Deep Thoughts About Movies...
Or, maybe not so deep....
At any rate, I just posted a rant over at Slay Your Demons, and it got me thinking about movies in general and paranormal movies in particular.
Here's the thing: I saw Batman Returns last Saturday (loved it, btw!) but now I'm wondering how to classify it. Is it paranormal? This is sort of "who really cares, anyway," kind of question, but imagine that you have an option clause that requires you to show your next paranormal book to Publisher A. And then you go and write Batman Returns (in this hypothetical, the movie doesn't already exist and you're not ripping anyone off!!!). Does Publisher A have a right to see that book first? Is it paranormal?
I don't think the following bits are spoilers, but take heed just in case:
Bruce Wayne doesn't have magical powers. All of his oomph comes from gizmoes and gadgets that were developed for combat kinda stuff. But once he's got the gizmoes and gadgets, he becomes a superhero. Does the fact that he's a superhero (even if a purely mortal one) make it a paranormal?
If so, why? If not, why?
And if it's not a paranormal because of Bruce's transition to Batman, does it become a paranormal when you factor in the fact that the story line surrounding the Liam Neeson character and the ninja dudes seems to have some woo-woo ness ?
These are the questions that keep me up at night (okay, not really, but it sounds good).
Moving out of analysis mode, I liked this Batman better than it's predecessors (though I did like the original Michael Keaton version a lot). Anyone else have a preference? Anyone else seen it?
And, in other movie news, BEWITCHED opens on Friday! For that one, I'm snagging a babysitter for sure. I just hope it's good. Anyone heard any advance buzz???
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5 comments:
I might consider Batman to be somewhat paranormal because it pretty much has to exist in an "alternate" world. If a guy dressed up in a bat suit went around fighting crime in our world, he probably wouldn't be labeled a hero. He'd be hauled off to the loony bin. Likewise with the various Batman villains. There's a larger-than-life quality that makes it all a bit otherworldly. Some of the technology used by Batman and his villains verges on science fiction.
Though I'm sure a good agent or lawyer could split hairs on the definition of paranormal when it came to dealing with contract clauses!
I haven't heard anything about Bewitched. I admit I'm a bit leery about all these movie remakes of old TV shows, but there are good people behind this one. I won't be there opening day, but depending on what I hear, I may go later. And I can hope that some reporter gets the bright idea of doing a trend story about books and movies about magic that includes Enchanted, Inc.!
Limit your option clause. LOL. That's the simple answer. I started limiting from the first book to "any futuristic books" (because I still have historical mss. on my shelf). Then THEY (Berkley) began narrowing my contract even more: "the next 'Heart' futuristic romance set on the planet Celta." Fine by me.
To answer your question, if the theme has supernatural woo-woo, I'd say it's a paranormal.
Love to all and smooches to Julie!
Robin
LOL! So true Robin. (For the record, my hypothetical was truly a hypothetical. My options are about as narrow as you can get. It's the lawyer in me).
I think of Batman as paranormal, for exactly the reasons you and Shanna articulate. But even so, I can see the other argument....
I have no opinion on Batman per se. I liked Val Kilmer because he had great lips under that mask. No intelligent thought there.
Paranormal, ok. It can't be called any other kind of normal with an outfit and job description like that.
Sorry I missed your talk/chat last night. Site wouldn't load or something. I tried. I bet I missed a good time.
I was watching TV Land last night and the guy playing Darren in the new Bewitched came on (Ferrell??). He tried to do a "funny" as some kind of promo for the new film. I really, really hope that he is not indicative of the quality of the overall show, because if it is....well...he was limper than a limpet. I can only keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best.
Getting a bit shallow myself ...
I liked Val Kilmer as Bruce Wayne, especially in that one scene where he wore that black turtleneck and those glasses. There's just something about a hot man who puts on glasses (it's the geek lover in me).
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