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Superman has never been an especially dynamic superhero. He doesn’t have Batman’s tragic back story or Iron Man’s swagger. He isn’t bitter or angry or out for revenge. He’s just a nice guy from another planet. But director Zack Snyder gives Superman’s story some much-needed oomph in Man of Steel.
The latest Superman reboot opens on Krypton, a struggling planet that’s about to collapse. A scientist named Jor-El (Russell Crowe) believes that the planet’s only hope is his infant son, Kal-El—the planet’s first natural-born child in centuries. To protect his son, Jor-El sends him to a faraway planet—but before the militant General Zod (Michael Shannon) is tried and imprisoned for his crimes against the people of Krypton, he vows to find the boy back.
Thirty-three years later, Kal-El is simply known as Clark Kent (Henry Cavill). All his life, Clark has struggled to hide and control his supernatural abilities. But when Zod lands on Earth, the mild-mannered young man is forced to come forward to save his adoptive planet from destruction.
Zack Snyder is known for his effects-heavy action movies—movies like Watchmen and 300—and Man of Steel is no different. It opens on a grand scale, with stunning scenes set against a backdrop of war and destruction. The other-worldly cinematography is so striking, in fact, that it’s almost a disappointment when the action makes its way to Earth. Fortunately, though, Snyder’s graphic sensibilities—along with a little bit of producer Christopher Nolan’s influence—make the rest of the film nearly as bold and as striking as those opening scenes.
Snyder’s filmmaking style is full of quick cuts and shaky (sometimes stomach-turning) footage—and he handles his storytelling in much the same way. Instead of taking the time to develop characters and establish their story, he presents everything in short snippets and quick, random flashbacks, offering just a glimpse of the full picture. While the main points of the story eventually come across, this ADD style of storytelling means that you’ll often have little more than a vague idea of what’s happening and why.
The characters, meanwhile, have undergone a modern-day makeover. While Clark is still just a really nice guy, he’s given a little more grit and personality than usual. But he pales in comparison to Amy Adams’s Lois Lane. Lois isn’t just a persistent young reporter; she’s an intrepid journalist who will do whatever it takes—and go wherever she needs to go—to get the big stories. Their relationship is different, too—and while Lois has always been kept in the dark about Superman’s true identity, that isn’t the case here. In fact, Lois uncovers Superman’s true identity before anyone else even knows that he exists. And while that does remove the sometimes annoying secrecy from their relationship, it’s a pretty fundamental change—one that some viewers might find rather disconcerting.
In the end, though, Man of Steel may be shaky and scattered and needlessly long, but it’s still an enjoyably action-packed—and visually stunning—reboot. Not only will it satisfy fans, but it’s also sure to lead to a resurgence of cape-wearing enthusiasts.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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