Perfect movie day today: too hot, and AC inside :) Pirates was a good flick but I almost feel it could have benefitted from a little more editing; it seemed a tad longish. That aside, wall to wall battles, chases, and some great sword-fighting coupled with the level of humor and atmosphere established in the first movie makes it quite a bit of fun.

Superman Returns, however, is definitely the better of the two. This really is an outstanding installment. The plot is solid, and the background and recap of Supermans life is done so very well, and the acting is spot on. You ever wonder how people in that universe can't recognize Superman in Clark's face? I did as well, but the two characters are defined differently by Routh and played well. Awesome little twist near the end as well. A+ from start to end.

It's really difficult, I think, to find a movie that is done perfectly from start to finish like that: solid plot, character development/background, acting, etc. Only others I can think of with that is Dreamcatcher and Millers Crossing. Anywho ... next up for me is Wordplay. Seems like a fun flick, despite the fact that I suck at crossword puzzles.

Ninja edit: Has anyone seen the directors cut version of Kingdom of Heaven? I saw the theatrical version and didn't think much of it, but I've heard that the DC adds about an hour of film and turns a sucky movie to an absolutely brilliant one. Gonna have to check that out also.