When Zack Snyder was announced as the director for the new Superman reboot Man Of Steel, fans everywhere clenched in disbelief. On the one hand, he would seem to be the perfect fit, but on the other, he had shown that when he gets things wrong, they go REALLY wrong. So we've decided to look back over his filmography and see how producer Christopher Nolan came to land on this particular director to take the reins on this summer's biggest comic book movie.

DAWN OF THE DEAD (2004)
Budget: $26 million
Worldwide Box Office: $102 million
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 75%
Entertainment.ie's Hindsight Review: Probably one of the first entries in the recent reinvigoration of the zombie franchise, Snyder needed balls the size of Krypton to take on a horror classic of this calibre for his directorial debut. But he pulled it off with aplomb thanks to his keen eye for interesting visuals, insanely tense set-ups, gory pay-offs and fantastic ensemble cast. Four out of Five.
How Is This Good For Man Of Steel?: He's not afraid to take risks - if he'd got it wrong, he'd have Romero fans banging down his door - and he knows how to reinvigorate a dying formula. Remember, he was the one who made the (then) rule-breaking decision to have the zombies be able to run like Usain Bolt.

300 (2006)
Budget: $65 million
Worldwide Box Office: $456 million
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 60%
Entertainment.ie's Hindsight Review: For the most part, this was style over substance… but by Xerxes, WHAT STYLE! So iconic that it got its own episode of South Park dedicated to its look, that slooow-FAST-slooooow editing and OTT violence certainly helped look past the barely there story and characters. Gerard Butler's best role to date, plus the ladies got to see a lot of buff men walk around in barely anything at all. Three Out Of Five.
How Is This Good For Man Of Steel?: It's got a distinctive look, something that Superman Returns was certainly lacking, and it was the first of two faithful comic adaptations, so he knows how to remain true to a revered source.

WATCHMEN (2009)
Budget: $130 million
Worldwide Box Office: $185 million
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 64%
Entertainment.ie's Hindsight Review: Terry Gilliam, Michael Bay, Darren Aronofsky and Paul Greengrass had all tried and failed to get this project off the ground, but Snyder finally managed to do it. Much maligned upon its release for being both too on-the-nose and not faithful enough to the source graphic novel, Watchmen was a huge risk - a massive budget on a group of unknown superheroes - that may not have set the box office alight, but paid off with one of the most intelligent and gritty superhero movies ever made. Four out of Five.
How Is This Good For Man Of Steel?: It's not all just whizz bang whollop like in so many other comic book movies, as Snyder was able to tie in realism and grown-up issues into a story about people who dress up and fight crime for a living.

LEGENDS OF THE GUARDIANS: THE OWLS OF GA'HOOLE (2010)
Budget: $80 million
Worldwide Box Office: $140 million
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 50%
Entertainment.ie's Hindsight Review: Possibly one of the most forgettable animation films of recent years, and to forever forth be mixed up with Rise Of The Guardians, Legends still sported Snyder's outstanding visual aesthetic, even if the story it was tacked on to was so dull and run-of-the-mill it may as well not have existed. Two out of Five.
How Is This Good For Man Of Steel?: All of Snyder's previous outings have been very adult-themed and aimed, but Man Of Steel has that 12a cert, which means it must be family friendly. Legends shows that Snyder is capable of turning off the blood pumps when necessary.

SUCKER PUNCH (2011)
Budget: $82 million
Worldwide Box Office: $89 million
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 23%
Entertainment.ie's Hindsight Review: Not QUITE as bad as you've been told/remember, but still a bit of a mis-fire. It came under attack for its sexism and video-game plotting, which Snyder says was his point all along, but there's no point in making fun of something if people mistake it for the genuine article. Again, the visuals were beyond reproach, and the action sequences were often fantastic, but everything else was too muddled to be enjoyed. Two out of Five.
How Is This Good For Man Of Steel?: Sucker Punch was written by Snyder, so the lesson we've learned here is to do what we should've done with M. Night Shyamalan years ago, and just let him direct someone else's scripts. Man Of Steel is written by the writer for Batman Begins, so we're good this time around.

Man Of Steel is in cinemas on June 14th, and keep your eyes on entertainment.ie over the next few days for an early review!