Man Of Steel - Movie Review
Rating: 4 out of 5
Superman gets the Dark Knight treatment, as Christopher Nolan offers a much grittier, more intensely personal look at the biggest superhero of them all. It's a flawed film that feels far too violent for its own good, but the pungent story holds us in its grip all the way through, cleverly weaving the character's back-story into a series of emotive flashbacks along with massively thrilling action sequences. And along the way there are resonant ethical dilemmas, family issues and pointed political drama.
Some 30 years ago, scientist Jor-El (Crowe) packed his infant son Kal-El into a pod and sent him to Earth to escape certain doom as the planet Krypton imploded after centuries of ecological abuse. This enrages the viciously tenacious General Zod (Shannon) who spends three decades searching for the child. Meanwhile, Kal-El (Cavill) was raised as Clark in Smallville, Kansas, by the Kents (Lane and Costner), who taught him to keep his powers in check. But when he activates a downed Kryptonian ship, he alerts Zod to his whereabouts. And just as nosey journalist Lois Lane (Adams) learns Clark's secret, Zod arrives to launch a full-on attack.
This is a film about internal conflicts, and everyone has to face up to their own desires and responsibilities. Even Zod, whose dedication to his people means that he is willing to wipe out humanity in order to recreate Krypton on Earth. So Kal-El is caught between protecting his adopted planet and being loyal to his birth species. Lois is struggling with keeping a big secret or reporting the news. All of this provides plenty of gristle for the actors to chew on, even if the dilemmas aren't actually that difficult. And even though they sometimes seem consumed by the elaborate sets and costumes.
Still, the emotional layers make the film much more involving than we expect, and they help us overlook some nagging logical problems like how they can possibly rebuild after all this mind-boggling destruction. Or why Kal-El's suit is red and blue when everyone and everything on Krypton is mud-coloured. Meanwhile, director Snyder keeps the extensive effects work in the background where it belongs, integrating it nicely into hand-held camerawork that feels visceral and exciting. And this human approach, combined with sparky chemistry between the characters, makes the film unusually involving for a comic-book movie. But honestly, the action scenes are so enormous that we wonder how they can possibly top it. But they will.
Rich Cline
Facts and Figures
Year: 2013
Genre: Action/Adventure
Run time: 143 mins
In Theaters: Friday 14th June 2013
Box Office USA: $291.0M
Box Office Worldwide: $662.8M
Budget: $225M
Distributed by: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production compaines: Legendary Pictures, Warner Bros Pictures, DC Entertainment, Third Act Productions, Cruel & Unusual Films, Syncopy
Reviews
Contactmusic.com: 4 / 5
Rotten Tomatoes: 55%
Fresh: 159 Rotten: 128
IMDB: 7.3 / 10
Cast & Crew
Director: Zack Snyder
Producer: Christopher Nolan, Emma Thomas, Charles Roven, Deborah Snyder
Screenwriter: David S. Goyer
Starring: Henry Cavill as Clark Kent / Kal-El, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Michael Shannon as General Zod, Diane Lane as Martha Kent, Russell Crowe as Jor-El, Antje Traue as Faora-Ul, Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent, Christopher Meloni as Colonel Hardy, Laurence Fishburne as Perry White, Jadin Gould as Lana Lang, Tahmoh Penikett as Emerson, Ayelet Zurer as Lara Lor-Van, Richard Schiff as Dr. Emil Hamilton, Dylan Sprayberry as Clark Kent at 13, Michael Kelly as Steve Lombard, Carla Gugino as Kelor (voice), Richard Cetrone as Tor-An, Mackenzie Gray as Jax-Ur, Julian Richings as Lor-Em, Mary Black as Ro-Zar, Samantha Jo as Car-Vex, Rebecca Buller as Jenny, Christina Wren as Major Carrie Farris, David Lewis as Major Laramore, Doug Abrahams as Heraldson, Brad Kelly as Byrne, Alessandro Juliani as Officer Sekowsky, Jack Foley as Teenage Pete Ross, Robert Gerdisch as Whitney Fordman
Also starring: Christopher Nolan, Emma Thomas, Charles Roven, David S. Goyer