What's The Most Overhyped Comic Book Movie Of All Time?
Which films really weren't worth shouting about?
In an age of ever-expanding shared universes and the seemingly endless remakes and reboots, it's easy for even the most avid enthusiast of comic book movies to crumple under the weight of a saturated market.
With such vast sums of money invested in these multiple overlapping frachises, inevitably the marketing hype machine will be set to continue apace for as long as the films continue to rake in the cash. Even taking into account the relatively "poor" box office performance of Batman Vs Superman: Dawn Of Justice, a general decline in the profitability of comic book movies won't be happening any time soon.
With escalating marketing budgets and a huge fanbase serving as an echo chamber for news and leaks surrounding projects, avoiding the hype surrounding a blockbuster is almost impossible. Sometimes this hype is entirely justified, reflecting the genuine faith fans have that a project is on track and will live up to their expectations.
Few, if any, had much to grumble about when The Dark Knight finally landed in cinemas.
Some comic book movies are not so fortunate, the pre-release hype serving only to increase the audience's disappointment with the final product. For my part, the buzz surrounding Iron Man 2, following on from the huge success of Marvel's first entry into their cinematic universe, exacerbated the crushing sense of disappointment as waves of boredom swept over me (that's when I wasn't laughing at Mickey Rourke's atrocious accent).
Regular readers will be more than familiar with the view of WhatCulture Film Editor Alex Leadbeater's views on Batman Vs Superman: Dawn Of Justice, a film which still managed to disappoint despite his well-publicised cynicism.
As he astutely points out, a degree of caution is required when analysing whether or not a film genuinely deserves the attention it gets, and how a rose-tinted view of beloved characters can cloud our better judgement. "The very prospect of these big superhero spectacles almost make us forget filmmaking convention and think anything with these characters we love could be good."
It's interesting to contrast the overhyping of Dawn Of Justice with The Dark Knight Rises, Nolan's conclusion to his Batman trilogy which suffered by comparison to The Dark Knight, but in its own right remains a vastly superior film to Zack Snyder's recent effort.
WhatCulture's Simon Gallagher describes how "the weight of expectation meant I scrutinised it far more than I had the other two Batman movies." Somewhat perversely, achieving near-perfection often means that the only way is down: "Nolans success turned into a benchmark hed always have to outdo."
Whether you're a fan of DC or the MCU the ever-present spectre of movie hype looms overhead. Are you a fan who loves the hype regardless, or do you agree that some comic book movies really over-egg the marketing pudding, resulting in a cinematic dish you wouldn't feed to your dog? Let us know your thoughts on the most overhyped comic book movies in the comments.