Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mercurius" data-source="post: 9702426" data-attributes="member: 59082">My ranking of all Superman films (I've seen):<ol> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Superman (1978) - The classic. It is hard to be objective about this, and I still cringe with the "Can you read my mind?" sequence when I re-watch, but as a Gen Xer this was a formative film - up there with Raiders of the Lost Ark and Star Wars. Somehow Ned Beatty is one of the most memorable characters.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Man of Steel (2013) - IIRC, I liked it better the second time around. It has aged well - a brooding, dark vision with unusual Kryptonian aesthetics. Cavill is great, Amy Adams as well even if she diverges from Kidder.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Batman v Superman (2016) - Almost no one agrees with me, but this is underrated, in my opinion, and a fun watch. Yes, its dark, and yes the creature and fight in the end is drawn out and a bit hokey, but two-thirds of the film is really good and darkly epic, and it really captures its own vibe. People complain about Eisenstein, but I think he makes the part his own in an interesting way, and is creepily menacing. For me the most surprising part was that I actually like Ben Affleck as Batman. Who would have thunk? It also strikes the right balance for Gadot's Wonder Woman. She isn't a terribly good actress, and works better in small doses, imo, but she's quite potent in this one.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Superman II (1981) - What can we say about General Zod and his merry gang? They're fun, frightening, and ridiculous all at the same time. Zod and Hackman carry the film. Arguably a better movie than the first, but not quite as mythic.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Superman (2025) - See previous post. When I re-watch it in a year or two, I might re-rank. Big gap and then...</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Justice League (2021 director's cut) - Improved enough to be a solid completion to the Synder trilogy, but I honestly think Steppenwolf was a terrible choice for a primary villain -- he's arguably the least interesting villain in 21st century comic movies. It might have worked better as a 10-episode series. WW, Aquaman, and Cyborg are all kind of uninteresting and there's just not enough Superman. The sets of Atlantis and the Amazon island feel a bit paper-thin. And why is it so arctic in Amnesty Bay, Maine? They somehow manage to make Darkseid seem un-menacing and cartoonish.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Superman Returns (2006) - Not a bad film, just quite forgettable. But Spacey does a great interpretation of Hackman's Luthor.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Justice League (2017) - See above, but worse.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Superman III (1983) - I barely remember this one. I'm guessing it wasn't the work Richard Pryor was the most proud of.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Superman IV (1987) - Nuclear Man!</li> </ol>There's a HUGE gap between the first five and 6-8, another gap before 9-10. I might re-arrange 3-5 at some point, but am going with the above for now.</blockquote>

Verification