Seasons change. Sagas continue. And new directors try their luck.
When you have a large series of films like Marvel’s, many things change as the movies go on. While the actors remain, one of the things that changes the most is the person that sits in the high black chair with “Director” scrawled on the back.
The Marvel movies host characters that the world has loved for decades. Spider-Man, The Hulk and Captain America are among the characters that inspired generations to look into the arts in the first place. For that reason, it feels right that so many artists get to have a crack at making their own superhero films.
Marvel has had a lot of luck with the directors they’ve snagged to make their movies (some of which are still in development.) Let’s take a look at these directors and their works before they were Marvel filmmakers.
‘Cop Car’: John Watts (‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’)
Spider-Man: Homecoming was Marvel’s welcome-home party for their favorite web-slinger, after they received the rights to him from Sony Entertainment. (Huh, I wonder if that’s why it was called Homecoming?) Challenged with making this rendition of the character stand out from the previous two live-action portrayals, director John Watts focuses heavily on Peter Parker’s youth.
Luckily, Watts is no rookie when it comes to directing youth. His 2015 feature Cop Car follows two young boys who find an unattended police vehicle and drive it off on an adventure while the cop (Kevin Bacon) attempts to retrieve his stolen wheels.
What I love about this film is Watts’ ability to understand the two boys. He directs them with a mixture of carefree impulsivity and apprehension, so that there is the looming shadow of consequence throughout the film. Watts also proves that he’s not afraid to rough his characters up, as the film ends in a bloody shootout between its small cast of characters.
‘Half Nelson’: Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden (‘Captain Marvel’)
Captain Marvel still has about a year and a half to go before Brie Larson suits up to join the Avengers, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get acquainted with its tag team directors Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden, and one of their movies to get us in the zone.
Half Nelson stars Ryan Gosling as a history teacher with a drug habit who strikes up a friendship with one of his students, Drey, (Shareeka Epps) after she uncovers his secret. Oddly enough, this film also stars fellow Avenger Anthony Mackie, the man behind Falcon.
Half Nelson is a powerful film that examines humans on a very intimate level. The film is mostly focused on the imperfections of humanity, and how those who are flawed can still affect the world in a positive way. Directors Fleck and Boden are sure to show us that Gosling is a competent and even passionate teacher, but cannot give up his life of drugs.
Easily one of Ryan Gosling’s best performances, Half Nelson shows that Boden and Fleck are interested in complex characters. With Captain Marvel coming later in the Marvel franchise, I hope they bring this complexity to Larson’s character. Proving that a superhero can be equally human as they are heroic.
‘The Nice Guys’: Shane Black (‘Iron Man 3’)
Iron Man kicked off the MCU as we know it today, so Iron Man 3 marked the end of an era. This third installment was the beginning of Phase Two of the MCU, which also introduced Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man.
Shane Black was brought on as the director for Iron Man 3, and wouldn’t return to the big screen until 2016, when he released The Nice Guys. The second appearance for Ryan Gosling on this list has him at what I believe to be his career best. Black defied all odds by throwing Russell Crowe alongside Gosling for a buddy-cop film, and made it work perfectly.
The Nice Guys plays out as a classic cop film with gun fights, exciting action, and surprisingly great comedy from Gosling and Crowe, who play off each other like friends in middle school. With an espionage-inspired score and a mustache on Gosling that could only exist in the ’80s, The Nice Guys is an instant classic after the first viewing.
‘The Wolfman’: Joe Johnston (‘Captain America: The First Avenger’)
The first installment of the Captain America series is easily one of my favorite MCU films. After years of playing the character, it’s impressive to see how comfortable Chris Evans was playing the character even in his first film. Part of this is because of Joe Johnston, who allows the film to be a WWII story about bravery and justice.
Now look, The Wolfman wasn’t loved by many people. With a 35% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 43 on Metacritic, you might be surprised to see that the film was able to snag an Oscar, but it did. Joe Johnston’s makeup team won an Oscar for Best Achievement in Makeup.
The Wolfman works for me as the bloody horror that I wanted the new Mummy film to be. It’s dark, with foreboding shots of 19th century London that scream classic horror. With an all-star cast of Benicio del Toro, Anthony Hopkins and Hugo Weaving, The Wolfman isn’t a masterpiece, but it is a good fantasy/horror, a genre I’d like to se Joe Johnston tackle again.
(Fun fact, all the actors I named in this film are in the MCU!)
‘Creed’: Ryan Coogler (‘Black Panther’)
As I type this, we are less than one month away from the release of Black Panther, a film that already looks as though it’s going to be one of Marvel’s best yet. With a stellar cast including Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, and Forest Whitaker, Marvel fans have a right to set their expectations high for a film centering on the prince of Wakanda.
But before Black Panther, Ryan Coogler showed himself to be a capable director to me with Creed. Creed acts as a great addition to the Rocky franchise and shows just how good Coogler is at filming action. That’s important in a film about boxing.
Coogler is an intimate director, allowing the camera to follow actors in fighting sequences, resulting in exciting camerawork and some astonishing angles. Amongst the action, Coogler makes sure that his characters have a reason to fight, by making them well rounded and brutally human. With a director this dedicated to action and characters, its no wonder he was picked to helm a superhero flick.
‘What We Do In The Shadows’: Taika Waititi (‘Thor: Ragnarok’)
Thor: Ragnarok made its mark in MCU history by being the second best reviewed Marvel film of all time (falling just behind Iron Man.) After coming off two Thor films that didn’t glean much critical reception, it’s obvious that the key to the third installment’s success was Taika Waititi.
What We Do In The Shadows remains one of my favorite films ever made. It’s a mockumentary about vampires living in New Zealand, and already has a sequel film and spinoff TV series on the way. The film is filled with amazing comedy, much of which comes from Waititi’s brilliant writing and ability to blend the supernatural with the satirical.
While the film is hilarious and quotable, what really sells it is Waititi’s use of special effects. With this crowd-funded film, Waititi proves himself to be a resourceful director that uses the tools he’s given to make vampires fly, walk on walls, shape shift and even projectile vomit blood. All of this blends together to install a smart and well-made movie into the vampiric canon of films. This comedy bleeds through into Ragnarok in a way that no other Marvel film has done yet. Waititi’s carefree presence allows the film to feel like a romp through Asgard, rather than the slow walk we’re used to.
The fun thing about franchises enlisting different directors is what each director brings to the table, and what they’re able to do with a budget larger than they’re used to. Hopefully Marvel realizes this and continues to take chances on directors who deserve to have a go at the superhero genre. What are your favorite non-Marvel films by Marvel directors?
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