Critics are morons. This is GREAT.

Rating: 10/10 (13 June 2013)

I'd say that I can't believe critics can be so wrong about a movie, but unfortunately, I've had enough lousy nights watching crap they thought was gold not to realize how wrong they can be.
In this case, they are STUPIDLY WRONG.
This does for Superman what the Dark Knight trilogy did for Batman. DC's biggest problem in comics is that while they had good stories, they rarely had good characterization. (Marvel in comics, OTOH, has had pretty decent characterization, but their plots make soap operas look logical.) For years, Superman was (no pun) a fairly two-dimensional character. That doesn't translate well to the big screen. Batman was an easier transition, thanks in part to the ground prepared by Frank Miller's Dark Knight series, but also because Batman is human. Batman can be hurt. Therefore, Batman is a character who, at heart, we can understand and sympathize with. If you can't understand or empathize with a character, it's nearly impossible to develop real sympathy for them.
This Superman does what I have always, ALWAYS wished SOMEONE could do with Superman (at least, outside of the series Smallville) and let us see what life was like through his eyes. We can understand someone who doesn't fit in, someone who's had to endure bullying. And, I admit, as a parent of an autistic child, one scene of the movie completely struck home to me. I've always *liked* Superman, largely because I have a weakness for Boy Scout-paladin types, but I've never really empathized with him. This time, I could. They managed to give us a 3D Superman (again, no pun intended.) Not only did it give us a Superman we could empathize with, but it finally, FINALLY gave us a Lois Lane we could like and understand. She isn't just an air-headed, screaming bimbo who gets herself in trouble; she's a nervy, tough reporter who likes an adrenaline rush and isn't cowed by anything. *This* is someone who has enough backbone to hook up with the Man of Steel! Zod as a villain is so far improved over the Donner version it isn't even funny. And he is a GOOD villain -- tougher than the hero, ruthless, and in many ways, a perfect dark mirror of Superman himself. This Zod's vices stem from his virtues.
Crowe as Jor-El was incredible, and Costner as Pa Kent was as well. I also loved Diane Lane as Ma Kent...although forget about tugging on Superman's cape, Jim Croce; that ain't nothing compared to hitting his mother! I even enjoyed the minor characters. I especially liked the way the humans contributed to the fight, and in doing so, demonstrated to the battle-bred Kryptonians that even though humans may be physically not as strong, their courage can still prevail.
I thought that was a particularly strong message, because in the end, it's Superman's humanity, not any superpowers, which makes him truly Superman.
If you have not seen this movie, go. Go NOW. You won't regret you did.