Male heroes draw comic fans
By Scott Bowles, USA TODAY
It's no secret that comic-book movies — even the bad ones — have become a virtual Hollywood ATM.
That is, as long as they aren't anchored by women. Then all bets are off.
Comic devotees plunk down plenty of cash for critically trashed movies with men at their heart, from Ghost Rider ($115 million) to Daredevil ($102 million) to franchise-crushers such as Batman and Robin ($107 million).
Women as superheroes are a tougher sell — like Catwoman ($40 million) or Elektra ($24 million).
That makes the Fantastic Four franchise something of a puzzle. The first film released in 2005 earned $154 million with Jessica Alba in the role of Sue Storm, the backbone of the team. And expectations for Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer will be just as high when the movie opens Friday.
"There's a bias against comic-book movies with women in big roles," says Blair Butler, a commentator for the G4TV network, which is aimed at video gamers and comic-book devotees.
"That may be because fanboys are, well, boys," Butler says. "They like women in distress or supporting roles — or in a bondage outfit with open-toed stilettos like Catwoman. It's nice to see this (franchise) give Sue Storm a strong role and an outfit that covers her body."
The question of women's roles in superhero stories — dubbed the "women in refrigerators" debate after a Green Lantern issue in which the superhero's girlfriend was found dismembered in an icebox — began on comic pages and websites but has spilled onto the big screen.
"Certainly, a lot of the comic world is from the male perspective," says Rob Worley of Comics2Film.com. "You look at the way, say, Wonder Woman is drawn, and it's done from a very stereotypical perspective. She is drawn to match the male fantasy."
And film scripts have been similarly weak, concedes Kevin Feige, head of production for Marvel Studios.
"There haven't been good female comic-book-driven movies yet," he says. "I think because the first few out of the gate were weak, people got gun-shy about making more. But we have several in the works, and I'm sure when the story is there, people will come."
Alba believes one way to attract moviegoers to female superheroes is to worry less about die-hard comic fans.
"I think the success of our movie is that we were aiming for the families as much as the fans. And that's a group that recognizes strong women roles."
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