|
 ryan
Singer's "Superman Returns" is pretty
damn good, but it could have been pretty damn
great. It is very much in the vein of what Singer
did with the "X-men" franchise, and as
such "Returns" feels like the Superman
version of the first "X-Men"
movie, before Singer unleashed the full fury of
mutant power with "X-Men
2". Since the last time we saw him, when
Christopher Reeve was wearing the blue and red
tights, the Man of Steel is still very much
Godlike in his abilities, but he's also much more
human than we've ever seen him. Helicopter
mini-gun rounds bounce off his chest and .45
caliber bullets fired at close range at his
eyeball doesn't even make him flinch, but a sharp
retort from the love of his life hits him like a
ton of bricks. Our God may be able to leap tall
buildings in a single bound, but his emotions are
still easy to prick by the right woman.
"Superman Returns"
takes place after the events of "Superman
2" (with parts 3 and 4 in the franchise wiped
clean from history). Superman (Brandon Routh) has
just returned from 5 years in outer space, where
he sought out and found what remained of his home
planet Krypton. (We don't actually see this
voyage, but are told about it.) Now back on Earth,
Superman finds things different -- and yet, very
much the same. Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey), released
from prison after a 5-year stint (he would have
stayed inside longer if the star witness, a
certain Superman, had been around to testify
against him at his parole hearing), is once again
up to no good, and Lois Lane (Kate Bosworth) has
gotten engaged and birthed a rugrat, not to
mention having won a Pulitzer Prize for her
editorial, titled, "Why The World Doesn't
Need Superman."
Need him or not, the Man of
Steel is back, and in no time he's once again
saving lives, shouldering the Godly
responsibilities thrust upon him by his adopted
world with diligence, all the while longing for
the woman, and a life, he cannot have.
Lois Lane
is not thrilled by Superman's return (justifiably
so, it is eventually revealed), and his discovery
of her Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial is hurtful
to them both. Luthor, meanwhile, has re-discovered
Superman's Fortress of Solitude (remember, he was
there in Part 2), but more importantly, the
Kryptonian technology sealed within. What does the
hairless arch villain plan to do with this
newfound power? Well he is a megalomaniacal
villain, so you figure it out. Needless to say,
billions of lives hang in the balance.
I mentioned Singer's
"X-Men" at the top, and it's an
appropriate comparison. While "Superman
Returns" is surely a superior piece of
cinema, and in fact is quite a fantastic piece of
comic book cinema, it still comes across like an
Origins Movie, with a lot of time spent building
up characterization. This is, after all, Singer's
reputation -- he has the extraordinary ability to
take outlandish situations (and what's more
outlandish than superheroes?) and turn them into
familiar, everyday problems the Average Joe can
relate to. With the exception of Kevin Spacey's
fiendish Lex Luthor, the men and women in
"Superman Returns", even those in
tights, are very much relatable.
There is little doubt that a
follow-up to "Superman Returns" will be
chock full of superpowered fights, just as
"X-Men 2" was. With the characters out
of the way and the universe firmly established,
there will be no need for Singer to commit to the
same lingering scenes of Superman and
Lois Lane
's restrained battle of emotions. At almost two
hours and 30 minutes, "Superman Returns"
is not afraid to dwell on the personalities of its
characters, which is to its credit. After all this
time, Lois is still the intrepid reporter, rushing
headlong into danger;
Clark
Kent
is still the clumsy small-town klutz; and Jimmy
Olsen (Sam Huntington) the amusing sidekick. The
film is also filled with humor, such as when
Clark
utters the line, "Swell", and receives
shocked reactions from those around him.
Which is not to say that
"Returns" lacks action, because with the
budget he had to work with, Singer orchestrates
some incredible, mind bending set pieces.
Unfortunately many of them involves Superman
saving civilians from imminent dangers such as
falling buildings, planes, and the Daily Planet's,
well, planet. They're all done with great
competence and flair, and are indeed wow'ing in
their flawlessness onscreen. Even so, it does get
a tad repetitive after a while, and you begin to
wish some costumed freak would come out of nowhere
and blast Superman with some futuristic weapon or
superpower. Having said that, the flying sequences
are simply astounding. You will believe Superman is really flying. Routh must have spent months
getting the right "look" of a flying and
hovering Superman down just right.
But of course it takes more
than a ginormous budget and cutting edge special
effects to make a movie, and "Superman
Returns" excels at its human elements. At
least, when Lex Luthor isn't around to remind us
that we're watching a comic book movie about a guy
who can fly and shoot heat rays out of his eyes.
The relationship between
Lois Lane
and Superman, with Richard White (James Marsden,
Cyclops in the "X-Men" films) lost in
the middle, are filled with electricity. Brandon
Routh, in his first major motion picture starring
role, pulls off the duo role of
Clark
Kent and Superman brilliantly. It may be
sacrilegious to say so, but Routh does Christopher
Reeve better than Christopher Reeve did in the
four "Superman" movies.
"Superman Returns"
is blessed with an amazing cast and crew, and a
director who has so much respect for the Man of
Steel that it shows in every loving frame
featuring the Big Blue Boy Scout. For comic book
fans, there's even a tip of the hat to Superman's
original creators, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster,
involving a car and what Superman does to it. Kate
Bosworth, who I was worried about playing
Lois Lane
2.0, does well in the role, and the character of
Richard White is nicely put together, providing
the perfect balance of mortal heroics to
Superman's super heroics. I'm still not sure about
the character of Lex Luthor, as although he's
amusing throughout, there is something to be said
about being restrained when you're talking about
slaughtering billions of people for a buck. Kevin
Spacey is clearly having a ball, but when Singer
is at the helm, and your superhero movie is
supposed to be grounded in reality, Spacey's Lex
feels…off.
|
