Grab bag: a bunch of movie reviews, and what I'm currently working on

I know, it's been a while...

It’s been a while since I checked in—this summer has been busy—so here’s a little grab-bag of stuff; mini-reviews of some movies I watched recently, and a brief note about what I’m working on.

Oh, and that picture up there was made by Bob Eckstein, a New Yorker cartoonist who was at the Writer’s Digest conference in Baltimore, during my lecture on writing action. I just wanted to share that because I think it’s neat.

Anyway, onward and, most importantly, upward…

Superman

My first comic book was Superman #75. That’s the one where Superman dies defending Metropolis from Doomsday. It really ignited my love for comic books. While I read extensively in both DC and Marvel, I was a Superman kid. I appreciated the character’s values, his kindness, and his choices—he could enslave all of humanity, if he wanted, and yet he chose to do good. That’s a powerful thing, especially for a kid.

And that’s why Snyder’s Superman bummed me out. His depiction of Superman was one of a detached, morose god, which just didn’t square with the character I knew. It seemed like he viewed Superman as a Christ-like figure, when really he’s a Moses-like figure.

And, this is a bit of a stretch, but Snyder is also a big fan of Ayn Rand, and Rand’s philosophies of radical self-interest and individualism don’t exactly line up with Superman’s. So I wonder if maybe he just wasn’t the right person to tackle the character.

Enter James Gunn, who clearly understands that comics are, first and foremost, for kids. He also has an uncanny ability to balance spectacle with heart, and find a deep well of humanity in all his characters. Look no further than how he made Rocket Raccoon the emotional center of Guardians of the Galaxy.

I went into Superman with very high expectations, and they were exceeded—it put the emphasis where it belongs: on the -man. And David Corenswet elevated the material by making the character goofy and a little cheesy–which Superman totally is—in a way that was approachable and friendly, while still projecting strength and confidence.

The world kinda sucks right now, for a variety of reasons, and it was nice to be reminded of what hope and kindness can feel like.

A lot of dipshits are complaining about Superman being “woke” and “weak” and a whole bunch of other whiney baby nonsense. But Superman is the ultimate immigrant character. He came here from a distant land and was inspired by midwestern American values to do good. He was created during the Great Depression and the growing threat of Nazism, by Jewish immigrants, to fight for the oppressed, against corruption and injustice.

Superman was always woke.

And we all know that woke is just another word for being kind to others.

Who knows, maybe some of that message broke through to some of the people who needed to hear it. But that’s also the great thing about stories like this, and these characters in particular.

They remind us of the best parts of ourselves.

28 Years Later

I am a huge nerd for Alex Garland. He’s a brilliant creator—going all the way back to his novels. I would love it if he wrote another book, but it seems like he’s firmly ensconced in Hollywood. Fine, if he keeps writing stuff like this.

28 Days Later was such a great movie, and it’s fun to return to this world (though I never saw 28 Weeks Later, and the reviews didn’t seem great, but now I may watch it to complete the set).

Anyway, I love Garland’s writing and Boyle’s direction but the thing that got me was Ralph Fiennes and his bone temple. The momento mori.

(That’s not a spoiler, it was featured prominently in the trailer and there’s a sequel coming in January that is subtitled The Bone Temple.)

I’m a sucker for a good bone church. I’ve visited the Paris catacombs, and the Sedlec Ossuary in Kutna Hora outside Prague, and San Bernardino alle Ossa in Milan. The reason I love them is that, while morbid, they feel to me like a celebration of life.

We’re working on a clock here, and one day all of us will just be bone. Which is a mind-bending thing to think about, sometimes. Eventually we will die. And that can be a very scary thought.

But when you stand in front of stacks and stacks of human skulls, so intricately and carefully arranged, and you think about how each one of those skulls was a person—who lived and loved and laughed and lost—it reminds you that not only is life precious, but even in death, there exists an opportunity to create something beautiful.

So when Fiennes showed up and explained the concept of momento mori, and spoke so beautifully about life and death, I was shook. I loved the movie top to bottom, including the bonkers-ass ending that makes me even more excited for the sequel, but man, that whole sequence was stunning.

Bring Her Back

I didn’t see this in theaters but I just watched it at home and I don’t have much to say but holy shit.

There is a scene in this movie that was so horrifying, so unsettling, that is has become an intrusive thought. I’ll be prepping dinner and BAM, there it is. I cannot unsee it and a little part of me wishes that I could.

Worth watching but only if you can handle some pretty serious gore.

Fantastic Four: First Steps

This summer is two-for-two on comic book movies. Three-for-three if you include Thunderbolts*, which was also pretty great.

Finally, a Fantastic Four movie that actually gets the characters right. Leagues better than the movies from the early aughts, which were sort of just fine, but suffered from the same problem that all early comic adaptations did: a disdain for the source material. I didn’t even watch the 2015 reboot.

Meanwhile, Fantastic Four: First Steps is downright reverent to the Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s original vision. I wasn’t a big reader of Fantastic Four comics, but I dabbled. And I loved a lot of what the movie does. It is fun—but above all, they just nailed that casting. Which is the only way a movie like this works. You have to buy these people as a family unit, and the cast has it down cold.

If I had one criticism, it’s that I just wish there was more of that. Shakman conveyed a lot with subtlety and subtext, but I would watch an entire series about them bouncing off each other and going on smaller adventures. I’m sure the budget for something like that would not be workable.

Anyway, worth watching, another solid entry in the MCU, and also… DOOM!

She Rides Shotgun

This one was pretty special—it’s based on the novel by my friend Jordan Harper. And it is wild to see your buddy’s book adapted for the big screen.

Now obviously, the book was better, because the book is always better, but more than that, Jordan is one of the best writers working today. That is not hyperbole. That is me reading his books and getting mad, because he’s so good I wonder what the point is of even doing it myself.

Then I go do it anyway, but still. I want to write like Jordan when I grow up.

It’s been a while since I read the book, and they made some changes, and there’s some stuff I would have liked to have seen, but overall the central relationship between Nate and Polly—portrayed by Taron Egerton and Ana Sophia Heger—is all there. The two of them are astounding, and, especially as a dad, it hit me square in the feels more than a few times.

It’s a limited release and it might not be in theaters long, but it’s absolutely worth checking out. Do that. Then go buy the book. You won’t regret either.

And finally… what I’m currently working on!

Back to business stuff.

The Medusa Protocol is out in the world and all the promo shenanigans surrounding that are slowing down, so I can focus on what’s pending.

The question I’ve gotten a lot recently is: will there be another adventure in the Assassins Anonymous universe?

And the answer is yes! Three Hitman and a Baby comes out next summer.

I’ve got one more book in my contract with Putnam after that, and we’re trying to decide what it’s going to be… another Assassins book, or maybe I’ll take a break and do a standalone. We’re going to see how the numbers break out on Medusa before making a decision.

(So if you really want more Assassins books, tell you friends about it!)

Other than that…

Detour, my novel with Jeff Rake—creator and showrunner of TV’s Manifest—comes out on Sept. 13. You can learn more about that and pre-order it here.

I’m also working on a sequel to Detour, details of which I shall not reveal. That will, presumably, come out in January 2027.

And finally, I’m about 15k words into what’s currently titled The Mapmaker’s Apprentice, a young adult fantasy for my daughter. She’s 10, and she loves reading, but none of my books have been appropriate for her. YA and fantasy are two entirely different hats to be wearing, but I’m having a lot of fun with it.

Whether someone wants to publish it when I’m done… we’ll have to wait and see.

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So anyway, that’s where I’m at. I’m not doing much in the coming months, other than New York Comic Con. I want to focus on writing for a bit. In fact, I’m going to get back to work right now…

Stay cool out there.