Four Great Marvel Movie Audio Commentaries
Marvel has been a giant machine conquering the global box-office ever since they kicked down Hollywood’s door a decade ago withIron Man. In less than 10 years, Marvel PresidentKevin Feigeand all involved made the Marvel logo mean something to audiences everywhere. It’s quite an extraordinary feat, one that couldn’t have been pulled off without the long, long list of great talent they’ve hired. That talent also produces some fun audio commentaries.
Marvel’s finest movies, like this weekend’sBlack Panther, have struck a balance between art and commerce, and that’s a running theme throughout the commentaries for Marvel’s movies: trying to make a popcorn movie with taste, substance, and above all, character. There’s very little talk of special effects, as most of the conversations revolve around character, but maybe that’s not surprising since the Disney-owned studio has always maintained the characters are the stars of these movies. Years of work went into getting these superheroes right, which you can hear all about in some of the Marvel commentaries recommended below.
Ant-Man (Featuring Director Peyton Reed and Paul Rudd)
Why Listen: First and foremost, to hear Reed’s splendidMichael Douglasimpersonation. It’s an iconic voice that gets plenty of attention from Reed and Rudd, both for its powerful effect and how it improves the movie. Douglas' voice does make exposition go down awfully smooth. The rest of the pair’s conversation is equally jokey and informative and packed with info about Rudd andAdam McKay’s script revisions, pointing out references to the Ant-Man comics, and details that could easily go unnoticed, like the ants on Hank Pym’s cufflinks. Along with the chuckles, this commentary features priceless knowledge about carpenter ants and bullet ants.What’s Said: There around 1,500-1,600 visual effects shots inAnt-Man. Almost every one of them was a challenge when it came to getting the scale right, according to Reed:
A Day on the Job: Reed, who was a van driver onBull Durham, calls the day Marvel legend Stan Lee paid a visit to the set an “amazing day.” Lee shared a rather cool piece of info about the miniature hero with Rudd:
Trivia: When Luis (Michael Peña) picks up Lang at prison, Reed wanted him holding his iPhone above his head playing “In Your Eyes,” but despite Marvel’s deep pockets, the song was too expensive.
Doctor Strange (Featuring Scott Derrickson)
Why Listen: Towards the end of Derrickson’s track, he apologizes to his old High School English teacher for his infrequent use “umm,” but after a breathless and densely packed two hours, he has little to apologize for. It’s a thoughtful track about how the filmmaker put as much thought into the character of Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) as he did into the world of the supernatural. Derrickson’s love for the flawed psychedelic hero and his history is genuine and infectious. It’s great to hear how the filmmaker’s own life and interests – his relationships, taste in books and music – influencedDoctor Strange. The track not only extensively covers the experience of making a Marvel movie – “Can’t have an ego and be a good filmmaker at this level” – but how to make a movie of this scale personal as well.What’s Said: Unlike some directors, Derrickson is more than comfortable discussing criticisms both fair (whitewashing the Ancient One) and unfair (Inceptioncomparisons). According to theSinisterdirector, there’s no issue in standing on the shoulders of other movies:
A Day on the Job: The director’s favorite scene is the final moment between Strange and The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton), which was better than he expected even though he knew it was significant. The final result reminds him of a conversation he once had with James Cameron:
Trivia: It was Derrickson’s idea for Stan Lee to be laughing while reading “Doors of Perception” on a bus, butJames Gunnshot it along with three other Lee cameos from theGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2set.
Iron Man 3 (Featuring Shane Black and Drew Pearce)
Why Listen: While listening to this track, I forgot I was supposed to be working and taking notes. TheKiss Kiss Bang Bangcommentary is one of the funniest commentaries I’ve heard, and the same goes for this track. Any fan of Black’s sense of humor can hear plenty more of it in his commentaries. Making the track even more of a joy is that he’s speaking with his equally funnyIron Man 3co-writer Drew Pearce. They go through all the ins and outs of constructingIron Man3’s story, the revisions, and scenes and lines cut from an assembly cut that ran 3 hours and 15 minutes long. With honesty and some laugh-out-loud moments, Black and Pearce cover a lot of the nuances involved in making a satisfying blockbuster with a bit more underneath the hood than most popcorn movies.What’s Said: While Tony Stark is a man with everything, Black gave him little to fight with except his wits in most ofIron Man 3. The movie has a refreshingly grounded approach to superhero action with its lead always struggling and mostly scraping by. According to Pearce, Black has a unique way of imagining his always playful set pieces:
Black later adds:
I have such a love-hate with action in films. It’s considered important to get to the action, but it’s important to make a unique movie.
More of What’s Said: There’s not a whole lot of day to day talk about what happened on the set since Pearce and Black mostly focus on storytelling and striving to make escapist entertainment with substance. They wanted to aim higher, as John McTiernan did onDie Hard:
Trivia: The documentarySennainspired the image of Pepper Potts holding the cracked Iron Man helmet to her head.
Thor (Featuring Kenneth Branagh)
Why Listen: The most eloquent commentary of the bunch comes from Sir Kenneth Branagh, who’s done wonders with the English language on the screen and stage. Even when he’s talking about Comic-Con orChris Hemsworth’s frame, he does so with panache. Some of the finest of directors fall trap to explaining what’s happening on screen in their commentary tracks, but when Branagh does it, it’s still music to the ears. When he discusses the Foo Fighters, it’s only further proof Branagh would’ve made for a helluva radio show host if, you know, all his award-winning acting, writing, and directing didn’t pan out.What’s Said: Branagh’s track unsurprisingly features the most actor talk. He goes beyond the typical “oh that actor’s great” praise as well, and instead explains the subtleties of the work on display. Branagh frequently shares info about how he tends to work with actors these days:
A Day on the Job: Branagh’s track is about as funny as the ones forAnt-ManandIron Man 3. He has a sharp wit and a spot-on Chris Hemsworth impersonation he unleashes when Thor is shirtless – a moment, as I recall, heavily featured in TV spots:
Trivia: Thursday is named after Thor. In Old English, Thursday means Thor’s day.
