EDITORIAL: Rebooting GREEN LANTERN

EDITORIAL: Rebooting GREEN LANTERN

Like practically everyone else, I was incredibly disappointed with Warner Bros.’ first attempt at adapting this character on the big screen. Now, four years later, we’re hearing that WB plans on rebooting the aborted Green Lantern franchise in 2020. As a giant nerd and an audience member, here is my advice for Warner Bros. on how to treat a potential Green Lantern reboot.

Editorial Opinion
By CombatWombat - Apr 22, 2015 10:04 AM EST
Filed Under: Green Lantern

 

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I’ve been reading Green Lantern comics ever since I was a kid leafing through my dad’s old piles of comics. Although Superman, Spider-Man, and Batman are my old-faithfuls, I’ve always had a soft spot for Green Lantern.

 

Like practically everyone else, I was incredibly disappointed with Warner Bros.’ first attempt at adapting this character on the big screen. They had a great opportunity to create an epic fantasy space opera, and (I won’t sugarcoat this) they blew it. Now, four years later, we’re hearing that WB plans on rebooting the aborted Green Lantern franchise in 2020. 

 

Whether or not these plans will come to fruition, we have yet to see -- as of now, we can only speculate what this prospective film might look like.

 

As a massive nerd, a comic book reader, and as an audience member, here is my advice for Warner Bros. on how to treat a potential Green Lantern reboot.

 


crappy movie

1.) An Apology for the First One


 

This may seem a little harsh, but I think it’s the truth. It goes without saying that a second Green Lantern film has to be able to redeem the first. One of my fears is that WB is so intent on distancing themselves from Martin Campbell’s abysmal film that they are going to try and ignore the fact that it happened in the first place. Rumor has it they may even replace protagonist Hal Jordan with John Stewart, a different character entirely.

 

Reboots have a tendency of telling audiences, “Remember that other movie? No? Well neither do we! On with the show!”

 

A Green Lantern reboot should instead focus on telling audiences, “Remember that other movie? Yeah, sorry about that. Hope this one makes up for it.”

 

I hope you’re following me here.

 

Despite what snarky fanboys have to say in message boards, Hal Jordan is a genuinely great character. Basically what I’m saying is that I want Jordan to be redeemed rather than forgotten.

 

This leads me into my second point...

 


rebirth

2.) Don’t Make it a Hard Reboot



I understand that by the time 2020 rolls around, it will have been nine whole years since 2011’s Green Lantern. It certainly is possible to create a hard reboot, but I have to ask: why retread ground we’ve already covered? Do we really want to see another superhero origin story?

 

I’d prefer it if we didn’t get a complete reboot -- instead, treat the new film almost as a quasi-sequel to the first one. A “requel,” if you will. How would they do that, you might ask? Just create a story that doesn’t contradict the events that already occurred in the first one. I’m not saying they should hire back Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively -- on the contrary, I think every role ought to be recast (yes, even Mark Strong’s Sinestro).

 

That said, I would love it if the next Green Lantern film had a different visual aesthetic from the 2011 one. I was never a fan of the CGI costume.

 

Keep in mind that I’m not saying the first Green Lantern film would definitely exist in the continuity of the DC Cinematic Universe -- all I’m saying is that movie could exist if you wanted it to. It would be left up to the viewers’ imagination to decide.

 


bloody ring

3.) Go Bigger, Go Darker


 

Yeah, yeah, “dark and gritty” is one of those phrases that really seems to set people off around here, but I think it’s the way to go here. Not only would it help align Green Lantern with the precedent set by Man of Steel and Batman v Superman, I think it would be a strong narrative choice as well.

 

The scope of this movie needs to feel much bigger than the first -- if I could think of a comparison, the Green Lantern reboot needs to be The Wrath of Khan to the 2011 film’s Star Trek: The Motion Picture. After the first film’s failure, I don’t think WB can afford to pussyfoot around with Green Lantern -- they need to come out of the gate guns blazing. This should be the film that sets the bar for the rest of the franchise to follow.

 

In other words, this should be something akin to Green Lantern’s The Dark Knight

 

Honestly, that’s the only way I can see audiences accepting the character after the weak reception the first film received.

 


space

4.) Set it in Outer Space


 

If there’s one thing Guardians of the Galaxy proved, it’s that audiences are open to seeing non-Earthbound superheroes. One of the many complaints leveled against WB’s original Green Lantern is that too much of the film was set on Earth -- and I have to agree with that sentiment.

 

The most interesting thing about Green Lantern as a character is that he is a space ranger. He travels the stars discovering all forms of whacky alien life on crazy alien planets. He crosses the barriers between dimensions and punches through the boundaries of the universe itself. There is NO REASON for him to be spending his time on Earth. All it does is make the character feel like more of a generic superhero.

 

Now I’m not saying Earth shouldn’t appear at all. It would be nice to catch a couple brief glimpses of our humble blue planet, just to establish that it exists in this gigantic DC universe. However, our time would be much better spent on Oa, or Qward, or Korugar, or even the living planet Mogo.

 

Give Earth a break. Superman’s got that place covered.

 


sinestro

5.) A Strong Antagonist



One of the weakest parts of 2011’s Green Lantern was its handling of the villains. Parallax -- who is the nebulous embodiment of fear in the comics -- was turned into literal nebula made out of diarrhea. Hector Hammond -- a terrible villain through and through -- was treated as an afterthought.

 

Villains create conflict, and conflict is what drives a story. I understand that the original film tried to create conflict by making Hal Jordan himself conflicted, but that goes against everything that makes Jordan an interesting character. Hal is not some self-doubting beta-male, he’s brimming with self-confidence to the point that it borders on arrogance. He’s not a quitter who gives up after someone tells him, “You suck,” he turns that humiliation into a drive to be better.

 

The best way to create conflict in a Green Lantern story is to give him a powerful enemy: I think it’s high time that Sinestro shows everyone what he’s capable of.

 

Some of the greatest Green Lantern stories involve our heroes actually losing the battle to an enemy more powerful than them -- read the “Krona War” story arc from Tales of the Green Lantern Corps, or Geoff Johns’ classic “Sinestro Corps War.” 

 

The excitement in these stories doesn’t come from seeing our heroes pummel the villains; it comes from seeing them struggle with all their might after being constantly battered and beaten down, until they must finally make a last ditch effort to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

 

That’s what makes Green Lantern a great character: seeing him persevere through sheer force of will when all hope seems to be lost. The only Green Lantern villain worthy enough to create that kind of conflict is Sinestro.

 


 

Well, there you have it -- those are my thoughts on how to cinematically treat Green Lantern. Do you agree? Disagree? Like it? Hate it? Comment below and let me know.

 

Take it easy, everybody.

 
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Odin
Odin - 4/22/2015, 10:55 AM
2. Do basically what Marvel did with Hulk
Khanlark
Khanlark - 4/22/2015, 11:15 AM
Make it a buddy cop movie with Hal and John, as they go on a planetary hunt for Sinestro.
Have Hal be the rookie Lantern and John be the old timer played by Denzel Washington.
MarkyMarkRises
MarkyMarkRises - 4/22/2015, 11:18 AM
Dat green text tho
MarkyMarkRises
MarkyMarkRises - 4/22/2015, 11:19 AM
Sinestro
BlackIceJoe
BlackIceJoe - 4/22/2015, 11:19 AM
I agree with this a lot. I personally want to see Atrocitus and the Red Lantern Corps, my self though. I'd enjoy seeing Mogo. I'd like to see him being huge. The best way to make him look big would be having him be the size of Saturn and have him being in the background. An idea of what I'm talking about is, imagine replacing our moon with Saturn and that would give you an idea of Mogo's size.
Fekkius
Fekkius - 4/22/2015, 11:24 AM
I think the villain should be the Red Lanterns, leaving them open as quasi-allies in sequels. The relationship between Hal and Sinestro has to be built up a lot, before his betrayal.
TronVin
TronVin - 4/22/2015, 11:25 AM
Do it like Lord of the Rings (one giant story, divided up into three stories each telling multiple stories.... STORIES!).
beto
beto - 4/22/2015, 11:28 AM
The Green Text is what brought me here
BigFoster
BigFoster - 4/22/2015, 11:29 AM
Make is a space crime drama. Green lanterns are space cops and should be portrayed that way. Put them up against space gangsters with Mos Eisley esq locations and you have a potentially great film. Keep a strong Noir influence and focus on character. Think LA Confidential in space in that it could focus on multiple green lanterns investigating a space gangster.
TronVin
TronVin - 4/22/2015, 11:31 AM
Also, Sinestro going rogue should already happen in the history prior to the film. This moves the plot forward by one whole movie.
BlackIceJoe
BlackIceJoe - 4/22/2015, 11:34 AM
Here is a picture of Saturn, just replace it with Mogo and you get an idea of how big Mogo would be.

BigFoster
BigFoster - 4/22/2015, 11:35 AM
A great way to show off the green lantern origin without over doing it would be to have Hal training someone else introducing a rookie character that could be involved in the investigation into previously mentioned space cops
beto
beto - 4/22/2015, 11:44 AM
I know that people want Sinestro already gone rogue here but I disagree.

YES, it would speed things up and take us the a thrilling story fast. But that is not the case for GA. GA might have really forgotten, not cared, or not seen the previous movie.

Take away the initial mentor-partner relation of Hal and Sinestro and you take away a big chunk about what makes their rivalry so awesome.
beto
beto - 4/22/2015, 11:50 AM
Hal
Sinestro
Carol
Saint Walker
Atrocitus
Larfleeze
Indigo - 1
alamborn19
alamborn19 - 4/22/2015, 11:50 AM
👍🏻
TheBritAvenger
TheBritAvenger - 4/22/2015, 12:27 PM
This is really well done! I like all of your ideas, and you've presented them in a visually appealing and informative format. Consider this article thumbed!
CombatWombat
CombatWombat - 4/22/2015, 2:38 PM
"2. Do basically what Marvel did with Hulk"
...Pretty much, yeah.

@DaveAriKhanlark
Buddy cop is a decent idea, but you've got the characters mixed up -- Hal should be the veteran, Stewart the rookie.

"Also, Sinestro going rogue should already happen in the history prior to the film. This moves the plot forward by one whole movie."
Agreed wholeheartedly @TronVin. You can still have great interplay between the two characters without having seen their best moments together. The backstory can even be filled in with flashbacks, if necessary.

But thanks for the reads and comments everybody, much appreciated.
TronVin
TronVin - 4/22/2015, 2:43 PM
@CombatWombat

It just moves the story faster and removes an obvious twist. Through dialogue and needed exposition the general audience can understand that Sinestro was once the mentor and friend of Hal Jordan.
TucksFrom2015
TucksFrom2015 - 4/22/2015, 3:15 PM
Awesome article! I don't know much about the Green Lantern lore, but I do have some opinions of where they should go with the far-flung reboot.

1. 'Passing of the Torch' Theme: Echo the first movie by having the Ring passed onto a new Lantern, the character itself might first appear in one of the J-League movies, and its probably either Hal or John. So have Kyle or Baz take up the mantle as a relatable protagonist.

2. More tech-based, less magic/fantasy: The Man of Steel universe already set this precedent with Zod & the Subcommanders wearing badass sci-fi armor designs, intimidating scout crafts, an overall darker color scheme represented the Exiled Kryptonians. The Lantern Corps should go for the same aesthetic, just heavily tweeked to suit their own motifs. Ditch the muscular skintights and go for holographic armors, helmets, and insignias, make them look like actual space-cops instead of buoyant bodybuilders.

3. Make the space action look like Star Wars/Trek: There's a reason WB's benchmark release date is set for 2020, DC needs to really expand their universe before establishing a transgalactic peacekeeping core, the 2011 film made space look like an empty abyss, when really they should be flying in formation through large-scale aerial battles and debris fields.
Genaro
Genaro - 4/22/2015, 3:41 PM
Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan Hal Jordan
the
the - 4/22/2015, 5:48 PM
DaveAriKhanlark with the steal!

If we go with Hal being the mentor, make the rookie the underaged Arisia. >=D
The movie would be like Dredd (2012) in space. Alex Garland for writer/director.
Khanlark
Khanlark - 4/22/2015, 5:53 PM
@CombatWarrior
I didn't get the character mixed on accident, haha. I've been thinking of having a hard-ass John Stewart (Denzel Washington) who's getting old, and takes a young and immature Hal Jordan (Jack O'Connell) under his wing as they go through the Galaxy to find Sinestro. Could make it tonally akin to either Skyfall (my personal choice) or a funnier, wittier film like Lethal Weapon.
staypuffed
staypuffed - 4/22/2015, 6:03 PM
Good stuff. I like it.
ScottMontgomery
ScottMontgomery - 4/22/2015, 8:22 PM
Yo how are people doing these colored text? I must know! What's the secret?
CeltiC527
CeltiC527 - 4/22/2015, 11:52 PM
I agree with all of this 100%!!! As for casting I would still really like to see Chris Pine as Hal Jordan or even Taylor Kitsch.

 photo 8D3C8003-272D-45A0-8671-5E0BC7F7B32B.png_zps7lpbnpwg.jpeg

 photo 36D204EC-E381-4302-A2FF-22811F1EFCC6_zpsj0eqrlxc.jpg
McGee
McGee - 4/23/2015, 8:17 AM
Has Martin Campbell paid for his crime against humanity yet?
McGee
McGee - 4/23/2015, 8:18 AM
He made Gusto drink less you know.
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