thee great one said:
I was thinking Brad Pitt would make a better Cap.
I think he could contribute something to either character. As Captain America, because he's one of the few Hollywood guys with the charisma to validate the silliest hero in comic books. For that matter, whether he's casted in the role or not, I think we should make Brad Pitt Captain America. By that, I mean we should inject him with Super-Soldier Serum. If all he does is bone Angelina Jolie as the realest of real American heroes, I'll consider it a win. As for Thor, we know he can play the varied transitional faces of the character because he's already played the roles in other movies, from prodigal warrior Son (
Troy) to misunderstood lunatic (
12 Monkeys) to charismatic humanitarian hero (how he's portrayed in real life. I mean, seriously, this guy could do the most despicable things and we'd still love him). And if that's not a hard enough sell, just imagine Brad Pitt as Thor alongside Johnny Depp as Loki.
I don't think I've ever agreed with you more, Zombie.
Hey, I'll consider that as a compliment from anyone who wears Hunter S. Thompson as their avatar.
Darkknight said:
Also with Thor they might need a "big name" like Pitt. After all he is hardly as well known as Captain America, and I would argue not as accessible to a general audience as Iron Man.
Agreed. Although, I think despite not being as well known as Captain America, he's a more accessible character, as contradictory as that sounds.
bluebeast said:
I think that would be a fantastic way to do a Thor movie. I do think that they should have Loki as more of a manipulator than actually fighting Thor.
Thanks. I agree entirely. Loki should be weak-bodied and duplicitous. He's everything the other Asgardian gods aren't. The idea of him flying around shooting thunderbolts out of his eyes or whatever is just silly.
I think the one thing Marvel needs to get right that they never have is in their portrayal of the Asgardian gods. These guys are the embodiment of war, as unforgiving and ruthless as the wastelands they were bred from. Their version of heaven is ceaseless battle without context, interspersed only with Dionysian debauchery. Imagine waking up in the morning, going out into the field of battle and hacking away until your whole body's covered in a froth of blood and sweat, and then going back to the lodge to destroy your heavenly body on the most poisonous liquors. Every day. For eternity. And that's supposed to be heaven. When the Nordic gods step onto the screen, it should be the most terrifying thing you've ever seen in your life.
Anyway, if Thor is the transition of an Old Testament God to a New Testament God, his journey should be like an inverse of the Christ story - with Thor discovering humanity and rather than saving mankind with his gentleness, saving his fellow gods, finding a way for them to break free of the endless cycle of violence that typifies what they are.
On a (slightly) related note, I think it's worth something that these are the same gods that Hitler invoked in his understanding of cultural warfare. I believe that's interesting because the nature of the first two world wars was so antithetical to the mythological Nordic understanding of warfare. Whereas the warrior culture sees war as an opportunity for the individual to prove themselves as men, the World Wars mechanize and systemize wholesale slaughter. You could well argue the position of Loki, who's so diametrically opposed to the ideals of the Asgardian gods, being the secret patron of these wars. World War II, then, would be the origins of practically every factor of the Marvel film universe, giving birth to an arms race that begins with the super-soldier serum and simmers throughout the Cold War into the rapid boil signaled by the advent of the Avengers. It would also be the catalyst for the Twilight of the Gods. I'm picturing the last sixty years in Asgard as being terror gods of blood and thunder on one side of the line, and the bio-mechanical horrors of Loki's warfare on the other. I'm not saying the stories should cross over, but what I'd like to see are films that can stand as prototypical action/epic/superhero/whatever-you-want flicks with subconscious themes that create a tapestry when understood together. If Loki is the secret hand of the world's greatest wars, and Red Skull the most ambitious and long-lasting proponent of the Nazi party, then you have a conspiracy that's epic and powerful enough to sustain a good Avengers story. Incidentally, a parallel could be drawn between the Spear of Longinus (which is always good fodder for stories about Hitler and the Ahnenerbe) and Odin's spear (who is, himself, a prototype of the Christ myth), which would add an extra layer to the allegory of Thor as Christ.
As for, specifically, the Thor movie, I think it needs to be tied tightly into the real world. If it's just a fantasy epic then it doesn't set the character up for where he needs to be for The Avengers. I'd like to see a story set in the real world, with Thor matched against humans with Asgardian relicry (a la, the Wrecking Crew), framing flashback sequences to the kick-*** battlefields of the wars of the gods. Of course, in the end, you find out that Loki's been manipulating things on Earth all along. Let the Asgardians grind their bodies to dust on the battlefields of Ragnarok, stuck in their cycles of warfare. Loki will just sidestep to Midgard and make Earth his own personal kingdom. I think that's typical of the Nordic gods. They're fighting to fight, too caught up in their bloodlust base natures to realize that the guy they're fighting isn't even around anymore. I really like the idea that Odin, who's supposed to be the keeper of sublime wisdom, sends Thor to Earth (more of that Christ allegory), under the guise of punishment, but in reality to fulfill the role of savior.
