Why Hollywood Needs To Rewatch 'The Dark Knight' — forbes.com

Are we getting what amounts to a humorless cinematic universe from Warner Bros. (Time Warner, Inc.), starting with a joke-free  V Superman? It is no secret that studios often learn the wrong lessons from their hit movies. After Titanic, we didn’t get sweeping female-centric films but rather the usual testosterone fests with young-love subplots awkwardly inserted and emphasized in the marketing. saw the success of Avatar and only saw its 3D effects and in turn decided to release as much 3D product into theaters as possible. Hollywood saw the success of Inception and didn’t think “Gee, audiences enjoy high-quality original science-fiction star vehicles” but rather thought “Gee, let’s remake Total Recall!” And with the Fantastic Four reboot apparently joining the ranks of “gritty” and “realistic” reboots, we now have word, via Drew McWeeney of Hitfix, that the upcoming DC Comics cinematic adaptations, starting with Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice (gah… that title!) will be abiding by a strict “no jokes” policy. Whether or not that specific rumor is true, and I cannot confirm its accuracy, it speaks to a broader issue that deserves mention. It’s time for producers to stop attempting to cash in on the success of  while missing what made Nolan’s so successful.

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