A Missed Opportunity

Rating: 6/10 (18 June 2013)

'Man of Steel' starts out well, giving a welcome extended look at the events leading up to the demise of the planet Krypton in the midst of a civil war led by General Zod (Michael Shannon). This results in Jor-El (Russell Crowe) trying to ensure the ongoing survival of the Kryptonian race by sending his only son Kal-El to Earth while Zod and his followers are banished before Krypton explodes.
30 or so years later and we meet a young loner Clark Kent (Henry Cavill), a man with extraordinary powers living off the grid for the fear of exposing himself to a world that may not accept him. As Clark searches for answers about his origin and his place in the world he meets reporter Lois Lane (Amy Adams) who is investigating an alien space craft discovered in the icy wastelands of the North. As Clark learns the truth about his past and come to terms with his amazing abilities, the world is threatened by Zod who has escaped from exile and offers up a trade, Kal-El or the destruction of the Earth.
All of the ingredients for a great movie are here and considering the pedigree of David S. Goyer and Christopher Nolan from the epic 'Dark Knight' trilogy on writing duties and Zach Snyder 's previous directing form on the excellent 'Watchmen', you would naturally assume that 'Man of Steel' would be in safe hands.
Unfortunately, after a promising first hour it becomes very clear that too much is trying to be crammed into one movie. Massive parts of Clark's childhood are missed out in favour of flashbacks meaning that the relationship with his human parents (Kevin Costner and Diane Lane) doesn't get the screen time it deserves and lacks the emotional punch it should have. This also means that Lane and Costner are massively and unforgivably under-utilised in their parts.
Those familiar with the Superman comics and original movies will also notice some big changes in the original story, featuring twists on story lines previously used in the series 'The New Adventures of Superman' and 'Smallville.' Despite the attempted injection of fresh material the second half of the movie unfortunately sacrifices what little of the plot and story remains in favour of a prolonged action sequence. Whilst the effects are spectacular in scope and scale and the pace is consistently fast and furious, they completely overpower proceedings.
So much so, that as much as Henry Cavill cuts an impressive physical presence as the Man of Steel, he struggles to add a lot to the part apart from being aesthetically pleasing. Amy Adams as Lois Lane also struggles with a weak story arc and although is a much more an empowered heroine than her predecessors lacks chemistry with her leading man. This is also true of Michael Shannon's General Zod, who starts as a driven yet conflicted character, showing all of the menace that won him acclaim in the TV series 'Boardwalk Empire, yet is reduced to a shallow and very one dimensional figure by end. Russell Crowe's continued presence throughout as the brooding Jor-El is a clever addition, but does little to save the final hour.
This film may have been better served as a trilogy or at least as a two parter as the tone is a lot darker and grittier than ever seen before in a Superman story but doesn't get taken as far as one would like, and didn't allow enough time to really get under the skin of the characters and allow for a better balance between the action and more dramatic scenes. There are also some gaping plot holes which feel like very lazy writing in places with a limited understanding or passion for the subject matter and undermine the story badly.
Ultimately 'Man of Steel' left me asking more questions than it answered and I can't help but feel disappointed as it is a missed opportunity to be the epic that was expected.