film criticism by maryann johanson | since 1997
The retro pastel optimism is ironic, but the dark stuff slips by in subtext. This bold, colorful tale, recalling classic superhero films, could be happening in a parallel universe… a much nicer one.
More classic female gazing: Christopher Reeve, forever the best Superman…
Iron Man 2 held on to the top spot of the North American box office this past weekend, adding another $52 million to its coffers and handily trouncing the No. 2 film, Robin Hood, which earned $36 million, even though the Ridley Scott/Russell Crowe adventure was new. (They jointly did much better a few years … more…
We know how it is: You’d like to go to the movies this weekend, but you’re worried that you won’t be able to find a humans-only multiplex now that the aliens have arrived and are swarming all over like they own the place. But you can have a multiplex-like experience at home with a collection … more…
It’s an entry in the ongoing series ‘Starz Inside’ that the cable network Starz likes to label ‘documentary,’ but this one, at least, feels exactly like the kind of promotional filler you find filling up odd scheduling holes on premium movie channels (it’s suspiciously 59 minutes in length).
Phone booth? When was the last time you saw a phone booth? I mean, a quarter of a century ago, Christopher Reeve could already get a laugh when his Clark Kent looked askance at the little kiosk that was his only public telephonic refuge for quick changes. But here’s an entire movie, set in the 21st century, that expects us to accept not only that a phone booth still stands in Manhattan but that its glass panels remained unbroken until a dramatic moment here in the very course of events that unfold before our eyes.
Oh, the great mysteries of life. Why are we here? How will the universe end? And how does Clark Kent fit that flowing red cape under a business suit? Alas, none of these questions are answered on the new DVD releases of the Superman series, but jeepers, they’re swell.
