Superman for the Video Game Age

Rating: 4/10 (5 January 2014)

Let me preface this by saying I am a fan of Superman. I grew up reading the comics and they helped shape my moral outlook. Superman grew from wish fulfillment in the Great Depression into an icon of the best of humanity; at least, as much as a fictional character can embody that. He went from being a character created to entertain children into a figure of modern mythology, known the world over. I still remember standing in line to see the Richard Donner film and watching the story unfold; cheering as Christopher Reeve flew towards the camera and then banked off to the side.
Superman has been adapted to the times; and so, given that it sometimes feels like we are in very dark times (war, shootings in schools, government shutdowns organized as powerplays, environmental disasters, etc...) we get a dark Superman. However, it can't even find the human connection in the darkness. Instead, it wallows in video game-like destruction, with few consequences for the principal characters. The Screen Junkies group, in their brilliant Honest Trailer, summed it up best: "God forbid a Superman movie be any fun!"
The film first serves up a Krypton that is derived from Avatar, with little to make us care about its destruction. It might have as well been the prologue to a game that is immediately skipped so player can start punching things. Next, we get a Cliffs Notes summation of Clark's isolation from humanity, while he tries to find his purpose. Smallville (the TV show)it ain't. Again, we just seem to be marking time before we start smashing things. We next encounter Lois Lane, who apparently has ticked off the military but goodness knows why, given that she doesn't exactly exude that charisma that a star investigative reporter would have. Then, enter Zod and company to start the destruction.
I could live with mindless destruction if I gave a damn about the characters. Henry Caville is a lump of beefcake with the emotional range of a turnip. Amy Adams, a decent actress, doesn't exactly fill Lois with the personality of the hard-charging reporter. There is no spark between the two, unlike Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder. Their relationship is really rather clinical, like the script is afraid to have real emotions, for fear of losing a teenaged male audience. So, instead, we just start blasting and smashing things, with no visible consequences to innocent bystanders or regards to the laws of physics. Even Avengers managed to bring moments of the human cost of things to the moments of destruction.
There are germs of ideas here, like the potential reaction of humanity to a known alien, especially one endowed with tremendous power. The idea that the government would feel threatened by a power it can't control. The film never really gets beyond introducing these ideas as it instead goes for effects work to keep up the visual distractions. As such, there is such an artifice to the film that the viewer has trouble connecting to anything. The only human moment that meant anything to me was at the end, when we flashback to young Clark running around with his dog and Jonathan Kent recognizes the potential in his son to be a hero for humanity.
The end result hear is a dark and soulless film. I keep returning to the metaphor of a video game because that is how I felt during the film. What little story there is exists only to bridge the next effects scene, with little future consequence or character development. It's not storytelling; it's marking time. Richard Donner is still king and Christopher Reeve is still the truly iconic Superman. Warner would be better served talking to the creative people at Warner Animation, who crafted the brilliant Batman The Animated Series, Superman TAS, and Justice League. They were able to create epic stories with believable characters. Smallville was better able to craft a relatable hero out of Superman and put a new spin on the myth, while still paying homage to the legacy.
Do yourself a favor, watch the Donner film, or Superman the Animated Series. Seek out Elliot S! Maggin's novel "Superman, Last Son of Krytpon." Read one of the thousands of classic stories from the past 75 years; or, play a real video game because at least then you will be able to have an active involvement with the story.