To Bleak or Not To Bleak
The original Lost in Space series (1965 – 1968) began as serious science fiction, before descending into campy humour and outlandish storylines. But it worked because it found its voice, and has since become a cult classic. The rebooted Lost in Space (2018 – ) has not only gone the serious route, but has also become gritty, bleak, and largely joyless. It’s a motif a lot of contemporary movies and series use. Arguably, the template for this began with Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins (2005), and was popularised with the follow-up, The Dark Knight (2008). Then just about everybody decided this was the way to go, as if it was a…
Superman II vs Man of Steel
Man of Steel (2013) covers the two original Superman movies – Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980). We’re introduced to Krypton, we learn why baby Kal-El is sent to Earth, we watch the sentencing of the Krypton villain Zod and his cronies, we explore the origin story of Clark Kent/Superman, we see Smallville, we go to Metropolis, and, finally, we have the battle against the antagonist, Zod. I respect Christopher Nolan, who decided when rebooting Batman with Batman Begins (2005) to stay away initially from the Joker – Batman’s greatest villain, and already renowned in cinema due to Jack Nicholson‘s portrayal in Tim Burton‘s Batman (1989). It allowed Nolan to…