"Man Of Steel" Review
I have now seen "Man Of Steel" four times (twice in 2D, once in LieMax, and once in 3D) and it gets better with each viewing. I love this movie so much, I wish it I had it on Blu-ray RIGHT NOW.
Superman/Clark Kent/Kal-El
I had not seen any of Henry Cavill's previous work, but reading articles and seeing interviews with him made me hopeful he was a good casting choice for Clark Kent/Superman.
People, Henry Cavill IS Superman.
But, this Superman is a superhero who never really planned on being a superhero and has not quite yet learned how to be a superhero. But, then, I guess that's how most heroes start out (thanks Joseph Campbell!).
"Man Of Steel" is all about Clark Kent's journey to become Superman, but it's my belief that he doesn't fully become THE Superman until he screams after killing Zod. And...since I brought it up, let's just go ahead and get to that controversial part of the movie, shall we?
The first time I saw "Man Of Steel", my jaw hit the floor and I gasped when Superman snapped Zod's neck. I thought, "Oh no...that is NOT Superman! He does NOT kill!" That thought lasted about two seconds until he let out his emotional scream. When he did that, I thought, "Oh, there you are, Superman!".
Superman is "super" because of his powerful abilities, but for me, it's his value of life that makes him who he is. Superman cares more about human life than any other hero and that's what I saw in that moment after he kills Zod.
After the shock of seeing Superman kill someone onscreen (something I never though I'd see ever), I've come to appreciate that risky storytelling move. It reminds me of Batman failing to save Rachel Dawes in "The Dark Knight". It puts the hero in a difficult situation and doesn't wrap it up in a pretty little bow. Before seeing the movie, I thought they would just put Zod and company in The Phantom Zone and...WORLD SAVED. So, I was glad to see something different even if it was difficult to watch.
I kept thinking, "Wasn't there something ELSE he could have done?", but there was FLAT OUT NO OTHER OPTION.
Superman's pleas with Zod to stop were ignored. Supes struggled to contain him. Zod says that he'll never stop. A choice had to be made. Would Kal-El choose Krypton or Earth in that moment?
I'm okay with Superman killing Zod in that scene because of its context and how it paid off Clark's entire movie arc. But, do I want to see him handle all bad guys like that? AWW, HECK NO.
I do think that choice could lead to Superman developing his policy about killing for the future. The Kents in this version brought Clark up to be a good kid who made good choices and could fight the urge to hurt others, but even Jonathan tells Young!Clark that sometimes, people might have to die. I don't think Superman went into that moment with an "I will never kill anyone" attitude. He was just trying to stop Zod from taking over the planet and killing people and when it was over, he HATED what he had to do.
With Superman, it always seems like writers are damned if they do, damned if they don't. People don't like Superman because he's unrelatable, too powerful, or has no flaws, but when you put him in a position where he has to make the most of human choices (dating all the way back to Cain and Abel) and have him struggle emotionally, people will still complain. I know some are conflicted with that writing choice in "Man Of Steel", but I think it's a really fascinating one. Nobody expected it (even though there is comic precedent for it; thanks Internet) because he's Superman and should be better than us, right? But, wait, don't we want to be able to relate to him? What would we have done in that situation?
If "Man Of Steel" gets a sequel (for the love, make that happen because I want to see more of this cast and this universe), I think we'll see a more confident Superman who has finally found his place in the world and will be more mature in how he handles situations with the bad guys.
I loved the use of Clark Kent's flashbacks. They almost felt like comic book page turns. Every time we saw something from Clark's past, it explained more about what kind of man he is. We got to see him as a child, a teenager, a [I'm assuming because of his Jayhawks t-shirt] college student, and a nomad trying to figure out what to do with his life. And, on top of all that character development, the flashbacks end up being stories Lois Lane investigates that lead her to the Kent Farm. Brilliant.
The cut from Kal-El's spaceship crashing to Clark's Earthly ship on the sea was absolutely masterful. I loved that Clark was so used to hiding his powers that he (dressed in primary colors) needed another one of the guys to save him on that ship, but that when crap was happening on that rig, he ducked out because he knew he was the only one who could help. He does that same kind of thing with the school bus. He chose to sit and take a bully's shots at him, but when a dangerous situation prevented itself, he chose to save that bully's life and in turn, that bully became his friend (cool way to see how Clark and Pete's friendship was born; and yeah, I'll admit that it was nice to see Young!Lana, too).
Clark finding the scout ship (you know, The Fortress of Solitude) makes so much sense in this more realistic version of the mythos. Not only is it cool to know that Kryptonians had been to Earth before (as was the case on SMALLVILLE as well), Clark finds it on his own. He doesn't have some mystical voice calling to him. He overhears military guys talking about something being found so he gets a job as "Joe" (peep the shield on the back of his coat) to check it out. I LOVED that he uses his Heat Vision to melt the ice as he travels through the blocks of ice. OF COURSE, HE WOULD HAVE TO USE HIS HEAT VISION. Genius.
The use of the AI!Jor-El in this is much better than previous versions for me. The AI being his consciousness makes me understand why he can respond to Kal's questions. In the Christopher Reeve movies, it always seemed like Jor-El was a bunch of recordings on crystals, but somehow, he could still respond directly to Clark/Superman. That never made any sense. And, in SMALLVILLE, I don't even know that that was fully explained. In that version, Jor-El could even punish him! What the mother-loving what.
But, in "Man Of Steel", it makes sense. The shadow or a puppet with Jor-El's consciousness is able to express what Jor-El thinks, feels, and can even control the ships because of their technology. That was cool as crap (especially, when he helps Lois find the escape pod, but I'll get to that later).
"Sometimes you have to take a leap of faith. The trust part comes later."
One of my favorite scenes (which is almost all of them) is when Clark goes to speak to the priest. People can complain all they want about the Christ figure imagery (even though it's in most incarnations so just deal with it), but that's not even what I enjoyed about the scene at the church. It's not so much about Clark Kent being the Messiah to save the people (even though that's part of it) as it is the most powerful being on the planet going to seek advice from a man of faith and that man of faith doesn't abandon his beliefs when speaking to an alien. Oftentimes, during an alien invasion story, a person of faith will struggle because they can't understand how their belief system lines up with the existence of aliens. But, here is this priest taking a confession from the alien in question and offers him sage advice. And, the alien TAKES IT.
Clark may have gone to talk to the priest because he knew that his confession would be kept confidential and that's all it was. But, the fact that Martha Kent wears a Christian cross necklace makes me think that Clark probably went to church with his adopted family when he was growing up. He even asks Jonathan at one point if God "did this" to him.
The cool pay off to the church scene is that Clark admits that he doesn't think Zod can be trusted, but neither can humans (given the bullying he experienced throughout his life) and at the end of the film, he, as Superman, has a discussion about trust with General Swanwick. He's ready to trust humans.
One of the things that impresses me the most about "Man Of Steel" is how it can control the audience. I've only noticed this kind of thing with two other movies that I can remember recently. One was when Anne Hathaway sings "I Dreamed A Dream" in "Les Miserables" and the other was the ending of "Inception". Those two moments just had the audience in the palm of their hands (movies have legs so surely, they also have hands).
When Martha is talking to Clark at Jonathan's grave and telling him how his father saw the future and it shows us the flashback of Young!Clark playing with the dog, wearing a red sheet (or towel or whatever that is), and doing a Superman pose...the audience is just dead silent. Every time. Everyone is so engrossed in the visuals, the music, and seeing what Jonathan sees. Emotionally-Riveting stuff.
Lois Lane
FINALLY. Someone did with Lois Lane what I had always wanted someone to do with Lois Lane.
We are so blessed, you guys, to live in an era of DC movies in which they take away all the crap that makes these ladies dumb and highlight all the stuff that makes them awesome. Happened with Anne Hathaway's Catwoman and now, I feel like it's happened with Amy Adams' Lois Lane. She's not a bad speller (that we know of; which in this day and age wouldn't make sense, considering auto correction and spell checker). She doesn't smoke. She doesn't ask Superman questions about her underwear. She doesn't talk down to Clark. And, probably most importantly, she's an actual investigative reporter who is good at her job and figures out what's going on with that mysterious rescuer she was searching for.
When Lois is introduced in "Man Of Steel", I always get this GAME ON feeling. Her presence really starts to take the movie from being all about Clark's journey to "this is bigger than he realizes".
I'm a big fan of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and one of the things I've always loved about it is the father/daughter-esque relationship of Perry White and Lois Lane. And, while it's not as blatant in "Man Of Steel" as it was on Lois & Clark, I thought it was still present.
I love the scene when Perry scolds her for going against policy and punishes her. Amy Adams does such a great job in it because her eyes are a little glassy and it looks like she's hurt by Perry being upset with her, much like how a child would be if her father was disciplining her. And, I love that Steve Lombard (STEVE LOMBARD, Y'ALL) rubs it in that Lois is gonna get in trouble like a snotty brother might. There's a sense of family at The Daily Planet in "Man Of Steel" and that makes me happy because that's one of the things I've always loved about the Superman mythos.
I loved that Lois made a crack about Woodburn's site being full of falsehoods and how she wanted her mystery man to know that she knew the truth. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
I love that when she's at home making tea, she has her TV tuned to CNN.
I love that she's ready to pick up and run when she needs to.
I love that when she's in the newsroom, her hair is almost messy (with a pencil stuck in to hold it up) and her sleeves are rolled up like she's ready to work.
I love that even the great Lois Lane has to deal with printer toner (the cut to the ALERT warning on the xerox machine is so comic booky, I can't even). Ain't nobody got time for that.
I love how brave Lois is in "Man Of Steel". If I had noticed a guy wandering around arctic cliffs and then realized he was heading into an alien spaceship, I don't think I'd have the courage to follow him. In fact, I would have stopped at "arctic cliffs" (and hilariously, there is one wide-shot of her that always makes me wonder, "Lois, how did you get down there?").
Another one of my favorite relationships that Lois Lane has in "Man Of Steel" is with Colonel Hardy. I love that she extends her hand out to Colonel Hardy when she meets him and when he doesn't shake it, she realizes she's going to have to speak their language in order to get respect. Yeah, she talks about "measuring dicks", but she's not doing it to be a bitch. It's her strategy to get the military guys to start taking her seriously (even if they only give her a bucket when she needed to tinkle).
Her relationship with Hardy, however minor, is cool to see develop because when Faora comes to take her on Zod's ship, he is protective of Lois. And, later, when they're both on the jet to execute their part of the Save the World plan, they share looks of relief about Superman's successful dismantling of the World Engine.
One of the sequences I always look forward to when I watch "Man Of Steel" is when Lois Lane interacts with Jor-El's AI. She had already met one of Clark's Earthly parents and while in space (LOIS LANE GOES INTO SPACE), she [sorta] gets to meet one of Clark's Kryptonian parents.
Amy Adams plays the comedy (yes, there is comedy in this movie) of meeting AI!Jor-El so well. Lois stumbles a little out of fright because he just appears out of nowhere. But, once he explains what and who he is and that he can help her (and the world), she's willing to listen to his instructions. So fun to see Lois Lane pick up an alien laser gun, have a fight scene, and trust Clark's biological father because she trusts Clark.
In interviews, Amy Adams spoke of Lois Lane's Humanity growing throughout the movie and I think it really hits its peak when she comforts a grieving Superman. She doesn't say a word to him, but seems to understand and empathize with everything he just went through. This was no longer about publishing a story. It was about being there for someone else who needed her.
I knew this version of Lois Lane would be my new favorite based on the fact that Amy Adams is one of my favorite actresses, but it's more than that. Her portrayal is everything I love about the character. She's about Truth. She's compassionate. She's brave. She's a great reporter. And, you can see why Clark Kent/Superman would fall for her.
Clark Kent and Lois Lane
Before seeing the movie, I wondered how Clark Kent and Lois Lane would meet in "Man Of Steel". Would she meet Clark first? Would she first meet Superman after he rescues her? Would it be the typical "she falls out of a helicopter and he flies up to save her" thing?
Not only did the movie do the right thing in having Lois Lane meet Clark Kent first (much like the great choice to have Bruce Wayne meet Selina Kyle first in "The Dark Knight Rises"), but it is the most epic way for them to be introduced to each other.
I love that they first meet in the Fortress (although, technically, they first interact when he, as "Joe" helps her out of the helicopter, which is super fun as an audience member to be in on that secret). She's introduced to Clark Kent, the man, but in the home of the Superman. I love that he saves her, but not in the usual way. She gets injured when trying to take photographic evidence of a Kryptonian robot and he (after x-raying her?) cauterizes her wound with his Heat Vision. I love that he instructs her to hold his hand. Even though it's violent, it's still an intimate and unique way to bond them.
It's fun that once Lois knows who Clark really is, she still calls him Clark. She learns that his Kryptonian name is Kal, but to her, he's "Clark". Even when he's in his super suit, she calls him Clark (which reminds me of Teri Hatcher's Lois and of course, Comic!Lois). That's due, in part, because "Superman" has not been established as his superhero moniker yet (I love that Lois comes up with it, but it's the people who first use it). But, also partly, because that's the man she knows. Of course, in the future, she may want to call him "Superman" when he's out in the field. Let's be smart about that, Lois Lane.
Even though the scene in the cemetery is a sad one, I love that she realizes Clark is there with her by feeling the breeze in her hair and then when she turns around, he's just a normal dude wearing a baseball cap (trying to hide himself) like his Pa would.
One of my favorite shots of the film is a two-shot of Lois and Superman while they're waiting on Zod's ship to pick Superman up in surrender. It's a head-to-toe shot that is very much a wedding stance (foreshadowing?) and treats them as if they are the only people there. It's in that moment that Clark spells out to the audience why he falls for this human woman: she believes in him. She finds out his secret, knows he's an alien, takes punishment from her editor for him because Clark isn't ready to reveal himself yet, and thinks he really does want to help people. That must mean an awful lot to a guy who lived so many years in isolation out of fear that others would think he was a freak.
I have very few gripes about this movie, but one of them is the dialogue after Lois and Superman kiss. It wasn't really needed. I'm sure a writer feels the urge to put some dialogue there, but what is said doesn't really work. I like the bit about how people say that after the first kiss it all goes downhill, but what Superman says in response is like, "What?". Because if it only applies when you're kissing a human, well...HE'S kissing a human. So, does that mean it could go downhill for him? It's just kind of a stupid line. But, hey...we got Lois Lane kissing costumed-Superman (who she knows is also Clark Kent) without getting mind-raped and I'm pretty happy with that!
I sure hope we get another installment of this Lois and Clark. The ending showed how much potential is there for them.
Heroes don't need super powers.
While "The Avengers" made uniformed officers look incompetent without Captain America's orders, "Man Of Steel" had them working together with Superman.
I really love the interactions between Superman and General Swanwick (a contrast to the other General in the story). They're both in positions to look out for and protect people, but both take caution when they first meet. But, by the end of the story, the theme of trust comes back into play. The military needs to trust that Superman only wants to help and Supes has to put aside the bullying of his past and accept that humans can be trusted.
Colonel Hardy had a great story arc with his parallels to and face-offs against Faora. Both were soldiers who could fight and follow orders. Both were skilled in combat. And, when it was time to be willing to die for the cause, Colonel Hardy threw Faora's line about "a good death is its own reward" (hooray for death foreshadowing payoffs!) back at her. He knew he couldn't beat her physically, but he definitely outsmarted her.
It wasn't even just the big, strong military warriors who paid the ultimate price. Dr. Emil Hamilton did what he needed to in order to contribute. Without him figuring out to how make the key work in the ship, the plan to send the Kryptonians back to the Phantom Zone wouldn't have worked.
"Man Of Steel" also showcases Clark/Kal's parents as heroic figures.
On Krypton, Jor-El stands up to the council, fights Zod (and his guards, with the help of his trusted robotic friend, Kelex, who I never thought I'd see in a Superman movie), and ultimately, gives his life for his son's future.
Lara, who was given more to do in this than any other incarnation of the story I've read or seen, has a strong presence. It was cool to see her sporting the House of El glyph, going up against Zod, being the one to initiate the launch, and staring death in the face. And, even as strong as she was, Lara still expressed fears about launching her son into space. I don't have children, but Lara hating that they'll never see Kal walk or hear him say their names seemed like a real parental concern.
I liked that the movie paralleled Jor-El and Jonathan as fathers who gave up their lives for the good of their son and Lara and Martha as widowed mothers. Typically, the origin of Superman is written with Jor-El and Lara dying together as Krypton explodes, but after seeing what "Man Of Steel" did with the parents, I keep asking myself, "Why has nobody done it like this before?" It's perfect.
In addition to Lara's parallel to Martha, I thought she was also paralleled to Lois a little bit with them both helping their guys when Zod came knocking. It's not a strong parallel, but I think Lara would appreciate Lois' helpfulness as I think Jor-El's AI did.
This will sound morbid, but I loved Pa Kent's death.
I loved that Jonathan dies in a tornado instead of a the normal heart attack scenario. Yeah, I agree with Jeremy Jahns that it's a cool concept to have Clark's father die over something not even Superman can do anything about, but tornadoes are probably something Jonathan Kent has dealt with his whole life and the way the scene plays out serves the story so incredibly well. I'd rather not see the same ole same ole every time a story is retold (what a waste of my time that never allows for mythology to progress over time). Superman comics have lasted for seventy-five years because writers have found new ways to tell the story and I liked the way they handled Jonathan's death.
Once Jonathan sees what's happening, he doesn't hesitate to help others get to safety. He gives them instructions and even saves a little girl. I have read some Interweb responses that they hated that he goes back to save the dog, but I LOVED that. Jonathan put his life on the line for the least of them. Isn't that what a hero should do?
Everything is so well written and shot in that sequence. There's a point where you think Jonathan might make it, but then he gets out of the car and it's clear that he can't run to meet everyone else. Cavill does such a great job of showing that Clark wants to act, but that's what makes Jonathan put his hand up. He knows that will give his son away.
The flashback helps us understand more of Clark's relationship with his Earthly father, but it also helps us know why Lois won't immediately write a story on him. She realizes it's not her choice to decide when Clark announces himself to the world.
I'm no big Diane Lane fan (I don't know that I'll ever truly forgive her for "Unfaithful"), but holy crap, she's great as Martha Kent. Her saying "Go to Hell" to aliens who landed in her front yard made me pump my fist. She's not just a a pie-maker and wife of a farmer (even though she seemed to be both of them; we don't see her make pies, but I'm going to assume that's what her basket of apples was for). She's a protective mother and strong lady even when a reporter shows up (MARTHA/LOIS FARM SCENE, I CAN'T EVEN) wanting to talk about her alien son (I guess Lois admits to Martha she knows and is cool with it).
I appreciated that after Jonathan dies, we see Martha as an employee of Sears (people can complain about product placement, but I actually loved that real world places were in this universe; makes it relatable and now, I get why IHOP always has crappy service...Kryptonians are probably fighting in the kitchen). She's unable to run the farm by herself and has to find a way to provide for herself. As someone who lost my father when I was 25-years-old and had to help my mother re-adjust to life without him, I know what a hard transition that is.
I cried a couple of times during the movie and the tears usually came because of a Martha/Clark scene.
When Clark freaks out in school and locks himself in a closet, all Martha really does is love her son. Yes, she teaches him to focus (which becomes an advantage for him during the Battle of Smallville), but most importantly, she reaches out to him in love when the other kids gossip about him. She knows he's different, but as he tells her son later, she sees the truth about him as "beautiful".
My heart breaks every time Clark comes home after finding out about his Kryptonian origins and informs her that he's found his parents and his people. Diane plays that so well that I can feel how conflicted she is. She's happy for him, but she also worries she will lose her place in his life. I imagine that's a real emotion that all adoptive parents go through.
I could really understand (and did love) Superman's "YOU THINK...YOU CAN THREATEN...MY MOTHER?!" Martha is a special lady to him. Even thinking about their relationship and her reaching for the family photo album amongst the wreckage that is her farmhouse is making me emotional.
To round off the list of non-powered heroes in "Man Of Steel" is The Daily Planet staff.
I loved seeing Steve Lombard in this (he's getting a lot of love in Superman projects lately; good stuff of him in "Superman: Unbound") and even though I wish they could have explained more about Jenny Olsen (is she related to Jimmy or the female version of Jimmy?), I loved their scenes with Perry White during the Metropolis fight. They are actually protecting and saving each other. I always crack up at how Lombard has to fight his nature of being a butthole to help rescue Jenny. And, Perry holding Jenny's hand to stop her from being scared? Oh, man. That was really powerful to me because I've actually been in that position before. Sometimes, just holding someone's hand and letting them know you are there for them makes a huge difference.
It wasn't even just Perry and Lombard acting like heroes. They are even in need of help by police officers who are waving them to safety. I guess the Metropolis PD doesn't need Captain America to tell them what to do when aliens attack.
The big payoff with the DP staff for me is seeing them at the end, joking around with each other. I effing loved that. I think their experience bonded them and even if they might act like they did before crap went down, they'll always remember how they helped each other. To top everything off, I love how they were all huddled around Lois' desk. I got the feeling that's where people go to hang out and that really felt like a family atmosphere to me.
It's fun that even though "Man Of Steel" is a Superman movie, he's not the only hero in the story.
Krypton
I enjoyed the Krypton sequences way more than I thought I would.
I love that Krypton looks like a dying planet that has advanced technology and feels ALIEN. It has exotic creatures, intelligent robots, and different ways of creating babies. I love the effort that is put into making Krypton feel and look different from Earth.
I'm not a hardcore comic book reader (I dabble in older comics and try to read as many graphic novels as I can), but I have read John Byrne's Man of Steel series which was definitely an inspiration for how Snyder and his team designed Krypton.
KELEX AND KELOR. AND THEY CALLED HER "LADY LARA". Amazing nods to Byrne's run.
I love the moment when Kelex helps Jor-El escape capture. It gave me the feeling that while Kelex and Kelor were servants to the House of El, they were also trusted members of their family. When Jor-El does the nod of "Do it, Kelex" and Kelex takes action, it's pretty badass and it makes me smile every time.
One of my favorite shots in the movie is of Jor-El (wet from having just gotten out of the Genesis Chamber water) facing Zod's ship coming after him. The lights and the epic nature of Crowe's stance in that shot make me happy.
Cavill played Clark's "And Kal...that's my name?" so unbelievably well. There's so much joy on his face in figuring out who he really is and where he comes from. I can't even imagine what that's like not to know who your parents are, where you were born, or what your real name was supposed to be.
I thought it was cool that when Jor-El is explaining the Genesis Chamber to Kal, he talks about how Kryptonians are bred to be workers, warriors, and leaders because Clark/Kal/Superman ends up being all three of those things (possibly, because the codex is embedded within him). He's shown to be a worker in all of his flashbacks, he's a warrior when it comes to fighting against the baddies, and he was a leader when working with the military to come up with a plan to save Earth. And, hopefully, we'll get to see him lead the Justice League in a future movie (*crosses fingers*).
General Zod
Michael Shannon was a GREAT General Zod in "Man Of Steel", but more than his performance (which was wonderfully done), the thing I really loved about this version is how he felt like an actual general of an army. He gave commands, lead his soldiers, wore armor, and had interactions with political officials.
Zod wasn't just a bad guy who wanted to eff things up, even though he did. I liked that he had a reason for doing what he did. He was willing to work with Kal-El until he refused to be apart of the plan. The way Zod calmed Faora down for correcting Superman as he boarded the ship and the way he approached Clark in his dream sequence was a nice way to show that Zod had respect for his people until he realized Kal was just going to be a hindrance to his cause.
The dream sequence is really well executed. The transition from Superman faced down on the floor to Clark (wearing his Royals t-shirt; nice touch) was a simple one, but very effective. I like that they had read Lois' mind (or, maybe they got it from Kal's) to get the vision of the Kent Farm and knew about how the Earthlings called him "Clark". It would have been interesting to see what Lois' dream sequence/mind-reading would have looked like.
The great thing about the sequence is that it's used as a way to foreshadow events in the third act. The audience (as well as Clark) sees what Zod plans to do before he does it so that when we get there, we understand what's going on.
Parallels in this movie make the story so rich and one of them that really stands out is Jor-El Vs. Zod and Kal-El Vs. Zod. Jor tells Zod that his son will finish what he started and indeed, he does (more hoorays for death foreshadowing payoffs with "you die or I do"). The first fight of the movie is Jor-El losing to Zod, but the last fight of the movie is when Kal-El defeats him.
There's no "Kneel Before Zod!" line in the film, but I liked that Superman falling to his knees onboard Zod's ship, struggling to adapt to the Kryptonian atmosphere seemed to pay homage to that without having to say a word. Michael Shannon's Zod didn't need to say what Terrence Stamp (and that SMALLVILLE version)'s does because he gets to make fun of Kal with lines like "Where did you train...on a FARM?" I love that scene because he takes of all of his armor to put him on equal footing with Superman and rises above him in superiority. And, I guess those who consider this movie to be "joyless" and devoid of humor missed the fun of Superman being thrown into the "Days Without An Accident" sign during that scene.
The sequence of Zod's "You Are Not Alone" message? One of the best in the movie. I really got a sense of the global scale and how scary that would be if it actually happened. I don't wanna write too much on it, though, because it's something better experienced.
The one thing I really hate about Zod is that I think he busted up the Fortress. As I understand it, Zod flies up to the arctic to visit the Genesis Chamber in the scout ship and takes off in it to Metropolis where he crashes. Is that the end of the Fortress? Because that kinda sucks (even though Superman doesn't really need it now that he got info on his history) because I liked this re-imagining of that part of the mythos. The crystal building never really worked for me so it was a pretty slick idea to use one of the Kryptonian ships that he could even move if he needed to. FIX YOUR SHIP, SUPERMAN! I wanna hang out there again!
Filmmaking
I can see why people don't like Zach Snyder movies, but I enjoyed "Watchmen" so much that I bought it on Blu-ray. I think he's a good visual director and seems to care about his movies. I thought Snyder, Christopher Nolan, and David Goyer did an excellent job of taking a 75-year-old story and making it fresh even to someone like me who has seen many previous versions. I liked that they spun the legend on its head break-dance style while staying true to what I know of Superman by using source material from comics, TV shows, and previous movies.
I'm impressed with how Snyder made every shot count from the first pained moment of Lara giving birth to the smile of glasses-wearing Clark Kent. The way it was shot makes me want to screencap the crap out of it. Some may not have liked his single-camera choice, but I loved how it put you in the action. I liked the way he composed flying shots, especially, when Lois is flying with Superman because he shot HER reactions. Why has nobody ever done that before? Snyder made me feel everything that Lois felt in those moments.
THAT EPIC SWEEPING PAN OVER THE MILITARY WHEN LOIS HAS TO LEAVE SUPERMAN BEFORE ZOD PICKS HIM UP.
I read a review that complained about Snyder feeling like had to include the whales in the shot of Clark underwater after the oil rig rescue because he needed something in the shot. I laughed about that because I was like, "How do you know that he didn't put whales in that shot to show how Clark was different from us?" No human could just hang in the water like that without drowning. I think the whales being in that shot with him is beautiful. He's able to commune with the sea creatures in a way none of us ever could unless we go by the name of Arthur Curry.
I love that "Man Of Steel" doesn't waste our time with minutes upon minutes of opening credits like the previous Superman movies have done. In fact, I've seen the movie four times and I don't even remember seeing any credits at the beginning because I'm always so engaged in what's happening onscreen.
Another one of the ways that "Man Of Steel" sets itself from movies that have come before it is a brand-new musical score by Hans Zimmer. Creatively, I think that's one of the best things about it. Start everything from scratch. Zimmer's score is absolutely incredible. I'm a huge soundtrack/score nerd and a big fan of Zimmer's and this is some of his best work. There are quiet tracks like "Look to the Stars" and "Earth", but then there are also bombastic tracks like "Oil Rig" and "Arcade". And, then of course, the track every Superman fan should have on their iPod, "What Are You Going to Do When You Are Not Saving the World?" rocks not only your typical Superman horn fanfare, but wonderful percussion beats.
Hans Zimmer is one of my favorite film composers because he thinks outside of the box. Any other would think "Superman movie? Horns. DONE.", but not Hans. He thinks, "Clark Kent is from Kansas? Get me some steel guitars and the world's best percussionists!"
I don't understand the complaints by some that "Man Of Steel" is "joyless" and lacks comedy. The movie has dark, sad, and violent moments, but I laughed a great deal whether it was Clark mangling the d-bag's truck, Lois getting busted by Perry and having to run from the FBI, to the toner problems, to the priest's nervous gulp, to Superman knowing what kind of Life Savers Dr. Hamilton keeps in his pocket. There aren't one-liner jokes, but the comedy is there.
I've read reviews that there was too much action and too much destruction towards the end of the film and that just makes me laugh at how overblown and exaggerated that nonsense is. Yes, there is a great deal of action. IT'S A SUPERMAN MOVIE. THERE ARE SUPER-POWERED BEINGS FIGHTING EACH OTHER. THE ENTIRE HUMAN RACE IS AT STAKE. What the heck did you expect? I take it that folks who complain about that have never seen Superman and Captain Marvel's battles. Those types of fights will end with broken windows, destroyed buildings, and cities looking like war zones. THAT'S JUST WHAT THEY DO, Y'ALL. In fact, if none of that happened, I would be calling so much bullcrap on it.
Remember 9/11? Remember how crazy human terrorists caused buildings to fall to the ground causing thousands of people to die and be lost in the rubble? How much more so would it be to have two super-powered beings pounding each other? It would have to be more damage than what we could ever cause as humans.
Snyder and his team did a really great job with those fights because they were broken up by character moments, whether it was Perry and Steve Lombard trying to save Jenny, Zod having a discussion with Jor-El's consciousness, or Lois rewarding Supes with a kiss. It's not forty straight minutes of action like some reviewers would like you to believe (did people complain about this when "The Avengers" came out?). There are times to breathe.
Only a few buildings (and the citizens that we can see are out in the street, leaving them empty) actually fall to the ground and most of the destruction is glass breaking or bricks getting mangled and it's actually a story point they could use for a sequel. I can just see Lex Luthor (who is, clearly, an established businessman in Metropolis, considering all the LexCorp trucks and trains in the film) playing "savior" of his city by trying to re-build everything.
"Welcome to the planet."
I figured "Man Of Steel" would end with Lois Lane writing her first article on Superman and we'd see a flying montage. But, what they actually did was absolutely perfect and I have no idea why nobody has done it before (which has become a recurring question when I think about this movie).
Lois (knowing who glasses-wearing Clark Kent really is) extending her hand out to Clark and saying "Welcome to the planet" had such wonderful double meaning. Clark Kent felt isolated his whole life. He had to hide himself. He felt alone. He was forced to kill the last of his kind. And, here is someone who knows who he is and doesn't fear him. Doesn't shun him. And, might actually love him.
Instead of ending on Superman flying towards the camera (as previous Superman movies have done), Snyder and Goyer chose to end on the man [of Steel].
Beautiful.
Superman/Clark Kent/Kal-El
I had not seen any of Henry Cavill's previous work, but reading articles and seeing interviews with him made me hopeful he was a good casting choice for Clark Kent/Superman.
People, Henry Cavill IS Superman.
But, this Superman is a superhero who never really planned on being a superhero and has not quite yet learned how to be a superhero. But, then, I guess that's how most heroes start out (thanks Joseph Campbell!).
"Man Of Steel" is all about Clark Kent's journey to become Superman, but it's my belief that he doesn't fully become THE Superman until he screams after killing Zod. And...since I brought it up, let's just go ahead and get to that controversial part of the movie, shall we?
The first time I saw "Man Of Steel", my jaw hit the floor and I gasped when Superman snapped Zod's neck. I thought, "Oh no...that is NOT Superman! He does NOT kill!" That thought lasted about two seconds until he let out his emotional scream. When he did that, I thought, "Oh, there you are, Superman!".
Superman is "super" because of his powerful abilities, but for me, it's his value of life that makes him who he is. Superman cares more about human life than any other hero and that's what I saw in that moment after he kills Zod.
After the shock of seeing Superman kill someone onscreen (something I never though I'd see ever), I've come to appreciate that risky storytelling move. It reminds me of Batman failing to save Rachel Dawes in "The Dark Knight". It puts the hero in a difficult situation and doesn't wrap it up in a pretty little bow. Before seeing the movie, I thought they would just put Zod and company in The Phantom Zone and...WORLD SAVED. So, I was glad to see something different even if it was difficult to watch.
I kept thinking, "Wasn't there something ELSE he could have done?", but there was FLAT OUT NO OTHER OPTION.
- If Superman just flew Zod out of the building, that wouldn't have done anything, but change locations. They would have kept fighting. Zod would have wanted to cause more destruction and kill more people.
- Even if Superman had found a way to stop Zod's Heat Vision, Zod would have used another one of his abilities to hurt people.
- Even if the family had gotten away, Zod would have found others to threaten.
- There was no Kryptonite.
- The Phantom Zone option had already been used (and successfully, with Faora and other members of Zod's crew).
- Jail is a laughable idea.
Superman's pleas with Zod to stop were ignored. Supes struggled to contain him. Zod says that he'll never stop. A choice had to be made. Would Kal-El choose Krypton or Earth in that moment?
I'm okay with Superman killing Zod in that scene because of its context and how it paid off Clark's entire movie arc. But, do I want to see him handle all bad guys like that? AWW, HECK NO.
I do think that choice could lead to Superman developing his policy about killing for the future. The Kents in this version brought Clark up to be a good kid who made good choices and could fight the urge to hurt others, but even Jonathan tells Young!Clark that sometimes, people might have to die. I don't think Superman went into that moment with an "I will never kill anyone" attitude. He was just trying to stop Zod from taking over the planet and killing people and when it was over, he HATED what he had to do.
With Superman, it always seems like writers are damned if they do, damned if they don't. People don't like Superman because he's unrelatable, too powerful, or has no flaws, but when you put him in a position where he has to make the most of human choices (dating all the way back to Cain and Abel) and have him struggle emotionally, people will still complain. I know some are conflicted with that writing choice in "Man Of Steel", but I think it's a really fascinating one. Nobody expected it (even though there is comic precedent for it; thanks Internet) because he's Superman and should be better than us, right? But, wait, don't we want to be able to relate to him? What would we have done in that situation?
If "Man Of Steel" gets a sequel (for the love, make that happen because I want to see more of this cast and this universe), I think we'll see a more confident Superman who has finally found his place in the world and will be more mature in how he handles situations with the bad guys.
I loved the use of Clark Kent's flashbacks. They almost felt like comic book page turns. Every time we saw something from Clark's past, it explained more about what kind of man he is. We got to see him as a child, a teenager, a [I'm assuming because of his Jayhawks t-shirt] college student, and a nomad trying to figure out what to do with his life. And, on top of all that character development, the flashbacks end up being stories Lois Lane investigates that lead her to the Kent Farm. Brilliant.
The cut from Kal-El's spaceship crashing to Clark's Earthly ship on the sea was absolutely masterful. I loved that Clark was so used to hiding his powers that he (dressed in primary colors) needed another one of the guys to save him on that ship, but that when crap was happening on that rig, he ducked out because he knew he was the only one who could help. He does that same kind of thing with the school bus. He chose to sit and take a bully's shots at him, but when a dangerous situation prevented itself, he chose to save that bully's life and in turn, that bully became his friend (cool way to see how Clark and Pete's friendship was born; and yeah, I'll admit that it was nice to see Young!Lana, too).
Clark finding the scout ship (you know, The Fortress of Solitude) makes so much sense in this more realistic version of the mythos. Not only is it cool to know that Kryptonians had been to Earth before (as was the case on SMALLVILLE as well), Clark finds it on his own. He doesn't have some mystical voice calling to him. He overhears military guys talking about something being found so he gets a job as "Joe" (peep the shield on the back of his coat) to check it out. I LOVED that he uses his Heat Vision to melt the ice as he travels through the blocks of ice. OF COURSE, HE WOULD HAVE TO USE HIS HEAT VISION. Genius.
The use of the AI!Jor-El in this is much better than previous versions for me. The AI being his consciousness makes me understand why he can respond to Kal's questions. In the Christopher Reeve movies, it always seemed like Jor-El was a bunch of recordings on crystals, but somehow, he could still respond directly to Clark/Superman. That never made any sense. And, in SMALLVILLE, I don't even know that that was fully explained. In that version, Jor-El could even punish him! What the mother-loving what.
But, in "Man Of Steel", it makes sense. The shadow or a puppet with Jor-El's consciousness is able to express what Jor-El thinks, feels, and can even control the ships because of their technology. That was cool as crap (especially, when he helps Lois find the escape pod, but I'll get to that later).
"Sometimes you have to take a leap of faith. The trust part comes later."
One of my favorite scenes (which is almost all of them) is when Clark goes to speak to the priest. People can complain all they want about the Christ figure imagery (even though it's in most incarnations so just deal with it), but that's not even what I enjoyed about the scene at the church. It's not so much about Clark Kent being the Messiah to save the people (even though that's part of it) as it is the most powerful being on the planet going to seek advice from a man of faith and that man of faith doesn't abandon his beliefs when speaking to an alien. Oftentimes, during an alien invasion story, a person of faith will struggle because they can't understand how their belief system lines up with the existence of aliens. But, here is this priest taking a confession from the alien in question and offers him sage advice. And, the alien TAKES IT.
Clark may have gone to talk to the priest because he knew that his confession would be kept confidential and that's all it was. But, the fact that Martha Kent wears a Christian cross necklace makes me think that Clark probably went to church with his adopted family when he was growing up. He even asks Jonathan at one point if God "did this" to him.
The cool pay off to the church scene is that Clark admits that he doesn't think Zod can be trusted, but neither can humans (given the bullying he experienced throughout his life) and at the end of the film, he, as Superman, has a discussion about trust with General Swanwick. He's ready to trust humans.
One of the things that impresses me the most about "Man Of Steel" is how it can control the audience. I've only noticed this kind of thing with two other movies that I can remember recently. One was when Anne Hathaway sings "I Dreamed A Dream" in "Les Miserables" and the other was the ending of "Inception". Those two moments just had the audience in the palm of their hands (movies have legs so surely, they also have hands).
When Martha is talking to Clark at Jonathan's grave and telling him how his father saw the future and it shows us the flashback of Young!Clark playing with the dog, wearing a red sheet (or towel or whatever that is), and doing a Superman pose...the audience is just dead silent. Every time. Everyone is so engrossed in the visuals, the music, and seeing what Jonathan sees. Emotionally-Riveting stuff.
Lois Lane
FINALLY. Someone did with Lois Lane what I had always wanted someone to do with Lois Lane.
We are so blessed, you guys, to live in an era of DC movies in which they take away all the crap that makes these ladies dumb and highlight all the stuff that makes them awesome. Happened with Anne Hathaway's Catwoman and now, I feel like it's happened with Amy Adams' Lois Lane. She's not a bad speller (that we know of; which in this day and age wouldn't make sense, considering auto correction and spell checker). She doesn't smoke. She doesn't ask Superman questions about her underwear. She doesn't talk down to Clark. And, probably most importantly, she's an actual investigative reporter who is good at her job and figures out what's going on with that mysterious rescuer she was searching for.
When Lois is introduced in "Man Of Steel", I always get this GAME ON feeling. Her presence really starts to take the movie from being all about Clark's journey to "this is bigger than he realizes".
I'm a big fan of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and one of the things I've always loved about it is the father/daughter-esque relationship of Perry White and Lois Lane. And, while it's not as blatant in "Man Of Steel" as it was on Lois & Clark, I thought it was still present.
I love the scene when Perry scolds her for going against policy and punishes her. Amy Adams does such a great job in it because her eyes are a little glassy and it looks like she's hurt by Perry being upset with her, much like how a child would be if her father was disciplining her. And, I love that Steve Lombard (STEVE LOMBARD, Y'ALL) rubs it in that Lois is gonna get in trouble like a snotty brother might. There's a sense of family at The Daily Planet in "Man Of Steel" and that makes me happy because that's one of the things I've always loved about the Superman mythos.
I loved that Lois made a crack about Woodburn's site being full of falsehoods and how she wanted her mystery man to know that she knew the truth. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
I love that when she's at home making tea, she has her TV tuned to CNN.
I love that she's ready to pick up and run when she needs to.
I love that when she's in the newsroom, her hair is almost messy (with a pencil stuck in to hold it up) and her sleeves are rolled up like she's ready to work.
I love that even the great Lois Lane has to deal with printer toner (the cut to the ALERT warning on the xerox machine is so comic booky, I can't even). Ain't nobody got time for that.
I love how brave Lois is in "Man Of Steel". If I had noticed a guy wandering around arctic cliffs and then realized he was heading into an alien spaceship, I don't think I'd have the courage to follow him. In fact, I would have stopped at "arctic cliffs" (and hilariously, there is one wide-shot of her that always makes me wonder, "Lois, how did you get down there?").
Another one of my favorite relationships that Lois Lane has in "Man Of Steel" is with Colonel Hardy. I love that she extends her hand out to Colonel Hardy when she meets him and when he doesn't shake it, she realizes she's going to have to speak their language in order to get respect. Yeah, she talks about "measuring dicks", but she's not doing it to be a bitch. It's her strategy to get the military guys to start taking her seriously (even if they only give her a bucket when she needed to tinkle).
Her relationship with Hardy, however minor, is cool to see develop because when Faora comes to take her on Zod's ship, he is protective of Lois. And, later, when they're both on the jet to execute their part of the Save the World plan, they share looks of relief about Superman's successful dismantling of the World Engine.
One of the sequences I always look forward to when I watch "Man Of Steel" is when Lois Lane interacts with Jor-El's AI. She had already met one of Clark's Earthly parents and while in space (LOIS LANE GOES INTO SPACE), she [sorta] gets to meet one of Clark's Kryptonian parents.
Amy Adams plays the comedy (yes, there is comedy in this movie) of meeting AI!Jor-El so well. Lois stumbles a little out of fright because he just appears out of nowhere. But, once he explains what and who he is and that he can help her (and the world), she's willing to listen to his instructions. So fun to see Lois Lane pick up an alien laser gun, have a fight scene, and trust Clark's biological father because she trusts Clark.
In interviews, Amy Adams spoke of Lois Lane's Humanity growing throughout the movie and I think it really hits its peak when she comforts a grieving Superman. She doesn't say a word to him, but seems to understand and empathize with everything he just went through. This was no longer about publishing a story. It was about being there for someone else who needed her.
I knew this version of Lois Lane would be my new favorite based on the fact that Amy Adams is one of my favorite actresses, but it's more than that. Her portrayal is everything I love about the character. She's about Truth. She's compassionate. She's brave. She's a great reporter. And, you can see why Clark Kent/Superman would fall for her.
Clark Kent and Lois Lane
Before seeing the movie, I wondered how Clark Kent and Lois Lane would meet in "Man Of Steel". Would she meet Clark first? Would she first meet Superman after he rescues her? Would it be the typical "she falls out of a helicopter and he flies up to save her" thing?
Not only did the movie do the right thing in having Lois Lane meet Clark Kent first (much like the great choice to have Bruce Wayne meet Selina Kyle first in "The Dark Knight Rises"), but it is the most epic way for them to be introduced to each other.
I love that they first meet in the Fortress (although, technically, they first interact when he, as "Joe" helps her out of the helicopter, which is super fun as an audience member to be in on that secret). She's introduced to Clark Kent, the man, but in the home of the Superman. I love that he saves her, but not in the usual way. She gets injured when trying to take photographic evidence of a Kryptonian robot and he (after x-raying her?) cauterizes her wound with his Heat Vision. I love that he instructs her to hold his hand. Even though it's violent, it's still an intimate and unique way to bond them.
It's fun that once Lois knows who Clark really is, she still calls him Clark. She learns that his Kryptonian name is Kal, but to her, he's "Clark". Even when he's in his super suit, she calls him Clark (which reminds me of Teri Hatcher's Lois and of course, Comic!Lois). That's due, in part, because "Superman" has not been established as his superhero moniker yet (I love that Lois comes up with it, but it's the people who first use it). But, also partly, because that's the man she knows. Of course, in the future, she may want to call him "Superman" when he's out in the field. Let's be smart about that, Lois Lane.
Even though the scene in the cemetery is a sad one, I love that she realizes Clark is there with her by feeling the breeze in her hair and then when she turns around, he's just a normal dude wearing a baseball cap (trying to hide himself) like his Pa would.
One of my favorite shots of the film is a two-shot of Lois and Superman while they're waiting on Zod's ship to pick Superman up in surrender. It's a head-to-toe shot that is very much a wedding stance (foreshadowing?) and treats them as if they are the only people there. It's in that moment that Clark spells out to the audience why he falls for this human woman: she believes in him. She finds out his secret, knows he's an alien, takes punishment from her editor for him because Clark isn't ready to reveal himself yet, and thinks he really does want to help people. That must mean an awful lot to a guy who lived so many years in isolation out of fear that others would think he was a freak.
I have very few gripes about this movie, but one of them is the dialogue after Lois and Superman kiss. It wasn't really needed. I'm sure a writer feels the urge to put some dialogue there, but what is said doesn't really work. I like the bit about how people say that after the first kiss it all goes downhill, but what Superman says in response is like, "What?". Because if it only applies when you're kissing a human, well...HE'S kissing a human. So, does that mean it could go downhill for him? It's just kind of a stupid line. But, hey...we got Lois Lane kissing costumed-Superman (who she knows is also Clark Kent) without getting mind-raped and I'm pretty happy with that!
I sure hope we get another installment of this Lois and Clark. The ending showed how much potential is there for them.
Heroes don't need super powers.
While "The Avengers" made uniformed officers look incompetent without Captain America's orders, "Man Of Steel" had them working together with Superman.
I really love the interactions between Superman and General Swanwick (a contrast to the other General in the story). They're both in positions to look out for and protect people, but both take caution when they first meet. But, by the end of the story, the theme of trust comes back into play. The military needs to trust that Superman only wants to help and Supes has to put aside the bullying of his past and accept that humans can be trusted.
Colonel Hardy had a great story arc with his parallels to and face-offs against Faora. Both were soldiers who could fight and follow orders. Both were skilled in combat. And, when it was time to be willing to die for the cause, Colonel Hardy threw Faora's line about "a good death is its own reward" (hooray for death foreshadowing payoffs!) back at her. He knew he couldn't beat her physically, but he definitely outsmarted her.
It wasn't even just the big, strong military warriors who paid the ultimate price. Dr. Emil Hamilton did what he needed to in order to contribute. Without him figuring out to how make the key work in the ship, the plan to send the Kryptonians back to the Phantom Zone wouldn't have worked.
"Man Of Steel" also showcases Clark/Kal's parents as heroic figures.
On Krypton, Jor-El stands up to the council, fights Zod (and his guards, with the help of his trusted robotic friend, Kelex, who I never thought I'd see in a Superman movie), and ultimately, gives his life for his son's future.
Lara, who was given more to do in this than any other incarnation of the story I've read or seen, has a strong presence. It was cool to see her sporting the House of El glyph, going up against Zod, being the one to initiate the launch, and staring death in the face. And, even as strong as she was, Lara still expressed fears about launching her son into space. I don't have children, but Lara hating that they'll never see Kal walk or hear him say their names seemed like a real parental concern.
I liked that the movie paralleled Jor-El and Jonathan as fathers who gave up their lives for the good of their son and Lara and Martha as widowed mothers. Typically, the origin of Superman is written with Jor-El and Lara dying together as Krypton explodes, but after seeing what "Man Of Steel" did with the parents, I keep asking myself, "Why has nobody done it like this before?" It's perfect.
In addition to Lara's parallel to Martha, I thought she was also paralleled to Lois a little bit with them both helping their guys when Zod came knocking. It's not a strong parallel, but I think Lara would appreciate Lois' helpfulness as I think Jor-El's AI did.
This will sound morbid, but I loved Pa Kent's death.
I loved that Jonathan dies in a tornado instead of a the normal heart attack scenario. Yeah, I agree with Jeremy Jahns that it's a cool concept to have Clark's father die over something not even Superman can do anything about, but tornadoes are probably something Jonathan Kent has dealt with his whole life and the way the scene plays out serves the story so incredibly well. I'd rather not see the same ole same ole every time a story is retold (what a waste of my time that never allows for mythology to progress over time). Superman comics have lasted for seventy-five years because writers have found new ways to tell the story and I liked the way they handled Jonathan's death.
Once Jonathan sees what's happening, he doesn't hesitate to help others get to safety. He gives them instructions and even saves a little girl. I have read some Interweb responses that they hated that he goes back to save the dog, but I LOVED that. Jonathan put his life on the line for the least of them. Isn't that what a hero should do?
Everything is so well written and shot in that sequence. There's a point where you think Jonathan might make it, but then he gets out of the car and it's clear that he can't run to meet everyone else. Cavill does such a great job of showing that Clark wants to act, but that's what makes Jonathan put his hand up. He knows that will give his son away.
The flashback helps us understand more of Clark's relationship with his Earthly father, but it also helps us know why Lois won't immediately write a story on him. She realizes it's not her choice to decide when Clark announces himself to the world.
I'm no big Diane Lane fan (I don't know that I'll ever truly forgive her for "Unfaithful"), but holy crap, she's great as Martha Kent. Her saying "Go to Hell" to aliens who landed in her front yard made me pump my fist. She's not just a a pie-maker and wife of a farmer (even though she seemed to be both of them; we don't see her make pies, but I'm going to assume that's what her basket of apples was for). She's a protective mother and strong lady even when a reporter shows up (MARTHA/LOIS FARM SCENE, I CAN'T EVEN) wanting to talk about her alien son (I guess Lois admits to Martha she knows and is cool with it).
I appreciated that after Jonathan dies, we see Martha as an employee of Sears (people can complain about product placement, but I actually loved that real world places were in this universe; makes it relatable and now, I get why IHOP always has crappy service...Kryptonians are probably fighting in the kitchen). She's unable to run the farm by herself and has to find a way to provide for herself. As someone who lost my father when I was 25-years-old and had to help my mother re-adjust to life without him, I know what a hard transition that is.
I cried a couple of times during the movie and the tears usually came because of a Martha/Clark scene.
When Clark freaks out in school and locks himself in a closet, all Martha really does is love her son. Yes, she teaches him to focus (which becomes an advantage for him during the Battle of Smallville), but most importantly, she reaches out to him in love when the other kids gossip about him. She knows he's different, but as he tells her son later, she sees the truth about him as "beautiful".
My heart breaks every time Clark comes home after finding out about his Kryptonian origins and informs her that he's found his parents and his people. Diane plays that so well that I can feel how conflicted she is. She's happy for him, but she also worries she will lose her place in his life. I imagine that's a real emotion that all adoptive parents go through.
I could really understand (and did love) Superman's "YOU THINK...YOU CAN THREATEN...MY MOTHER?!" Martha is a special lady to him. Even thinking about their relationship and her reaching for the family photo album amongst the wreckage that is her farmhouse is making me emotional.
To round off the list of non-powered heroes in "Man Of Steel" is The Daily Planet staff.
I loved seeing Steve Lombard in this (he's getting a lot of love in Superman projects lately; good stuff of him in "Superman: Unbound") and even though I wish they could have explained more about Jenny Olsen (is she related to Jimmy or the female version of Jimmy?), I loved their scenes with Perry White during the Metropolis fight. They are actually protecting and saving each other. I always crack up at how Lombard has to fight his nature of being a butthole to help rescue Jenny. And, Perry holding Jenny's hand to stop her from being scared? Oh, man. That was really powerful to me because I've actually been in that position before. Sometimes, just holding someone's hand and letting them know you are there for them makes a huge difference.
It wasn't even just Perry and Lombard acting like heroes. They are even in need of help by police officers who are waving them to safety. I guess the Metropolis PD doesn't need Captain America to tell them what to do when aliens attack.
The big payoff with the DP staff for me is seeing them at the end, joking around with each other. I effing loved that. I think their experience bonded them and even if they might act like they did before crap went down, they'll always remember how they helped each other. To top everything off, I love how they were all huddled around Lois' desk. I got the feeling that's where people go to hang out and that really felt like a family atmosphere to me.
It's fun that even though "Man Of Steel" is a Superman movie, he's not the only hero in the story.
Krypton
I enjoyed the Krypton sequences way more than I thought I would.
I love that Krypton looks like a dying planet that has advanced technology and feels ALIEN. It has exotic creatures, intelligent robots, and different ways of creating babies. I love the effort that is put into making Krypton feel and look different from Earth.
I'm not a hardcore comic book reader (I dabble in older comics and try to read as many graphic novels as I can), but I have read John Byrne's Man of Steel series which was definitely an inspiration for how Snyder and his team designed Krypton.
KELEX AND KELOR. AND THEY CALLED HER "LADY LARA". Amazing nods to Byrne's run.
I love the moment when Kelex helps Jor-El escape capture. It gave me the feeling that while Kelex and Kelor were servants to the House of El, they were also trusted members of their family. When Jor-El does the nod of "Do it, Kelex" and Kelex takes action, it's pretty badass and it makes me smile every time.
One of my favorite shots in the movie is of Jor-El (wet from having just gotten out of the Genesis Chamber water) facing Zod's ship coming after him. The lights and the epic nature of Crowe's stance in that shot make me happy.
Cavill played Clark's "And Kal...that's my name?" so unbelievably well. There's so much joy on his face in figuring out who he really is and where he comes from. I can't even imagine what that's like not to know who your parents are, where you were born, or what your real name was supposed to be.
I thought it was cool that when Jor-El is explaining the Genesis Chamber to Kal, he talks about how Kryptonians are bred to be workers, warriors, and leaders because Clark/Kal/Superman ends up being all three of those things (possibly, because the codex is embedded within him). He's shown to be a worker in all of his flashbacks, he's a warrior when it comes to fighting against the baddies, and he was a leader when working with the military to come up with a plan to save Earth. And, hopefully, we'll get to see him lead the Justice League in a future movie (*crosses fingers*).
General Zod
Michael Shannon was a GREAT General Zod in "Man Of Steel", but more than his performance (which was wonderfully done), the thing I really loved about this version is how he felt like an actual general of an army. He gave commands, lead his soldiers, wore armor, and had interactions with political officials.
Zod wasn't just a bad guy who wanted to eff things up, even though he did. I liked that he had a reason for doing what he did. He was willing to work with Kal-El until he refused to be apart of the plan. The way Zod calmed Faora down for correcting Superman as he boarded the ship and the way he approached Clark in his dream sequence was a nice way to show that Zod had respect for his people until he realized Kal was just going to be a hindrance to his cause.
The dream sequence is really well executed. The transition from Superman faced down on the floor to Clark (wearing his Royals t-shirt; nice touch) was a simple one, but very effective. I like that they had read Lois' mind (or, maybe they got it from Kal's) to get the vision of the Kent Farm and knew about how the Earthlings called him "Clark". It would have been interesting to see what Lois' dream sequence/mind-reading would have looked like.
The great thing about the sequence is that it's used as a way to foreshadow events in the third act. The audience (as well as Clark) sees what Zod plans to do before he does it so that when we get there, we understand what's going on.
Parallels in this movie make the story so rich and one of them that really stands out is Jor-El Vs. Zod and Kal-El Vs. Zod. Jor tells Zod that his son will finish what he started and indeed, he does (more hoorays for death foreshadowing payoffs with "you die or I do"). The first fight of the movie is Jor-El losing to Zod, but the last fight of the movie is when Kal-El defeats him.
There's no "Kneel Before Zod!" line in the film, but I liked that Superman falling to his knees onboard Zod's ship, struggling to adapt to the Kryptonian atmosphere seemed to pay homage to that without having to say a word. Michael Shannon's Zod didn't need to say what Terrence Stamp (and that SMALLVILLE version)'s does because he gets to make fun of Kal with lines like "Where did you train...on a FARM?" I love that scene because he takes of all of his armor to put him on equal footing with Superman and rises above him in superiority. And, I guess those who consider this movie to be "joyless" and devoid of humor missed the fun of Superman being thrown into the "Days Without An Accident" sign during that scene.
The sequence of Zod's "You Are Not Alone" message? One of the best in the movie. I really got a sense of the global scale and how scary that would be if it actually happened. I don't wanna write too much on it, though, because it's something better experienced.
The one thing I really hate about Zod is that I think he busted up the Fortress. As I understand it, Zod flies up to the arctic to visit the Genesis Chamber in the scout ship and takes off in it to Metropolis where he crashes. Is that the end of the Fortress? Because that kinda sucks (even though Superman doesn't really need it now that he got info on his history) because I liked this re-imagining of that part of the mythos. The crystal building never really worked for me so it was a pretty slick idea to use one of the Kryptonian ships that he could even move if he needed to. FIX YOUR SHIP, SUPERMAN! I wanna hang out there again!
Filmmaking
I can see why people don't like Zach Snyder movies, but I enjoyed "Watchmen" so much that I bought it on Blu-ray. I think he's a good visual director and seems to care about his movies. I thought Snyder, Christopher Nolan, and David Goyer did an excellent job of taking a 75-year-old story and making it fresh even to someone like me who has seen many previous versions. I liked that they spun the legend on its head break-dance style while staying true to what I know of Superman by using source material from comics, TV shows, and previous movies.
I'm impressed with how Snyder made every shot count from the first pained moment of Lara giving birth to the smile of glasses-wearing Clark Kent. The way it was shot makes me want to screencap the crap out of it. Some may not have liked his single-camera choice, but I loved how it put you in the action. I liked the way he composed flying shots, especially, when Lois is flying with Superman because he shot HER reactions. Why has nobody ever done that before? Snyder made me feel everything that Lois felt in those moments.
THAT EPIC SWEEPING PAN OVER THE MILITARY WHEN LOIS HAS TO LEAVE SUPERMAN BEFORE ZOD PICKS HIM UP.
I read a review that complained about Snyder feeling like had to include the whales in the shot of Clark underwater after the oil rig rescue because he needed something in the shot. I laughed about that because I was like, "How do you know that he didn't put whales in that shot to show how Clark was different from us?" No human could just hang in the water like that without drowning. I think the whales being in that shot with him is beautiful. He's able to commune with the sea creatures in a way none of us ever could unless we go by the name of Arthur Curry.
I love that "Man Of Steel" doesn't waste our time with minutes upon minutes of opening credits like the previous Superman movies have done. In fact, I've seen the movie four times and I don't even remember seeing any credits at the beginning because I'm always so engaged in what's happening onscreen.
Another one of the ways that "Man Of Steel" sets itself from movies that have come before it is a brand-new musical score by Hans Zimmer. Creatively, I think that's one of the best things about it. Start everything from scratch. Zimmer's score is absolutely incredible. I'm a huge soundtrack/score nerd and a big fan of Zimmer's and this is some of his best work. There are quiet tracks like "Look to the Stars" and "Earth", but then there are also bombastic tracks like "Oil Rig" and "Arcade". And, then of course, the track every Superman fan should have on their iPod, "What Are You Going to Do When You Are Not Saving the World?" rocks not only your typical Superman horn fanfare, but wonderful percussion beats.
Hans Zimmer is one of my favorite film composers because he thinks outside of the box. Any other would think "Superman movie? Horns. DONE.", but not Hans. He thinks, "Clark Kent is from Kansas? Get me some steel guitars and the world's best percussionists!"
I don't understand the complaints by some that "Man Of Steel" is "joyless" and lacks comedy. The movie has dark, sad, and violent moments, but I laughed a great deal whether it was Clark mangling the d-bag's truck, Lois getting busted by Perry and having to run from the FBI, to the toner problems, to the priest's nervous gulp, to Superman knowing what kind of Life Savers Dr. Hamilton keeps in his pocket. There aren't one-liner jokes, but the comedy is there.
I've read reviews that there was too much action and too much destruction towards the end of the film and that just makes me laugh at how overblown and exaggerated that nonsense is. Yes, there is a great deal of action. IT'S A SUPERMAN MOVIE. THERE ARE SUPER-POWERED BEINGS FIGHTING EACH OTHER. THE ENTIRE HUMAN RACE IS AT STAKE. What the heck did you expect? I take it that folks who complain about that have never seen Superman and Captain Marvel's battles. Those types of fights will end with broken windows, destroyed buildings, and cities looking like war zones. THAT'S JUST WHAT THEY DO, Y'ALL. In fact, if none of that happened, I would be calling so much bullcrap on it.
Remember 9/11? Remember how crazy human terrorists caused buildings to fall to the ground causing thousands of people to die and be lost in the rubble? How much more so would it be to have two super-powered beings pounding each other? It would have to be more damage than what we could ever cause as humans.
Snyder and his team did a really great job with those fights because they were broken up by character moments, whether it was Perry and Steve Lombard trying to save Jenny, Zod having a discussion with Jor-El's consciousness, or Lois rewarding Supes with a kiss. It's not forty straight minutes of action like some reviewers would like you to believe (did people complain about this when "The Avengers" came out?). There are times to breathe.
Only a few buildings (and the citizens that we can see are out in the street, leaving them empty) actually fall to the ground and most of the destruction is glass breaking or bricks getting mangled and it's actually a story point they could use for a sequel. I can just see Lex Luthor (who is, clearly, an established businessman in Metropolis, considering all the LexCorp trucks and trains in the film) playing "savior" of his city by trying to re-build everything.
"Welcome to the planet."
I figured "Man Of Steel" would end with Lois Lane writing her first article on Superman and we'd see a flying montage. But, what they actually did was absolutely perfect and I have no idea why nobody has done it before (which has become a recurring question when I think about this movie).
Lois (knowing who glasses-wearing Clark Kent really is) extending her hand out to Clark and saying "Welcome to the planet" had such wonderful double meaning. Clark Kent felt isolated his whole life. He had to hide himself. He felt alone. He was forced to kill the last of his kind. And, here is someone who knows who he is and doesn't fear him. Doesn't shun him. And, might actually love him.
Instead of ending on Superman flying towards the camera (as previous Superman movies have done), Snyder and Goyer chose to end on the man [of Steel].
Beautiful.