It’s Weird But…
…I am hoping Dark Knight Rises is a good movie. Avengers was such a commercial and critical smash, and such a lovely representation of what is fun about Marvel Comics, that a lot is on the line with how a more gravitas-laden DC is presented on film. It’s important. I’m interested.
Conversely, I will DIE if the Superman movie is bad. It’s just immeasurably more important to me for so many reasons. There’s already so much goofy, ignorant stuff said about Superman, often by people who should know better. And he’s had a hard decade in many ways. And his last film was a ponderous snoozy misfire. And he represents, not just DC comics, but the very IDEA of what superheroes can still be about if you care, if you want the true stuff, the non-berserker idealist joyful vitamins that Superman can bring.
Smallville did a lot of things right, but if this Superman movie is brilliant and moving, it will do a lot to reposition the character in the larger public’s mind. The idea of kids wanting a Superman lunchbox, of teenagers flocking to see his movie and thrilling to his adventures, to seeing how Lois is the ORIGINAL female comic badass, to laughing at the antics of Jimmy Olson, to making that all seem fresh and new again to a huge audience…
…THAT is a big, big deal.
