• A Look Back,  Inside Entertainment

    Why Superman II Still Has the Best Ending Ever

    Although it’s forty years old, I still rate the climax of Superman II (1980) as the best climax to any superhero film. It does something that the numerous superhero movies since have never bettered: it surprises us. One of my issues with the superhero genre is that too often, the final battle is won through sheer will and/or strength. In The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Batman’s victory can only come through physically besting Bane. In The Dark Knight (2008) – which is meant to be a test of wills and intellect, since the Joker confesses he can’t win a fist fight against Batman – Batman still has to physically incapacitate…

  • Inside Entertainment,  Reviews

    JJ’s Wonky World Builds: Number 1

    So JJ Abrams has headed over to Warner Bros. to reboot the DC universe with Justice League Dark. The DC universe is a mess. I blame Zack Snyder who fundamentally didn’t understand the characters, and in trying to update them for a contemporary retelling disfigured them hideously – especially Superman, who became this gloomy, insecure, brooding twat. But now that JJ’s Justice League treatment has been leaked, we can marvel in his ingenuity – and it’s up to typical JJ standards. Clark’s intellect is recognized in primary school as being near genius. He’s sent to the famed Metropolis School for Excellence to pursue a scholarship for one year. And of…