"The Flash" poster.
The DC superhero movie "The Flash" was released in theaters nationwide on June 16, telling the story of the Flash in order to save his loved ones in time and space, but caused unpredictable consequences, cosmic catastrophe ensued, trapped in the past time and space "novice hero" Flash is determined to join forces with Batman and Supergirl to resolve the crisis. The film has received a lot of praise for its wonderful narrative setting across time and space and the accurate interpretation of two characters with different personalities by an actor, some viewers said that "the plot is full and interesting, the character contrast is full, the emotional healing tears, and the action scenes are shocking", and some viewers think that "countless hidden Easter eggs give enough surprises".
The movie "The Flash" relies on the 2011 DC Comics "Flash Point" adaptation, which has also become one of the major actions of the DC universe layout in recent years, and this movie is telling the story of the Flash crossing time and space causing timeline changes, which can also be regarded as "Flash Point" to restart the entire DC Universe, opening a new stage of DC Comics, which means that the old stories and character relationships can be temporarily left without thinking, and then directly tell a new story. At this point, "The Flash" has become an important node in the follow-up of the DC Cinematic Universe, but whether it can undertake the "revitalization of the DC Universe" depends on the final box office performance of the world, but at least it opens a new chapter in Warner and DC's revitalization of its IP.
Ezra Miller once again plays the Flash Barry Allen after "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" and "Justice League", and the director is Andy Muschetti, who became famous for directing the "Joker Returns" series. In an interview with a reporter from the Beijing News, they revealed how to promote a series of adventures through the emotional core in creation; And how "quantum theory" makes the challenge of one person playing two roles "enjoyable". At the same time, we specially present the "old and strong" Batman and Nicolas Cage's "dream" version of Superman's behind-the-scenes Easter eggs.
【Theme】
The past cannot be changed, learn to reconcile with the present
In "The Flash", Barry uses his superpowers to return to the past and wants to change history and save his family, but what he does also inadvertently changes the future. In this new future, the villain General Zod returns and threatens to destroy the world. Barry is alone unless he can persuade a respected and reclusive Batman to return to the world and save the captive Kryptonian Superman (although this is not the Superman we know). In the end, in order to save the world and return to the future he knows, Barry's only hope is to run fast for fate.
"The Flash" made it clear at the beginning of its creation that it wanted to be innovative, and this film is no longer a homogeneous superhero movie at a glance, but to make every stage of the story fresh, so that the audience thinks how the story will develop. As a superhero who does not have a particularly big reputation, the Flash is the most grounded in the Justice League team. He is an ordinary migrant worker, will be troubled by being late to work, usually hard work is done by him, he has his own regrets and selfish desires, but also tangled and tired in the face of choices. For Barry, who has been scarred by family affection since childhood, his mother's unexpected departure has become an obsession that he cannot let go. In order to make up for this regret, he desperately returns to the past to try to change history, and this strong desire for family affection can very arouse empathy. What Barry didn't expect was that because of his actions, the catastrophe that destroyed the world came to Earth again, and when he finally found that some fates could not be changed in any way, the guilt, self-blame and powerlessness were particularly distressing.
"The Flash" stills. The mother caressed Barry's cheek.
"For me, what attracted me the most was the pure emotional core contained in this huge action-adventure narrative, setting the mother-child relationship as the emotional line foundation of the entire story, without which there is no way to build any story on top of this, which is exactly what I am looking for, appreciated, and what I want to achieve in the film. In the movie, The Flash has been exploring the meaning of his existence as a superhero, and the emotional core drives him to spawn an unprecedented adventure. Director Muschietti said: "There are many themes in this film, but one of the most central themes for me is that no matter how hard we try (even if Barry tries far beyond human capabilities), we can't change the past." Otherwise, we will trigger a butterfly effect, and the future will be very different from when we left. Therefore, in the end, we still have to learn to reconcile with the present. ”
【Performance】
As soon as the lightning "double" heroes meet, the good show will naturally come
In the film, in order to save his mother from returning to the past, Barry the Flash, met himself in another time and space, and the two "selves" who were completely different from their personalities and experiences met, and the good show came naturally. Because one is the adult superhero "Big Flash" who is shy by nature, and the other is the lively and cheerful teenager "Little Flash", especially when the latter also obtains superpowers, the former of social fear has to adapt to the identity of "master" with apprentices, how to reconcile with superpowers, and how to get along with another "self", all of which have become a fresh and funny selling point. In this superhero movie, Ezra Miller not only has to complete the job of saving the world's heroes, but also interprets Barry with different personality settings in two time and space, which is very challenging. In Muschetti's opinion, Ezra Miller is a talented actor: "When you watch Ezra play two roles on set, it feels like he is at his disposal. ”
"The Flash" stills. "Big Flash" and "Little Flash" fight side by side with Supergirl.
Miller said that what he liked about Barry was that his personality was very different from other superheroes on the Justice League team: "I've always loved the vulnerability and lack of confidence in him, which is very different from the confidence we usually see in superheroes. The most attractive thing about the Flash is that he theoretically has only one superpower - speed, but speed combined with his intelligence can maximize his potential. Barry Allen broke through the physical limits of the speed of light and made many impossible things possible. It is also with his ability that we can experience and understand DC's multiverse. Fundamentally, the multiverse is an idea derived from contemporary quantum theory, and many people speculate that the real world we live in is like this—different parallel universes do exist, and we just happen to exist in the current universe. When it comes to the difficulty of one person playing two roles, Miller said that the focus is on understanding the characters: "Different life experiences have created their different personalities, different world views, different ways of dealing with problems, a more sophisticated Barry, experienced heartbreak pain, one enjoys privilege, lives a relaxed and happy simple life, their character development has a very thorough and interesting plot foreshadowing, so I have a lot of space to explore and dig these two characters, when shooting this movie, I am in a state of mirroring and taking care of each other with all the main creators, so that we can constantly choreograph and achieve each other's 'each' performances, and I am very grateful for this addictive creation. ”
【Trivia】
The oldest Batman and the most melancholic version of Superman are very "stealing scenes"
For "The Flash", which plays a role in the DC superhero film sequence, while the plot innovation attracts new fans, it is also necessary to take care of nostalgic old fans, and from time to time use "old" heroes to appear to create a sense of intimacy that warms the old and knows the new. For example, in addition to the Flash Ezra Miller who only knows "one way to the end" and Batman Ben Affleck, who "banknote ability" protector, we can also see Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman smile after holding a truth lasso to get out the embarrassing hearts of Batman and The Flash; Or during the countless multiverses that the two Flashes have crossed, you can also see many new and old characters dangling in their respective universes like a marquee, such as Robert Pattinson's version of "The New Batman" (2022), Linda Carter's episodic version of "Wonder Woman" (1975), Christopher Reeve's version of "Superman" (1978) and so on. And the most exciting thing for fans is that the two generations of Batman played by Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck appear in different universes, and the familiar suit and classic lines instantly awaken the memories of fans, which shows the powerful charm of Batman.
"The Flash" stills. The 71-year-old Michael Keaton is once again playing Batman.
This is the 71-year-old Michael Keaton after 1989 "Batman" and 1992 "Batman Returns", after more than 30 years to wear Batman classic suit again, the old man played a heavy role in the film, has helped the Flash reshape the cosmic order in the crisis, but also hinted or encouraged him to realize his personal desire to save his mother. Keaton returns, and Muschietti attributes the answer to Keaton's curiosity: "He's the coolest man in the world, and he's always been curious about playing Batman again." In fact, at first I thought he would never accept the offer and shooting plan. And when he nodded in agreement, we were all excited. Later, we embarked on this creative journey with Keaton. In Keaton's heart, the biggest attraction of "The Flash" to him is that he wants to interpret a Batman that people have never seen before, who has a strange temper and a cold heart when dealing with his own people, and who will repay the enemy when he is killed. Keaton said that when he wore the Batman robe more than 30 years ago, his son was a child, and now his son has grown into a great composer, and when he puts on the Batman robe again, he has become a grandfather. Congratulations to Mr. Keaton for temporarily becoming the oldest person to play Batman in film and television works. Some fans praised Keaton's charismatic "drama grabbing" performance as "he even took away the focal length of the lens with the wrinkles on his forehead and sharp eyes."
Nicolas Cage's former Superman makeup photo.
But the most amazing tidbit of fans is that 59-year-old Nicolas Cage finally realized his 25-year-old dream of Superman, making a cameo appearance in the film as a Superman costume in a red and blue tights. It is said that before Cage won Best Actor at the 68th Academy Awards in 1996 for his role as an alcoholic screenwriter in "Leaving Las Vegas", he said that "playing Superman is my lifelong dream". Hollywood also made him one step away from this dream, in 1998, Tim Burton, the director who had directed "Batman" and "Batman Returns", was invited to tailor the script of "Superman Regeneration" for Cage, and the excited Cage also tried on makeup for this, and even the fixed makeup photos have been taken, but then the project was hindered and died, becoming a long-standing legend. The Cage version of Superman in the makeup photo, his eyes are melancholy or confused, and he seems to have not recovered from the "hangover" in Las Vegas. It's a pity that Cage's Superman appeared for a short time and had no lines this time, but director Muschetti said, "He is a cameo, he is very into the play." ”
It is recommended to watch the movie "The Flash" in Broadway theaters nationwide.
Beijing News reporter Zhou Huixiaowan
Edited by Huang Jialing
Proofreader Zhai Yongjun