You'll be going to see Superman Returns because it's a hyped summer blockbuster. But throw a little salted popcorn over your left shoulder just to be safe, writes LIAM LACEY
LIAM LACEY
It's a bird, it's a plane -- it's Super Curse! The new Superman movie, Superman Returns, finally hits the theatres on Wednesday where, given advance predictions and positive reviews, it should put the questions of occult interference to rest. The 68-year-old franchise, which has seen successes as a comic book, radio show, TV and movie hit, now promises to be the biggest box-office hit of the summer.
Of course, Superman is not the first example of a case where the suspension of disbelief blurred into the suspension of common sense. The "curse" fits in with a larger pattern of cursed stars and movies, going back at least to Shakespeare's Macbeth -- or "the Scottish Play" as it is still called by the more precious members of the theatre craft.
More recently, superstition has blended with morbid celebrity fascination, leading to the rich mythology and acres of Internet space dedicated to James Dean's death car, Elvis, John F. Kennedy, backwards Led Zeppelin records, the "Paul is dead" Beatles conspiracy theory and on-set scary stories about almost every occult-themed movie of the seventies.
What's unusual about the Superman curse is that it involves no aspect of the devil or the occult, just two tragedies that befell two of several actors who played Superman, decades apart.
George Reeves, the television Superman of the fifties, was found dead with a gunshot to the head in 1959. The death was ruled a suicide, though others suspect murder. (He'd been having an affair with the wife of MGM exec Eddie Mannix.)
Thirty-six years later, Christopher Reeve, who played Superman in four movies between 1978 and 1987, was paralyzed by a riding accident. He died two years ago of a heart attack related to his injury.
Several other actors involved in the Superman series of movies have had bad luck. Margot Kidder suffered a temporary mental breakdown in 1996, a result of her bipolar disorder. Richard Pryor developed multiple sclerosis, Marlon Brando's son was charged with murder and his daughter committed suicide.
At times, the conspiracy theorists sound desperate. Take the case of Clayton (Bud) Collyer, the host of To Tell the Truth, who provided the voice of Superman on radio for 11 years (1940-1951) and in the 11 Max and Dave Fleischer theatrical cartoons. Three years after he voiced The New Adventures of Superman in 1966, he died -- at 61, of a heart attack.
Curse theorists also cite the obscurity of Dean Cain, following the television show Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, though his so-so career seems more than balanced by the success of his co-star Teri Hatcher on Desperate Housewives.
In fact, several cast members from the original Superman movies have found new homes on Smallville, including Annette O'Toole (from Superman III), Kidder and Terrence Stamp, as the voice of Superman's dad, Jor-El.
Aiding the "curse" theory is the complicated development history of the current Superman movie, which has been in the works since well before the millennium. Tim Burton, Oliver Stone and Brett Ratner (Rush Hour) were all associated with the film. A number of leading men, including Nicolas Cage, Josh Hartnett, Brendan Fraser, Jude Law and Paul Walker were linked to the project, but were put off by delays and the three-picture deal. Kevin Smith (Jersey Girl, Clerks) wrote a script that was never used. Two years ago, CNN released a report tying the reluctance of actors to tie themselves up in the series with the so-called "curse," though no actor has ever mentioned it.
Unlike most Hollywood curse stories, Superman lacks even a good occult connection or dark secret. Perhaps it's linked to Superman's abilities to see through clothes or, more likely, his dangerous God-challenging abilities. (The new movie alludes to Prometheus, the Greek god who was punished for bringing mortals the gift of fire.) Instead of Superman, he could opt for the more modest Fairly Impressive Man, but at a serious cost to brand recognition.
Almost all other cursed entertainments involve some sort of trafficking with the occult. Whether this makes God or the Devil angry is not clear; all that's clear is that evil, like nitro-glycerin, is not good to play with.
Rebel without a Cause (1955)
Three of the principal stars, James Dean (car crash), Sal Mineo (stabbing) and Natalie Wood (drowning) died prematurely (though Dennis Hopper is still going strong). Why the curse? Possibly the subliminally gay subplot involving Mineo, possibly because Dean was too cool and sexy to live. A separate curse story is attached to Dean's death Porsche, Little Bastard, which, according to lore, was a notably malevolent race car that continued to slide off platforms and displays maiming people long after it killed Dean. In the case of the car's later history, Dean's alleged interest in occult matters is sometimes blamed.
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
This one is more a case of morbid coincidence than curse. Roman Polanski's film starred Mia Farrow as a woman tricked by a Satanist coven into carrying the Devil's child. A year after its release, Polanski's pregnant wife, Sharon Tate, was murdered by members of the Manson family who were inspired by the Beatles' song, Helter Skelter. John Lennon subsequently lived in The Dakota apartment building where the film was made and was killed near its entrance.
The Exorcist (1973)
The Exorcist curse has been credited to a cynical studio plot to drum up excitement for the movie. A fire destroyed several props. Ellen Burstyn and Linda Blair both injured their backs during stunts and evangelist Billy Graham said there was an actual demon living in the celluloid of the film.
The Omen (1976)
When you adopt the spawn of Satan as your own child, bad things happen. Scriptwriter David Seltzer was struck by lightning. Gregory Peck's son committed suicide two months before shooting started. According to a BBC Channel 4 documentary, a year after the movie, designer George Richardson was in a car crash in Holland that killed his female assistant. A nearby road sign indicated the distance to a Dutch town: Ommen, 66.6 kilometres.
Poltergeist (1982)
Six of the stars from this trilogy of eighties movies died prematurely. The film's young star, Heather O'Rourke, died at only 12 of septic shock. The actress playing her sister, Dominique Dunne, was strangled by her boyfriend in 1982. Julian Beck, who played an evil spirit, died of cancer (though he was diagnosed before accepting the role) and Will Sampson, who played a good spirit, died because of post-operative complications following a heart-lung transplant. A parking-garage set caught fire and the house where the film was shot was damaged by an earthquake. Why the curse? Allegedly, real human skeletal remains were used as props in the first film, which caused angry spirits to seek revenge.The Crow (1994)
In what's more of a conspiracy theory than a curse, there's the death of martial-arts actor Brandon Lee on the set of Alex Proyas's The Crow after being shot by a gun that was supposed to be filled with blanks. The theory goes that either Lee was murdered by the same Chinese Mafia that supposedly caused the death in 1973 of his father, or it was Bruce Lee's punishment for his exposure of ancient martial-arts secrets on film, or it was because he wouldn't star in Hong Kong films. Alternatively, Lee Sr.'s brain hemorrhage and Lee Jr.'s death may be blamed on "Oni" (Japanese for demons).
The Omen (2006)
The brother of Pete Postlethwaite, who plays Father Brennan in the film, died after drawing three sixes in a card game. Of course, it stands to reason he couldn't have died before drawing the cards. Postlethwaite opined that, "It's not necessarily got anything to do with the film. But I think things like that do happen and it's just sometimes we're not sensitized enough to see the problem."
To which we say: Throw a little salted popcorn over your left shoulder, and save your curses for the person speaking on his cellphone during Superman's showdown with Lex Luthor. If movies are magic, every act of faith helps.
Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ ... nt/Movies/
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