Surprisingly good movie with a grand & epic feel you would hope for

Rating: 8/10 (18 July 2013)

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie; I watched it having no expectations, having not been a massive fan of Superman compared to say X-Men & Wolverine. The Movie had an epic feel about it, which was necessary for Superman. With all the fights over huge distances, the sound & feel of the impacts during the fights, it just felt right for the movie & was pulled off very well with some excellent special effects.
The story hasn't changed much from the comic books or previous versions of Superman movies, where a young boy comes to terms with the powers he was born with compared to other people. The movie follows his journey to discover where he came from and the purpose of his powers. When Earth is invaded by his race, he has to come of age & step up to become the symbol of hope for all of earth.
There is a great cast for this movie, with Henry Cavill being superbly cast, as he is an almost perfect fit to step into Superman's costume. He has the look, as well as conveyed the struggle at times to comprehend what he was sent to Earth for. The rest of the supporting cast were very good, with mentions going out to Kevin Costner, Russell Crowe for their great fatherly roles, but in very different contexts, as well as Michael Shannon & Antje Traue as the ruthless Kryptonians.
I felt that one of the movie's strong points was the grand battle scenes. They all were superbly done & very fitting for the man of steel. The most impressive scenes were of Faora-Ul & her lightning fast reflexes & combat ability. I was very impressed with the scale of the battles, which felt they were almost over whole cities, as well as into space. You really felt the impact of every hit. Also impressive was the advanced race of the Krypton's, again they were very well portrayed as an advanced race with their technology & knowledge.
I was very pleasantly surprised with this movie, going in without any expectations & no huge desire to watch the movie, as I'm usually a big fan of Marvel & their movies. But after the likes of the Dark Knight trilogy, I shall certainly take notice of any more future DC movies, if they follow on from the standard of the Man of Steel.