New Documentary ‘Rise of the Superheroes’ Explores the History of Superheroes

Curious how geek culture overtook the mainstream? There’s a new documentary, Rise of the Superheroes that details out exactly how the shift in perception happened.

Rise of the Superheroes traces the development of our favorite comic book characters from their inception to the big screen. From Tim Burton’s prototype blockbuster Batman in 1989, through Blade, X-Men, Spiderman, The Dark Knight trilogy and Marvel’s remarkable Cinematic Universe, the film explores the earliest comic book adaptations, the history of the Superheroes and the evolution of comic book culture itself.

A lifelong comic book fan himself, Rise of the Superheroes writer and director Tom O’Dell was keen to bring the many fascinating strands of this story together for the first time.

“I was 12-years-old when Tim Burton’s Batman was released, and for the first time I felt comfortable wearing a Superhero T-Shirt in public!” Tom O’Dell, writer and director of Rise of the Superheroes, said. “Fans were hidden away in comic book stores for decades, knowing that there was something vital and totally singular about the stories and characters they were obsessed by. It’s taken a different medium, cinema, to show the rest of the world what it was missing. Rise of the Superheroes is a celebration of this remarkable ascent and the phenomenal impact these characters now have on audiences worldwide.”

The documentary features interviews with comic book legends Chris Claremont (the writer who shaped the X-Men across a 19-year run), Neal Adams (the artist who modernized Batman in the 1970s), writers Chuck Dixon and Scott Beatty, the film also benefits from the insights of a wealth of authors and specialists (Author of ‘Superheroes! Capes, Cowls and the Creation of Comic Book Culture’, Laurence Maslon; LA Times film critic, Geoff Boucher; Forbes Film Analyst, Scott Mendelson; Author of ‘Comic Book Nation’, Bradford Wright and many, many more – including FanBolt’s own Emma Loggins).

You can dive into documentary now on the following platforms – and if you check it out we’d love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below!

Amazon Prime: http://a.co/d/57Vd1NH
iTunes: http://bit.ly/RS-iTunes
Google Play: http://bit.ly/RS-GooglePlay
Hoopla: http://bit.ly/RS-Hoopla
X-Box: http://bit.ly/RS-Xbox
Vudu: http://bit.ly/RS-Vudu
Fandango Now: http://bit.ly/RS-FandangoNow