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With Great Power: The Stan Lee Story DVD Review

“With Great Power: The Stan Lee Story” is a solid documentary film.

We all know that Stan Lee co-created some of the most beloved comic book characters like the X-Men, Iron Man, Hulk, Fantastic 4, Hulk, Spider-Man, The Avengers, and Thor, but who is Stan Lee the person? That’s what the documentary film “With Great Power: The Stan Lee Story” is all about.

Comprised of large amounts of stock footage and interviews with the likes of Stan Lee, Kevin Smith, John Romita, Sr., Jon Favreau, Joe Quesada, Bryan Singer, Tobey Maguire, Kevin Feige, and Nicolas Cage, this documentary digs into all aspects of Lee’s life. We learn about his childhood, how he got into Timely Comics and eventually Marvel Comics, his time as a playwright in the army, his daughter and wife Joan Lee, his epic partnership with Jack Kirby, his 1960’s game changing creations, his move into the TV and film industries, his acting, and even some of his business troubles.

Given that comic book films are some of the most popular cinematic offerings right now, Stan Lee is as relevant and as popular as he’s ever been. In addition to his always charming movie cameos, his iconic characters have continued to thrive for generations of people and fans across the globe. It’s no surprise then that Stan Lee continues to be a topic of interest for everything from articles to films including this recent documentary feature film. While the documentary does feel rather choppy, cobbled together and rushed at times, the film nonetheless provides great insight into Lee’s accomplished life. The moments with his love and muse Joan Lee are particularly emotional here given that she sadly recently passed away. We also get a glimpse at just how much of an impact Stan Lee has made on pop culture as an artist. Not only have his creations won the hearts of millions of fans, but they brought much needed depth to the comic book art form as a whole. He brought deep humanistic qualities to his characters that continue to be both relatable and timely to this day.

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 1.33:1. How does it look? The picture quality is decent, but it certainly looks and feels like a low budget docu.

Audio Track: Dolby Digital 2.0. How does it sound? Truth be told, the sound quality is not too hot. While you can hear the interviewees well enough, there’s an almost tinny quality to a lot of it.

Extras: * A trailer for “With Great Power…The Stan Lee Story.” * A 2007 San Diego Comic Con Q&A. * Text Stan Lee bio, a list of co-created characters, * “An Unsung Partnership”- A piece about the Spider-Man newspaper comic strip Stan has been working on with his brother Larry Lieber. I never knew about this * “A Star Is Born”- A behind-the-scenes look at Stan Lee getting his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. * “Stan Lee’s Love Story”- A featurette about Joan and Stan’s marriage. * “The Biggest Fan”- Stan Lee talks about fandom and fans talk about Stan Lee. * “Music Is The Story”- An extra revolving around Marvel movie film scores. * “Pow! Zip! Boom! The Sound Of Cinema”- A featurette on the sound in this documentary film. * “Heroes Helping Heroes” is about The Hero Initiative. * “Stan Lee At UCLA With Kevin Smith And Joe Quesada”- A Hero Initiative fundraiser with Kevin Smith hosting a talk with Stan Lee and Joe Quesada. * “A Coffee With Stan Lee: Slamdance 2012”- A Q&A about the “With Great Power” documentary with Stan Lee and members of the production crew. * “Further Thoughts From Stan”- The title says it all. * Extended interviews with Avi Arad, Sean Astin, Dick Ayers, Kenneth Branagh, Nic Cage, Gill Champion, Michael Chiklis, Gene Colan, Roger Corman, Tom Desanto, Kirsten Dunst, Mark Evanier, Jon Favreau, Kevin Feige, Lou Ferrigno, James Franco, Thomas Haden-Church, Paris Hilton, Samuel L. Jackson, Jim Lee, Paul Levitz, Tobey Maguire, Todd McFarlane, Jim McLauchin, James Marsden, Frank Miller, Jeremy Piven,Joe Quesada, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, John Romita Sr., Joe Simon, Bryan Singer, Joe Sinnott, Kevin Smith, Ringo Starr, Flo Steinberg, Patrick Stewart, Mel Stuart, Roy Thomas and Michael Uslan. * A dull as nails commentary by Terry Douglas, Will Hess, Nikki Frakes, Keyan Safyari, and Max Work.

July 23, 2017 - Posted by nicklyons1 | DVD review | Frank Miller, Hulk, Iron Man, James Franco, Joan Lee, Joe Quesada, Jon Favreau, Kenneth Branagh, Kevin Feige, Kevin Smith, Marvel Comics, Spider-Man, Stan Lee, Stan Lee Documentary, The Avengers, Thor, With Great Power: The Stan Lee Story DVD Review