Well, I didn’t quite accomplish the full list. Got too distracted by life and other things, and got really sick and tired of superhero movies about halfway through the month. But I watched enough of them that I’m still going to do this post anyway!
The decently good – These are the movies that I watched that I sorta liked but wasn’t crazy about.
– Superman II got the tone and character of Superman right, and I liked the Zod gang, but the pacing of the movie sucked (really boring for a long time, and then a really long action sequence) and I hated the ending.
– Man of Steel went for a different tone which didn’t really work for me. I felt like it did an ok job of Superman, but completely neglected who Clark Kent is.
– I liked the 1989 Batman a lot. I liked how they focused on Vicki Vale as kinda the main character for the first half of the movie.
– Batman Forever was a little stupid but over the top in kind of a fun way.
– Dark Knight Rises was not quite as good as the previous Nolan features but was decent. Too long though.
The not great – Here are the ones that I didn’t like, but didn’t really hate either.
– Superman and the Mole Men was kind of a fun B 50’s sci-fi movie, which wasn’t really about Superman (although he features heavily in it). It was really interesting to see, but frick is it boring.
– Superman III wasn’t terrible but I thought this one was pretty stupid. Richard Pryor was the only memorable part of the movie for me.
– Superman Returns is like a half-decent movie that made some huge mistakes. It’s edited weird in a way that like, they let every scene/take drag on way too long which makes the movie feel more boring than it is. And the story was handled stupidly.
– 1966 Adam West Batman movie was… ugh not my favourite. I liked the old Batman show but this movie was just like over the top campy and went so long. I was so bored and not into most of the jokes.
The Worst – These are my pics for worst DC movies (that I watched this month).
– Green Lantern – This movie is really bad. It looks bad (effects and shooting), there are really dumb lines and story problems, but the worst part, is just how unlikeable the lead character is. I like Ryan Reynolds generally and his acting isn’t the problem. But they made Hal Jordan, this lazy jerk who somehow is super handsome/fit and has the coolest job in the world. His pride costs tons of regular Joes their jobs, he is totally loved by his friend’s dad and the dad treats his own child like crap and Hal does too, he is unreliable to his family and shows up at his nephew’s birthday super late, AND like worst of all, one of his first scenes with Carol is him trying to pressure her into dancing and him not accepting that NO MEANS NO. That may sound silly, but seconds before that they are hinting about the two of them having sex earlier then it leads right into this discussion of her saying “no” to him and him constantly pressuring her until he gets his way. Its supposed to seem charming I think, but in the context, it is kind of disturbing.
– Superman IV: The Quest for Peace – So stupid. The plot is all over the place and stuff is introduced for no reason, and other plotlines are just dropped with no resolutions. Superman robs the entire world of their weaponry, but they all applaud him in what is one of the stupidest and cheesiest movie scenes I think I’ve ever seen.
– Batman & Robin – I’ve always heard this movie is bad, but I was not ready for the level of bad movie I would experience. It is so bad on every level. From the awful puns and ridiculously dumb dialogue, to the horrible B movie sets and lighting, this movie feels like something that YTV would make to show between cartoons. Like it was “The Zone” or whatever. At times it strayed into “So bad it’s good” territory, but for the most part it was confusingly horrible.
The Best – My personal faves.
– Superman – So incredibly charming and beautiful a movie. They really nail the tone of who Superman is and all of the characters are done so well. I loved the creativity with the Krypton scenes. I loved his relationship with Lois, and watching the two fall in love felt real. I loved Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor. Yeah there were a few dumb parts, and it could use a bit more action, but I was utterly enchanted by this movie.
– Batman Begins – I decided while rewatching this movie this month, that this really is the perfect comic book movie. It nails the origin story. All of the characters are done well and don’t feel too “flat”. It knows exactly the moment to switch to a new scene to avoid the movie getting boring. It creates a hero and villains in a way that doesn’t feel stupid or forced. My only problem is that there are like 10-15 decently developed characters in this movie, and only 1 is a lady. I liked the character of Rachel Dawes just fine, but this movie is a bit of a bro fest.
– The Dark Knight – Batman Begins might be the perfect comic book movie, but The Dark Knight transcends the genre entirely and is a work of art. The performances are definitely great and everyone praises Eckhart and Ledger but there’s a lot more to why this movie is so good. The directing is so incredible. Nolan frames these hauntingly beautiful shots and not only that but conveys information through visual imagery and has visual irony and all sorts of really artistic choices for a simple superhero movie. Last thing I’ll say is that this whole movie can be divided into 10-15 minute long mini-movies with plots that develop and pay off in climactic action scenes and the way they all flow together is really impressive once you notice it.
Well that’s it my friends! Next month I’m supposed to do Marvel but I’m so burnt out on superheroes, I might change my mind! peace out!
Sheldauntless 