Ghost Riders in the Sky.

Two superheroes made their first public appearance today. First up, and more importantly, is Brandon Routh in full Superman regalia. He looks…ok, I suppose. To be honest, I’m getting a fanboy conventioner vibe from this pic, but I think I’d probably feel that way about anybody but Christopher Reeve in the Big Red Boots. Meanwhile, our first shot of Nicolas Cage as Johnny Blaze has also popped up, although there’s not much to see quite yet, and unfortunately his head isn’t on fire.

Gimme a V.

A thespian-terrorist connection? The upcoming film version of Alan Moore’s V for Vendetta receives an infusion of grade-A British talent, including Stephen Fry, John Hurt, Tim Pigott-Smith, and Sinead Cusack. (They join James Purefoy, Natalie Portman, and Stephen Rea.)

I’m Super, Thanks for Asking.

While Superman director Bryan Singer flies to the aid of Peter Jackson, son of Krypton Brandon Routh emerges as Clark Kent in the streets of “Metropolis,” as does Kate Bosworth as Lois Lane.

Mean Machine.

Word is ex-footballer Vinnie Jones, also of Lock Stock and Snatch, may suit up as one of the X3 villains, namely Juggernaut. That’s a right good fit, innit?

Beetlemania.

“In a perverse way it’s kind of flattering. Because, had we not put these characters in a position where enough people cared about them, their deaths would have been meaningless. To a certain extent, and again in a really perverse way, we helped put the gun to their heads.” Via Neilalien, JLI-era writer Keith Giffen talks about Countdown to Infinite Crisis and the death of the Blue Beetle.

Bats out of Hell.

Phew, this movie had best hurry up and come out before I run out of lame bat-centered cliches. At any rate, SuperHeroHype unveils another swanky new Batman Begins poster.

A Change in the Masthead.

A noteworthy turnover at The Daily Planet today — Hugh Laurie is out (due to his prior commitment to FOX’s House) and Frank Langella is in as Perry White for Bryan Singer’s Superman. Ok, that works.

Nothing Beside Remains?

As it turns out, the rumors were true — Paramount is in fact getting antsy about The Watchmen, and as a result the production will likely be moving out of London’s Pinewood Studios in order to save a few bucks. C’mon, y’all…think Sin City, not LXG.

Bats in the Belfry.

Look, up in the sky! It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s…a swarming horde of bats? Two new 30-sec Batman Begins TV spots offer up Gary Oldman as Commissioner Gordon, the Scarecrow’s ride, more action sequences, and lots of squeaky, flying critters.

Reveling in Sin.

Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned…and, whatsmore, I liked it. Without a shred of redeeming social value, Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez’s Sin City is a film very noir. It’s a sick, depraved, and smutty ride into a crime-ridden hellhole of a metropolis, exactly as it should be. Trust me — Mos Eisley ain’t got nothing on this wretched hive of scum and villainy. The alleys of Sin City are infested with sadistic, blood-smeared torturers, psychopathic, half-naked prostitutes, and trigger-happy, two-timing murderers…and those are the good guys.

As I said of the trailer, I was worried going in that the unique comic book style Rodriguez was attempting here would fall flat (no pun intended), and all that greenscreen work would mean Attack of the Clones-itis or Sky Captain redux: otherwise-good actors looking lost and bored in a muddy CGI-mess. Well, I’m pleased to announce that my concerns were unfounded — Sin City turned out to be a visual marvel and easily Rodriguez’ best film since El Mariachi (for which Frank Miller probably deserves much of the credit — virtually every shot in the film was storyboarded in his graphic novels.) And, a few hiccups notwithstanding (I’m looking at you, Michael Madsen), the wide-ranging and talented cast are all vibrant and alive here (even, as in the case of Benicio Del Toro, when they’re not.)

In fact, in a sinful sea of memorable performances, particularly Del Toro and Clive Owen (who have a great repartee in the Tarantino sequence), Nick Stahl as That Yellow Bastard, and Elijah Wood (continuing the post-Frodo deterioration he began in Eternal Sunshine) as Kevin the ninja-quick cannibal (no relation), the surprising standout of Sin City is a back-from-the-dead himself Mickey Rourke as Marv — even behind a putty nose, a swath of Band-Aids, and a continually applied sheen of blood and viscera, Rourke succeeds in making a (literally) hard-nosed and ultra-violent character compassionate. (There’s also great cameo work by, among others, Powers Boothe, Rutger Hauer, and Nicky Katt, the latter of whom may well be reprising his role from Full Frontal.)

If I have any qualm, it’s that the best stories came first, and the film may have run a little long. There’s really not much to the Bruce Willis-Jessica Alba tale that closes the film, although I don’t think it wears out its welcome. Speaking of which, I might well have preferred it if Alba and Brittany Murphy could’ve taken a page from a fearless Carla Gugino…But, see, that’s the sin talking. A few hours in this vile, shameless, beastly sinkhole and you too’ll become infected with it, and I mean that in the best way possible.

In short, despite all the odds (and be warned — despite a grotesquely debauched moral economy that some people may never get over), Sin City is easily the best movie of 2005 so far, and a welcome omen for other outside-the-box comic adaptations such as The Watchmen. (Graphic Novel-to-Film comparison link via LinkMachineGo and Neilalien.)