This is big.
Big doesn't necessarily equate to good, of course, but the first thing that must be noted about Man Of Steel is its sheer size and scope. This is a proper epic, and whether you can enjoy it on that level will very much depend on your tolerance for incredibly loud noises and the sight of dudes punching other dudes through skyscrapers. (Believe it or not, there are people who get sick of that sort of thing.)
That's not to say the action is the only thing driving the spectacle, of course. This is a film imbued with a genuine sense of wonder, empowered by a desire to make this 75-year-old character and his world feel as fresh as the day it was born.
Screenwriter David Goyer and director Zack Snyder take a few cues from each of the comic book interpretations of Superman's origin story, but aren't beholden to any of them. Their vision stands apart as a bold, original take on the mythos from the outset, thrusting viewers straight into an 18-minute sequence set on a truly alien version of Superman's homeworld.
It's there that we meet Russell Crowe as Jor-El, a heroic man of action before Krypton's destruction and a pretty handy holographic avatar after it. (Not only is Crowe a better Jor-El than Marlon Brando; he's also a better Ghost Dad than Bill Cosby.)
When Crowe's not flying dragons and shooting ray guns at people, we learn that Goyer and Snyder's version of Krypton is basically an allegorical jackpot — not only have the Kryptonians depleted their natural resources, they've also stopped funding space exploration. No, it's not subtle, but it works, as does the decision to make baby Kal-El "the first natural birth in centuries", casting Superman as both an environmental refugee and something of a political asylum seeker, and delineating a real difference between Krypton and Earth beyond their galactic postcodes.
The opening sequence on Krypton might actually be the high point of the film (it's certainly enough to make you wish those rumours about Snyder directing a Star Wars spin-off were true), but the decision to jump from Krypton's destruction to an adult Clark Kent working a series of odd jobs and pulling off super-rescues on the sly is a smart one, structurally. It saves us from having to go over every inch of the same territory Smallville just spent 10 years covering, while allowing Snyder and Goyer to flash back and flesh out Clark's past when it suits them.
(Speaking of Smallville, viewers/masochists who watched that show all the way through to the end will experience a weird moment of cognitive dissonance when Alessandro Juliani, who played Dr Emil Hamilton on TV, pops up as a random military flunky just seconds after Richard Schiff, who plays Hamilton in this movie, is introduced. Crisis On Infinite Hamiltons! I honestly don't think this is a tribute or an in-joke; I just think Juliani works cheap and nobody else actually watched Smallville.)
The other benefit of skipping forward is that it means we don't have to wait too long to see leading man Henry Cavill (unlike Superman: The Movie, which kept Chris Reeve on the bench for an hour). Cavill is a revelation, possessing the physicality, empathy and charisma necessary for the role and capably carrying the hopes of a franchise on his shoulders.
Michael Shannon, too, is tremendously (and typically) intense as Kryptonian zealot General Zod, while Antje Traue ends up stealing a few scenes as his second-in-command, Faora-Ul. Zod is the best kind of villain, one whose motivation is understandable (he just wants to preserve his race, man!), even while his actions are reprehensible enough to warrant the audience's hatred.
Amy Adams' portrayal of intrepid reporter Lois Lane can't be faulted (and she's certainly more capable than Margot Kidder and Kate Bosworth), but her chemistry with Cavill isn't quite as strong as it needs to be. The idea of Lois being the person who inspires Clark to trust humanity is fantastic (Goyer's interpretation of their relationship is a very clever, very radical departure from what you think you know), but the execution is lacking — it's easy to believe Superman could sweep Lois Lane off her feet, but they just don't have enough time on-screen together to explore anything beyond that.
That's just one problem in a movie that is veritably loaded with them, depending on how harsh you want to be. Like most Goyer scripts, it's filled with holes that tear wider and wider apart the more you think about them. It's impossible to discuss most of them without spoiling something, but in short, I don't think any of them are fatal, and most of them can be handwaved away by the alien nature of Krypton's technology. It'd be nice to have a line or two dedicated to explaining the more confusing moments, rather than leaving the audience to come up with their own explanations later on.
The biggest problem that most of the film's critics have with it is the action — or, more accurately, the length of the action sequences — and honestly, I don't know what to tell you there. This is the Superman movie I've wanted to see ever since the Matrix sequels hinted at the possibilities of Supes and his heavy-hitting enemies squaring off on the big screen in a modern-day blockbuster.
We're talking about a character who debuted in the pages of Action Comics; whose earliest adventures were characterised by their raw, primal energy. I am very, very okay with watching him duke it out with Kryptonian bad guys in extended action sequences, particularly when they're as creative and as technically impressive as the ones Snyder has cooked up (the physics are shockingly convincing, which is notable when we're talking about people shooting lasers out of their eyes and throwing each other through buildings).
As far as I'm concerned, then, the fight scenes could have been even longer, but I can understand why large segments of the audience feel differently.
I'm not as sympathetic to the cries that Superman should have taken the fights out of populated areas — for one thing, this implies that he had some level of control over the situation, which he didn't, and it ignores that this is a movie, which wouldn't be as interesting if the action sequences took place against blank backgrounds. But then, I played a lot of Rampage when I was a kid, so maybe I'm just not as sensitive about fictional buildings getting knocked down as some people.
There are so many things to love about this movie (dat score, for one — up top, Hans Zimmer!), and more than a few things to hate, if you're so inclined (the Christ imagery — I can't begin to tell you how much I detest the Christ imagery). Ultimately, it's the best Superman movie ever made, if only because all the others were so deeply flawed. It's also Zack Snyder's best film, which probably sounds like faint praise.
This is a big, loud movie, and sure, there were a lot of computers involved in making it, but it's also the most human take on the character that I can recall. It's occasionally cheesy and it's never subtle, but it's not cynical, either, and I think that's something Snyder and Goyer should be very proud of.
I left this movie feeling good about people. At the end of the day, isn't that what Superman is for?
4/5
Man Of Steel is released on June 27.
