James Gunn Responds To Francis Ford Coppola Calling Marvel Movies ‘Despicable’

It seems as though Marvel movies are under attack at the moment by some of cinema’s greatest directors, and it all started with Martin Scorsese. However, James Gunn has now issued a response after Godfather director, Franci Ford Coppola, recently called Marvel movies “despicable”.

James Gunn directed Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 and he’s currently busy making The Suicide Squad. I would say that he’s at the pinnacle of the superhero movie genre. He writes and directs all his movies and I wouldn’t be surprised if in a few years time people will be studying his movies and claiming that he’s something of an ‘auteur’.

OK, that’s perhaps taking it a bit far, but his superhero movies are brilliant, and I would argue that they are genuinely good ‘cinematic’ experiences, full of awe and wonder.

However, it seems as though Francis Ford Coppola doesn’t agree as he recently backed up his buddy’s (Martin Scorsese) recent comments about Marvel movies and called them “despicable”.

I would say that the word “despicable” is a tad harsh (it’s actually a bit of a silly thing to say…), and James Gunn took to Instagram to respond to Ford’s comments about the superhero movie genre.

James Gunn speaks out against Marvel movies criticism

 

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Many of our grandfathers thought all gangster movies were the same, often calling them “despicable”. Some of our great grandfathers thought the same of westerns, and believed the films of John Ford, Sam Peckinpah, and Sergio Leone were all exactly the same. I remember a great uncle to whom I was raving about Star Wars. He responded by saying, “I saw that when it was called 2001, and, boy, was it boring!” Superheroes are simply today’s gangsters/cowboys/outer space adventurers. Some superhero films are awful, some are beautiful. Like westerns and gangster movies (and before that, just MOVIES), not everyone will be able to appreciate them, even some geniuses. And that’s okay. ❤️

A post shared by James Gunn (@jamesgunn) on Oct 20, 2019 at 11:51am PDT

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He wrote: “Many of our grandfathers thought all gangster movies were the same, often calling them “despicable”. Some of our great grandfathers thought the same of westerns, and believed the films of John Ford, Sam Peckinpah, and Sergio Leone were all exactly the same.

“I remember a great uncle to whom I was raving about Star Wars. He responded by saying, ‘I saw that when it was called 2001, and, boy, was it boring!’

“Superheroes are simply today’s gangsters/cowboys/outer space adventurers. Some superhero films are awful, some are beautiful.

“Like westerns and gangster movies (and before that, just MOVIES), not everyone will be able to appreciate them, even some geniuses. And that’s okay,” he finished.

Marvel movies will become as revered as westerns are today

What does Kevin Feiges promotion mean for Marvel? – Credit: Marvel Studios

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I will come out and say it, Gunn is 100 per cent spot on. It wouldn’t surprise me if superhero movies do end up becoming like gangsters movies and westerns in 30 years time.

I kind of hope they don’t because there aren’t too many westerns and gangster movies being made today, but I do hope that they’re held up in the same regard and those movies are today.

What did you make of James Gunn’s response to Franci Ford Coppola’s Marvel movie comments? Let us know in the comments below.

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