Superman III and Batman Forever (NEW FACEBOOK PAGE)

[TMC]

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Superman-III-and-Batman-Forever/339209136121424

The Curse of the Third Movie:
http://www.forevergeek.com/2011/12/the-curse-of-the-third-movie/

Superman III (1983)

A cautionary tale of studio meddling if there ever was one, the legend
of Superman III is known far and wide. Let me sum it up: Richard
Donner, director of the first two Superman films, was forced out late
in the process of Superman II and replaced by Richard Lester who would
go on to direct the third installment as well. Though he was acclaimed
in his own right, Lester didn’t share Donner’s take on the character,
resulting in the campy, cringe-worthy Superman III (followed by the
nearly unwatchable Superman IV, directed by Sidney Furie). But the
disastrous consequences didn’t end there. Margot Kidder complained to
the franchise’s producers about Donner being fired from the second
film, and subsequently found herself with little more than a cameo in
number three. Bryan Singer chose to stay in continuity with the early
films with his Superman Returns, but he snubbed Supermans III and IV
entirely because of their lackluster quality and reputation. I think
we can all agree that Richard Prior was a very funny comedian — but
belong in a Superman movie he did not.

Batman Forever (1995)

Warner Bros. tried its best to convince us that Batman Forever was
part of the same continuity as Tim Burton’s Batman and Batman Returns.
But one sit-through of this candy-colored flick, as directed by Joel
Schumacher, proved it was anything but. Gone was the dark pathos of
the Burton films, replaced by a cheesy sensibility and a plastic
aesthetic. Jim Carrey, at the height of his popularity, as the Riddler
with unapologetic, manic glee, came close to saving the day but the
whole thing just buckled under the weight of its over-the-top
superhero costumes and their infamous nipples. Batman Forever was a
box office success, but that came from riding on the coattails of the
first two films. It’s become infinitely more kitschy over time
(whereas many a moviegoer still thinks fondly of the Burton films).
Batman & Robin, the fourth film, magnified the camp factor to
unprecedented proportions and killed the franchise outright. But I
suppose we can thank Schumacher for making terrible movies so that
Warner Bros. would eventually green light Christopher Nolan’s
triumphant reboot of the Batman universe.