THE SUPERMAN DEBACLE

Can he Fly or Can’t he?

Sometimes you run into those films where you can only question why they were made. (Not that the true answer to that question may be satisfying but still, it could in some ways maybe still your thoughts.) MAN OF STEEL, the latest incarnation of the SUPERMAN series, is one of those films that polarizes audiences to an extreme. A great many people dislike it and yet an equally great number seem to love it. SUPERMAN, to refresh your memory, came to Earth as a baby, that was raised by Ma and Pa Kent. But of course, Ma and Pa Kent soon realized their adopted son was more than human. It wasn’t really until Richard Donner’s first film SUPERMAN THE MOVIE (1978) that a lot of the background information was filled in but even as brilliant as Richard Donner’s film was, his wasn’t the first appearance of SUPERMAN on film. In the 1940s Kirk Alyn portrayed SUPERMAN in two serials. George Reeves played SUPERMAN in the 1950s television series, that already catapulted him into superstardom.

Christopher Reeve got the chance of a lifetime when Richard Donner had him play both Clark Kent as well as Superman in the 1978 blockbuster. Unfortunately, Richard Donner had problems with his producers and was forced out during the making of the second film. The Salkinds had Richard Lester substitute for Donner and Lester’s work can be said to be average at best. But even missing the real Donner touch, SUPERMAN II made enough money to warrant making a third film. At which time Richard Lester again directed and a great deal of attention was put into the humor of the film, which unfortunately took effort away from the serious impact of the film itself. SUPERMAN III did star Richard Pryor with Christopher Reeve but even with Pryor as a comedic draw the film was mediocre at best and not even the Salkinds wanted to continue with a part 4. When Menachem Golan and Yoram Globus from CANNON FILMS decided to produce SUPERMAN IV (with Christopher Reeve executive producing it) they did neglect to provide a sufficient budget to execute the special effects involved in a Superman film. Which is why SUPERMAN IV looked so bad that no one wanted to see it. Which was too bad because the story had some interesting moments. Bryan Singer’s attempt to bring back Superman with Brandon Routh as a very Christopher Reeve-esque Superman leaned heavily on the Richard Donner interpretation but instead of going on with the sequel, Warner Brothers decided in 2008 it was time to reboot the franchise and let a new director try to reintroduce a modern Superman for a modern time. Enter Zack Snyder.

Zack Snyder’s MAN OF STEEL is NOT a bad film. (I am not going into details of the story or the making of the film right now as some may still want to see it. Mind you, spoilers ahead anyway.) Visually the film is gorgeous to look at. The special effects for the Krypton part are outstanding. The actors in their roles are also quite convincing (especially Henry Cavill and Michael Shannon). But the characters are underdeveloped, the 3D effects are hopeless, the music is awful and the violence is so relentless that casualties in this film if counted will run into the hundreds. I did enjoy seeing Henry Cavill bring us a sympathetic Superman that was not styled after Christopher Reeve. Also Kevin Costner and Russell Crowe were very good in their parts. But MAN OF STEEL is far from the Superman film I would want to take my 5 year old grandson to see. Mind you, I have no problem with Zod going so crazy that Superman has no choice but to kill him. That also makes it so terrible for Superman that now he is the only Kryptonian left. But the extreme levels of violence are a bit too much for me. It is also ludicrous to assume you just up the ante in how it looks and how much violence there is and presto, you have a Superhero for the modern Age. It doesn't work like that. Superman stands for ideals that in this film are lost in the mayhem that Zod releases on Earth. I am not saying I would want to have the film sanitized but the Superman we all grew up with from the comics and the earlier films this most definitely isn't. Much of Henry Cavill's sympathetic qualities is also lost when all hell breaks loose. When you look back at that (for me still unequalled) 1978 Richard Donner film SUPERMAN THE MOVIE, everything was there. Action, pathos, the whole Lois and Clark role playing game which in MAN OF STEEL is totally moot. And let's not forget about the legendary score by John Williams. The first thing I literally said coming out of the cinema after seeing MAN OF STEEL was: I Miss John Williams. (Sorry Hans Zimmer, but you totally missed it here. What a boringly monotonous score!!) Of course this is only an opinion. But having heard already read that Henry Cavill will be back as Superman in 2015 in a new film that will also feature BATMAN, I kind of wonder where this is going. We will have to wait and see…

Still my favourite!!!