The panel of iron and rage

Marvel Studios held their first film presentation in Hall H tonight with a first (for me) at the 2007 Comic-Con: a standing ovation, for "Iron Man."

IRON MAN

Marvel exec Kevin Feige, producers Gale Anne Hurd and Avi Arad, director Jon Favreau, with actors (from left to right above) Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow and Robert Downey Jr. took the stage. All of the actors were Comic-Con first-timers and their camaraderie was palpable as they joked and whispered with each other throughout the presentation. Exclusive footage was about to be shown and, as Favreau told the crowd, "This is about comic-book fans."

The crowd LOVED the footage, and the panelists were seeing the images for the first time as well. They all looked stunned and happy, with Downey Jr. asking, "Couldn't there have been more of me?"

Some of the Q&A:

Paltrow was asked about her role as Pepper: "I love the dynamic between Pepper and Tony....  I was incredibly honored."

Terrence Howard was asked how it felt being in a movie like this (comic-book adaptation): "What do you mean ... a movie with a budget?"

Avi Arad was asked "Why Iron Man?":  "For us it was always top tier.  We had to wait for the right time to find the technology."

An audience member made parallels between the troubled pasts of Tony Stark [Iron Man] and Robert Downey Jr.: "I think there's a destiny to just about everything," Downey added.

Stan Lee made a surprise appearance and threatened to sue the cast if they didn't say his words correctly. (An audience member shouted "Preach it, Stan! Preach it!" as he talked about the character.) The trailer was shown again. And the love was still there.

When the participants walked off the stage, they got the only standing ovation I've seen this year for any project or panelists.

The Incredible Hulk

The Marvel presentation started out with the panel for "The Incredible Hulk," but it was not as energetic. Panelists included Hurd and Feige, producer Avi Arad, director Louis Leterrier, Liv Tyler and Bruce Banner himself, Edward Norton. Tim Roth and William Hurt couldn't make it, and there were no shots/trailers for the film. 

But what they did display was a 30-second (!) CGI closeup of what they thought the Hulk would look like, as well as a general loyalty to the source material. Edward Norton, who wrote the script, spoke fondly of his adoration for comics.

"I was a Marvel kid. I had subscriptions. I loved the early incarnations of Hulk and the television show.  It was one of those great contemporary myths."

And all of the speculation about which incarnation of the Hulk we were talking about was ended at the very beginning by Marvel honcho Kevin Feige: "Let's just get this out of the way. This is a Part 1. This is the beginning of a whole new Hulk saga."

Despite that, the group did acknowledge the original, Lou Ferrigno-flexing series with reverence.

"It really doesn't talk down to the idea of the story. Bill Bixby brings an incredible lonely pathos to that character," Norton said.

Other highlights included Tyler gushing over a question-asking audience member dressed as Arwen (right, and Liv's voice suddenly seemed to sound sooo elvish) and director Louis Leterrier's quote: "'Homage' is French for stealing ideas from American films and not getting sued for it."

--Jevon Phillips

Photos: Sheigh Crabtree / LAT

Comments

[Dotty]

Do we really NEED a whole new Hulk?!