The Greatest Comic Book Story - Evolved, Modernized, and Retold

Rating: 9/10 (14 June 2013)

It is rare that I am able to see a movie on opening night. In fact, I can't remember the last time I did. Anyways, I had this movie marked off the calendar and I will guarantee that this review is the most unbiased and most truthful of any you will ever read for Man of Steel. This is the review of the greatest comic book story ever told by a movie watcher that has no loyalties to either DC or Marvel.
First of all, I will say that if you are a fan of Superman in any way, ignore the negative reviews you have heard or read so far and see the movie for yourself. Trust me, you can do a lot worse, and it is hard to find many movies that are much better.
The storytelling of Superman assumes the viewer already knows the story. It doesn't treat the viewer as dumb as what I felt some of the recent movies on Marvel's side have done. There are many flashbacks to his early years and it is up to the viewer to put the pieces together as new scenes are shown. Basically, there is a lot of foreshadowing and flashbacks - probably the most I've seen for a movie - even more than the Dark Knight Trilogy. This isn't bad or good. It is different.
That is what makes this movie fresh. It is far from a remake and if you are looking for someone to take up Christopher Reeves shoes, look elsewhere. This Superman is updated and slightly darker, but more real. It is just a new story told. And that is where I find the fascination with Superman 1 and 2 so confusing. If one looks at why they were successful, they will see that the first had very little competition (1978) and the second was basically mostly shot when the first was made. This is undisputed. And since both movies were the first blockbusters to tell the Superman story, there was nothing to really compare it to.
Man of Steel does has some flaws and I can see where people might complain. Having seen many movies myself, there were set pieces and scenes where I wasn't sure if I was watching War of the Worlds, Independence Day, or Matrix Revolutions. I won't go into details on that but I will say there were some peculiar similarities. Perhaps studios are using the same CGI engines? Overall, this movie is just well written and the cast is nearly perfect. Amy Adams plays a believable Lois Lane and Henry Cavill, IMO, is the most legit looking Superman in any TV show or movie. While Michael Shannon got some laughs by the audience on some overly dramatic scenes, I think he played General Zod as good as anyone could.
The huge plus I have for this movie is what they avoided. One of Superman's character flaws is his only "weakness". You know what it is and it isn't mentioned anywhere in this movie. I think that is great and gives the possibility for sequels. Secondly, the whole identity thing is a thing of the past. It was never a great trait to the story and this movie franchise seems to have fresh ideas on how to portray Superman. However, you can't get away with the fact that Superman is not Batman and doesn't have the story lines or villains that make Batman so outstanding. Batman's mortality is also what makes him able to relate to everyone.
Aside from some minor setbacks, this movie is excellent. My other complaint is that Hans Zimmer's music, while epic, wasn't allowed to be as epic as it could have been. Scenes were cut short and so was the score that played through the movie. I think the editing could have been better to let the music play through scenes.
Man of Steel is better than Avengers, Thor, and Captain America, IMO, but not up to the level of any of the Dark Knight Trilogy. Either way I have a feeling it won't get the respect it deserves. All I'm saying is to watch the movie and decide for yourself. 9/10