Is The Guardian Correct? Are Superhero Films Done For?
In a week's time, it'll be the first X-Men film's 13th birthday. The movie's critical and commercial success gave Hollywood the excuse it needed to revitalise the comic-book-movie 'genre'. X-Men delivered the industry a template of sorts that has largely remained unchanged in the decade that followed. That template required an ensemble cast, mixing up A-list stars with Academy Award winning actors, character veterans, relative newcomers and a few nerd favourites. X-Men also set a visual-effects precedent that eschewed the overblown Batman And Robin ' look' in favour of more modern effects in the vein of The Matrix . The revised superhero film template also required the X-Men ditch their traditional bright yellow-and-blue tights for... very Matrix -esque black leather costumes. And, just like that, a modern genre was born. Or, rather, re born. The superhero 'genre' had merely been laying dormant. In the decades since Richard Donner...
