There are just some characters which do not translate well from the printed pages of comics to the screen. Marvel is entering the Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 2, DC Comics is upping movie production, the smaller companies are optioning titles right and left, and more comic book-based TV shows are hitting the small screen. Don’t always expect the characters to look the way you want.
Let’s Look at an Example
One of the biggest complaints I heard about Spider-Man 3 was how horrible Venom looked. The symbiote would not translate correctly to film with current technology, and probably will not for many years. The ever-changing oil slick which surrounds whoever body Venom is controlling would always look half-baked in a movie. Thing and almost all of the non-human characters in Green Lantern also fall into this category.
Super-Sizing
While I liked Vinnie Jones as Juggernaut in the X-Men movie series, there was something missing. He looked too small when compared to how the character is portrayed in comics. Inhuman sizes are also near impossible to pull off in movies. I doubt we will ever see the character in a movie, but Blob from the X-Men would also be next to impossible to pull off.
The Demonic
Are you upset with how Ghost Rider looked on film? How do you think Blackheart would look? Do you think Hollywood could pull off a character such as Swamp Thing and really make him look good? Of course not. Well, at least with modern technology.
Why is This?
Creatures, inhumanly-sized humans, and fantastical characters are easier to draw than they are to translate into film. Granted, we have seen many horrible renditions in comics of some of the aforementioned characters, but we have also seen many fantastic renditions. We cannot expect Hollywood to be able to do everything that comic book creators can do with pencils, ink, and color. Technology has come a long way since Roger Corman’s attempt at the Fantastic Four. Maybe in ten to 15 years things will be different.
