Two words: Ivan Ooze. That was the comparison that hundreds (thousands?) made when actor Oscar Isaac was first shown dressed as the titular antagonist in ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’, next summer’s (otherwise) highly anticipated mutant movie. Acclaimed director Bryan Singer is once more behind the camera, having also directed the first ‘X-Men’, ‘X-2: X-Men United’ and last year’s ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’.
What many may have forgotten is that ‘X-Men’ was only the second comic book movie of the modern era, following New Line’s ‘Blade’. As such, Singer, Fox and those involved, played things safe, eschewing a lot of the larger-than-life elements from the comics, and even made a knowing verbal jab at them, when Cyclops joked about “yellow spandex” costumes. But after ‘X-Men’ kicked open the door, theaters were flooded with comic book movies and over time, those films became more and more faithful to the source material and in ‘Days of Future Past’, Singer likewise followed suit making this the most “comic book-y” ‘X-Men movie so far.
That clearly carried over to ‘Apocalypse’ but did things go too far?
When the first images from the movie were released, fans were treated to a Psylocke (played by Olivia Munn) who looked nearly exactly like her comic book counterpart, as well as a new take on Storm (Alexandra Shipp) sporting a cape on top of a more traditional superhero outfit. But they were eclipsed by Isaac in his Apocalypse makeup and armor. A look that too many fans saw as being reminiscent of the campy, rubbery villain from 1995’s ‘Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie’.
Singer shows some irritation at the rampant comparisons and very curtly responds:
“That was a picture, and there were no visual effects. He’s a very powerful and imposing character and Oscar acts the shit out of it.”
Now that the trailer has been released, fans have gotten a better look at Isaac as Apocalypse and indeed, he gravely voice and strong presence do offset what might have been seen as goofy in the initial photo. Then again, Apocalypse doesn’t get a good shot long shot. He is obscured and the entire clip is edited quickly so that viewers don’t get a great look at anyone.
But it’s entirely possible that the purplish hue in the first image is due to lighting. If you look at Storm, her costume also has a lavender-ish hue to it. (Psylocke’s costume and hair actually are purple, so that’s not a good comparison.) In the trailer, with proper lighting and effects, Apocalypse looks bluer, the color he is depicted as in the comics.
What do you think? Does Apocalypse look more menacing in the trailer than in the first picture?
Source: Cinema Blend
