ou will believe a man can fly!" In 1978, when the Christopher Reeve version of Superman was released, this commercial siren song—with its promise of the most believable Man of Steel ever and never-before-seen special effects—was heard far and wide. Now, in the age of CGI, it is a given that the paranormal abilities of comic-book heroes and villains will be rendered on the big screen with razzle-dazzle and panache. In recent years, filmgoers have soared alongside Spider-Man as he web-slings his way through New York, seen the Hulk on an awe-inspiring rampage and watched in amazement as movies transformed an English bad-boy mage named John Constantine into Keanu Reeves.
Graphic artists have always relied on static images, the power of suggestion and the limitless scope of readers' imagination to work their magic, but now more and more of their super-dreams are being distilled into stunning visuals (and sometimes-empty stories) as major motion pictures. At Superhero Hype, all the latest superhero films—whether proposed, in production or already in release—receive loving coverage and close scrutiny. Visitors can follow pet projects, look up rumors about upcoming movies and scan through fan reviews of films from Alien vs. Predator to X-Men. Superhero Hype's discussion forums offer general topics for discussion of superheroes in film, TV and comic books; not surprisingly, there are also specific topics devoted to past and upcoming films, like Batman, Hellboy and the much-awaited 2006 movie V for Vendetta.
Superhero Hype's other offerings include a media area devoted to movie stills, a Featured Heroes section for tracking the biggest hero film franchises, a news feed, links to film trailers, information on games and reviews of movie tie-in products. A solid source of news for fans of the superhero film genre, this site is one that will leave visitors desperate for the next major super-flick. It is to be hoped that this hunger will send at least a few readers to comic stores, though, for a dose of the original art that has inspired so many blockbusters.
—A.M. Dellamonica
Site of the Week—December 27, 2005
t Slasherama, it's all about the body count. Bloodbaths, carnage and homicidal maniacs are the stuff dreams—as well as screams—are made of at this enthusiastic news-and-reviews site celebrating horror movies and everything associated with them.
Recent features available at the Slasherama Web page include a report on a Spanish film festival specializing in European horror films, an interview with Doom executive producer John Wells, a discussion of the British Board of Film's long history of censoring a movie called Zombie Flesh Eaters and, on the lighter side of things, a list of 10 great slasher movies. The site has a lengthy archive of movie reviews, maintains a sparsely updated blog and is host to message boards where horror aficionados can discuss general movie news as well as slasher-specific topics like the Friday the 13th movie series, horror film censorship around the globe and suitably spooky video games.
Slasherama also has a "Gore Gallery," a collection of grotesque images from movies like Hellraiser, Demons and Cannibal Ferox, each accompanied by a humorous caption. The site has an e-mail newsletter that visitors can join, U.S. and U.K. buying guides for DVD releases, an impressive links page and a news section wittily entitled "The 666 O'Clock News."
Despite its purported focus on death, death and even more cinematic death, Slasherama's definition of horror does occasionally stretch its boundaries—visitors will find an article on the reimagined Doctor Who in its Features archive, and the movie review area has covered a few films—like Batman Begins and Sin City—that have attracted significant non-horror audiences. In general, though, this site is just what it claims to be: a gathering place for fans of dark, creepy and unrelentingly lethal motion pictures.
—A.M. Dellamonica
Site of the Week—December 19, 2005
ult-film analysis is the top priority of the Mutant Reviewers From Hell, a cheery crew of devoted film fans who recently celebrated the posting of their 1,500th film review. Devoted to providing plainspoken write-ups of movies, be they Hollywood blockbusters or oddball independent classics, this site not only provides irreverent, no-punches-pulled film criticism but also gives each picture a detailed "Mutant Meter" rating, one that quantifies its cultishness, degree of bizarre content and—most importantly—rewatchability.
The eminently searchable Mutant archive is packed with multiple reviews of more than 900 movies, all indexed alphabetically and into handy genre categories. For visitors less interested in reading up on a specific film, the Features section offers a stunning array of diversions: Year in Review essays going back five years, interviews and articles on theater etiquette, graphic novels, sequels and '80s movies—to name just a few. A recurring column, "You Know, That Guy!", spotlights hardworking character actors whose faces are familiar but whose names tend to be unknown to filmgoers. There is a section devoted to timelines—snarky, fictionalized histories of pop culture phenomena like the Muppets, Star Wars and Weird Al Yankovic—as well as contests, links and polls. The site even offers guides on topics including successful movie marathons, how films win Oscars and understanding why the characters in an elimination horror film are so likely to meet their grisly fates.
Meanwhile, the Annual Mutant Awards presented by the Reviewers From Hell include categories somehow overlooked by mainstream prizes like the Oscars. Chosen by site visitors, the celebrated Mutie includes categories like Best Torture Scene, Craziest Musical Number, Worst Traumatic Moment in a Kiddie Film and Most Memorable Destruction of Extras.
The Mutant Reviewers are prolific, good-natured and witty, and because their Web page usually offers more than one review of a given picture, the opinions in their archives tend to be more balanced than at other review sites. Web surfers interested in thoughtful (but never stuffy) movie talk will definitely want to give this site a thorough look.
—A.M. Dellamonica
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