I’ve been a Superman fan for long… though I don’t read the comics, I’ve always kind of knew what was going on, watched all the movies (though I must admit I don’t remember the classics that well) and watched all of the TV-shows based on the Man of Steel.
So a new Superman movie, directed by Zack Snyder, GOOD!!! When I first heard about the casting I was a bit skeptical… I’ve just finishing watching 10 years of Smallville with Tom Welling and imagining another Clark was a bit hard, but then I saw Henry Cavill in Immortals and that convinced me that he could make a good Clark Kent… and indeed he did! Other casting though, did not have the same effect…
So lets start with the casting…
Henry Cavill was a magnificent choice for the new and improved Kal-El. He’s gorgeous and amazing, and you can see the pain and fierceness in his expressions. So, all and all, great move! (have you noticed how British actors are taking over typically american superheroes roles?!)
Russell Crowe‘s Jor-El was out of this world! He’s good, he fights, he jumps to the thin air, he rides a big animal thingy, he goes underwater to recover a Austrolopithecus skull, he saves his son, at least twice, he helps Lois and he may possibly be one of the one man in Krypton to have sex (considering how the babies were made up there)! I was never a big fan of Jor-El, but Crowe made me love him!
Amy Adams as Lois Lane is a big NO for me! Though I liked her better as the movie progressed, for me she’s not Lois, not for a bit! She’s too old for him, she’s not brunette, she doesn’t have the spunk and determination that Lois has to have! Maybe she’s the Lois that this Clark needs, but she’s changed too much! Lois has to have a spark about her, she has to be witty and funny and be able to kick any man’s ass! If you compare her to Erica Durance, Teri Hatcher or Margot Kidder, her Lois doesn’t even compare…
Diane Lane and Kevin Costner as Martha and Jonathan Kent… well… NO! I liked Lane’s Martha on her first appearance onscreen, telling the very young Clark to concentrate on her voice and so on… and from then on, I did not like her, I don’t know if it’s because she kind of looks like she could be Kristin Kreuk‘s mother, I honestly don’t know. She’s a great actress, she’s just not my Martha. And Kevin Costner… well, I always liked him, but he kind of made dislike such a beloved character for me that is Jonathan Kent, I found believable that he truly loved his son and everything, but I felt that some of his lines were just wrong… like “should I let them all die?” “maybe you should!”… well, that was it for me, I know this is a darker movie and all, but hearing those words coming out of Jonathan’s mouth just felt wrong!
Michael Shannon as Zod was magnificent. He played well a man that would do anything for his people and that without that, he would be lost. Great casting choice, I just did not like that beard!
Laurence Fishburne as Perry White… somehow… NO! Maybe the next movies will change my opinion on that…
Harry Lennix as General Swanwick, nice as always, I absolutely love him. Christopher Meloni as Colonel Nathan Hardy was brilliant, as Chris usually is, great to see him out of his suit. Richard Schiff as Dr. Emil Hamilton, I guess he served his purpose right, although, I found him a bit forgetful. Antje Traue as Faora-Ul was freaking amazing, she really kicked some ass…
Alessandro Juliani as an officer… well, it was just amazing to see him there! For those how don’t know, Alessandro played Dr. Emil Hamilton in Smallville 😉
The plot
The movie starts with the birth of Kal-El, in Krypton. Here we see a much more organic Krypton than we’re used to: there are big dinosaurs like animals all around the planet, but there are also big and technological advanced constructions, maybe much more so than any other portrait of the planet… they have big liquid metal scanners that are also communication devices, and are so so cool… All and all it’s an amazing Krypton, but wait… where are the crystals?! We all know, Kryptonian technology was based on crystals, right?! Not here! Apparently not in this version of Krypton…
Clark is then seen roaming around the world, doing all sort of jobs, such as working on a fishing boat or serving tabled and saving people with his abilities… is on one of these jobs that he finds a ship from his planet and has the first interaction with his people, in the form of his father conscience, it’s also the first time he sees and saves Lois… which leads her to pursue his story and eventually finding out who he is: Clark Kent, the alien. She decides to protect his secret… although they only met twice… I guess here is where I have the first problem with this Clark/Lois storyline… she meets him knowing already who he is, so, this leaves no space for the beloved love triangle between 2 people that is such a trademark of this superhero story… they meet and fall for each other and they know exactly who each other is, so we won’t ever see Clark pinning over the fact that Lois is in love with his alter ego, or Lois trying to figure out who it is that she truly loves, Clark or Superman?!
After this the Kryptonians that survived (phantom zone), a.k.a, Zod and his minions arrive to Earth and demand the delivery of the Kryptonian living among them, Kal-El… Second problem… Nobody knows who he is! There hadn’t been any public saving, with him donning his fabulous red and blue suit in all his glory (which I have to say, I have some problems with… the suit is amazing, but wasn’t it supposed to be handmade by Martha, and not delivered by Jor-El?!). So no one knows who he is, except Lois, who is then taken to shed some light into that matter… Clark then decides to surrender to the people of Earth and let them make their own decision, but they have to let Lois go (really?!). I loved the scene where he breaks his handcuffs and talks to Dr. Emil through the glass…
Clark and Lois board the Kryptonian ship where Clark has some trouble adapting to its atmosphere – pretty amazing and very well explained!
The last part of the movie is Superman (whose name just sort of popped up, without much explanation) fighting against Zod, Faora and some other dude and destroying half of Metropolis. (In the middle we can see the amazing first kiss between Clark and Lois, but still, not my kind of Lois). After all the Kryptonians are sucked into the black hole, just Clark and Zod remain alive, so Zod without anything to lose threatens to kill everyone and here comes the much dramatic scene: Superman kills Zod!!!! – I understand that Superman does not kill, but honestly I found it logical given the choices put in front of both man… still, what I think is more debatable is the fact that before he kills Zod who’s threatening to kill 4 humans, both of them destroyed the hole city, with enormous buildings collapsing and undoubtfully with an enormous amount of fatalities… the Superman I know would have tried to take the battle to somewhere where he could minimize the number of casualties… what gives? – This is a huge problem… because I’m kind of OK with him killing Zod, it’s hardly the first time he kills to save Earth… but how can he do that after more than 20 minutes destroying everything around them, without any considerations for human life?! Did they forget for a moment that this is a Superman movie and not Batman?!
The movie then ends with Clark deciding to create a double identity and starting to work at the Daily Planet side by side with Lois.
The Good
I thought the basic story was pretty great. I loved that they showed us a little of Krypton and I would be glad if we had been able to see a little more of the house of El and the inhabitants of Krypton.
Jor-El, in every single scene. His presence is just amazing!
Henry Cavill… does it need saying more?!
Jonathan’s death. His death scene was great… he sacrificed himself in order to protect his son and helped to mold him into the man he became.
Kal-El versus the Kryptonians. Every single scene was pretty amazing. It was great to watch the kryptonians to try to adjust to Earth atmosphere and vice versa. The fighting was pretty out of this world (it was just a shame that they had to destroy the whole city).
The suit!
Dylan Sprayberry as the teenage Clark Kent – but I have to say, with that haircut, the boy seemed more like a very young Tom Welling than anyone else…
The Bad
No Lex Luthor, no kryptonite, no fortress of solitude, no crystals, no artic breath, no secret identity, no glasses, no spunk?!
Lois Lane… unfortunately, Amy Adams just didn’t cut it for me, although she shared a few good moments with Henry Cavill.
No Jimmy Olsen, instead we get a Jenny Olsen, whom Perry White almost dies trying to save… she’s utterly forgettable and find of boring… I wanted Jimmy!
No fun! The amount of jokes and light moments in the whole movie are so rare. The movie is too dark, which would be understandable if it was Batman, but again… Superman.
The whole destruction of Metropolis and Smallville – it was not necessary!
The flashbacks… although it made sense to see flashes of Clark’s upbringing, the constant jumps back and forth were just confusing and at times, not helpful. I wished the flashes to Clark’s childhood had been made a little more subtlety. Also, why did the camera tremble so much?!
Lois finding out who he is before she actually knows him. It spoils one of the most amazing thing about their relationship.
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