Is The Dark Knight the best superhero film ever made?

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This summer is set to be a big one for superhero films. Recently, Iron Man 3 reached cinema screens across the world, receiving largely good reviews from critics and fans alike, while Man of Steel, the latest reboot of the Superman franchise, is due for release very soon. Superheroes are very popular right now, but could either Iron Man 3 or Man of Steel stand up to classics of the genre?

Standout performances

According to the Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw, Iron Man 3 had great performances from the likes of lead Robert Downey Jr., and hopes are high than Man of Steel can replicate the former’s success at the box office. The last Superman movie to make it to the big screen was a bit of a flop, so hopefully the new film’s producers will learn from past mistakes.

It’s likely that Man of Steel will be a little darker and grittier than the halcyon days of the Superman franchise. Many modern superhero films such as the Iron Man series, Avengers Assemble and, of course, the most recent Batman movies, follow that pattern of grim storytelling. For the most part, it has made them more compelling.

Batman reigns

Whether or not Iron Man 3, Man of Steel or any other superhero movie stands the test of time, they will inevitably be compared with some of the classics. Ladbrokes Games recently conducted a survey that found The Dark Knight to be the best superhero film that’s ever been made. 21% and 19% of men respectively said that The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises were the best.

17% of women revealed that they thought Avengers Assemble was the best, compared to 16% for The Dark Knight Rises. Overall, 18% of the 1,000 people surveyed thought the Dark Knight was better than any other superhero film, which suggests that the movie-going public have an appetite for more than just action – they want a story that will surprise them too.

Other findings from the survey include 62% of people saying that the Batmobile was their favourite superhero vehicle, while 22% revealed that they thought Catwoman was the worst superhero of all time. Meanwhile, men said that The Hulk was the toughest superhero; women said the same of Batman.

Iron Man was a popular answer in many categories, including being dateable – 20% of women said they would choose him over any other superhero. Superman, surprisingly, didn’t really register in the survey, which is a surprise.

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