Man Of Steel Review

A hard-hitting reboot that draws heavy inspiration from Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Trilogy, but for all its over the top action ironically lacks the one important thing associated with the character - heart.

 

Man, who takes these pictures? Did Superman get someone up here with him and say, "Alright, make sure you get me with my cape billowing in the wind and with a really serene expression on my face."

Man Of Steel has been out for the weekend and if you haven't seen it...it's your loss. There is so much to love about this movie. However, we live in a world where nothing is perfect, and Man Of Steel does falter in some aspects such as dialogue. Mild spoilers lie ahead but real spoilers will be hidden, so relax.

What Worked:

Up, up and away!!

The casting. Henry Cavill may be the best Metropolis Marvel yet. His defined cheekbones and muscular physique are more than enough to convince us that he is the right guy for the role. He really brings his A-game here, expressing a range of emotions that help to portray a man that is struggling to find his place in an alien world. Another favourite would be Russell Crowe as Jor-El, Kal-El's father. His somber yet at (rare) times fierce performance really is something. Michael Shannon as General Zod, Diane Lane as Martha Kent and Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent are also worthy of mention, each bringing something unforgettable to the table, be it psychotic rage or tender care.

The flashbacks. A lot of the movie depicts Clark's journey from a boy to a man, constantly struggling to accept and deal with who he is.

"Oh cheer up son, I meant whiny twat in a good way."

My favorite among these scenes is when he is in the classroom as a child, and suddenly discovers that he has these extraordinary abilities and is subsequently overwhelmed and disoriented by the sudden onslaught of noise. Another would be would be how he takes the drink being poured all over his face after he defends his girlfriend and demonstrates incredible self-control and restraint, but still proves his humanity by totaling the guy's ride. They help to convince us that Clark is human and give more payoff to the story.


The Action:

"I can do this all day!!"

The action in this movie is amazing. Superman's powers (except frost breath, but that may be a good thing as it leaves him room to evolve in the sequel) are all a visual treat. Heat vision in particular is just awesome. You can really feel the intensity and pure power when he uses it. Kryptonian combat is a joy to watch, as since they all possess super speed and strength, there is some real impact and weight during the fight scenes. Oh and the scene bellow -

If your inner child didn't scream in delight when watching this, you are most likely dead inside. Or a girl.

Pure epicness. Easily my favourite scene in the movie. The other would be when Clark saves his mother from Zod by tackling him and and pounding the living crap out of him.Steak sauce.

What Didn't Work:

The dialogue. There is very little humour or wit in this movie, and that makes it a little dry sometimes.It definitely doesn't have to be over the top, but they shouldn't take Supes so seriously. The dialogue is all very expository at times and doesn't feel very human or natural (and not in the good way).

The romance. I understand why Clark would fall for Lois since she's the only one that really gets him as Superman and Clark Kent, and Lois would like Clark because Henry Cavill. But given the short amount of time they had together on screen and the relatively unemotional conversations that they shared, it seems way too quick to introduce the romance.

"...so the "S" stands for hope huh?"

The deaths. Jonathan Kent's death is just stupid. Instead of a clean, simple heart attack like in the comics, which really drove home the fact that for all of Superman's gifts, he can't stop everything, Jonathan ordering Clark not to save him is just unreasonable. Does he not care how this would impact them? I didn't mind Jor-El being killed by Zod but I hated the fact that he overpowered Zod only to die because he stupidly let his guard down for no good reason. He should have at least incapacitated Zod first.

The action is overkill. I'm all for action in an action movie but there is so much and with so little non-action scenes in between to give us a break towards the end, it loses its impact and becomes a little too over the top for my taste.

What's the lowdown?: Man Of Steel is by no means bad, but there was so much potential that I find myself disappointed. Zack Synder clearly has a lot of good ideas (which is probably why the trailers seemed to promise us a complete candy-land) but the un-natural dialogue and over the top action prevents this movie from being all it could have been. 8/10.

What's Next?:

Isn't it sad that none of these characters have ever seen the big screen? I mean...oh wait I remember now...damn that explains why DC is afraid to get off the Bats and Supes train.

A Justice League movie is inevitable, but the lack of a post-credit scene makes me wonder when and how will they start properly creating some REAL connections to allude to it (Corporate logos aren't enough, I want Batman to get his ass down and clap his hands menacingly). The New 52 Justice League story "Origins" seemed like what we could expect from a JL movie but if it is to happen, DC need to get their act together.

Man Of Steel 2 could and should consider Metallo, Lex Luthor or Brainac in my opinion. But there needs to be something that can give this god-like being a real challenge or it will feel meaningless.