Kal-el learns to fly, wear underpants inside his suit and make a good movie

Rating: 9/10 (27 June 2013)

Man of Steel A scientist on a dying world sends his newborn son into space to escape the impending doom of their planet, sacrificing his life for the chance for his son to survive on a primitive planet orbiting a young yellow sun, a planet most of us may find strangely familiar- most of us know the background to the man in blue. And to be honest, it's never been the most important or integral part of the world's first comic book superhero. Of late, the men of steel's defining features have mostly been the cape, the jaw line, and of course his unique style in underwear. But for this instalment, its all about his origin. Who he is as a character suddenly has less to do with his fashion sense as much as his heritage, the delicate balance he represents between two worlds, and the fact that he is, after all, an alien. And all of a sudden he begins to be less of a gaudy gimmick and once more a character you can invest in, relatable because of his small town upbringing in Kansas, and supportable because of the opportunity for hope he represents. To go into more detail would spoil the film for those who have yet to see it, but suffice to say kal-el's very existence is a source of hope and contention in and of itself. The use of a main character as a macguffin is a shrewd and unusual one, and a defining feature of the film. A Hero as multi-faceted as Henry Cavill's depiction of Kal-el deserves an equal villain. It is a tribute to Cavill's acting and of the character of Kal-el that Michael Shannon's brutish and driven General Zod struggles to keep up with the hero in terms of character. Though not as iconic as the hero of krypton, the good general enjoys a recurring part in the Superman mythos, first appearing in film portrayed by Terence Stamp in Richard Donner's Superman II. Shannon's version takes more emphasis from the status of General, being a more militaristic and brutal commander, seeing Krypton as the more "evolved" species and thus deserving to colonise the Earth than humans. The principles of evolution, divine right and singular vision of purpose define Zod, the idealism of a zealot driving him repeatedly into conflict with both members of the el family, and it is never clarified whether he genuinely believes in his cause, or simply employs it as affront to cover his barely concealed bloodlust. Although the majority of the film takes place on earth, krypton and its remnants, both technological and living are the focus of the plot. On an aesthetic level, this gives director Zack Snyder artistic free reign to go more or less completely over the top in terms of set design. The opening 20 or so opening minutes on Krypton are an unrelenting sensory assault, bombarding the audience's eyeballs from the logos onwards, as we witness the political and scientific systems of an alien world with a civil war and subsequent apocalypse raging in the background. After the intoxicating rush through a society whose doom is made clear from the very beginning, the visuals step down a pace, becoming more introspective on the details of a more washed out planet earth, causing plenty of artistic possibilities of showing the alien aesthetics infringing on Earth. Having actually seen in some depth the society from which the krypton ships, technology and weapons originate, the juxtaposition of krypton onto earth feels less like a b-movie alien invasion, and more like a jarring clash of two very different cultures. That said, Zack Snyder does channel 50s –era invasion movies at certain points, as well as disaster movies, military conspiracies, and the bonkers apocalyptic imagery that snuck into some of his other prominent works such as Sucker Punch and 300. The mix of genres actually works to the movies benefit, the only issue being when Snyder occasionally starts to go too overboard with the death and explosions. The movie's climax feels a little strained due to the sheer scale of property damage, and you're left wondering whether the director is constantly challenging himself to see how many buildings he can blow up per shot. Perhaps it would be better if the crew gave him less coffee before filming? Whatever the reason, there are certain points where the viewer's personal preference for Snyder's work may influence their opinion more than the story. In any case, the sheer tonnage of destruction may lead to some viewers needing a lie down afterwards. While he can go overboard, the wanton destruction does finally bring justice to the super powered smack downs we've grown to expect from a summer superhero blockbuster. Amid the ethnic morality behind alien cultures and emotional moments, there are lots of pretty explosions to keep your attention from slipping. All in all, Man of Steel is definitely worth seeing. The beauty of a reboot is the ability for new fans that may not be previously familiar with the Superman mythos to be introduced in a newer, shinier way than the fans of yesteryear. For newbies, this is a sleek, glossy sci-fi summer epic, with some serious emotional characters, and a beautiful visual aesthetic. For those who have been fans since the beginning, I would argue this film manages to take a fresh look at a beloved icon, and manages to pay homage to the central ideals of the character, of hope and leading through inspiration with the additional promise of taking the hero in new and exciting directions. 4.5/5