Tom Breihan

3/6/22

What the hell were any of us thinking making the terrible <i>Batman Forever</i> a huge hit?

What the hell were any of us thinking making the terrible Batman Forever a huge hit?

Summer blockbusters were not in a great place in the mid-'90s

Tom Breihan

PublishedMarch 6, 2022

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3/6/22

<i>The Dark Knight</i> changed things, forever

The Dark Knight changed things, forever

The Batman sequel moved with a crisp confidence that had been mostly missing from blockbuster cinema for a long time

Tom Breihan

PublishedMarch 6, 2022

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3/5/22

<i>Batman Returns</i> is a relic of an age when disgusting monsters only ran for office in the movies

Batman Returns is a relic of an age when disgusting monsters only ran for office in the movies

To really enjoy Batman Returns, you have to give yourself over to its triumphant silliness

Tom Breihan

PublishedMarch 5, 2022

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3/4/22

Christopher Nolan dragged Batman (and superhero cinema) into a more serious “<em></em>real”<em></em> world

Christopher Nolan dragged Batman (and superhero cinema) into a more serious “real” world

Finally, Batman got to be the real star of a Batman movie

Tom Breihan

PublishedMarch 4, 2022

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3/3/22

Tim Burton played fast and loose with the Caped Crusader in his inventive blockbuster <i>Batman</i>

Tim Burton played fast and loose with the Caped Crusader in his inventive blockbuster Batman

It’s oddly thrilling to see a big-budget superhero movie that’s so clearly a single person’s vision

Tom Breihan

PublishedMarch 3, 2022

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3/1/22

Batman & Robin is the silliest superhero blockbuster, but is it really the worst?

It is a bad movie, to be sure, but its awfulness is kind of fascinating

Tom Breihan

PublishedMarch 1, 2022

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2/28/22

<i>Batman</i> changed how blockbusters look—and how Hollywood sold them

Batman changed how blockbusters look—and how Hollywood sold them

Batman wasn’t just the biggest movie of 1989—it was a cultural phenomenon

Tom Breihan

PublishedFebruary 28, 2022

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12/10/21

Zack Snyder's cut of <i>Justice League</i> was the preposterous superhero-movie event of 2021

Zack Snyder's cut of Justice League was the preposterous superhero-movie event of 2021

Marvel dominated the box office, but it was The Snyder Cut we all talked about

Tom Breihan

PublishedDecember 10, 2021

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11/12/21

<i>F9</i> got audiences back to theaters by giving them all the absurdity they craved

F9 got audiences back to theaters by giving them all the absurdity they craved

After a year inside, who could resist the siren call of Fast & Furious on the big screen?

Tom Breihan

PublishedNovember 12, 2021

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9/17/21

Is <i>Bad Boys For Life </i>the last blockbuster?

Is Bad Boys For Life the last blockbuster?

Thanks to COVID-19, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence's big-screen reunion is the final relic of a time when large…

Tom Breihan

PublishedSeptember 17, 2021

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9/3/21

Disney’s lucrative remake plan culminated with a soulless, joyless “live action” <i>Lion King</i>

Disney’s lucrative remake plan culminated with a soulless, joyless “live action” Lion King

Jon Favreau used groundbreaking technology to strip all the life out of the animated classic

Tom Breihan

PublishedSeptember 3, 2021

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8/20/21

Marvel won big as its heroes lost everything in the downer epic <i>Avengers: Infinity War</i>

Marvel won big as its heroes lost everything in the downer epic Avengers: Infinity War

Will the biggest franchise in movie history ever top its two-part crossover smash?

Tom Breihan

PublishedAugust 20, 2021

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8/6/21

<i>The Last Jedi</i> let the past die—and pissed off a galaxy of overprotective fans in the process

The Last Jedi let the past die—and pissed off a galaxy of overprotective fans in the process

Rian Johnson dared to make an anti-nostalgic Star Wars. The diehards were not pleased.

Tom Breihan

PublishedAugust 6, 2021

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7/23/21

In <i>Rogue One</i>, Rebel spirit and corporate control collided to make Disney’s best <i>Star Wars</i>

In Rogue One, Rebel spirit and corporate control collided to make Disney’s best Star Wars

Disney is simply not into spending hundreds of millions to indulge a director’s whims when there’s Star Wars money…

Tom Breihan

PublishedJuly 23, 2021

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6/25/21

<i>American Sniper</i> fought a culture war on the box office battlefield

American Sniper fought a culture war on the box office battlefield

Clint Eastwood's wartime biopic emerged victorious in a year of superhero blockbusters

Tom Breihan

PublishedJune 25, 2021

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6/11/21

Blockbusters don’t get much bleaker than the kids-killing-kids spectacle of<i> The Hunger Games</i>

Blockbusters don’t get much bleaker than the kids-killing-kids spectacle of The Hunger Games

Catching Fire taught the Harry Potter generation to distrust adults

Tom Breihan

PublishedJune 11, 2021

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5/28/21

Even the Dark Knight was no match for the box office might of <i>The Avengers</i>

Even the Dark Knight was no match for the box office might of The Avengers

In 2008, the year that the Marvel Cinematic Universe began, Batman ate Marvel’s lunch. Iron Man, the movie that…

Tom Breihan

PublishedMay 28, 2021

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5/14/21

The final <i>Harry Potter</i> closed a decade of hits—and of failed attempts at the next <i>Harry Potter</i>

The final Harry Potter closed a decade of hits—and of failed attempts at the next Harry Potter

The Harry Potter series was too big to fail, and yet it could’ve failed so easily, again and again. In Harry Potter,…

Tom Breihan

PublishedMay 14, 2021

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4/30/21

<i>Toy Story 3</i> went Ham(m) on all our hearts—and made a fortune doing it

Toy Story 3 went Ham(m) on all our hearts—and made a fortune doing it

I must’ve known that all the toys weren’t about to die. I had to know. This was a G-rated kids’ movie, the third…

Tom Breihan

PublishedApril 30, 2021

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4/16/21

Avatar, a strange dream that became the biggest movie of all time

It’s been more than a decade since a wholly original film was the biggest hit of its year. All our reigning…

Tom Breihan

PublishedApril 16, 2021

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Tom Breihan's posts

What the hell were any of us thinking making the terrible Batman Forever a huge hit?

The Dark Knight changed things, forever

Batman Returns is a relic of an age when disgusting monsters only ran for office in the movies

Christopher Nolan dragged Batman (and superhero cinema) into a more serious “real” world

Tim Burton played fast and loose with the Caped Crusader in his inventive blockbuster Batman

Batman & Robin is the silliest superhero blockbuster, but is it really the worst?

Batman changed how blockbusters look—and how Hollywood sold them

Zack Snyder's cut of Justice League was the preposterous superhero-movie event of 2021

F9 got audiences back to theaters by giving them all the absurdity they craved

Is Bad Boys For Life the last blockbuster?

Disney’s lucrative remake plan culminated with a soulless, joyless “live action” Lion King

Marvel won big as its heroes lost everything in the downer epic Avengers: Infinity War

The Last Jedi let the past die—and pissed off a galaxy of overprotective fans in the process

In Rogue One, Rebel spirit and corporate control collided to make Disney’s best Star Wars

American Sniper fought a culture war on the box office battlefield

Blockbusters don’t get much bleaker than the kids-killing-kids spectacle of The Hunger Games

Even the Dark Knight was no match for the box office might of The Avengers

The final Harry Potter closed a decade of hits—and of failed attempts at the next Harry Potter

Toy Story 3 went Ham(m) on all our hearts—and made a fortune doing it

Avatar, a strange dream that became the biggest movie of all time