'MAN OF STEEL'

'MAN OF STEEL' (PG-13) (3 STARS)

Written by David S. Goyer
Directed by Zack Snyder
Actors: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Michael Shannon, Laurence Fishbourne, Christopher Meloni, Russell Crowe.

"Superman" is my favorite superhero because he personifies what is good, decent and noble in a man and a hero who also happens to have super powers. "Batman" is too tormented and "Spiderman" has no real personality characteristics that really grab me, he seems like a lighter, less tormented Batman. My favorite superhero movies are still the original "Superman" movies because they had the right touch of humor, darkness, drama and a love that had obstacles that no other love on screen has had in front of it. The director's cut of "Superman II" is actually as dark, just the right amount, and as powerful, thrilling and haunting as "The Empire Strikes Back" and "The Dark Knight" but it also had a lot of humor. The rebooted Superman epic "Man of Steel" directed by Zack Snyder needed less dark, dreary gloom and more humor but I really liked a lot of it and if there is a sequel I am there!

"Man of Steel" is really all origin story to whet our appetite for a sequel and that is okay. The original 1978 "Superman" was a great movie but it was mostly origin story and "Superman II" was better because it got right into the action and romance. "Man of Steel" is beautifully filmed and the effects are amazing, seeing Superman fly looks better than it ever has. We first get a long enough beginning as we see Jor El send his only son to Earth as his planet Krypton is being destroyed. He also imprisons General Zod after Zod tries to kill Jor El. We then see Superman as his alter ego Clark Kent as he is found working on a ship and then is discovered by "Daily Planet" reporter Lois Lane who wants to find out who this man really is and where did he come from. We then get flashbacks scattered throughout the movie at how the son became Clark and how his adopted parents raised Clark telling him that his powers carry great weight and whether he should use them when needed.

The way this information is given is just how the original "Superman" did it and I wanted that movie to be tighter when it came to depicting how the son of Jor El became Superman. "Man of Steel" also needed to go faster and cut some exposition out, this movie is 2 1/2 hours and it should have been cut down to 2 hours. The original "Superman" had more magic and humor in it's opening hour but "Man of Steel" is produced by "The Dark Knight's" Christopher Nolan and it seems sometimes too dark for a "Superman" movie. It doesn't always fit the spirit of "Superman" to me and comes off too much like a "Batman" movie and that doesn't jibe with me. The flashbacks of Clark growing into Superman do include some beautiful moments and Kevin Costner and Diane Lane as Clark's parents are great. The movie always looks beautiful even though it is dark looking a lot of the times. This review so far might seem heading towards the negative but I did have moments where I got goose bumps.

First of all I could not have imagined a better choice than Henry Cavill as Superman. He is not only beautiful to look at, he has that heroic, commanding screen presence that makes women swoon and men admire him. It is a perfectly measured performance, anguished but not too dark, charming when he needs to be and full of charisma. Amy Adams is also the perfect choice to play Lois Lane, tough but beautiful and vulnerable. She knows when to be tough and determined in the scenes where Lois is at work and when to show signs of vulnerability, especially when she finds she has interest and then feelings for Superman. I love the scene where Superman is captured by the Army and Lois asks Superman what the "S" on his chest is for. The sexual tension is thick, sexy and wonderful in this scene though too short and when Lois and Superman embraced in the end I felt the sexual tension burning again.

I was also very excited to find out that my favorite actor right now, Michael Shannon, was picked to play General Zod and I was not dissapointed. Shannon can be very intense and that intensity can burn on the screen as it does here. Zod is a very enraged man in this movie and Shannon is perfect playing the role as written. I just wished the character had more depth and the fault is in the writing. I also love a lot of the action but I wish the last half hour wasn't so over stuffed and I had problems with all the spaceships and explosions, there are too many of them, cut those scenes and you have a tighter 2 hour movie. I expect all these explosions and science fiction mumbo jumbo in lighter fluff like "Thor" and "Transformers". "Superman" is better than this and sometimes I wish Zack Snyder wasn't trying to make a "300" type movie and more like a "Superman" movie. The original movies were sweeter and simpler and easier to follow than this reboot.

That being said, "Man of Steel" is ten times better than the weird and trashy "Superman Returns" in 2006, that movie had a bad, effeminate Lex Luthor and a very dumb and weird story line. Cavill blows away Brandon Routh as does Amy Adams compared to Kate Bosworth but I like my original Superman better in Christopher Reeve. That does not diminish how great and forceful Cavill is as Superman because Cavill is the perfect Superman to me. I did have reservations on some of the action scenes but there is a wonderful one on one fight between Superman and Zod through Chicago buildings that was masterful and beautifully shot and choreographed.

The big problem I really had with "Man of Steel" was that we don't get to see Superman claim his alter ego Clark Kent till the end. The original "Superman" had the origin and the Clark Kent story and fully satisfying, climatic scenes. Though I do love Cavill and Adams and a lot of the action and drama of this Superman reboot. I just think that the really masterful "Superman" movie will be this movie's sequel. I can't wait to see Clark Kent trying to disguise who he really is and see that sexual tension develop between the hot and wonderful Henry Cavill and Amy Adams in a sequel and I bet it will have more humor than this original. "Man of Steel" is not as fantastic and powerful as I wanted it to be but I know at the end of the movie that I wanted a sequel and I can't wait to get it!