8. Corrupted Superman Superman III
Fair enough, Superman 3 wasn't the most serious of films. I guess when you include Richard Pryor in full-on comedy mode, all pretenses of darkness sort of fly out the window. Yet for the most part, having Superman's major enemy turn out to be himself was probably a good move, and Christopher Reeve sold the hell out of his moral conflict, slide into depression and confused feelings for Lana Lang. If the film had taken a more serious tone, we might've been talking about it as a genre classic not the equal of the first or Richard Donner's plans for the second, but a worthy follow-up to their legacy. Reeve shows he's clearly up for the dramatic parts, but just when you think this seething inner conflict might come to the fore, the zany tone presents itself again. How? With corrupted Superman, that's how! Ostensibly, a dark Superman might be a great villain, and it's a premise out of which the comics have drawn plenty of mileage. After all, if the son of Krypton does go rogue, he's a terrifying prospect let's not forget that he's flush with power, and if the first Superman is to be believed, he can even turn back time, for god's sake. So when this genius premise amount to somebody blowing out the Olympic Flame and straightening the Leaning Tower Of Pisa, you're left slightly confused. It gets slightly worse when you realise that they're trying to figure out a way to right the tower in real life, proving that even when the Man of Steel is attempting to be villainous, he just can't help but be good.