Time Magazine and the Los Angeles Times loved it. Roger Ebert, the New York Times and a few hard-core comic-book fans ... eh, not so much.

All par for the course, according to Chris Lee, executive producer of the newly released "Superman Returns."

"We're dealing with a character that has 70 years of history," says Lee, founding chairman of the University of Hawai'i Academy for Creative Media. "You have to pick some sort of foundation. We had to respect the legacy, and for us the 1978 film ("Superman") was a real foundation."

Despite the mixed reviews, "Superman Returns" did well at the box office since it's impressive debut last Wednesday. The film took in $21.04 million on opening day, and $84.2 million in the U.S. and Canada in its first five days, according to box office reports. In the L.A. Times' estimation, the film, directed by Bryan Singer, "brought a film franchise back to life."

Lee said he is particularly happy with the film's international receipts, noting that American superhero films typically don't do as well outside the United States. He heads to Mexico to participate in "Superman"-related hoopla later this week.

Some analysts noted that "Superman Returns" did not eclipse "Spider-Man 2" as the top-grossing Wednesday premiere (it ranks 8th), but Lee countered that sequels tend to do better because fans are keyed in to characters and storylines. For example, "X-Men 3" opened well despite critical pans, because fans were sold on the previous two installments.

The final decision on another "Superman" film lies with the studio, Lee said, but he's optimistic we haven't seen the last of the guy in the red cape.

With "Superman" flying on his own now, Lee said he intends to spend at least the next year focusing his energies on the Academy for Creative Media. The film school recently inked an agreement on a student and faculty exchange program with Shanghai University. Five UH film students went to Shanghai to screen their projects at the prestigious Shanghai Film Festival. This fall, UH will host Chinese film students.

ROGER THAT

Filmmaker Roger Wilko is slapping the stamps on his newly completed "Mayor, Mimes, Members & Merchants," a clever and engaging look at the recent Waikiki street performer flap.

The documentary short will likely hit the film festival circuit this fall, possibly at the Hawaii International Film Festival. Wilko has also entered the film for consideration at other major venues.

The film, which Wilko previewed for The Advertiser last week, includes interviews with Mayor Mufi Hannemann, City Council members Ann Kobayashi, Charles Djou, Nestor Garcia, Donovan Dela Cruz and Rod Tam, who prove as oddly entertaining as the many street performers also featured.

Wilko handled the narration duties, and he's a bit Michael Moore, a dash of Jeannie Moos, a smidge of Stephen Colbert.

The film captures the absurdity of Hannemann's slippery scrum with Djou, the creative interpretation of rights invoked by performers and area businesses alike, and even the artistic license taken by potty-mouthed mimes.

With its wry examination of commerce, freedom of speech, bureaucratic gamesmanship and other tangled issues, the film may have broad audience appeal — something Wilko is counting on as he sows the film fest fields.

Expect to hear more from Wilko in the near future. His full-length feature "For the Love of God Parts 1-5" is scheduled for completion by the end of the year.

Another documentary, "What a Stupid Idiot," a collection of break-up stories inspired by his fans on MySpace, begins shooting next month.

BRING THE PAIN

Darin Fujimori and the rest of the impact addicts at Hawaiian Stunt Connection have been keeping busy this month with a new video project for Boeing, highlighting the Army's ongoing Future Combat System program.

Filming will continue for the next few weeks, with Fujimori and other local stuntmen on the (staged) receiving end of the Army's new high-impact, highly mobile combat systems.

"We've been shot, blown up, everything," Fujimori said. "In one shot, they blew a building up and we had to go flying."

Lucky for the stuntmen, all of the spectacular effects are being coordinated by Hawai'i's Emmy Award-winning special-effects expert Archie Ahuna. The production already has filmed at Honolulu Community College and the Wailua Sugar Mill.

Fujimori recently worked on the season finale of "CSI: New York," crashing over tables after an explosion at a building.

Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.