Ethan Hawke weighs in on the Marvel movie debate in a way that recategorizes all movies into a framework in which MCU films can be valued.

Ethan Hawke has recently entered the foray into Marvel movie discourse in a way that is resonating with fans, unlike many of the previous comments on the matter. Hawke, who just appeared as Arthur Harrow in the Disney Plus series Moon Knight is now part of the Marvel fold, and as such will be getting questions like the ones in this interview.

Hawke’s opinion on the matter breaks down movies into “cash grabs” and movies where the crew “pours their heart” into the film. He says that both Marvel movies and what is considered ‘high film’ are guilty of both categories.

“Going to reply to every stupid discourse about superhero movies with this video from Ethan Hawke”

Ethan Hawke isn’t the only person in the film industry to comment on the staying power of Marvel movies— legendary directors such as Francis Ford Coppola have weighed in on the matter as well. Although, Coppola’s take is far from Hawke’s deliberation.

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“There used to be studio films,” he said. “Now there are Marvel pictures. And what is a Marvel picture? A Marvel picture is one prototype movie that is made over and over and over and over and over again to look different. Even the talented people—you could take Dune, made by Denis Villeneuve (who recently had criticism for MCU films himself), an extremely talented, gifted artist, and you could take No Time to Die, directed by…Gary?”
Cary Fukunaga.
“Cary Fukunaga—extremely gifted, talented, beautiful artists, and you could take both those movies, and you and I could go and pull the same sequence out of both of them and put them together. The same sequence where the cars all crash into each other. They all have that stuff in it, and they almost have to have it, if they’re going to justify their budget. And that’s the good films, and the talented filmmakers.”

Coppola concluded, “I’ve said before, making a film without risk is like making a baby without sex. Part of it is risk, and that’s what makes it so interesting, that’s why we learn so much when it’s made.”

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