Man Of Steel [Superman] [4K Ultra-HD] [2013] [Blu-ray]

To do this review properly I thought it necessary to go back the the origins of the "superhero" & the battle between DC (Detective Comics to give it it's full title) & Marvel Comics. If you grew up in an age as I did these were absolute gems to read as a child & it soon became clear you would be making a distinctive choice between which of these titles you preferred (pocket money would only stretch so far in those days). My loyalties fell strictly in the Marvel camp, & still do to a degree, because with Marvel Comics the characters had so much more substance. Eschewing such comic book tropes as secret identities and even costumes at first, having a monster as one of the heroes, and having its characters bicker and complain in what was later called a "superheroes in the real world" approach totally won me over. So let's take a look at Superman's origins. Here was a guy from another planet, he wore a laughable costume (although at the time it was totally acceptable as it was based on the attire of the strong man in a circus), was totally invincible plus super strong (unless you had a small lump of green rock handy), had x-ray/laser vision, could move faster than a speeding bullet, & he could fly!!! Now through a child's eyes this was magnificent but as an adult seemed totally ridiculous, especially his holier then thou image ... change was needed. To be honest I would like to thank all those people who spouted forth such negative comments as if spitting out vile in their reviews because I had absolutely zero expectations before watching this film & I have to say I was totally blown away. I would go as far to say this is the best re-boot of any franchise I have seen to date. Marvel were taking the higher ground with the like of X-Men, Iron Man, etc. & DC were starting to fall desperately behind so what do they do? They take Superman & give him the full Spiderman treatment. He has angst, he gets angry, he doesn't fit in at school, he is unsure if the world will accept him as a hero or a villain, he's adopted & is forced to watch his adoptive father die, & at last he has a costume that is cool!! It absolutely works on every level & I have no idea why people are complaining about there being too much action ... are these the same people who complain about long winded plot build ups meaning we don't get to see enough of our hero in action? I thought the mixture of action, plot, & flashbacks (to fill in the gaps for people unaware of Superman's past but kept thankfully short) were spot on. You have a stellar cast of whom none dissapoint & the choice of the relatively unknown Henry Cavill to take the lead for me was a stroke of genius. He manages to make Superman believable again explaining that it is not an "S" on his chest at all but a symbol from his planet that means hope, he can grow a beard & his hair can get ruffled. If you love films of this genre my advise is plain & simple give it a go ... pay no attention to all the negativity surrounding this movie. I hope you will be as pleasantly surprised as I was.

Must admit, other than Disney Comics, DC's Superman comic series was, from an early age, a firm favourite when growing up. This the first of a new beginning from director and writer Zack Snyder..... The story starts during the final days of planet Krypton when we see Jor-El (Russell Crowe) the father of Kal-El/ Clarke Kent/Superman (Henry Cavill /young Clarke - Dylan Sprayberry) make the decision in the knowledge Krypton's days were now few to locate a place far away to transport his new-born son too, giving him a chance of life. However, General Zod (Michael Shannon) try's to prevent Jor-El from doing so, and when he does promises that he will, however long it takes find Kal-El. General Zod and his followers after committing treachery against the state are sentenced to exile in the Phantom Zone. The young Kal-El lands upon his fathers chosen destination on a farm in Kansas and is found and raised by Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner) and his wife Martha (Diane Lane) Though Jonathan realizes early-on that Clarke as Kal-El is known by has unusual power he does everything in his power to protect his adopted son from the World becoming aware. Clarke now a young man though having occasions to use his powers manages to remain invisible, it is now that he has his first encounter learning of who he is and meeting a hologram of his real father deep below the artic icecap and where he first comes across reporter Lois Lane (Amy Adams) Lois will promise to keep Clarke's secret until he's ready to show the World who he really is, which will not be so far off as the banished General Zod and his followers arrive determine to bring Kal-El back into the fold and create a new Krypton on planet Earth at the expense of its inhabitants. General Zod and his followers have similar powers to that of Superman, the battle begins, though not wanting to destroy his distant past Clarke will have to make difficult choices to protect the people he'd grown-up around. Will Superman prevail against all odds? For me, this action-packed, CGI wonder is far and away the best of the Zack Snyder trilogy and yes, is greatly enhanced on the 4k Format....a spectacle to behold, well worth the upgrade investment.

I decided to watch the film again, in light of all the publicity surrounding the new Batman V Superman film. A lot of negativity had surrounded Man of Steel and there had been some talk of Superman's role in the new film being played down because of it. I managed to find it suspiciously cheap for second hand and watched it - and thoroughly enjoyed it. There are flaws there, but they are not insurmountable or even that significant unless you are going into watching it with a pedantic mindset. So the weaknesses: The main areas that reviewers have targeted have related to: a) The extended battle at the end, b) the conflicted representation of Superman himself, c) slips in logic that are exposed when you pick it apart. a) The battle is too long and insanely destructive. This seems to be addressed in the beginning of the new film, but needs some thought or reference to it within this one. The huge amount of destruction in itself isn't problematic, it just needed to touch on the doubt surrounding his influence / effect in the last few minutes - but instead it goes a little lighter. It is pleasing that an element of teamwork is involved, although the soldier Hardy does have more of a role in the final conflct that Lois Lane. It does mean, though, that we jump very quickly between 4 or 5 different action scenes in quick succession and a more effecient approach to the storytelling might have streamlined this and made it less over-bearing. Although it is flawed, it does not revolve around spinning the earth to go back in time, a magic amnesia kiss or a Doctor Who level robot-woman, so it's not all bad. b) Superman is full of doubt in this movie but, unless you intend to aim young with the film, the purely heroic Superman of Reeve would not really work in modern films. He needs to have conflict, otherwise he is just too powerful. Cavill does a very good job of balancing the past and present of the character - possibly he would be better served by offering up a little more of the running time to character building, rather than action scenes. The contentious final act of violence is well-handled and established in the context of the scene. It's all about introducing conflict and turmoil to the character to make him more unpredictable and interesting. It was something new for the character and, unless you intend to do something new, there really is little point (As well-crafted as Superman Returns was, it really struggled to justify its existence). c) There are slips in logic (notably inconsistencies over Superman's need for oxygen etc). They are frustrating, because you would hope that the myriad readers who would have gone through the script really should have been able to pick up and iron out such inconsistencies. The strengths: Henry Cavill: he handles the character well, developing conflict whilst projecting the more classical aura. His motivation is clearly established, which gives him a more engaging arc than is often present in blockbuster films. General Zod/ Michael Shannon: the character has been significantly developed since Stamp's portrayal in Superman 2 and, as charasmatic as he was, it's all progress. The idea of understanding his point of view and motivation really helps with exploring the morality of the story. He brings a fierce intensity ("I will find him!") which interestingly conflicts with his reluctance to fight with Jor-El. Special effects: consistently excellent, they really sell the adrenaline of flying and the ferocity of the villains. Indeed, their ridiculous superiority over the soldiers is unnerving (swatting away at flies). Secondary characters: Hardy seemed particularly interesting, seeing that he was the one with a real arc - moving from miliary jackass to significant ally. And his own ongoing conflict with the female supervillain is particularly well-handled. That said, one or two were skimmed over (notably the reporters) and could have been developed to give the threat of the ending a little more weight. I did enjoy the film and its a little frustrating that so many seemed distracted by the ending and forgot the good film that set it up.

This movie has had a mixed reception so I'll get to the point. I liked it. A lot. Much of the criticism springs from the fact the writer and director attempted to do something a little different. Not a lot, but enough to upset some people. Me, I like different. I particularly like recent tv series which have taken something traditional and made it new again. Examples: Elementary -ex-substance abuser Sherlock Holmes in modern New York with Dr Joan Watson, Dracula, and Sleepy Hollow. Man of Steel isn't as remotely daring which is hardly surprising as there are certain basics regarding the Superman mythos that you do not mess with. And they haven't. Just tweaked it a little. Krypton (a well designed Krypton) is very much front and centre here. Just as Jor-El (an excellent Russell Crowe, and rather than repeat an adjective from this point on every time I mention an actor's name imagine it prefaced with excellent) is telling the wrinklies of the council that Krypton is about to blow up, General Zod (Michael Shannon who is even better than excellent) announces he's taking over the government from these wrinklies who've let a great society decline. He and Jor-El get cross with each other. Jor-El hurries home to launch baby Kal to Earth and gets killed by Zod. Krypton blows up. This takes about 20 minutes and is very exciting. You know what happens next. Kindly couple etc. Then lots of flashbacks. Young Clark has problems controlling and hiding his powers. Young adult Clark leaves home to explore the world, takes on a variety of labouring/menial jobs and is well on his to becoming an urban legend as a result of helping people in unexpected ways. He's 33 by the time he meets Lois Lane up in Canada's Arctic Circle where an alien craft has been found buried in 18,000 year old ice. It's a Kryptonian deep space probe. Clark accesses it by means of a Kryptonian key which contains a digital copy of his father and all is revealed about his origin. Lois... Okay, okay, enough spoilers. Let's just say that after fully accessing his powers, Zod and his cohorts arrive in search of Kal-El and wanting to terraform Earth into Krypton. Too bad about the original inhabitants (us). Lots of fighting happens. Spectacular fighting. Really really amazingly spectacular fighting. Your eyeballs will explode. I think you get the idea. But while it's an enormous spectacle of a movie, it's also a very human one. Jor-El is a more compassionate and humane figure than he's been portrayed in the past. Zod is not a psychopath but someone who is unable to transcend the role he was genetically created to occupy. Kal is the first natural (and secret) birth on Krypton in centuries, all other babies are created in exo-wombs and designed to fit into a particular niche. So Zod is not a villain in the sense that Terrence Stamp's Zod was but someone who can only see one way. Michael Shannon, an actor I'm unfamiliar with, is terrific in the role, imbuing it with an intensity which makes the word "intensity" seem completely inadequate. And in Henry Cavill we have a Superman for the new century -dignified, charismatic, compassionate- who has the physique to make the character believable. In this first film, there is no difference between Clark Kent and Superman, the latter not appearing until some time into the film. And at this point I really ought to mention the laudable performances of Kevin Costner and Diane Lane as Clark's true parents who are responsible for him becoming the man he ends up as. And Amy Adams is a good Lois Lane. Next up is Superman/Batman with Ben Affleck as you know who. Can't wait. There are three behind the scenes extras on the Blu-Ray. Two are reasonably substantial and interesting, the third (you'll know it when you see it) is neither.

I really enjoyed this film. I like the visual effects, I liked story, it was more the Superman: Earth One TP (Superman (DC Comics Numbered)) , I though the cast was great and fit the characters brilliantly. I like that fact that Superman is older he in his early 30s, I mean there should be some distinction between Superman and Superboy right. The story starts On Krypton, with the birth of Kal El; in this version the Kryptonians are not the super enlightened beings they are on other versions of the story. They are a more Gattaca [DVD] [1998 ] type of society. Each Kryptonian is "born" and bread for a specific purpose. I think there is a not so hidden message about using up natural resources that leads to the destruction of Krypton. Escaping not only the destruction of his planet, but also a military coo staged by the ruthless General Zod, Clark/Kal El, has grown up in Earth in Kansas to the Kent family. Not understanding or being able to control his powers, he is ostracised, picked on, feared and revered by different people. Like the book we have to older Clark looking for clues and answers to where he came from with flash back to the lesson he learned growing up. His only clue is a "USB" with the Kryptonian symbol of, "S", hope on it. Finally finding his answers he gains a better understanding of his powers and his history, but unwittingly brings his people to him. Now he must decide to stand with the people of Earth or the people of his birth because the Earth is not big enough for both. A great film lots of action, great fight scenes, I like the fact that Superman does get beaten down a bit as the people he is fighting are trained soldiers where as he "learned on a farm". I like that line. His only edge is he has more control over his powers. Big battle scenes in keeping with the character, I even appreciate the moral dilemma at the end. It not only adds to the story but will be something interesting if built on in the next film. The only critic I could find was they did not give Superman many lines, probably because of the British accent. All round good film, fun, good story, great visuals, and a great cast.

As a small child I was told that I (along with my little brother) was going to go to the cinema to see "Superman"! I waited a whole week with excitable anticipation typical of any 7 year old & was truly fit to burst by the time Saturday came. I cannot even begin to describe the disappointment with which I left the cinema a few short hours later. Having never before encountered the concept of "Superman" my 7 year old brain in that week long wait had conjured up a man, that quite frankly, was indeed SUPER!!! Handsome, POWERFUL, awesome, worthy of the name "Super-man"! What my innocent 7 year old eyes saw however was a slightly slimy looking, middle aged, ugly man who, albeit endowed with muscle, didn't seem particularly strong or POWERFUL, more a funny shape, in his Mums leotard & tights! The story wasn't much better & whilst my brother was happy to sit through the seemingly never ending sequels that followed, I considered it a strange & unusual punishment & ended up just hating Superman! In my mind, for the next 37 years Superman was quite literally rubbish! My son convinced me to buy this & it was with almost total regret that I pushed the little button that says "play". Why oh why oh why wasn't this the film I was taken to see when I was 7?? This IS what Superman should have always been! Hansome, likeable, strong, sexy & oh most definitely POWERFUL! When this Superman picks up a car you believe it. This Superman could probably play basketball with the planet Earth & still save 50 orphans before breakfast! This Superman I BELIEVE! The story was awesome & Henry Cavill is utterly brilliant as the likeable Clark & loveable Superman. With an outfit that does indeed look worthy of any hero (& not a bit like he's been in his Mums knicker drawer!) CGI has done what the blue screen never could & created a Super Hero that performs feats wholly deserving of the name & finally, in absolute truth, I cannot wait for the sequel.

The Dark Knight is still the best comic book movie ever created but this ranks a close second. Those expecting another Bryan Singer-esqe retread of Christopher Reeve era Superman will be disappointed, this is a completely new take on the Man of Steel and it's likely to split fans and non fans of the man in red and blue. The other movies, although brilliant (with the exception of Quest for Peace!) felt very much grounded on Earth, whereas this one provides a lot more background to Superman's origins on Krypton and so as a result this movie has many more fantasy and sci-fi elements to it. Henry Cavill makes a strong Superman, fighting to control his need for vengeance when pushed to his limits. Amy Adams fitted the role of Lois Lane quite well, she was perhaps not as independent and strong willed as the character has been in the past but I can see her character developing. I thought that perhaps her connection to Superman was a little rushed but apart from that it was good. One of the most pivotal figures in Clark Kent's life is his father and I thought Kevin Costner played that with perfect subtlety as he makes great sacrifices to keep his son's powers a secret. The men behind this movie obviously have a passion for the story and characters but I would not have expected anything less from the man who brought the 'unfilmable' Watchmen to the big screen and the man who made Batman cool again. If you keep your eyes open there are hints at possible appearances from other characters in future movies. Look out for that Lexcorp truck about to explode! I hope this makes big bucks because I'd be really interested to see where they can take these movies and the character. I have loved the story of Superman since I saw George Reeves don the cape in the old black and white tv show, I just hope that rumours of a Justice League movie don't send the big man into silly territory.

Just as described