Now, it seems, 20th Century Fox is finally ready to make a new Flash Gordon movie a reality.
They've picked the right director, Matthew Vaughn has proven himself to a more than capable handler of well-known genre franchises, like when he rebooted The X-men. He's good with fast-paced action and ensemble casts. And his most recent film, Kingsman: The Secret Service was a huge success last year.
A recent report had quoted the last man to play Flash, Sam Jones, stating that a new movie would be a sequel. I really, really hope that's not true. I love the 1980 film. But its place in pop culture is firmly seated in camp. The Mike Hodges movie, the 70s animated series, the 50s live action series, and the old movie serials before them--they're all fantastic in their own way. It's time now for something new. But that doesn't mean we have to start from scratch.
I'm really hoping this is what we're in for:
A Flash that's full-on swashbucker...
A Dale that finally gets her due as a fully-realized character, with wit and wry humor of her own...
And swoopy rocketships...
And close encounters with strange beasts and weird technology...
The 2014 run of Flash by Dynamite comics with Jeff Parker (writer), Evan "Doc" Shaner (pencils) and Jordie Bellaire (colors) was one of the best iterations in years. A live action version of that run, or even something in the spirit of it, with Parker's snappy dialogue and Shaner's sublimely classic feel but still thoroughly modern.
Vaughn would be wise to hire them--as well as Flash's other comic caretaker Jim Keefe--to get some perspective on handling the Mongoverse and its cast of characters.
Parker and Shaner have done an incredible job with their run and Keefe had Flash for years in weekly and Sunday newspapers. Together they'd make a formidable creative team.
In any case, the keys to Flash's rocket cycle to the movies seem to be in good hands.
Yes Vultan--very much so!
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