Man Of Steel Review:
Mostly Flies, Almost Soars
BY IAN TAN
Zack Snyder’s ‘Man Of Steel’ is the retelling of the
Superman origin story from a more modern day / grounded perspective, ala ‘The
Dark Knight’ films, which is no surprise as Christopher Nolan himself produced
and helped shape the story for this blockbuster. Comic book fans as well as
general movie buffs are eager to see the result of Snyder, Nolan and David S.
Goyer’s (the screenwriter) work. So, how does ‘Man of Steel’ fare with today’s
audiences who would like to see a more believable take on the original
superhero?
The answer is actually hit or miss, with divided opinions
from critics and audiences alike. In my opinion, this film fails to fire on all
cylinders but definitely hits the mark on several instances.
The opening sequence of the film starts out epic, Zack
Snyder style, showing the planet Krypton on the brink of pure destruction
beyond salvation. It is here we witness the birth of Superman, or Kal-El, as he
is known as for most of the movie, whose parents Jor-El (Russel Crowe) and Lara
Lor-Van (Ayelet Zurer) are given no choice but to place him as well as the
Codex, a life giving piece of McGuffin, into a capsule and set a course for it
to Earth, all before the menacing General Zod gets his hands on the latter to
use it for purposes that wouldn’t go down well with Jor-El and the Kyptonian
leaders. Zod swears that “he will find him (!)” and the Codex to revive
Krypton… and so begins our ‘Man of Steel’ journey…
 |
| Pa Kent, the best part about this film. |
The performances in ‘Man of Steel’ are the real driving
force of this movie. Russel Crowe puts on a regal performance as Kal-El’s
biological father while Kevin Costner and Diane Lane provide the film with some
of its most heartfelt scenes and serve as the story’s emotional core as the
foster parents. Henry Cavill breathes new life into the iconic character and
gives it his own sense of humility and vulnerability, creating a likable lead
and take on the man of steel. Amy Adams seems to do more as Lois Lane than
previous entries in the franchise have allowed her character to, giving her
room to find her place within the story and to help progress it. Michael
Shannon delivers a performance that seems a notch below what it could have been
with his performance as General Zod; that’s not to say that he didn’t do a good
job, he just didn’t live up to the villainous standards Christopher Nolan’s
‘Dark Knight’ villains had with The Joker (Heath Ledger, may he rest in peace)
and Bane (Tom Hardy). But then again, Nolan was not directly involved with this
movie.
 |
| Grr |
The story for this movie follows a non-linear narrative,
developing the titular character’s backstory through flashbacks with his foster
parents and his struggle finding his place in this world, having to deal with
such supernatural abilities. Those scenes are definitely what makes this movie
work and are effectively and well placed within the course of the movie. In
fact, those are the best parts of this reboot. The scenes in the present day
are sometimes a little too rushed, in order to give way for the film’s
spectacular Snyder-trademark visuals, which sort of gives audiences a hard time
digesting several plot-points. The supporting characters, mainly Lois’
colleagues from the Daily Planet, are given shallow character development,
which does not help when they are placed in perilous situations towards the
climax of the film as we barely know them well enough to actually support and
care for them in such circumstances.
 |
| Wait, Laurence Fishburne is in this movie? |
Now for the highlight of the film: the special effects. As
expected from Zack Snyder, who helmed visually bombastic films such as ‘300’,
‘Watchmen’, ‘Sucker Punch’ and ‘Legend of The Guardians: The Owls of Ga’hoole’,
‘Man of Steel’s visuals are a wonderful feast for the eyes. The more punctuated bits of the visual effects are
towards the film’s opening sequence on Krypton, where we are treated to vast
landscapes, exotic creatures and Kryptonian technology; all of which were
impossible to create years ago with previous ‘Superman’ entries. As great as
the effects and pyrotechnics are, it does seem a little too self-indulgent
during the climactic showdown between Kal-El/ Superman and Zod. The fight
sequences are terrific, but repetitive, with both super powered beings
super-punching each other to a pulp and smashing through building after
building, after building. Also to note is that the destruction level in this
film is MASSIVE; a wee bit over-the-top for a first film that is likely to
spawn sequels with double to triple the amounts of mass destruction this movie
had. Fortunately though, unlike recent blockbusters ‘G.I. Joe: Retaliation’ and
‘Iron Man 3’, where the 3D stood out for only a scene or two, Snyder’s ‘Man of
Steel’ boasts an aggressive no-holds-barred 3D conversion that elevates the
scale, scope and immersive depth of pretty much every scene, and is definitely
worth the extra top up price for 3D and truly complements the director’s visual
talents.
All in all, Zack Snyder’s version of ‘Superman’ does not
quite soar to heights fans were expecting it to. With
that being said, the film does contain bits here and there that seemed that if
given a little more time to work on, with some restraint on the use of digital
special effects and a more emotional connection between its flashback and
present day scenes, this could have been the masterpiece ‘Superman’ film comic
book fans and movie junkies were hoping for, instead of the ‘good enough’ film
it is.
7.7 out of 10 stars.
No comments:
Post a Comment