These days, if high profile movies like
The Avengers or
The Dark Knight Rises are being filmed outside, you can guarantee that paparazzi and fans alike will be there snapping as many photos as possible. And who can blame them?! The professionals make a bundle from sites who want high quality images which will bring in a huge amount of traffic, and I know I’d be out there with a camera if Batman and Bane were fighting in my city. The question is, are these photos ruining the movies for us? In many ways, yes, I think they are. I’m sure you’ll remember me posting dozens upon dozens of pictures sent in from the Manchester and Liverpool sets of
Captain America: The First Avenger last year. Did they or any others really spoil the film? Well, no, not really. However, I’d be lying to say I didn’t find it more than a little distracting seeing “New York” and knowing full well that it was instead two English cities, both of which are just a few hours drive away from where I live. While the minor details revealed in these types of photos are far from a big deal, the recent ones taken in Pittsburgh on the set of the latest Batman movie are surely the perfect examples of those which ARE spoiling the big screen experience for us all.
I won’t list any specific details here in case there are some of you who were strong enough to resist looking at any of the various set photos or videos which have hit the net lately. Just sit back for a second and really think about everything we’ve seen so far. Finished? Yeah, we know a hell of a lot. With some pretty major parts of
The Dark Knight Rises now spoiled, it’s
The Avengers that will be next. With the recent promise from Patty Whitcher, executive producer of the Marvel Studios/Disney film that,
”…they will be able to see the actors and their favorite Avengers on the street during the filming,” it seems like we’ll be seeing plenty from Cleveland too. Initially, this may not seem like a bad thing. After all, we’re more than likely going to see photos of actors like Chris Evans and Jeremy Renner in full costume kicking ass! With months to go until it’s released, this can only be a good thing, right? Wrong. Just look at the negative reception towards Bane’s full costume or the recorded audio of his voice. Both of these things are sure to look/sound a hundred times better in the finished product, but as of right now, there are a lot of disappointed and angry fans. When we see some blurry set videos of Thor and Captain America taking on some unknown threat, will the unfinished rough footage dampen the excitement if it doesn’t look as good as we’re all hoping?
Unfortunately, I believe it will. People are already having doubts about
The Dark Knight Rises, and part of the reason for that is down to an OFFICIALLY released image of Catwoman! And it’s not just the effect these things have on peoples feeling towards the movies, because as I’ve mentioned above, the spoilers tend to be even worse. Earlier this year, we saw scenes from
The Avengers being filmed in New York with Chris Evans and Samuel L. Jackson. Bam! The majority of the
Captain America: The First Avenger epilogue was spoiled. No one makes us look at these things, and just like TV spots and bootleg trailers, we can choose to ignore them if we really want to. However, that’s not the point. While I personally enjoy seeing these photos, it kills me to see people doubting these movies because of a few crappy pictures or videos which are leaked. So, am I asking for an end to set photos and videos? Hell no!
You see, when you think about it, none of these things are truly ruining the movies for us. WE are. Those who judged
The Amazing Spider-Man because the suit looked like crap in all those leaked pictures must be feeling pretty foolish (I’m not referring to the design, just the general appearance) now that Sony have released the hi-res, and considerably more impressive versions. What we as comic book fans need to do is not let these leaked images ruin anything for us. Enjoy a sneak peek before getting the official pictures, or ignore them altogether, but reserve judgement for when you’re seeing these things where they should be seen - on the big screen.
Please feel free to share your thoughts on this subject in the usual place!