Daily Rant: Batman Casting News
Ben Afleck…
Now that I’m done NERDRAGING…well, I think this might be the eye of the storm…however, I’ve calmed down enough to think about this rationally. I”m posting this to the blog, so I can just link it any time I get into a conversation on the topic of Ben Afleck as Batman.
The geek-o-sphere is exploding. Many a nerd rages and rages hard. Some people are taking it a little better. A rare few are supportive of this idea. At some point, someone’s going to ask me, so here are my thoughts…
I like Afleck. I’m liking Afleck more and more as his career progresses. Argo was brilliant and he was brilliant in it. HOWEVER… I remember Daredevil.
Here’s my issue with Afleck as Batman. Batman is not one character. Some people say he’s two characters, being Bruce Wayne and Batman. Not true. Batman is at least four characters: Bruce Wayne the playboy billionaire, Bruce Wayne the guilt-ridden, angst machine that hangs out with Alfred in Wayne Manor and in the Batcave, Bruce Wayne the detective that runs around Gotham following leads and investigating the criminal underworld while not wearing the batman suit, and then, finally Batman.
I don’t think Afleck has the range. Granted, he’s a better choice than George Clooney. I also remember thinking “Mr. Mom as Batman?” back in the late 80’s, though I didn’t have the same understanding of the depth of possibly the most iconic superhero of all time. Still, and to reiterate, I don’t think Afleck has the chops to pull off the complexity of the role that Batman requires. Sure, they might shave off the detective Bruce Wayne, but any more than that and they are doing the character a HUGE disservice, an even bigger disservice than they did with The Dark Knight Rises.
Plain and simple, in a day when most other comic book movie franchises are upping their game to compete with the Juggernaut (see what I did there) that Marvel has become, it seems that Warner Brothers is making choices, starting with Man of Steel, and now with this casting…it feels like the Yankees giving it over to the Red Sox in 2004…
DC/WB seems to be resting on its laurels/accolades, and making some sloppy choices because of that.
Disney/Marvel…Well…They have yet to miss at anything.
Pardon me, I need to throw on some Avengers and wash this bad taste out of my mouth.
