With
Superman returning anew in Zack Snyder's Man of Steel,
Unwind has dived into the cinematic archive to come
up with our 20 favourite moments in superhero cinema
- as well as the five such movies we'd rather forget.
Sometimes we fondly revisit specific scenes, at others
we point to clusters of them. They feature everyone
from aliens, gods, mutants and billionaire playboys
to powerless teens and other ordinary folk with big
hearts, at their best creating some of the most memorable
words and images in recent film history (so there
are, necessarily, some minor spoilers).
This is as good an excuse as you'll find to (re)discover
superheroes' golden moments before believing - again
- a man can fly.
Top
20 celluloid superhero scenes
20. Iron Man 2 (2010)
After
the dazzling debut of Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, in
his first outing, the sequel was a disappointment.
In fact, the best thing about it wasn't even Robert
Downey jnr - it was the introduction of Scarlett Johansson
as the Black Widow. The acrobatic fight during which
she single-handedly takes out a handful of tough guys,
before Stark's bodyguard Happy Hogan (played by director
Jon Favreau) proudly overcomes just one, foretold
that Black Widow was going to be more than just a
token female Avenger a few years later.
4.
Spider-Man (2002)
What
is it about our friendly neighbourhood wall crawler
and his romantic relationships - curiously, also the
best thing about last year's reboot, The Amazing Spider-Man?
For all the face-offs with the Green Goblin (Willem
Dafoe) and other action in the first big-screen Spider-Man
origin story, the moment that every watching nerd
with that rare combination of a) too much time on
their hands and b) a partner has re-created is the
upside-down kiss in the rain between Spidey (Tobey
Maguire) and Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst).
3. The Dark Knight (2008)
The
first billion-dollar superhero flick was also the
first such film to win an Oscar for an acting performance,
courtesy of the late Heath Ledger's astonishing reinvention
of the Joker. But the real star of the show is director
Christopher Nolan, who thrilled with action from the
film's opening bank heist to the gobsmacking flip
of a giant truck, while telling an enthralling, intelligent,
believable-enough story. No wonder Warner Bros tapped
the filmmaker to point Man of Steel in the right direction
as the new film's producer.
2. The Avengers (2012)
There
are dozens of classic moments in the third-highest-grossing
movie ever but our favourite occurs towards the climax,
in Tony ''Iron Man'' Stark's city penthouse pad. Affronted
bad guy Loki (Tom Hiddleston) starts making a speech
to the menacing Hulk saying he's a deity, not some
mere monster, only to be cut off as our huge green
friend picks him up by one leg and effortlessly thrashes
him around. ''Puny god'' is the big guy's conclusion.
1. Superman (1978)
The
iconic moment from the first great superhero movie
of the special-effects age comes shortly after Lois
Lane (Margot Kidder) falls from a helicopter precariously
balanced at the top of a skyscraper. A man in a red
cape and blue tights, who no one has seen before,
flies up and catches her. ''Easy, miss, I've got you,''
says the as-yet-unnamed, physics-defying hero (Christopher
Reeve). ''You've got me? Who's got you?'' replies
the incredulous Lois. The world believes a man can
fly, a screen legend is created overnight and a super-franchise
is born. Now all that remains to be seen is whether
Man of Steel can have a similar impact.
