******SUPER-SPOILERS!****** Growing up in the 1970s reading random Marvel comics books (“SpiderMan,” “The Fantastic Four,” “The Hulk”), I wasn’t much of a DC kid. Despite being old enough to have seen TV’s “Adventures of Superman” (1952-1958) in reruns (as did friends of mine), I never really got into it, and the only reasons younger-me ever…
Tag: Richard Donner
Mixed emotions regarding the trailer for “Superman” (2025)…
******KRYTONITE-LADEN SPOILERS!****** Warner Bros recently dropped the latest three minute trailer for “Guardians of the Galaxy” writer-director James Gunn’s new “Superman” reboot movie (arriving in theaters July 11th), and while there were a number of elements that piqued my interest, the trailer had many of the same issues plaguing the current superhero movie sub-genre, as…
The ‘sci-fi connection’ of the incomparable Gene Hackman (1930-2025)…
Waking up to bad news is like a cold, angry slap in the face, as movie fans like myself were reminded this morning, February 27th, with the loss of two-time Oscar winner and one-of-a-kind actor Gene Hackman, who passed away at age 95; along with his wife Betsy Arakawa, 63, and even his dog in…
“Superman: The Movie” (1978) made my generation believe a man could fly…
****SUPER-SPOILERS AHEAD!***** Having written a retrospective on “Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut” a couple years ago, I recently realized I’d never tackled my personal favorite of the Superman (and superhero) movie canon. In December of 1978, I’d just turned a precocious 12 years old when a new movie was released that everyone at school…
The man behind the modern superhero movie, Richard Donner (1930-2021)…
Making Us Believe A Man Could Fly. I still remember going to see “Superman: The Movie” back in the winter of 1978. I wasn’t a big superhero fan in those days, to be honest. Yes, I read some random Marvel comics (“Hulk,” “SpiderMan,” “Fantastic Four”), and I watched the occasional episode of “Wonder Woman” (primarily…
“Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut” (2006) turns back time…
Superman Reborn. “Superman: The Movie” redefined the superhero genre. Released in December of 1978, the film made possible the big-budget release of Tim Burton’s “Batman” 11 years later, not to mention the current DC and Marvel cinematic/TV waves being ridden to this day. Before Richard Donner’s film, my generation had the campy, tongue-in-cheek “Batman” and…