Thesis-Driven Essay Example: Culture, Technology, and the Superhero Movie
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Computer Information Systems
Graduate Professional Skills Development
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The inception of Superman in 1938 proved a landmark of modern media; however, media’s joint capability to render superheroes has always been limited by the prevailing culture and technology of the time. This paper will explore the role superhero media plays in contemporary culture. Then, we will look at the relationship between culture and technology as it relates to superheroes. Finally, we will investigate cu
ent challenges that “advanced” technology presents for the realm of superhero movies.
It is difficult to define a superhero. In his introduction to the anthology The Superhero Symbol: Media, Culture, and Politics, Liam Burke argues that the culture perception and understanding of a superhero is far easier to identify than it is to define. He goes on to explain that “Although there is little agreement on the earliest example of a superhero, Superman’s first appearance on the cover of Action Comics #1 in 1938 is often credited with codifying and popularizing a character type that was ideally suited to the challenges of the time as well as the opportunities of the fledgling comic book form,” (Burke, 2020, p. 2). Burke uses the phrase “times” here in reference to the time period, location, and prevailing culture that leads to the popularization of a superhero. Furthermore, He poses the question: can we consider figures of myth, religion, and folklore as superheroes? Do figures like Hercules and Gilgamesh and the gunslingers of the American Westerns fall into this category? Well, according to Burke, yes. There is a connection between incepting superheroes and the culture of the period in which the hero rises to fame and general renown. Today, the superhero figures tend to rise to popularity first through the syndication of comic books before “transcending” to the more ubiquitous format of film. Once a superhero transposes from the graphic na
ative to the silver screen, a whole new a
ay of cultural and technological obstacles come into play.
The role of film and filmmakers’ abilities to use digital arts as a means of rendering the larger-than-life figures we find in superhero na
atives is central to the technological capacity of “the times”. Critic James Gilmore, a collaborator on the book Superhero Synergies: Comic Book Characters Go Digital, begins his investigation of the digitization of movies as integral to the storytelling of superheroes itself. Additionally, Gilmore contends that digitization is vital to the actual creation of the superhero film as a believable piece of media. In the chapter “Will You Like Me When I’m Angry?: Discourses of the Digital in Hulk and The Incredible Hulk” Gilmore begins his argument with a visual analysis of patriotic symbols in the 2003 film Hulk. He analyzes how the Hulk escaping under a faded “Victory” banner after being sedated and captured by the American military presents a ja
ing political commentary on the events of the U.S. military operations in Iraq (Gilmore, 2014, p. 11). It is an effective segue into Gilmore’s exploration of how the digital technologies that went into crafting the movie make it so filmmakers can develop a believable Hulk character as well as tell a story that demonstrates: first, his escape and, second, a failure of the American military. Thus, Gilmore claims that digital rendering presents a “photorealism” to the viewers which allow these superheroes, like the Hulk, to exist within a realistic framework. He further argues that “… through discourses of photorealism, a self-conscious desire to make effects seamlessly blend with other diegetic elements, digital effects workers attempt to erode the inherent artificiality of digital special effects…” (Gilmore, 2014, p. 13). In other words, with technology’s newfound capability to simply make these inherently artificial characters seem even somewhat believable, superheroes can exist and proliferate through the more popular medium of film.
Building on that, IGN co
espondent, Michael Cala
o, details how it took 70 years of popular superhero comics before technology could adequately render these characters and, more importantly, their powers on the silver screen. Cala
o contends that one of the reasons we have so many believable superhero movies these days is because filmmakers stopped “stopped treating CGI as a silver bullet and started using it as just another tool in the toolbox, literally anything became possible and the only thing limiting a heroes’ powers was the filmmakers’ imagination” XXXXXXXXXXNow movies can “realistically” depict heroes moving at super speeds (i.e. Flash, Quicksilver, and Superman) or completely transforming their body in a short amount of time (i.e. Captain America in Captain America: The First Avenger). Now that technology has advanced to accommodate pretty much any superpower and superhero appearing on the big screen, we, as audiences and critics, need to ask ourselves: is this entirely a good thing?
With the amount of money that superhero movies make today, it’s important to be critical about how these pieces of media are made. Just because filmmakers can make believable superhero content does not mean that they are doing so ethically. Sam Hargrave, writer for The Direct, a popular website for pop cultural news, chronicles stories of industry professionals being overworked and underpaid by Marvel in the VFX industry. VFX stands for Visual Effects and is the cu
ent professional term when refe
ing to CGI (Computer Generated Images). Marvel is a media powerhouse these days as Hargrave explains the titan has recently increased production from one or two films a year to three films and three television series XXXXXXXXXXThis article explores how Marvel’s reliance, or rather their over-reliance, on VFX has led to many industry professionals being forced out of their work or outright quitting due to untenable working conditions. While other writers and critics laud the advancements in digital technology, like Gilmore and Cala
o, Hargrave now explores how the culture around these technological advancements is negatively and wo
yingly impacting the workforce that produces this media. Marvel is such a gigantic client that VFX companies have little choice but to work with them and operate under the strict and often unreasonable conditions that Marvel forces onto them (Hargrave, XXXXXXXXXXNow that the technology is more than well-equipped to produce “photorealistic” versions of comic book heroes in film, our attention should turn back to the culture behind production and ensure that we do not produce such media at the expense of the creators’ wellbeing.
In less than a century, superheroes rose to fame in the comic books and then, thanks to technology, were translated onto the big screen. Nowadays, superheroes are still easier to identify than they are to define, but our modern understanding of superheroes has been greatly impacted by their appearances in film. Advancements in digital technologies made it easier for superheroes to have realistic and believable renditions in this media. Even though it is impressive how technology advanced to support and proliferate the superhero genre, now we need to turn our attention back to those creators and make sure that, when it comes to making these movies, everyone is safe.
References
Burke, L., Gordon, I, & Ndalianis, A XXXXXXXXXXThe Superhero Symbol: Media, Culture, and Politics. Rutgers University Press.
Cala
o, M. (2021). “How Visual Effects Made Modern Superhero Movies Feel Real: from super speed to scrawny Steve Rogers.” IGN.
Gilmore, J.N., & Stork, M XXXXXXXXXXSuperhero Synergies: Comic Book Characters Go Digital. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
Hargrave, S. (2022). “Why Marvel Studios Is 'Ho
ible' to Work For, According to VFX Artists.” The Direct.