Truth, Justice and the Worldwide Box Office
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Warner Brothers, Box Office, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels
This Fourth of July, why not celebrate the birth of the United States by taking in a movie about that good ol' American icon, Superman? Well, in case you haven't heard, according to Superman Returns, the superhero isn't specifically representative of the U.S. anymore. In fact, one line in the film, spoken by Frank Langella, is stirring a lot of discussion. The line revises the familiar phrase associated with Superman, "truth, justice and the American way," changing it to "truth, justice and all that stuff," upsetting many who see it as a disruption of the comic book character's tradition. There are those, however, who see the logic in the revision, and the film's screenwriters, Michael Dougherty and Dan Harris, have backed up this logic. "The truth is he's an alien," says Harris, "He was sent from another planet. He has landed on the planet Earth, and he is here for everybody. He's an international superhero."The new film even features a montage showing Superman helping out around the globe. But does this really have to do with logic or does it have to do with international box office? Hollywood depends too much on the worldwide take to let a blockbuster speak only to Americans. The montage reminded me of similar montages in disaster films, which, despite taking place primarily in the States, show that the story is happening all over, thereby including international markets in the fun (Personally, if I was French, I might have had a problem with being included after seeing what happens to Paris in Armageddon). Harris addresses this, as well: "So you play the movie in a foreign country, and you say, 'What does he stand for? -- truth, justice and the American way.' I think a lot of people's opinions of what the American way means outside this country are different from what the line actually means because they are not the same anymore. And (using the line) would taint the meaning of what he is saying."
I wouldn't doubt that Warner Bros. was somewhat behind the change in order to assure no foreign markets have a problem with the meaning. Yet, the original phrasing is uttered in the 1978 Superman and that film made slightly more in foreign box office than it did in domestic. And that was at a time when there were far less markets for it to show in. Unfortunately, we can't determine just yet if the world cares about the newly internationalized Superman, as the film wasn't released in many foreign markets yet, because the rest of the world is too busy with the World Cup. We'll just have to wait until after the games end on Sunday, although even then, Superman Returns is getting a surprisingly slow-spread release throughout July and August. If I remember, I'll check back in with the worldwide grosses in the fall.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-03-2006 @ 1:09PM
Scott said...
1978 does not equal 2006. Many people outside this country's borders no longer think that the "American way" is a good thing.
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7-03-2006 @ 1:15PM
Elliott said...
There's also many people inside the country's borders who no longer think that the "American way" is a good thing.
-Just sayin'
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7-03-2006 @ 1:16PM
Avec said...
"Truth Justice...all that stuff" is just the most obvious example of how this movie was created for international audiences as much as American. Look no further than the incredibly simple dialogue and just how little of it there really was for a 2.5 hour movie. Blockbusters are crafted to reach as many people as they can, and that often means keeping the script as wordless and simplistic as possible.
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7-03-2006 @ 2:54PM
Heather said...
It's not even the first time "Truth, Justice and the American Way" has been changed. On 'Smallville', when asked what he believes in while running for student council president, Clark replies "I stand for truth, justice and other stuff.".
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7-03-2006 @ 3:25PM
mike said...
First, if you try to please everyone, you will please no one. If hollywood would simply focus on creating the best product, instead of the most likeable product we might not be stuck with as much mediocre movies as we do.
Second, the "American way" is very much an international ideal. In 1978 the United States was not the only superpower. The US was compared favorably to the USSR. Today the US is the only superpower left. There is no alternative with which to compare it. It is natural then to point out the failures of American society. The "American way" has not changed so much has the world's perception of it. The American way is still about democracy and trying to make the world a better place for everyone.
The writers have made a mistake by changing the line because they have invited controversy for little gain, perhaps even a loss. They have also confirmed to the world that yes the american way the american experiment has failed. But then again, like the previous post it's only a hollywood blockbuster, barely worthy of our time to watch, much less on which we should dwell.
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7-03-2006 @ 5:08PM
Das Klaun said...
http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/6680/308/1600/superman4thsmall.jpg
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7-03-2006 @ 8:08PM
scott said...
little dialogue? i thought people spoke about as much as they do in real life... though it kinda bothered me how nobody wantd autographs or anything when Supe's in a huge group of people...
I still think superman represents something great and idealistic about america, i had a great feeling about how positive it was throughout the film....
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7-04-2006 @ 2:59AM
bgdc said...
Mike wrote: "The "American way" has not changed so much has the world's perception of it. The American way is still about democracy and trying to make the world a better place for everyone."
Ah, Mike, many of us, Americans included, get a really good giggle when someone tries to paint the American Way as anything other than imperialism, destruction and greed. If the red-blue-yellow dork in tights stands for the American Way then many, many people in the US and abroad will do a double-take. You mean superman wants to enslave the world and bend it over? I thought Luthor was the villain in the film...
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7-07-2006 @ 3:19PM
Deanna said...
First of all what's the deal with Superman having a kid out of wedlock. I understand that times have changed in our society and this is totally acceptable in this day and age. But come on for the man of steel who stands for truth, justice and the AMERICAN way this seems a little out of his moral character. If you think about this side story about his kid having superpowers it doesn't make sense. When Superman sleeps with Louis Lane in Superman II he becomes human to be with her. If he is human when he sleeps with her and she becomes pregnant wouldn't the kid be just like every other kid minus the super powers? This could maybe be explained away but the writers and director are adamant about the story be a continuation of the first two Superman films.
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1-20-2007 @ 11:18AM
Matt Langdon said...
This line hasn't even always been what Superman stood for. Read this article for the history. People are making a bigger deal out of this than it is.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/30/opinion/30lundegaard.html?ex=1309320000&en=9f6e5c8984600afc&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
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