Everyone’s talking about The Dark Knight, but let’s put that excellent film aside for the moment and remember that superhero movies were not always deep, dark and thematic. There was a day when they were bright, colourful and shit.

And these 10 are as bad as they get.

10. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)

This dire piece of ensemble crud is made worse by the sheer fact of how good the source material by Alan Moore was and how hard it should have been to get this wrong. But they did. So dire was this film that it caused Moore to curse Hollywood forever, its director never worked again and it forced Sean Connery into retirement. And god only knows where the rest of the cast have ended up; except for Stuart Townsend, who did well for himself when he married Charlize Theron. Read more »

Dave Corkery

Let’s face it. The summer cinema-pickings this blockbuster season should have come with disappointment warnings. While we’ve had some nice moments, hype has pretty much overcome content every time. Indy stumbled on some swinging monkeys and unpopular aliens, the Hulk was all smash and no cash and Iron Man made us laugh, but was a little rusty.

There was one remaining hope for our 2008 movie summer and that was the Caped Crusader, the man in black, The Dark Knight. And thank Gotham for him.

This is the movie we’ve been waiting for. This is the movie of the summer. Read more »

The Great Beardy One, Gandalf will return to our screens in the forthcoming Lord of the Rings prequel, The Hobbit. The news was confirmed by Sir Ian McKellan himself to Empire magazine.

“Well, I haven’t had the contract yet but it’s everyone’s intention that I play Gandalf so yes, I will be returning to the role. Although it’s not until 2010, I’m very much excited about returning.”

It was unlikely that the thespian would have ever turned down the chance to redon the white robes (or grey, as they will be in the prequel) and who wouldn’t want a chance to work with director-of-the-moment Guillermo del Toro, who is heading up the two planned prequels that will make up The Hobbit.

“Well, if you’re not going to have Peter Jackson, who else can handle the job?” said the Lord of the Rings star. “To get an international film-maker of his standing who adores the original trilogy, well I don’t think you could possibly find a better replacement,”

Yet even with a new pair of eyes behind the lens, the actor is adamant that it’ll be just like old times on his return to Middle-Earth. “I think the look will be very much as it was, Weta is still involved, it’s still the same workshops, the same designers, I’ll be there, Andy Serkis (whose return as Gollum has been confirmed - who else could have done it?) will be there and Peter Jackson will still be around - not that he’ll interfere too much - so it’ll seem like the old family is getting back together again.”

We say… yay! Besides Aragorn, Gandalf was the coolest thing about The Lord of the Rings trilogy. And at least The Hobbit will be free from the whining love-mongering of Frodo and Sam.

“No Mr. Frooooodooooo”

Do you think they should have cast someone else or is there only one Gandalf? Let us know below.

Christian Bale has been released on bail this evening after police took him in for questioning earlier today. The star was being questioned in relation to claims that he assaulted two family members. Scotland Yard have confirmed that they received a complaint by the star’s mother and sister that he allegedly lashed out in his suite at Park Lane’s Dorchester Hotel on Sunday.

The Dark Knight star has denied the allegations, and his lawyers have released this statement: “Mr. Bale, who denies the allegation, cooperated throughout, gave his account in full of the events in question, and has left the station without any charge being made against him by the police.”

The news comes after last night’s European premiere for The Dark Knight at the Odeon West End cinema in Leicester.

Scotland Yard have said the British Hollywood star has been released on bail to a date in September pending further inquiries.

Cathy Cullen

I’ve always been a fan of musicals. There’s something magical about golden oldies such as The Wizard of Oz, The Sound of Music, Singin’ in the Rain, and the Gay Divorcee (I kid you not). It’s easy to imagine that back then, everyone lived in a haze of magical technicolour. Everything was fabulously camp and everybody could sing, even the baddies.

I have found though, that watching musicals made after I was born has always been a little cringey. People don’t act like that in this day and age! For a film to pull off impromptu singing in the world of the characters, there needs to be some serious suspension of belief on the viewer’s part. It’s hard to achieve, and watching a musical from the cynical eyes of adulthood can really stilt my enjoyment. Read more »

The Baaat-man has officially stolen Peter Parker’s throne by netting the biggest opening weekend box-office haul of all time.

The Dark Knight reaped in $155.3 million in the United States and Canada, giving it a 4 million dollar edge over last year’s Spiderman 3. Deserved? Absolutely. Dave’s seen it and he loves it. (Dave speaks in the third person, so he does)

However, controversy has arisen from rival studios who claim that the Warner Bros. figures don’t add up. Sour grapes, we say. It’s hardly surprising that the hype surrounding the Batman sequel has resulted in a box-office explosion. The momentum-building buzz that followed this movie combined with a superb viral-marketing scheme and of course, the death of one of its stars undoubtedly resulted in The Dark Knight becoming the most anticipated film of the summer.

And if you take a look at our box office counter in the sidebar to your right, you’ll notice that Mamma Mia! has raked in a respectable $27.6 million dollars, making it the biggest US opening for a musical. Another record-breaker.

Hancock is still hanging tight in third place, snatching another $14 mil., while Journey to the Centre of the Earth isn’t far behind. However, poor old Hell Boy II has taken a massive dip in takings from it’s opening weekend and took in a paltry $10 million.

But there is no denying the king of the summer and that is the man in dark, dark black. All hail the Batman.

The Dark Knight is released in Irish and UK cinemas this Friday 25^th July. Dave will be reviewing it very shortly (he’s a busy man)

Richie Davies

In “The concept of dread” Soren Kierkegaard describes a feeling of existential anxiety that a person encounters when they suddenly become aware of their insignificant and miniscule existence on the dirty little circle we call Earth. In the scope of the vast expansiveness of the universe nothing you or I do will have any significance. However, this is not a problem I doubt Tom Cruise has ever worried about. Cruise exudes such confidence that if he told me his semen cured cancer I would probably believe him. The man has got it all; the girl, the looks, the dubious belief system. In fact, I’m becoming increasingly convinced that the universe actually revolves around the goon, at least that’s what the E! Network has led me to believe. Read more »

“Who watches the watchmen?” A question posed in Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ 1980s graphic novel. The answer: “Anyone with an internet connection.”

Because the first trailer for Watchmen has just gone online and it’s looking every bit as stylish as one would expect from 300-helmer Zack Snyder. Flashy slow motion, nice-looking CG and a few hotties - looks like fans of comic book movies won’t be disappointed. And he has totally nailed the look of Dr. Manhattan, without it looking overly computer-generated.

Watchmen is set in an alternate version of the 1980s where America won the Vietnam war with the help of masked vigilantes. Despite this success, the still-President Richard Nixon decides to outlaw superheroes and vigilantism, leaving a whole lot of bored crusaders.

It is frequently regarded as the greatest graphic novel of all time, and whether or not you believe that, it’s hard to dispute how cutting edge this twisted take on the superhero ideal was. From the beer-bellied, middle-aged Night-Owl to the morally firm Rorscach, Moore took the Hero status away from these super people and made them as vulnerable, conflicted and emotionally unstable as the rest of the human race. The result was a superb ensemble piece with a range of truly intriguing characters.

It’ll be interesting to see whether Watchmen can lure in an audience beyond the core fans. With no particularly recognizable names in either the cast or character list, this might be a hard sell to Joe Public.

Watchmen stars Patrick Wilson, Matthew Goode, Jackie Earle Haley, Malin Akerman and Jeffrey Dean Morgan. It is released in March 2009.

Watch the Watchmen Trailer (courtesy Empire)

If you haven’t discovered the pure hilariousness of Italian Spiderman yet, then now’s the time to start.

Quick Background: Italian Spiderman started when a group of Australian film students made a spoof trailer for an Italian take on the Spiderman franchise from the 70s. The trailer was so popular - and unbelievably hilarious, that they decided to actually go ahead and make the film, which is being released in parts. Check out the trailer and the first three episodes here and watch the latest episode here.

‘Jesu Christo! A Crocodillo!’