Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams.
Rating/Volume: So far, unrated.
My rating: WATCH
Source: Cineworld cinemas (in 3D)
Today, because it's quite a momentous occasion in the 2013 film calendar, I thought I'd take a moment to review Zack Snyder's summer epic, Man of Steel and explain its significance to the future of the DC/Warner Bros superhero movies. Let me tell you it definitely did not disappoint! Well, maybe on one front. But i'll get to that...
Do not worry. I will be doing The Untouchables (#242) and it will definitely be up for tomorrow. I just feel it's important to give you my Stray Reviews on the most up to date films as well. Then you can experience them the way films were meant to be experienced. On the big screen.
A quick introduction to the film; Man of Steel is a reboot of the popular and iconic Superman franchise. Starring Henry Cavill as Clark Kent, it's the origin story to beat all origin stories. It follows Kal-El's (Superman's birth name) journey on Earth after he gets sent away from his dying planet by his father Jor-El (Russell Crowe) to live as a symbol of hope and freedom. Raised by Martha and Jonathan Kent (Diane Lane, Kevin Costner) under the name Clark, he travels through various towns to try and figure out who he is. But after a chance meeting with Lois Lane (Amy Adams), Pulitzer Prize winning journalist for the Daily Planet, at an excavation site of a 2,000 year old spaceship Clark identifies the truth about himself while accidentally unleashing, well, trouble!
I've just come back from watching this film in Shrewsbury with my Mum and Sister. I saw it in screen 3 (the big one) in full 3D. There was sadly not as many people as I'd have hoped, but then again, it was 1445 on a Friday afternoon. Maybe it will be busier tonight or this weekend. The first 20 minutes of this film was some of the best cinema I've ever seen! It begins on Krypton, when Superman is just a baby. The sheer scale of the planet and the scenes are just incredible. I was almost emotional at one point as this story unfolded in front of me. Huge kudos to Mr Snyder for this grand vision. Zack Snyder (most notably is the man responsible for 300 (which didn't particularly grab me) and Watchmen (which did). He is well known for his dark worlds that he creates and the scale on which he presents them to the audience. While, at the same time, he develops his such strong characters with plenty of rich past and history and manages to integrate them sublimely into their place. This is perhaps his best achievement yet. You really feel empathy with all the characters and understand their journey. I'd have thought that Christopher Nolan's (Producer) presence would have been felt stronger than it was. Apart from the 'bearded scenes' as Clark wanders aimlessly, I struggled to see his input. Now to an extent, I know it's difficult as his last series (The Dark Knight Trilogy (#105,6,52)) was so grounded in reality, while this simply wasn't. You can definitely tell by the general darker tone and the score that he was involved, but I think secretly I'm pleased. I'd have hated this to turn into another Nolan fest. I'm pleased that it will be regarded as Snyder's baby. He deserves recognition especially since Watchmen. As for the choice to film in 3D, I'd say it was mainly to compete at the box office, but it definitely added a certain depth (lol). Whether you decide to watch in in 3D or 2D, I should say it will be the same level of excitment. I personally didn't notice it most of the time. My personal favourite character is Jonathan Kent played by the wonderful Kevin Costner. This man, in my opinion, is an even better character than Jor-El (Crowe). His life lessons he teaches Clark guide him through the film and he plays an amazing (if not stereotypical) wizened farmer, mechanic, hard working father-who-always-means-well. I really love this character, but I'm going to leave it there. I'm trying to be light on the spoilers! I felt like the last 25 mins or so went on a little too long as you can't fight the evidence (I was falling asleep)! However, do not let that detract from this otherwise excellent film. I think his full origin story is often neglected in mainstream Superman media. In this film, what can I say, It's just done so well! I'm glad they told it in a normal story and not relied too heavily on flashbacks. Also, I really hope it inspires a few people to pick up some comics. It's certainly inspired me!
One important thing. That I feel has really got to me about this new direction of the man of steel. One mistake that I will always regard as a HUGE mistake and I will never forgive, whoever may have been responsible. And this may count as a spoiler, but it will not give away anything about the film itself. It's that, even though Hans Zimmer wrote a new score for the film, They decided to altogether drop the original John William's Superman theme tune. The reason why this bugs me so much is because it is my favourite score ever made. If you put a gun against my head and said you can only listen to one song for the rest of your life, It would be John William's Superman. It is just such a song so full of character and history. And, hello. John Williams! Nevermind. What's done is done. I will always have my iPod.
Now, why is this such a key movie for the future of DC? Well, there have been rumors for years that Warner Bros are working on pre-production for a Justice League movie. Why is this significant? It would be in a great position to compete with Disney/Marvel's Avengers (#155) billion dollar franchise. With characters such as Superman, Batman, The Green Lantern, Wonder Woman and The Flash all sharing the same universe. It is every movie fan's, comic geek's and sci-fi nerd's ultimate film ever! With The Dark Knight Trilogy (#105,6,52) being so well received along with Christopher Nolan's close involvement at WB they say Man of Steel may be that bridge that finally crosses over to the next multi-billion dollar franchise. And it would be great. But, it all depends. Next could be Man of Steel 2, a Batman reboot or even a straight up Justice League movie. So we'll see. It's all very up in the air. We'll only know for sure when we see the posters go up.
Overall, this film is definitely going to be THE summer blockbuster of 2013. It's armed to the teeth with action, heart and a huge franchise potential. The Superman film of all Superman films!
Now, I'm going to ask you to go and watch it yourself. Out today in cinemas everywhere in 3D as well as 2D. Feel free to send me a message at reviewthe250@gmail.com with any comments and your own views and opinions.
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Thanks for reading!
William
Next: The Untouchables (#242)
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