Superman Reborn

Rating: 10/10 (14 June 2013)

(Update – 6/15/13, Second Viewing: Superman soars from 4/5 stars to 5/5. Gone were any of the flaws I listed below. A lot more is explained with the second viewing. Everything clearer. The heroism portrayed was refreshing because people who did heroic acts in this movie did them because they needed to be done – not because they wanted to be a hero or heroic. The movie isn't perfect, but it's damn close and I am glad for this second viewing to prove this movie is much better than I originally saw it. Solid 5/5 Stars. Now, here's my original review below, unedited)
From the relatively quick Krypton opening, Man of Steel quickly gets to the goods and, like 1989's Batman, it saves us from the rehash of the Smallville chronicles and just provides the necessary flashbacks that made Clark who he will become. I mean, really. Smallville was on for 10 TV seasons. If you wanted to see that, spent that much time in front of the TV. This is a Superman movie!
Butit's not the Superman you or I grew up and loved. This is new, fresh, exciting and more real than ever before. There was so much good that was added, altered and enhanced that I embraced every change including one MAJOR modification that I will not ethically spoil.
Now, this is not all to say we need to forget the silliness – okay, OVER-comical previous films. If you want to see that, simply watch them. This is a brand new vision of my all-time favorite superhero and after watching the previous entries countless times, it was absolutely breathtaking to see such a new twist and explore a new avenue never been done before.
In 2006, Superman Returns simply continued the storyline from Superman II (yeah, it told you to forget III and IV ever existed, and for the most part, most people had, even without Returns.) Returns used the same characters, the same campiness, the same music, the same Kryptonite and even a guy who looked and acted exactly like the late and great Christopher Reeve.
And that's all well and good. It's also good that was the end of that saga. Much like what happened to The Dark Knight Trilogy's mythology. Hopefully.
I didn't know what to expect here. More of the same, i.e. reboot but with all the same themes and the same Superman and his morals? No. This couldn't have been further from the old series.
I loved Henry Cavill as Superman/Kal-El/Clark. (Oops, sorry, spoiler there. Duh.) I loved his depth, his convictions and his imperfections. I love that he is NOT the Christopher Reeve version of the last son of Krypton. And just to clarify, I love both versions of Superman. Nicely, now I can choose which I would like to watch once this hits home video and I need my Supe-fix.
You may think you know the story of Kal-El, but all that remains is that Krypton does fall, General Zod & Friends are banished and imprisoned and baby Kal does end up with the Kents in Kansas. From thereIt's a whole new world.
Clark's trying to find himself, his way, his future and his past. Along his journey, he does meet up with Lois and she's as equally altered as is this version of the Man of Steel. Simultaneously, that nasty Zod gang does make their way to Earth and has some things up their sleeves.
Will "Superman" – or so they call him – rise to the occasion and prove himself as a world-class hero? You think you know the answer?
The movie had incredible graphics, wonderful flying sequences, great sound, decent score and the acting is believable from all fronts. But
now that all my praise is out there, the movie isn't perfect by any means. Number one, the writing is offquite a bit at times. So much so, it will be probably my inevitable second viewing before I can piece together all that was wrong with it. They do throw quite a bunch at you to distract you from any script problems. Also, it didn't help that my 3D-glasses were a bit scratched. Luckily, I didn't find the 3-D all that great, so my next viewings will be cheaper as I hang those glasses up.
In addition to the sometimes poor writing, is the sketchy editing and perhaps too many flashbacks to the point it's hard to decipher past and present. I mean, I don't believe Martha Kent aged a bit in 30 years! (If she was real, she might consider that a compliment, untilshe realizes I meant she looked ancient back then and still does in present day.)
There is far more to love in this movie than those points of criticism. Personally, I was so wrapped up in the newness and fresh aspect – even though I grew up knowing Superman one (completely different) way – that even when I knew there were script issues, I didn't care. I loved the new Superman, the new direction and can't wait to see where this is headed.
The incredible action also helped in my fun time. After the comedy Iron Man 3, it's nice to put the action back into the original Action Comic.