It’s been a long time — 25 years to be exact — since I felt such a strong reaction to the prospect of a fantasy movie. Bryan Singer of Usual Suspects and X-Men fame abandoned the lure of doing a third X-Men movie to apply his vision to the first Superman movie since Christopher Reeve last donned the cape in the abysmal Superman IV: The Quest for Peace.
Singer’s got an endless budget, complete creative control, an obsession with Richard Donner’s first two movies (1978 and 1980–the only real Superman movies of note), with John Williams’ archetypal score, with Marlon Brando’s take on the father of Kal-El, with Alex Ross’ revolutionary comic-book art, and with 101 Superman tradition, which one does not fuck with lightly.
Unlike the very disappointing Batman Begins, I’m looking forward to Superman Returns with a near froth-like frenzy. And you can bet your bippy that I’m going to trot out a lifetime of Superman fascination and lore in the 7-or-so months until a brand-new Superman explodes on the big screen.
In the meantime, revel in this.