to believe him, unless given an actual reason to. That doesn't mean his take on them will be what all fans want (because fans disagree constantly) but just assuming he's lying isn't exactly rational.

[HsssH]

He has more to lose than gain by saying that he liked Suicide Squad and Red Hood.

[Vordan]

I posted a video of him at MorrisonCon! If you’re still trying to insist Gunn doesn’t read comics, get some evidence beyond “I don’t like him and I’m too smart unlike the rest of the sheeple to believe him”. Otherwise you guys are just the equivalent of the Flat Earth Society: smart-dumb conspiracy theorists who cling blindly to their beliefs and reject evidence to the contrary.

[Refrax5]

I posted a video of him at MorrisonCon! If you’re still trying to insist Gunn doesn’t read comics, get some evidence beyond “I don’t like him and I’m too smart unlike the rest of the sheeple to believe him”. Otherwise you guys are just the equivalent of the Flat Earth Society: smart-dumb conspiracy theorists who cling blindly to their beliefs and reject evidence to the contrary.

I didn't say he didn't read comics.

[Vordan]

I didn't say he didn't read comics.

Then I wasn’t directing it at you was I? I didn’t reply to your post so no reason to think otherwise.

[Refrax5]

Only a vocal minority of comic fans care whether or not a director is a comic fan. Gunn has nothing to gain from answering these questions. If he says he is a fan of them, I see no reason to believe him, unless given an actual reason to. That doesn't mean his take on them will be what all fans want (because fans disagree constantly) but just assuming he's lying isn't exactly rational.

He's said a bunch of contradictory things and things that have been proven false. And you honestly haven't noticed how much people involved in these kinds of movies tend to say how much they love the source material? Its a pretty common tactic.

Like I said, he literally said during the press tour for TSS that he loved comics as a kid but thought superheroes were the "dumbest thing ever invented" and couldn't take them seriously, so he preferred stuff like TSS or GOTG. Now he's saying he loves Superman and that the Flash was one of the best superhero movies ever.

Hollywood executives exaggerating or lying to sell their product isn't that far-fetched. It's pretty much how these things work.

I would also think somebody that loves these characters wouldn't totally rewrite their personalities but that's just me.

[Confuzzled]

Of all the things to criticize about him, I don't think Gunn's comic nerd cred should be in question. Even before he was signed on for GotG, he had a blog where he sometimes posted about comics (and landed in hot soup for some silliness like saying he could turn Kate Kane straight).

His love for the Yale/Ostrander run was also sincere while he was promoting TSS (as was later apparent with the actual film itself once it came out).

[Refrax5]

Then I wasn’t directing it at you was I? I didn’t reply to your post so no reason to think otherwise.

Well, you didn't reply to anyone specifically but it was obviously directed towards someone. Since you commented after my post and I think you already replied to what James said, it seemed reasonable to think it may have been in reply to mine, which I'm sure you realize.

I'm sure all the people who pointed out Snyder's love of the characters was pretty shallow and not reflected in his work were flat-earth types, too. Not sure you, of all people, should be calling anybody else "smart-dumb." I realize you've got the cliche fanboy rage at all times, but maybe watch the ad-hominems.

[Refrax5]

Of all the things to criticize about him, I don't think Gunn's comic nerd cred should be in question. Even before he was signed on for GotG, he had a blog where he sometimes posted about comics (and landed in hot soup for some silliness like saying he could turn Kate Kane straight).

His love for the Yale/Ostrander run was also sincere while he was promoting TSS (as was later apparent with the actual film itself once it came out).

I mean, I've read Ostrander's TSS run, and aside from a few references, it bore little resemblance to it.

I certainly think he was a comic fan in his youth. I don't think he ever gave a **** about Superman until there was a paycheck in it.

Even years ago, I found him to be an obnoxious and insincere edgelord. I personally don't care if a director is a huge fan of the characters or not, honestly. I just think it's weird how desperately defensive of this guy's nerd cred people are. You can apply most of the things people criticized Snyder for to Gunn but somehow he's seen as "one of us" and immune from criticism.

You mention that the fanboyism for the guy is a little Snyderbot-ish and it touches a nerve.

[Agent Z]

He has more to lose than gain by saying that he liked Suicide Squad and Red Hood.

Most people watching these movies won't care what he likes. If you're talking about the Red Hood and the Outlaws comics, most haven't even read those.

[Confuzzled]

Most people watching these movies won't care what he likes. If you're talking about the Red Hood and the Outlaws comics, most haven't even read those.

I think what HsssH was saying was that most people who read those comics hated them, so there was little to gain for Gunn by saying they were among his New 52 favorites. ESPECIALLY talking about Red Hood and the Outlaws just hours before the official announcement of a Teen Titans movie likely starring Starfire, whose depiction in RHatO was a lightning rod for online discussions at the time.

[HsssH]

Yeah. Whole argument here is that Gunn is faking his love for comics to get the support from comics reading part of the fandom.

[StarSpangledMan]

I couldn't care any less if Gunn is a true fan or not. Too often, the "fan" will blindly hone in on details that don't matter at all when they make their adaptation, more concerned with ticking off a wikipedia list of attributes than having a cohesive, competent, good final release. I only care if the creative understands the assignment, which means doing the relevant reading/research. Take Nicholas Meyer for instance, not a Star Trek fan at all and yet he directed arguably the best movie to feature Star Trek in its title, and then he did it again. And take Tony Gilroy, doesn't care about Star Wars at all and yet he created probably the greatest thing to come out of the franchise in Andor. Whether or not Gunn is a fan, he understand how to write movies, characters, themes and huge emotional depth. And he can direct the hell out of that script too.