First… kudos to Marvel for setting the upcoming Captain America movie back in the 1940s so they could make him more patriotic. Jeers for thinking that only the 1940s would support a flag-waving (and wearing) patriot without any risk of eye-rolling. I’ve always thought Cap would be difficult to film — I mean the suit is a bit ridiculous — especially on a battlefield — at least a 20th century one. As these attest:
And don’t forget Reb Brown!
I mean — it’s no more ridiculous than a Zouave uni.
So color me a bit skeptical if they make Captain America a USO performer. How else to deal with that uniform? I’m sure the muted color approach will work, but it will take some disbelief suspension to make it work. From the L.A. Times blog on The First Avenger: Captain America:
I wanted to come back to the idea of Steve Rogers as a reluctant performer with United Services Organizations, which famously brought Bob Hope and other entertainers to morale-boosting events for troops overseas.
“So he’s up on stage doing songs and dances with chorus girls and he can’t wait to get out and really fight. When he does go AWOL, he covers up the suit but then, after a few things happen, he realizes that this uniform allows him to lead. By then, he’s become a star in the public mind and a symbol. The guys get behind him because he embodies something special.”
There will be more than one costume in the film, too.
In the first USO sequences, the frustrated patriot will be wearing a version that is closer to the classic Jack Kirby-designed costume, but then later as the super-soldier hits the war zone he will be wearing a sturdier, more muted version that he makes himself that is more like battle togs. The stripes across his mid-section, for instance, will be straps, not colored fabric.
“He realizes the value of the uniform symbols but he modifies his suit and adds some armor, it will be closer to the Cpa costume in some of the comics in more recent years . . . this approach, it’s the only way we could justify ever seeing him on a screen in tights, with the funny boots and everything. The government essentially puts him up there as a living comic-book character and he rips it off and then reclaims some of its imagery after he recognizes the value of it. We think it’s the best way to keep the costume and explain it at the same time.”
h/t: Big Hollywood marquee
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Hey, it could have been much worse. It could have followed the comics, which currently have him fighting the Tea Party movement. I’m not kidding.
I haven’t read Captain America since the 1980s… now I’m glad.
Strongly seconding that. Damn, did I love 70s/80s Captain America, too.
You have to be kidding me. Can’t fight the guys who blew up the World Trade Center, but he can fight the red-staters who are ticked at the national debt.
Honestly, I wish Marvel would have went out of business.
The interesting thing is that you don’t see these type of dumb moves with their properties outside of comics, but with their books, you get things like “Civil War,” which was just pointless. Even comic readers are sometimes left scratching their heads with these choices. And don’t get me started on indie comics, where every second book is a gut-lurching exercise in being “relevant.” The juxtaposition is that comics are also creatively booming, even as it stagnates as an industry by failing to take in new readers.
We’ll see what happens with Disney taking the reigns. But holy crap. I’m glad I stopped reading comics. When I heard the whole Civil War thing and the way it played out… libs have definately invaded comics deeply.
As for the movie, I’m not sure if this is a good or bad omen.
What will Hollywood do when they run out of comics books as the sole source of their material?
Well,Floyd,it would be too much to ask of Hollywood to portray CA thrashing and decapitating hook nosed Talibanis
I shall remain relatively mute on this subject since you all don’t
give a damnnecessarily agree with my opinions on today’s movies.Criticizing superhero costumes for being ridiculous is like criticizing some cheese for smelling like … you know, cheese. How is a walking flag more silly than a dude in blue tights, red underwear and a big red ‘S’ splashed across his chest?
The thing about Capt. America is he’s supposed to be … that’s right … Pro-America. He’s not supposed to be ashamed of wearing the red, white & blue.
Color me skeptical about this take on Cap.
Also, can someone please confirm whether or not the original character was a “reluctant performer in the USO.” That just does not square with my memories, though I’ll admit to not knowing much about the character’s Golden Age development.
Cap never performed in the USO in the comics, Daniel. They came up with the idea for the movie as a way to explain the classic uniform, which would otherwise not work in the real world.
That’s what I thought. After I left my comment, I read Nolte’s reflections at BH. He makes a good point.
Hopefully, a lot of this isn’t written in stone yet. But what’s cool is that The Invaders are going to be in the movie for a good part of it, though it’s not certain which ones. I’m hoping at least Union Jack, The Sub-Mariner and the original Human Torch.
http://chud.com/articles/articles/22433/1/CAPTAIN-AMERICA039S-INTERNATIONAL-CO-STARS-THE-INVADERS/Page1.html