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My Movie Week... with Mike Shaw

Henry Cavill as Superman, in Man Of Steel. Picture: PA Photo/Warner Bros
Henry Cavill as Superman, in Man Of Steel. Picture: PA Photo/Warner Bros

The big question about Batman vs. Superman is – who will win? Writer David S Goyer already has it sewn up though.

He says: “Most comic book purists would say Batman even though it makes no sense whatsoever. Batman is the ultimate strategist, but if Superman just flicked his finger Batman would be done for.

You’ll have to watch the film in a year and a half, whenever it comes out, to see what happens.” A controversial belief, but that’s nothing new, something shown by Goyer’s refusal to bow to the criticism he and director Zack Snyder received for deciding to permanently dispatch Superman’s adversary in Man Of Steel.

“We were pretty sure that was going to be controversial,” Goyer says about Supe’s final showdown with Zod.

“It’s not like we were deluding ourselves, and we weren’t just doing it to be cool. We felt, in the case of Zod, we wanted to put the character in an impossible situation and make an impossible choice.

“This is one area, and I’ve written comic books as well and this is where I disagree with some of my fellow comic-book writers – ‘Superman doesn’t kill’.

It’s a rule that exists outside of the narrative and I just don’t believe in rules like that. I believe when you’re writing film or television, you can’t rely on a crutch or rule that exists outside of the narrative of the film.”

Will Superman continue ripping the life out of his foes? We’ll have to wait until 2015 when Batman vs. Superman hits cinemas.

Last week, I talked about the rumours that Daniel Radcliffe is being lined up to play Freddie Mercury in a film about the Queen frontman’s life. I was less than supportive of the idea and Harry Potter agrees with me.

Radcliffe says: “There’s no truth to it at all… everyone saying I’m totally wrong for that part is correct. I AM completely wrong for that part!

“If I’d seen a rumour about me playing Iggy Pop, I’d think, ‘Hey, I’d have a go at that – that’d be fun!’, but Freddie Mercury? No.

“I don’t even know who the director is. They seem to be saying it’s Stephen Frears and Tom Hooper on the internet. This is the kind of thing that happens to me and it happens to Emma Watson with multiple 50 Shades Of Grey things.”

I’m glad it’s not true, and it’s cool that Radcliffe is eager to set the record straight. If only everyone was so conscientious. Next thing you know, we’ll be told that story of Rupert Grint starring in the Malcolm X remake is totally fabricated, too.

Colin Farrell is considering a role in Warcraft. Picture: PA Photo.
Colin Farrell is considering a role in Warcraft. Picture: PA Photo.

Warcraft keeps forcing itself onto my radar. The film, based on the online game of the same name, has been bubbling away for years and my interest seems to be inversely proportional to the dwindling user base which has shrunk from 12m to 8m over the last three years.

The latest news involves actor Colin Farrell, who is reportedly considering an offer to star in the film. Meanwhile, Charles Leavitt (K-PAX, Blood Diamond) is working on a screenplay.

However, the big draw for me, is still director Duncan Jones. The son of David Bowie and the man behind the brilliant Source Code and the double-brilliant Moon, Jones has proved he can make small stories feel enormous. How will he handle a sprawling story Orcs vs. Humans storyline?

Warcraft is slated to appear at some point in 2015.

Joss Whedon is planning a sequel to Marvel's The Avengers.
Joss Whedon is planning a sequel to Marvel's The Avengers.

Despite writing and directing one of the biggest films ever, Joss Whedon is not entirely content with The Avengers.

A year on, he feels he could have improved upon the structure. “When I think of a great film, I think of something that’s either structured so perfectly like the Matrix or made so lovingly like the Godfather Part II,” Whedon says.

“There was haphazardness in the way it came together – not just the people, but the scenes. I don’t think you’d look at it and go, ‘This is a model of perfect structure.’ You’d go, ‘This is working.’ I like it. I’m proud of it and I like its imperfections. The thing I cared most about – making a summer movie like the ones from my childhood – is the thing that I pulled off.”

And, unlike many other big budget directors who are happy to churn out more of the same, Whedon plans to be even more on-point for the sequel. “I want to be clearer about how I engage the audience, and where I take them,” he says.

“I want more control visually, more time to prep it. Not that I didn’t dictate every shot – I did. But there’s only so much you can do when you’re making a summer film when the ball is already rolling as fast as it was when I got in. Why do it again if you can’t do it better?”

It’s so refreshing to hear someone responsible for a studio’s biggest film of the year putting genuine, creative thought into it. Avengers: Age of Ultron opens in the UK on May 1, 2015, so I guess we’ll see if the hard work pays off.

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