Saw this today!
Batman began -- again -- last year. Both the X-Men and Superman return to the big screen this summer. And the third installment of Spider-Man's saga is currently in production. Even Aquaman is getting his own TV series.
So where's the most patriotic superhero of them all?
Comic book staple Captain America has been wholly absent amid the superpowered trend of thrusting superheroes inside multiplexes, cereal bowls, costume shops and Happy Meals. Despite the nation's current atmosphere of terror alerts and Patriot Acts, the instantly recognizable Captain America -- real name: Steve Rogers, but better known as just Cap -- has mostly been relegated to Marvel comic book pages, not counting those unremarkable 1970s made-for-TV movies or the 1991 direct-to-video film.
"Maybe it's because people see the red, white and blue costume and say, 'Hey, how's that gonna play off on film and not seem silly, overly preachy?'" speculates Marvel Comics Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada.
Cap's formfitting cross between a Roman warrior's armor and Uncle Sam's suit -- accessorized with that unbreakable shield -- are certainly dated. Both were created in the 1940s, long before the superstrong Cap was revived in the '70s after being frozen in a block of ice.
But since Sept. 11 and the war in Iraq, American flags have become omnipresent in real life, emblazoned on bumper stickers and pins. That's just one reason why Marvel Studios CEO Avi Arad, who insists Captain America is not just for Americans, says that now is a "perfect time in history" to raise the Cap flag again.
"Contrary to popular belief, people want this way of life," says the Israeli-born Arad, who's responsible for bringing both "Spider-Man" and "X-Men" to the big screen. "They want democracy. They want freedom. Captain America takes us one level farther because he's a man out of time. You go through the mind of someone who is emotional and a believer."
And believe it or not, Cap is coming to America in various forms soon. Take notice:
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DVD
Cap has a starring role in "Ultimate Avengers: The Movie," the first feature-length animated film from Marvel, which arrives in DVD and UMD formats on Feb. 21. In the movie, 60 years after Cap battled Nazis, the super-soldier is awakened by The Avengers, a ragtag band of superheros including Iron Man and Thor, to lead the team against an alien threat. The bigger threat? The Incredible Hulk.
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COMICS
Beginning in May, the shielded superhero will also play a vital role in "Civil War," a seven-issue series involving characters from across the Marvel Universe. The story goes like this: The government has decided that thousands of untrained, masked do-gooders might not be so super, so they propose the Superhero Registration Act to keep track of all those flying, shape-shifting, spell-casting superbeings.
"Cap, of course, is caught in the middle of all of this," pledges Quesada. "The basic premise is: Who's side are you on? And what side does Cap decide to be on?"
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FILM
Last year, Marvel and Paramount Pictures agreed to team up to distribute a slate of Marvel-produced flicks featuring their characters. Still in development, many questions surrounding Cap's live-action treatment have arisen from flag-waving fans. Would the film be set in the present day? If so, will Captain America battle Iraqi insurgents? Go in search of Osama Bin Laden? Perhaps.
"Without giving too much away, obviously there'll be a little bit of the origin and then we come into our real world," Arad tells asap. "What makes Captain America such a compelling character is that it allows you to judge history so you see where he came from and you see what he stood for."
Although the script by an unnamed writer isn't finished and Arad doesn't anticipate "Captain America" arriving in theaters before 2009, he does have a director and leading man in mind. Of course, he's not declaring the independence of those details just yet.
"One of the things our movie is going to deal with is what happened in 60 years," says Arad. "Which world was better? Sixty years ago or now? Within, obviously, a kick-ass plot and all the stuff that you've come to expect from a superhero movie."
God bless superhero movies.
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The Associated Press has published a new interview with Marvel Studios’ Avi Arad in which he talks about the Captain America movie. The project is part of Marvel’s deal with Paramount in which Marvel will make the film and Paramount will distribute.
“Without giving too much away, obviously there’ll be a little bit of the origin and then we come into our real world,” Arad says. “What makes Captain America such a compelling character is that it allows you to judge history so you see where he came from and you see what he stood for.”
Although the script by an unnamed writer isn’t finished and Arad doesn’t anticipate Captain America arriving in theaters before 2009, he does have a director and leading man in mind. Of course, he’s not declaring the independence of those details just yet.
