Superman Lives is one of the most bizarre and criticized unmade films of all-time, and now thanks to Jon Schnepp we have new insights into the failed project, along with an interesting look in at the equally bizarre nature of the mainstream Hollywood filmmaking machine. The Death of “Superman Lives”: What Happened? begins with Schnepp surveying fans at Comic-Con about the idea of a Tim Burton directed, Nicolas Cage starring Superman movie, showing them the leaked picture of Cage (with flowing hair) wearing an early test version of the new suit. Reactions are mixed.

Schnepp then dives into the history of the film, beginning with producer Jon Peters’ acquisition of the film rights and hiring of Kevin Smith as screenwriter. It’s clear Peters and Smith were never on the same page, as most of their recollections of early meetings never match up. Smith claims Peters wanted a modern, heavily misguided take on the iconic superhero in which he doesn’t fly and doesn’t don his famous outfit and cape; Peters immediately denies this when Schnepp asks him about it later. Peters represents the creatively bankrupt big Hollywood producer, and Smith represents the true fan fighting for the creative integrity of Superman (at least in Smith’s eyes). Their vision is clearly a mess, with the only thing they seem to agree on being that Tim Burton should direct. And so Burton comes on board, but he hates the script, so Smith gets replaced by Batman Returns script doctor Wesley Strick.

This is where things really get rolling, with plenty of interesting developments. Nicolas Cage gets involved in the production, and after getting reminded of his incredible performances in films like Adaptation and Wild at Heart, he seems perfect for the vulnerable, outsider Superman that Burton wants to portray. Schnepp also lets viewers see and hear from the incredible, versatile team of visual artists and art directors Burton put together for the project, a group reminiscent of the team Alejandro Jodorowsky put together for his failed adaptation of the Frank Herbert novel Dune (profiled in last year’s Jodorowsky’s Dune). But the studio keeps reigning the production in, tightening the budget and creative control, forcing Burton to fire Strick and bring on screenwriter Dan Gilroy (writer/director of Nightcrawler). Eventually it’s revealed that what really killed Superman Lives wasn’t fan outrage over the leaked photo of Cage, Jon Peters’ constant interference, or anything from Burton or his team; it was because of the spectacular string of big budget box office failures (like Batman and Robin) Warner Brothers put out in the late ‘90s that made the studio nervous of making another dud.

The revealing interviews Schnepp gets for his film makes it an enjoyable and informative watch throughout, but the film also does a great job highlighting the humor that comes out of the behind the scenes tensions. Schenpp also edited the film, and he shows a masterful hand at putting together differing accounts of what was going on behind the scenes to play up the comedy of the situation. Most of that comes into play in the early scenes with Peters and Smith. One of the funniest moments in the film sees Smith talk about how Peters seemingly fell into a producing career after working as a hairdresser for Barbra Streisand, followed by Peters defensively talking about how people don’t take him seriously because he started out as Barbra’s hairdresser.

But what’s most impressive is how Schnepp turns you around one of the most massively criticized attempts at a blockbuster ever. The film seems like a joke in Peters and Smith’s hands full of both misguided ideas (from Peters) and unneeded fan service (from Smith), but once Burton comes on to the project, the film surprisingly appears to come to life under his direction. And that leads into the other great victory of this documentary: it shows the real issues with today’s superhero movies. It’s not so much that they’re oversaturating the market, but that something like a Marvel cinematic universe is too safe, to the point where studios are dropping a new superhero into their template of choice. Superman Lives could have been a disaster if it had actually been made, but it definitely would’ve been a strange and unique take on an iconic superhero, and that’s something we don’t really get anymore.

The Death of “Superman Lives”: What Happened? is currently out on Blu-Ray, DVD and VOD.

We may seem like reclusive budget-shirking obscure film enthusiasts over here at Way Too Indie, and well, some of us are, but we’re not living in any dark holes and far be it from of us to say that a film that had a little money behind it isn’t worth our notice. So here we are, covering our bases. In The Mainstream we’ll look at what’s doing well at the box-office (and secretly hoping it’s an indie darling) and all those major releases that demand our attention in the name of pop culture.

What do summer movie hits like Face/Off, Con Air, My Best Friend’s Wedding, The Lost World, Batman & Robin, and Men in Black have in common with Summer 2014? They were all released in 1997, which is officially the last time we had as dismal a box office as we did this past summer. How surprising with such cinematic gems. I mean, come on, Nick Cage was in two of those. *Wink*

Yeesh. Do you see now why we encourage indie film viewing, people? The studios just can’t be trusted to give us good stuff.

Obviously we didn’t hate everything this summer. We’re almost embarrassed at how much we’ve been gushing over Guardians of the Galaxy (we swear we’re an indie site, honest). But with 12 sequels this summer, only 3 really proved that fans were asking for them with increased ticket sales, so 8 of them were clearly the studios guessing what we like and dismally failing once again.

Well hopefully we all got our fix of explosions and CG and we can move on into September and the fall and enjoy the somber, yet touching, offerings they have to bring.

That said, September is slightly droll.

The few things on our agenda from the mainstream is James Gandolfini’s last performance in The Drop, YA epic The Maze Runner, all-star studded comedy This is Where I Leave You, and, because Sam Rockwell can almost redeem any film (sorry The Way Way Back), we might also see Laggies. As for the indie side, The Guest, The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby, The Skeleton Twins, Tusk, The Two Faces of January, and Pride all have us pretty revved up.

Here’s your September release guide below. Happy watching, and hi-ho into fall!

September Preview

The Week of August 31

Forrest Gump (Rerelease), The Longest Week, Frontera, No No: A Dockumentary

The Week of September 7th

My Old Lady, No Good Deed, Search Party, Dolphin Tale 2, The Identical, The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby, 108 Stitches, The Drop, Atlas Shrugged Part III, The Quitter, Wheels

The Week of September 14th

The Guest, The Maze Runner, A Walk Among the Tombstones, This is Where I Leave You, Reclaim, Space Station 76, The Zero Theorem, Tusk, The Skeleton Twins, The Scribbler, Tracks, Hector and the Search for Happiness

The Week of September 21st

The Equalizer, The Boxtrolls, Laggies, Pride, A Matter of Faith, The Two Faces of January, The Song, Jimi: All Is By My Side, Two: The Story of Roman & Nyro 

August Box Office Domestic Grosses

1. Guardians of the Galaxy (Buena Vista) – $283,566,704
2. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Paramount) – $167,684,505
3. Let’s Be Cops (Fox) – $60,762,872
4. Into the Storm (WB) – $42,981,248
5.  The Hundred-Foot Journey (Buena Vista) – $42,097,623

2014 Year-To-Date Box Office Domestic Grosses

1. Guardians of the Galaxy (Buena Vista) – $283,566,704
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Buena Vista) – $259,766,572
3. The LEGO Movie (WB) – $257,759,191
4. Transformers: Age of Extinction (Paramount) – $244,480,845
5. Maleficent (Buena Vista) – $238,721,001

Joe

Director David Gordon Green returns to the indie festival circuit after last year’s Prince Avalanche with a new film starring Nicholas Cage and Tye Sherdian entitled, Joe. Named after one of the main characters (Cage), Joe is about an ex-con who operates a forest clearing business. Set in the hot and humid summer in the Deep South, Joe hires a 15-year-old drifter named Gary (Sherdian) who is eager to work under any circumstances.

If Gary isn’t throwing punches at people that underestimate his strength, he is receiving punches from his abusive piss drunk father. Joe takes it upon himself to take Gary under his wing and begins to form a father figure type bond with the young teenager. What unfolds is brutally violent film that centers on this unlikely friendship that provides a safe haven from his nasty home life.

The biggest problem in Joe is that the film insists on reinforcing what has already been well established. Just about everyone in the film holds a drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other, and if you add up the aspirations of all the characters, it would amount to almost nothing. Strong performances and beautiful scenery found within Joe are undeniable, but the graphic exploitation of its characters takes so much focus that it becomes overwhelmingly exhausting.

RATING: 6.6

Faults

Austin native Riley Stearns hits it out of the park with his first feature-length film Faults, which follows an eccentric cheapskate named Ansel Roth (expertly played by Leland Orser) who is considered an expert deprogrammer of cult members. Willing to do anything for a free breakfast, Ansel agrees to hear out a husband and wife’s plea to deprogram their daughter named Claire (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), who has been brainwashed by a cult called Faults. He accepts the job after his previous manager demands a large sum of cash that he is unable to pay back.

Faults starts off as a comedy–a fantastic opening scene involves Ansel trying to use an invalid coupon at a restaurant–then quickly morphs into darker territory when Ansel is hired to kidnap and deprogram Claire. This beyond bizarre comedy features an incredible plot twist near the end that involves Ansel losing own mind while attempting to correct Claire’s. Faults is challenging film in all the right ways and was the most satisfying film that I have seen at SXSW so far.

RATING: 8.4

The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call – New Orleans is an indie intelligent “cop movie” that is really much more. A little worried it was going to be a typical cop movie, I was a little hesitant to watch it, but I was glad I did. Digging deep into both addiction and morality, this thriller will keep you wanting more and it delivers.

As you would guess from the name of the film, it is about a bad lieutenant named Terence McDonagh (Nicolas Cage). Situations he gets into as a cop he uses to his advantage for drugs. When he busts a drug dealer, he will score some of the drugs from himself. He prefers to do a lot of his work off the record especially when it comes to collecting evidence.

He has a lover named Frankie (Eva Mendes) who is a prostitute and together they work as a team for money and drugs. But drugs aren’t the only thing Terence has gotten himself into, gambling is also a big part of his life. He begins to dig himself deeper and deeper with drug dealers and bookies that eventually make Frankie’s life in danger.

The Bad Lieutenant is riddled with twists and new sequence of events, the two hour run time seems to end in no time at all. It is gripping and keeps you wanting more and more until the very end. Without divulging too much of the film way, the film does come full circle at the end in way you almost can’t help but applaud to show your appreciation at the conclusion.

Nicolas Cage played the character superbly. You almost couldn’t imagine anyone else playing the part. You can see him physically and mentally deteriorating and heading into a downward spiral as his character was. He really played the character with full conviction. I have always respected the work Cage has done and this performance validates my respect. He rightfully won the Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor.

Many times throughout the film, whether it was a hallucination shot from the drugs or what would seem a normal shot seemed to be captured in an unorthodox way. It really portrays New Orleans beautifully. Untraditional angles and great use of the camera would earn a nomination for Best Cinematography at the 2010 Independent Spirit Awards.

The Bad Lieutenant is an indie film that I think everyone can enjoy. The plot seems to grow with every scene and there doesn’t seem to be a dull spot in it. The storyline is captivating and the cinematography is excellent. It’s truly a thriller that you must see.