Superman is based on a fairly idiotic premise in the first place - not that a man could fly, or that there is an alien walking among us dressed as a mild mannered journalist, but that a man as recognisable as Superman could hide in plain sight simply by combing his hair ever so slightly differently and wearing a pair of glasses. But that isn't the end to the idiocy in the Superman universe, as we've seen countless times in past movie examples that usually respectable and dependable film-makers can go all to Hell very quickly when trying to write a coherent Superman script. It started with Richard Donner's first outing in charge, when Superman gave an interview to Lois Lane proclaiming his only weakness as a handy Dummies Guide To Killing Superman for all the watching villains, and ended most recently with the occasionally lunatic events of Man Of Steel. This article will focus on the worst idiot moments of the lot - a compendium of stupidity that has blighted the Superman cinematic universe for more than 3 decades, and which mostly seems to get a pass by Superman fans who are still nevertheless stoked for the impending start to filming on Batman Vs Superman, and potential Justice League style sequels. And let's be honest, as long as both projects are written smartly, they will both be major audience draws... it's just not particularly likely, looking at the precedent that anyone will be able to avoid the idiot magnet that is Superman on screen.
Honourable Mention
Smallville
We were promised a show that established how Superman went from being an awkward child with super-powers through to being the man in the colourful tights with a hero complex and the most ridiculous disguise in the history of disguises. What we got was an amalgamation of Dawson's Creek and Party Of Five with occasional superheroes added to the mix, and a wandering tone that squandered the excellent concept in favour of untold silliness in the name of "entertainment." At various points during the mythology ruining show, Clark Kent battled vampires, zombies, witches, his own raging hormones, a super-powered sneeze and his girlfriend turning into a Goddess. In the interest of pulling in viewers, the show took the Superman concept as a foundation to make gigantic, stupid leaps to anything vaguely magical or populist, tagging on morals at the end like Jerry Springer, and basically doing its level best to corrupt the untouchable image of Superman. Oh and then of course there's the fact that Amy Adams was in it, which clearly didn't bother the casting team on Man Of Steel...
