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Even Brett Ratner knows that the only real way to gauge fanboy reaction to one's handling (or in his particular case, highly lucrative mangling) of a beloved superhero franchise is to take in a late, opening night screening at Hollywood's Geek Temple, the Chinese Theatre, where one can properly observe which cinematic moments cause obsessed audience members to soil their hero-themed footie pajamas with delight. We've received a couple of reports of Superman Returns director Bryan Singer (uncharitably pictured at left trying to avoid the icky, old-man advances of cast member Frank Langella at the official premiere) dropping by last night's inaugural showing at the Chinese, where the director, unlike his successor on the latest X-Men film, was smothered in Superfan love:

Bryan Singer was at the 10pm show of S R at Grauman's last night, filling two rows with his entourage. People were screaming his name throughout the movie.

He and his crew got there early, which seemed kind of weird. They were sitting there for a few minutes. Once the fan boys realized Singer was in the audience, he got mobbed by autograph seekers. He ended up leaving the theater for a bit until right before the movie started.

Luckily, he was able see the end result of his work, the collection of middle-aged adolescents in Superman costumes pretend to fly and run up the aisle, only to get winded before they reached the top.

One even had a light saber.

The other report follows after the jump:

just got back from seeing superman at the chinese...bryan singer sat in the row in front of me, and graciously signed autographs and chatted up the fans before the movie. word quickly spread of his presence and the director high-tailed it out to the sounds of polite applause, which paled in comparison to the thunderous ovation he received during the opening credits.

also sighted: Samm Levine, one of the Aquaman fanboys from Entourage. guess he's just making the rounds.