I couldn't resist the cheese...
Aug. 9th, 2002 12:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
litheraI saw the Todd McFarlane biography DVD (Yes... dvd) and couldn't help but pick it up. As far as I can tell it is the "I'm cooler than you and you wish you were me" Todd Mcfarlane dvd.
From the back: "A legend to his legions of fans, Spawn creator Todd McFarlane is the most sucessful comic book artist in history. Over the past decade, this shrewd and enigmatic entrepreneur has grown his buisiness into a mulit-million dollar entertainment emprie encompassin comic, action figures, television, video games and music videos. In addition to an Emmy-award winning television series for HBO and a $100 million feature film, the Spawn comic has sold over 150 million copies since 1992 - more than any other urban drama character including Batman, Spider-Man, Superman and Wolverine. TODD MCFARLANE: THE DEVIL YOU KNOW offers audiences an engaging look at the man behind Spawn's thrillingly dark and edgy images and exposes the many sides of McFarlane - from corport rebel to dedicated family man to unrelenting baseball enthusiast (in fact, McFarlane may be more famous to his 1999 $3 million purchase of Mark McGwire's 70th home run baseball than he is for Spawn). McFarlane is a convtroversial yet likeable cahracter, a self-confessed mand of "contradictions and inconsistencies," who ulitimately just wants to play by his own rules. A candid exploration of McFarlane's most intimate thoughts, thus film ultimate offers us a rare glimpse inside one of the world's most brilliant, intruiting and creative minds."
*blink*
Mmmmmmm. Yeah. I'm really tempted to check those numbers. Batman had 5 movies. Superman 4. Spider-Man has 1, but I bet it did several times better than Spawn did. I'd bet X-men did better than Spawn did. I wonder how they're building the numbers for the comic. Spawn did cost more than any of those others for quite some time too. I doubt its sold more copies. Batman is near issue 700.
To quote TJ here: "Spawn's tight, yo, but Spider-Man would own his ass."
From the back: "A legend to his legions of fans, Spawn creator Todd McFarlane is the most sucessful comic book artist in history. Over the past decade, this shrewd and enigmatic entrepreneur has grown his buisiness into a mulit-million dollar entertainment emprie encompassin comic, action figures, television, video games and music videos. In addition to an Emmy-award winning television series for HBO and a $100 million feature film, the Spawn comic has sold over 150 million copies since 1992 - more than any other urban drama character including Batman, Spider-Man, Superman and Wolverine. TODD MCFARLANE: THE DEVIL YOU KNOW offers audiences an engaging look at the man behind Spawn's thrillingly dark and edgy images and exposes the many sides of McFarlane - from corport rebel to dedicated family man to unrelenting baseball enthusiast (in fact, McFarlane may be more famous to his 1999 $3 million purchase of Mark McGwire's 70th home run baseball than he is for Spawn). McFarlane is a convtroversial yet likeable cahracter, a self-confessed mand of "contradictions and inconsistencies," who ulitimately just wants to play by his own rules. A candid exploration of McFarlane's most intimate thoughts, thus film ultimate offers us a rare glimpse inside one of the world's most brilliant, intruiting and creative minds."
*blink*
Mmmmmmm. Yeah. I'm really tempted to check those numbers. Batman had 5 movies. Superman 4. Spider-Man has 1, but I bet it did several times better than Spawn did. I'd bet X-men did better than Spawn did. I wonder how they're building the numbers for the comic. Spawn did cost more than any of those others for quite some time too. I doubt its sold more copies. Batman is near issue 700.
To quote TJ here: "Spawn's tight, yo, but Spider-Man would own his ass."
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no subject
Date: 2002-08-09 12:31 pm (UTC)150 million copies of the Spawn comic book? since 1992? I'm assuming they're probably talking about just the Batman comic line, not the three thousand Batman side titles. same with Superman and Spiderman.
Note he said Wolverine, not X-Men. I'm guessing Xmen outsold Spawn :)
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Date: 2002-08-09 12:37 pm (UTC)It wouldn't surprise me if it made $100 million including video sales. I don't think, even with hiring ILM to do the nifty cape action, that it cost that much to make.
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Date: 2002-08-09 03:25 pm (UTC)My guess is Archie.
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Date: 2002-08-09 12:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2002-08-09 12:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2002-08-09 12:45 pm (UTC)Spawn -- great concept. The first few issues were DAMN good. The idea of a super hero who had a finite amount of energy was a great one. But it's also an idea that has sorta fallen by the wayside. The HBO animated series included it, but the movie didn't. I occasionally (out of distant hope) browse the comic book, but I haven't seen mention of this, either, in YEARS. Why? Because McFarlane would then have to bid farewell to his beloved Spawn at some point.
Speaking of the HBO series, each episode (when broadcast on HBO) started with Todd McFarlane himself talking to the viewers about Spawn and how cool he was and about how he (Not sure if he meant Spawn or himself) was revolutionizing the Comic Book Industry.
Oh. And then there's the interview at the end of the Widescreen edition of the big-screen movie. "I wanted to create a character that could do what even Jesus couldn't do. I wanted a character who could defeat the devil." (That's a paraphrase, not an exact quote) Strike 3.
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Date: 2002-08-09 12:51 pm (UTC)Well, as a start, there are characters who have defeated the devil. I can think of a few. (Not in a ha ha ha, I have triumphed and the Devil is no more, sort of way, though.) Also, Jesus wasn't really given a chance to do that...
Spawn was a good idea. He had some great supporting cast.... I liked other things better than I liked Spawn, though.
Sandman and The Maxx for instance.
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Date: 2002-08-09 12:54 pm (UTC)It actually grossed quite a bit. $54.967 in the US. (21.21 opening weekend, 2,536 screens), $15 million non USA theaters and to bring it up to $100 million they toss in theatrical rentals for $29.914 million. Not quite $100 million either. $99.881. Close enough.
Did you count Batman VS Superman in your count? Should be out in 2004... ;) (Yes, it has a green light. *gag*)
And as for the comics... Maybe he was stuffing them in the trunks of cars?
I hear that guy did that with the Hollywood diet thing. Stuck it in the trunks of celebrities' porches or whatever and concluded that means they bought it and endorsed it.
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Date: 2002-08-09 01:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2002-08-09 01:32 pm (UTC)I dunno... It *could* be good.
But I don't think it's likely.
Aliens VS Predator I think would be a better one... if only they'd finish it.
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Date: 2002-08-09 01:37 pm (UTC)Alien vs Predator is a special effects glut. That's where it will get caught up everytime.
no subject
Date: 2002-08-09 01:40 pm (UTC)"Plot Outline: The two allied superheroes come to blows over differing philosophies. " - IMDB
The whole comes to blows thing really makes it seem like a shoddy attempt to cash in on the names.
AvP I think would be a good raw action movie, though. There's no *hope* for a story, really [They could rehash a lot of what's been done and tie it up in a nice package, but I think it'd fare better as pure action flick].
Oh well. :)
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Date: 2002-08-09 01:52 pm (UTC)What it is, is an attempt to kick start both movie franchises again and I dont mind. You can do a lot of wonderful stuff with the differences in the philosophies of Batman and Superman. Lots of great stuff *has* been done. Of course, there is also lots of crap.
Like I said, I'll wait to see how it goes. It's too far away to pronounce a judgement of any sort.
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Date: 2002-08-09 02:05 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2002-08-09 01:21 pm (UTC)Re:
Date: 2002-08-09 01:35 pm (UTC)