The Marvel Cinematic Universe - Why is it Important?

INTRODUCTION

The year was 2008, the UK experienced its largest earthquake in 25 years and the boom of comic book movies was hot with successes such as Spider-Man, X-Men and The Dark Knight(released the same year). But it was Marvel that had the biggest game changer we had ever seen in cinema. The MCU was born with the success of Iron Man. With 8 years on it's still going strong, film after film are being released with all being financial hits but why is it still going strong and what makes it so damn important?

IT CHANGED CINEMA (UNIVERSES)

That's no understatement, Marvel has changed how we watch films. We cannot miss any of their releases unless we want to miss the discussions or even understand scenes from other movies. The platform in which Marvel has created has meant every other studio is building their own universe and it's not just for comic book movies, we are getting a Universal studio Monster movie starting of with The Mummy reboot starring Tom Cruise and let's not forget Godzilla and King Kong Universe or how about the Hasbro Universe. Every studio is now rushing to see what's in their lockers so they can pull a Marvel. Before, studios would not dare to plan so far ahead with a movie slate. Promise 10 movies and the first one fails then you look like a fool. However the confidence in which Marvel has instilled on people is shocking. We trust them to the point where they can release just an end credit scene and it will be sold out in seconds. Other studios should be bowing to Marvel for what they achieved. If it weren't for them, Warner Bothers would have shoved their DC universe back in their locker. The divided Man of Steel, a horror show of Batman v Superman and the complete mess of Suicide Squad has not scared Warner Brothers who have kept their slate and are continuing to make more superhero films. The success of Marvel has given hope to audiences that DC and Warner can get it right. We live in a new era in cinema where no Studio will make just one single stand-alone movie. If a movie has more than one character get ready for sequels, prequels and spin-offs just to build a movie universe. 

IDEALS

Marvel has given kids icons to look up to and it has given the rest of us those same icons. Marvel has made their heroes, heroes first. They do not skew the line between good and bad with only the second and third Captain America movies doing that. However Marvel are clear that the good guys win all the time. This is similar to the original Star Wars where the ideas of good and bad are different and as an audience we know who to root for. Now this has created a generic formula where you know what you are expecting from the movie but the clear distinguish of good an bad has made Civil War more emotional because as the audience we know Iron Man is good and we know Captain America is good which makes their fight at the end that much impactful. They are heroes and they won't fight each other without a clear and logical reason. The first two phases paints the Avengers as the good guys but with Civil War and Winter Soldier our own beliefs are shattered. We don't know who to trust or who's right. The ideals of the MCU are going in murkier waters with each new phase with their actions becoming more reckless we are seeing the tide change again.

NOT JUST MOVIES (MTU)

Marvel have perfected the movie industry and now they are taking over the TV industry. Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage have been received with critical success. The dynamic and tonal change has made the Marvel universe different and layered. They have cleverly made the TV shows more gritty and dirty, making the TV shows and movies different allows audiences differentiate themselves when watching a Marvel movie in the cinema and watching a Marvel TV show on Netflix. Depth and layer has been built and makes the Marvel universe more real. When we watch the movies we can explore the bigger world but watching the Netflix shows we explore the bigger themes. Daredevil is Marvel's best product and reminds me of Batman Begins. It has a real feel and Matt Murdock's build up isn't superhero like, it's authentic and we see his struggle and rise to become the Devil in Hell's Kitchen. The Netflix shows are taking more risks and have been rewarded. The sexual and violent nature of the shows is refreshing and keeps Marvel relevant. The MTU also brings us different characters, who would have ever thought Luke Cage, Jessica Jones or Iron Fist would have a live action adaptation?  

CULTURAL IMPACT

Now this is an obvious one. However we cannot underestimate how big it really is. The MCU has earned a staggering $7.787 billion from the box office. That's more than the Harry Potter films and James Bond films. We have grasped to the MCU because it got their marketing right. Every age and gender was accommodated, leaving no stone un-turned. Kids to grandparents can watch and enjoy their superhero movies. Compare that to DC and Warner Brothers who have alienated a large majority of their audience. Would a five year old or a 70 year old watch BvS or Suicide Squad? When Marvel changed their formula for Captain America: The Winter Soldier they did not go and alienate their audience. They updated what they could but still keep their fan base happy and bring in new fans who wanted a mature film. This is why non-comic book readers or even non-comic book fans still where Captain America T-shirts or Hulk hats because they are safe with Marvel and know what to expect and when the tide does change their movies become significantly better. That has to be respected.

CONCLUSION

The MCU has sparked a new life in cinema and has changed the way we view films. It will be marked down in history as a new era in the film industry. With phase three beginning, Marvel will be continuing strong for years and that is why the Marvel Cinematic Universe is important.

TV or Movies?

INTRODUCTION

If I was to say you could only watch TV shows or movies for the rest of your life, what would your answer be? For me its movies and if this was 10 years ago I would believe you would also choose movies but now I see audiences gravitate towards TV shows more. With the rise of Netflix and binge watching giving us 12 hours of pure ecstasy and with the quality of these shows improving we see TV becoming more popular. However can TV shows replace movies? Let us look at two big point for TV that is always used against movies.

LONG FORM STORYTELLING

When it comes down to TV shows the main argument for it and against Movies is the writers have time to expand and develop their characters while movies averagely have 2 hours to do the same. However I see that as a weak argument. Let's take TV's greatest show Breaking Bad. It had 5 seasons, with season 1 having 7 episodes, 2-4 having 13 episodes and the final season having 16. And with the help of a website it calculated that fans spent 1 day, 23 hours and 32 minutes watching Walt's slow descent from humanity. Now let's compare that to Drive, a Nicolas Winding Refn film. A movie with similar themes of a slow descent from humanity.

Drive is 1 hour and 40 minutes long and just like Breaking Bad is slow and lets scenes ferment. With Breaking Bad having a budget of $3 million per episode and Drive only having $15 million for the whole movie, surely Breaking Bad is far greater than Drive? Well that's down to the audience but Drive tells the same character story Breaking Bad does. Sure both go their different ways and tell a characters humanity slowly fading differently but both achieve the same outcome. As the audience we get more back story for Walt which is needed to give him empathy and for us to route for him even when he does some despicable acts and with Ryan Gosling appropriately named Driver, his mysterious background is what attracts us to him. At first we see he drives robbers to their mark and makes the escape. But as the movie gradually shows us more we sympathies when we see his lighter side with Irene. His average apartment and having three jobs we know he doesn't earn a lot so we want him to succeed.

Both Walt and the Driver start on their own personal high ground, obviously Walt starts higher but they both have good guy morals however with circumstances intervening they both fall from their perch. At the end of Breaking Bad and Drive both get their ultimate due and we question who they really are. Leaving unanswered question about our character, the main one what happened next?

Long form storytelling is and will always be an advantage. More time with characters means we can understand their situation. However movies can achieve the same emotional outcome even with far less time. Films such as Taxi Driver and Inside Out achieve emotional levels that replicate those on TV. It's not about how much time you have, it's about how you use them.

CREATIVE FREEDOM

There is no doubt that movies are becoming very studio involved with whole departments of suits deciding what goes in and out the movie. Marvel, Warner Brothers and Disney all have department for their movie universes and whatever they say goes. But is that the same with TV shows?

There are some freedom barriers but not on the same scale. In many cases TV shows do have far greater freedom than movies, however, this is due to Movies watering down their content to make money while TV shows just need high ratings to be successful and the best way for that is controversy. TV shows that don't hold back on violence or politics are deemed better and more people watch them. I think this is because we want the truth when it comes to such agendas. The brutal nature of House of Cards shows us a dramatized workings of the White House but looking at today's American politics has become more real and more interesting.

However it depends on who you are in the industry, if you are a TV director there isn't much creative freedom because the show writers essentially run the whole thing and it's them that dictates the style and feel of an episode. On the other hand that is different to films where the director runs the show (sought of) while the writers don't get much say, an example would be Steven Spielberg's Bridge of Spies, which had been written by Joel and Ethan Cohen.

In movies such as Batman v Superman, Suicide Squad and Fantastic Four it seems that the comic book genre is hit the worst with Studios intervening and that's due to comic book movies still being the hot property in Hollywood. Studios spend up to 200 million and need 1 billion to make it financially successful in their eyes. So these films must cater for every demographic to get the most for their buck. This plays no bearing in TV comic book shows, Netflix's Daredevil to CW's The Flash have been received with critical reception by fans and critics. Is it down to more freedom? It could be the case because Ant-Man though having average reviews and not deemed a bad movie is a bland and boring superhero film. With someone like Edgar Wright, Ant-Man would have had its identity and no doubt would have been a far superior movie but Edgar Wright left due to creativity conflicts and what did Marvel do next? They appointed a 'yes' man to take over.

I believe that TV does have more creative freedom to tell a story. Imagine Game of Thrones as a movie and how many cut backs would have been made or how many add-on to accommodate the biggest market at the moment China. For writers TV is where to be and for directors Movies is where to be but it all depends on who you are. A Chris Nolan movie would never be altered by the studio nor would a studio ever touch a Scorsese flick. In essence it's all about building a reputation.

QUALITY

Quality is what these two mediums will be judged on because no audience cares about backstage squabbles, all we want is a good product. And when it comes down to it Movies and TV shows both have the good and bad, and both have benefits and disadvantageous. Could I see Breaking Bad as a good movie, no, and could I see Mad Max: Fury Road as a TV show, absolutely not. Why? because they both understood their medium and stuck with the element that was given to them. Breaking Bad had the option to be one season or 10 seasons but the writers new when to stop and how long to take. The same with Mad Max, it new it had a limited run time so they made a fast paced simple movie and the atmosphere in the cinema cannot be replicated on TV. It's up to the audience to decide which is better but for me we should celebrate that at least there's something good to watch everyday.

How to do the Kamehameha Wave?

We have all seen it, Goku gathers a ball of Ki (energy) in the palms of his hands and begins to scream from the top of his lungs KAME-HAME-HA! Releasing a powerful attack to defeat his enemies and you want to know how he does it. Here is how you can perform your own Kamehameha wave.

Step 1

You must have Ki control this allows you to gather the energy in one place. To control your Ki you must be disciplined enough to extract the Ki from within you. To gather Ki you must:

• Concentrate and focus on releasing your energy
•  Be disciplined and patient   
• Relax your body

A way to practice is to sit on the floor with your hands facing each other in front of you and to then focus bringing out your Ki between your hands.  Once you have the ability at will to gather Ki then you can begin the next step.

Step 2

Everyone who has performed a Kamehameha has always used the same stance. To replicate Goku you must practice the stance which is both hands connected at the wrist in a cupped formation, you can put your hands either on the right side or left side of your body. Remember that the cupped hands are facing behind you. The Ki will be placed in between your hands. Now more disciplined people can also use their feet such as Goku or one handed like Gohan but I recommend that using the original stance is better for beginners.

Step 3

Once you have practiced the stance you have to focus your energy between your hands to create a Kamehameha. Follow these steps in order:

• Begin stance 
• Focus on bringing your energy between your hands
• Wait for it to be formed
• Say the magic words KAME-HAME-HA!
• Release your Kamehameha wave by bringing your hands forward in front of you releasing the ball of energy.

The more you focus the better it can get, but be warned your first Kamehameha will not be perfect it will take time and effort. Be cautious not to waste all your energy, unfortunately there are no Senzu beans to help your recovery.

Step 4

Practice! Practice! Practice!

Find a remote place and start to practice. Make sure to be patient, remember it took Master Roshi 50 years to master and he created the Kamehameha wave.