• A Look Back,  Inside Entertainment

    A Look Back: Superman Returns

    The first two Superman movies are brilliant because director Richard Donner understood the source material, and had a genuine vision to interpret the character to the screen (unlike some, who simply preferred to turn the character into somebody else under the guise of a contemporary update). I don’t think any other interpretation of Superman has been as faithful or accurate. Smallville (2001 – 2011) comes closest, but is the story of Clark Kent (Tom Welling). Superman makes only a fleeting appearance at the end, although actor Tom Welling – like his big screen predecessor Christopher Reeve – certainly emits the wholesomeness, nobility, and purposefulness the character needs. Donner worked on…

  • Inside Entertainment,  Old vs New

    Superman vs Man of Steel

    Let me whine some more about today’s movies. Firstly, a qualifier: there are still good movies coming out. I think A Star is Born (2018) is great. The Mission Impossible (1996) movies are always, at the worst, very good movies (III (2006), IV (2011), and V (2015) are excellent – II (2000) is the only stinker). I love Ron Howard’s Rush (2013), and lesser-known In the Heart of the Sea (2015). Edge of Tomorrow (2014) is an awesome and clever blockbuster. Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2018) is compelling, Boy Erased (2018) is powerful and heartbreaking, and recently I saw Stan & Ollie (2018), which is fantastic (both Steve Coogan…