Superman is the base superhero. He is morally incorruptible, always fights for what is right, never has selfish thoughts, is nigh invincible, and the list of his powers is massive. He is the quintessential superhero, but unfortunately, this is hard to capture in film. Superman's film history is full of more misses than hits. The original and the sequel are the only two to really capture Superman and what he is all about, which is not the action and violence of many other heroes, but rather his saving of people, and defeating villains; locking them up, and never killing. DC decided to reboot Superman, giving him a fresh aesthetic and feel; it is a certifiable mess.
The decision of both directors and producers were horrible. Zach Snyder, the man behind Watchmen and 300, too k on the directors chair, while Christopher Nolan is listed only as a producer, but acts more like a co-director. Nolan basically re-invented superhero films for the 21st century with his Batman trilogy, opting to forgo the cartoonish nature of superhero movies past, and instead offer mature, adult drama. It was pure genius, and "The Dark Knight" is still widely regarded as the best superhero movie ever made. Batman was such a perfect fit for this gritty nature, but Superman is not. This is my first problem with this film: tone. Superman should not aim for any type of realism or PG-13 violence levels. Superman should be kid-friendly (something this movie is not), light-hearted, and fun. I am not saying it should be a shallow cartoon, but it needs to be FUN. "Man of Steel" really forgot that element, and gives us a soulless and incredibly boring film.
The performances are everywhere on the acting spectrum. Henry Cavill gives a poor performance as Superman himself, lacking almost any charisma or warmth. He was most likely selected for his attractiveness level for girls, and not for acting. Amy Adams, an actress I really love, is just cringe-worthy as Lois Lane. She is boring, and any character is non-existent. There is absolutely no chemistry between Lois and Superman, leading to shoehorned romance scenes. Russell Crowe is actually incredibly enjoyable as Jor-El, giving an overly dramatic, but fun version of him. He is the only one who seems to be having any fun. Michael Shannon, another actor I love, chews the scenery and spits it back out. His performance as General Zod is perfect for a Superman movie, being incredibly over-the-top and ridiculous, but is so shallow and forgettable in a summer of some horrible villains.....now that is bad.
The action of the film is even boring. How that happens, I don't know, but this has the worst action sequences I have ever seen in a superhero film. .Continuing a trend established in "Transformers", the big final battle is like 45 minutes long. It has no variety though. It is literally people punching each other into progressively bigger things, and pausing to monologue. It is destruction-porn of the highest order. In addition, the CGI is horrible, making the entire affair look like a crappy videogame.
The idea of Superman being like Jesus is hammered home again and again, in fact, every single piece of symbolism is hammered into audience's skulls multiple times. We are considered too idiotic to dissect anything, so deeper themes are just as shallow as the rest of this film. And the ending.......oh the ending. The last pathetic attempt to show how "gritty" and "dark" it had to be, they had Superman kill Zod......by breaking his neck. I do not care what argument you present, having Superman kill is a stupid act. The attempted establishment of why he doesn't kill is a popular one, but it holds no ground. Superman's love for humanity and aversion to violence showcase already a logical basis for no killing, making the final, ultra-violent act of violence insult to injury.
"Man of Steel" is a bigger disappointment to me than "Prometheus". At least that film can stand on its own, and is wonderful in its own way. This movie is a sluggish, boring affair that brings shame to the name and symbol of "Superman".
Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence, action and destruction, and for some language
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