Nolan to mentor Superman reboot

[The Dark Knight]

However, whether it is down to the script or whatever but Welling (as much as I like him) doesn't seem to have the acting chops to pull off a movie or put in a convincing performace as Superman.

Very well. Given my lack of knowledge on the matter, I concede the true fans know best.

[Kamdan]

I have a suggestion... GET SNYDER!

[Paul (ral)]

You know this is something that I have been thinking about for alot..


...do superhero movies need "visionary" directors?

[phantom stranger]

Colors put forth a pretty good assessment. I would quibble with two things however:

1) Just because you hate SR doesn't mean you love Smallville. In fact, I'd wager most of the hardcore fans that don't like SR would have at least some problems with Smallville. Personally, I stopped watching after the second season so I don't have an opinion.

2) The whole "Let's not have simultaneous actors play the character because it confuses the audience" is just one of those myths that gets repeated so often everyone assumes it's true. The Nicholas Cage Superman movie was supposed to come out at the same time as the Lois & Clark TV show. Were that to have happened, I don't think the audience would've had a problem with it, except for the hardcore Dean Cain fans. And the millions of people who think Cage as Superman is a ridiculous idea.

If anything that would've been more confusing than the SR/Smallville thing because Welling never wore a costume. Now, that's not to say it's a smart idea. But if a comic book fan can tell the difference between All Star Superman, Earth One Superman and the "real" Superman than I think the general populace could do that as well.

I think audience confusion is only a problem when you're dealing with the actual story itself. I'm a huge Superman fan and I still don't know what continuity SR was supposed to be. A sequel to Superman II? Or just the Donner cut? So if Lois doesn't remember Superman's identity, does she remember they slept together? Because if not, that would make for one awkward pregnancy test. 

[thecolorsblend]

Colors put forth a pretty good assessment. I would quibble with two things however:

1) Just because you hate SR doesn't mean you love Smallville. In fact, I'd wager most of the hardcore fans that don't like SR would have at least some problems with Smallville. Personally, I stopped watching after the second season so I don't have an opinion.

I thought I was pretty clear on that.  There are fans who dislike both but, spending time up close and personal with the fans each day, I can tell you that 99% of them fall into either the Singerman camp or the SV camp.  True, there are some who dislike both but they're a scant minority.

2) The whole "Let's not have simultaneous actors play the character because it confuses the audience" is just one of those myths that gets repeated so often everyone assumes it's true. The Nicholas Cage Superman movie was supposed to come out at the same time as the Lois & Clark TV show. Were that to have happened, I don't think the audience would've had a problem with it, except for the hardcore Dean Cain fans. And the millions of people who think Cage as Superman is a ridiculous idea.

Again, I thought I was pretty clear on that.  I'm too lazy to go back to my post but I dismissed audience confusion myself when it comes to dual adaptations.  The reason not to do it (and Singerman proves me right in this) is what it does to the core fanbase.

[Kamdan]

...do superhero movies need "visionary" directors?

Well, comics are centered around a "visual" medium. Otherwise, they'd be just pulp stories.

[Paul (ral)]

What i mean is that Richard Donner isn't considered a visionary director. He doesn't really have an identifable style - yet Superman is hailed as the best superhero movie to date.

[johnnygobbs]

Well, comics are centered around a "visual" medium. Otherwise, they'd be just pulp stories.

Agreed.  I'd always prefer to see an auteur behind a comic-book movie than a hack or 'journeyman', as long as their personal style is not allowed to subsume the comic-book's roots (although there are always the exceptions, like Batman Returns, where the director's strong imprint enhances the film).

As to the direction of the new Superman film(s), I'd personally prefer that they had little to nothing to do with either Donner and Singer's films, or Smallville, especially as far as the casting goes.  I don't want to see Warners repeat the same mistake of Superman Returns and end up with a project that is beholden to and ultimately overshadowed by what had come before.  Smallville's great, but without wishing to seem like a snob I always like to see a clear distinction between cinema and TV.  

The rise of downloading and the growth of DVD and Blue-Ray has contributed to a gradual blur between the two mediums (why bother creating something genuinely cinematic when the majority of your audience are going to watch your film at home anyway), which is thankfully being curtailed by the rise of 3D (which must surely be partly attributable to the unprecedented box-office success of Avatar etc).  That doesn't mean I necessarily want to see the new Superman go 3D (although it's certainly a welcome and likely option), but I do want to see a truly epic interpretation that befits such a mythic character...and oh yeah, a cinematic Superman should fly, and he should wear tights.  

[The Joker]

1) Just because you hate SR doesn't mean you love Smallville. In fact, I'd wager most of the hardcore fans that don't like SR would have at least some problems with Smallville.

Very true.

I think I've caught a few episodes of Smallville (the Chris Reeve episodes), but that's about it. Like you, it's not a series I've really kept up with, but I've spoken with plenty of people who found SR less that satisfactory, and find Smallville to be stretching itself thinner and thinner. I personally don't care enough to inquire the specifics of that, but it's a pretty cut and dry example of fans waiting for something 'different' to take flight when it comes to Superman.

if a comic book fan can tell the difference between All Star Superman, Earth One Superman and the "real" Superman than I think the general populace could do that as well.

I absolutely agree. I remember when DC/WB got the ball rolling on their Direct-to-Video animated films, there were questions on if these films were going to be set within the DCAU that fans had come to know over the years. That question was answered pretty quickly as it was very clear that Superman: Doomsday, Justice League: The New Frontier, Batman: Gotham Knight, Wonder Woman and others were definately not set within the DCAU, but rather their own entity.

Once that set in, there were no problems and no confusion. If anything, this sort of approach gives director's and screenwriter's new creative latitude. Which in effect, promotes experimentation, and obviously that sort of approach can prove to be successful.

So if Lois doesn't remember Superman's identity, does she remember they slept together?

Apparently, after the "super kiss" in Superman II, Lois doesn't remember anything about them sleeping together, or that Clark is Superman. From what I remember about SR, she is still in this frame of mind as she remains dismissive towards Clark upon his return.

Because if not, that would make for one awkward pregnancy test. 

I doubt she would really need one after the piano scene. Though, as Kevin Smith suggested, it does make one wonder if she whispered in his ear at the hospital, "You have a son.", or rather, "When did you rape me?" 

[Kamdan]

What i mean is that Richard Donner isn't considered a visionary director. He doesn't really have an identifable style - yet Superman is hailed as the best superhero movie to date.

Either way, you will still need a "visual style" of some sorts. Donner knew that Superman needed that. For that film, he was a "visual director."