Superman (2016 film)

Superman is a 2016 DC Comics superhero movie distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures and directed by JJ Abrams, written by Inora founder Sr.Wario. The second installment in the DC Extended Universe, the film is a direct sequel to 2013's Man of Steel, taking place in the same continuity with the same casting. The movie's plot revolves around the aftermath of the Metropolis incident and how that affects Clark Kent, the alter-ego of Superman, and billionaire genius Lex Luthor.
The film is primarily an original premise. Reception has been (TBA).
==Plot==
30 years ago, in Smallville, Kansas, Lionel Luthor is a drunk, abusive father who has lost all happiness in his life after the death of his wife. He frequently lashes out as his young son, Lex, who is smart and talented. After being called worthless and beaten badly on a particularly rough night, he prays to get out of this town and vows that he will one day make it big and prove his father is wrong.
In present day, Clark Kent helps with the relief efforts as Metropolis is rebuilt. The destruction has snapped him out of a cold, distant phase, and he realizes how reckless and carefree he was when battling General Zod. He promises himself to make things right and people notice as he becomes a more cheerful, kind, and friendly person.
But this is offset by the self-loathing and guilt he feels about his role in the catastrophic event. People everywhere hate and distrust Superman, forcing Clark to give up the mantle and live a regular life. In a press conference, billionaire philanthropist Lex Luthor tears the idea of Superman apart by showing footage of several other heroes across the world, like Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, and Aquaman.
As the video shows Bane breaking Batman's back, Lex explains that superheroes can only work if they're human, if they can be hurt, if they had to work for their powers. Lex says that he's the opposite of Superman, because he was self-made, he started as nothing and worked to become one of the richest and most intelligent men in the world. Denouncing Superman as an enemy of the American dream and an alien invader, he rolls out a plan to donate millions of dollars to rebuild the city and cover the hospital bills of everyone injured in relatively little time with his fortune.
People rally behind Lex, who is a genuinely nice person that gives to charity by the bucketload and has a charming personality, treating his employees well. In private, Lex's confidence struggles, years of abuse and mistreatment giving him a serious inferiority complex. While his employees like him, he has no real friends and is constantly looking for validation.
Concurrently, Clark's life is looking up. His relationship with Lois Lane is going strong, he's gaining respect at the Daily Planet from his boss Perry White for his articles about metahumans and how they affect the world, and he's found a new friend in the quick-thinking and witty but socially awkward Jimmy Olsen. He even reacquaintances himself with Lex, who he was once good friends with at Smallville High. The outwardly charismatic Lex invites Lois, Jimmy, and Clark to a party where he's introducing a new discovery of his company, LexCorp.
They attend the party and have a pleasant evening, when Lex makes his announcement. Removing a giant sheet, he reveals a massive chunk of glowing, green rock. Lex explains that the rock has recently been discovered by LexCorp divers, and that the tests they've done show it to be an energy source that is more effective and powerful than any other on Earth. Lex says that they expect the mineral to be all over Earth and promises that households worldwide will be using it to power their technology.
Even being in the presence of the rock makes Clark feel nauseous and weak, and he abruptly excuses himself from the party. Lex keeps a close eye on the reporter, and when he retires to his tower, it's revealed that by using footage of the Metropolis attacks, he's deduced that Clark is Superman, and that his suspicions about the rock having averse effects on aliens are confirmed. He tells his personal assistant to contact one Amanda Waller.
Clark calls in sick for work reluctantly and flies off to the Kryptonian ship in the Arctic. Activating the ship's AI, modeled after his biological father Jor-El, he asks it about the rock. The AI identifies the substance as Kryptonite, a luminescent mineral that was flung across the galaxy after Krypton exploded. While being a powerful source of energy, it also has the detrimental affects on Kryptonians that radioactive materials have on humans, but amplified tenfold.
Meanwhile, Lex has dinner with Waller, the intimidating, no-nonsense director of the American Research Group for the Unearthly and Supernatural, or A.R.G.U.S. Waller is unimpressed by Lex's charms and tells him to cut to the chase. Lex tells her that he has certifiable proof of the recently discovered mineral being an effective weapon against aliens like Superman. Waller, who is on a manhunt for Superman, who she believes to be incredibly dangerous, tries to cut a deal with the inventor.
Turning down a government contract and money, Lex promises to work with the covert organization to kill Superman, under the circumstances that he leads the operation. She's confused, but he explains that his entire life he's been trying to prove his worth, and that he can finally know his value when he kills Superman and is praised as a hero by the world. Waller is uncomfortable with working alongside a civilian, but she realizes that she has no other option to attain the mineral, so she accepts his terms.
Clark flies off to his hometown and visits his mother, Martha. She's happy to see him, but questions why he's visiting so suddenly. He makes light of the fact that he can fly, but Martha tells him to tell her the truth. Clark explains that, with the advent of Kryptonite, Earth will be an inhospitable place for him, and that he'll have to leave or die with the world remembering him as an alien terrorist. Martha assures her son that the planet needs a Superman in the troubled times they live in, and that it's not too late to show them that he's a hero. Inspired by her words, Clark says goodbye and flies back to Metropolis, his mother watching him and waving.
Putting the costume on again, Superman decides to help people rather than hurt them, and goes across the city and the world, saving lives, rescuing people in danger, and stopping crime by using diplomacy and his charming personality rather than his superpowers. While unpopular at first, this shows the people of the world that what happened in Metropolis was a grave mistake, and that Superman is a hero. Even the government begins to warm up to him, and calls A.R.G.U.S.'s operation to execute him off.
The change in people's hearts is represented by a broadcast from the Daily Planet, which has interviews with people across the world about Superman. As Lex watches the news, this causes his already unstable mind from weeks and weeks of hard work to snap. Believing that he is the only sane one on Earth, Lex is convinced that he is humanity's savior, and that if he kills and humiliates Superman, it will show people the error of their ways.
As Superman is flying away from a bank robbery he just thwarted, a beam of Kryptonite imbued energy hits him in the back, knocking him into the ground. He turns around to see Lex, who is inside his experimental prototype exosuit, that is powered completely by Kryptonite and allows him to fly, withstand incredible force, and fire concussive blasts. As a police car drives up to stop Lex, he smashes it, nearly killing the officer inside.
People watch in horror as the psychotic Lex wipes the floor with Superman, beating him against the wall, slashing through his suit, and breaking his bones. Superman, bloodied and battered, warns the police to evacuate the city before Lex does any more damage, but there are too many people for them to do it in time. Suddenly, the city's population looks up to see the Batwing soaring overhead, followed by Green Lantern and Wonder Woman flying in, Aquaman arriving from the bay, and the Flash dashing into the city at supersonic speeds.
The five superheroes work together to evacuate the city's people using their powers, meeting for the first time, while Lex focuses on decimating Superman, with no concern for the buildings around him, even his own. Superman looks up at the sun beating down on them, and with his last bit of strength, flies out into space. Lex is baffled, throwing a temper tantrum as the city's population is successfully evacuated without any casualties.
Superman absorbs the sun's radiation and warmth, looking down at Earth. He smiles to himself and remarks about how much he loves the world, not as a god, but as a man. With the solar rays healing him and empowering him to fight on, he narrows his eyes and dives towards Earth to stop Lex. As the maniac trashes the city, Superman firmly tells him to stop and turn himself in. With devilish glee, Lex fires Kryptonite all over the place, Superman dodging the attacks with relative ease.
Frustrated, Lex tackles Superman in mid-air and frantically punches him, but Superman just throws him off and tries to further reason with him. Lex refuses to listen, though, and continuously assaults the hero, when Superman's eyes glow red. Lex cackles, pointing to sky and saying that he was right about the alien. As he braces himself for death, he looks down in confusion as he realizes that Superman is using his laser vision to slice through the Kryptonite on his suit.
Lex smashes his chest repeatedly, angered by Superman's unwillingness to kill him. Superman then delivers a single punch to the chestplate of the exosuit, not harming a bone in the psychopath's body but instead disabling his suit and leaving Lex to scream in anger about everyone being fools and how Superman will be the end of them on the ground. As Superman walks away, the police comes in to arrest him on the charges of attempted murder, resisting arrest, and property damage.
News channels across the world report on the incident, with Superman becoming an icon and a hero while Lex is disgraced. The government denies their involvement with LexCorp, and Lex is shown being held in a high-security prison. As Clark and Lois watch the news together, she tells him that with his lawyers, Lex will be out in no time. Clark nods, but tells Lois that when Lex returns, he'll be ready to stop him.
Martha watches happily as Superman stands before the Metropolis city council and asks them not to build the statue of him they were planning, and to view him as not a god, but as a man, ending the film.
In the post-credits scene, Wayne Enterprises is shown hauling the Kryptonite they bought from the struggling LexCorp into Gotham City. As Alfred Pennyworth and Bruce Wayne watch on, Alfred asks if Bruce is going to need it. Bruce shrugs and tells Alfred that it's good to be prepared. When his butler questions how they're going to get it to the Batcave, Bruce puts his hand on his chin in thought as the scene cuts to black.
==Cast==
*Henry Cavill as Clark Kent/Superman: Reporter for the Daily Planet, Clark Kent is a farm boy from Smallville in the midwest. Rocked by the death of his father and the sudden influx of information about his heritage, Clark fell into a depression and nearly destroyed Metropolis while trying to save it from General Zod. Now woken up from his ambivalence, Clark strives to become a better person, acting kind and optimistic. But with his future in question, Clark questions if Superman can exist in the future.
*Edward Norton as Lex Luthor: CEO of LexCorp, Lex Luthor is a brilliant, charming engineer with a dark and troubled past. Having been abused by his father as a child, verbally and physically, Lex has a serious inferiority complex and loathes Clark and Superman, for having near limitless power without working for it and a pleasant childhood. Though kind and generous at first, Superman's presence slowly corrupts him into a short-tempered psychopath, mirroring the hero's journey.
*Jude Law as Lionel Luthor: Lex's father, an abusive drunk. After the death of his wife, Lionel becomes a neglectful single parent who takes his rage and sadness out on his young son. This turns Lex into the low self-esteem person he is, but also motivates him to become truly great.
*Amy Adams as Lois Lane: A tough-as-nails reporter for the Daily Planet who has won accolades for her articles about the Metropolis incident. While Clark is naive and cheerful, Lois has an edge to her that makes her a person not to mess with. Despite this, she truly loves Clark and keeps his secret without any second thought.
*Diane Lane as Martha Kent: Clark's mother, who is living alone in Smallville, Kansas. Although an older woman, Martha has a fire to her and refuses to give up, motivating Clark in his darkest times and being part of the reason he is who he is.
*Laurence Fishburne as Perry White: The editor-in-chief of Daily Planet, Perry seems to be unfazed by the strange occurences that go on around him, though the Metropolis incident has shook him. Uncertain about whether he supports Superman or hates him, Perry is an unbiased reporter who finds himself covering massive situations, such as the battle between Lex and Superman.
*Russel Crowe as Jor-El: Clark's biological father, Jor-El is long dead, but he lives on as an AI inside a crashed Kryptonian ship that acts as a fortress of sorts for Superman in times of need. He gives Clark guidance and information on Kryptonite, when it's discovered by LexCorp.
*John Gallagher Jr. as Jimmy Olsen: A reporter at the Daily Planet who often works alongside Clark and Lois. Jimmy is a quick-talking journalist who is younger than his coworkers but can hold his own in a debate. Although often sarcastic and witty, Jimmy is socially awkward, a fact that makes him get along with the unpretentious Clark. His optimistic point of view and willpower bring a different perspective towards the world they live in and helps brighten the workplace up.
*Alfre Woodard as Amanda Waller: An intimidating, no-nonsense woman who has little patience for formalities, always looking forward to getting things done. The director of the U.S.A's A.R.G.U.S organization, Amanda is the leader of the operation to kill Superman, but finds that she has to work with Lex to do so. After Lex's breakdown, Amanda is quick to break off their alliance, but remains distrustful of superpowered people and aliens.
*Armie Hammer as Bruce Wayne/Batman: A shadowy vigilante from Gotham City who is Bruce Wayne, a charming playboy, to the public. Having operated for at least a decade longer than Superman, Batman is both more weary and experienced, having a pessimistic outlook on life and a dark past. Despite this, he's a firm believer in justice and finds himself allying with the other heroes to evacuate Metropolis, setting up further meetings between the world's heroes.
*Olivia Munn as Wonder Woman: A quiet, stern woman who appears to be immortal, being rarely seen or heard from. She has a history of assisting man, and appears to help the city's people in their darkest hour, with powers and strength that rivals or even surpasses Superman.
*Logan Lerman as The Flash: A quick-witted, upbeat superhero from Central City, Missouri. With the power of super-speed, he comes in to assist Metropolis in their evacuation. Unlike the others, the Flash is a relatively new hero who wasn't even operating when the Metropolis incident took place. This makes him a bit more lighthearted and excited than the others.
*Terrence Howard as Green Lantern: A helper in the evacuation of Metropolis, John Stewart is one of many Green Lanterns, a group of intergalactic police who utilize light constructs to keep order across the universe. John is one of few human Green Lanterns, and was once a Marine before his current service. A military man through and through, John never jokes and barks commands, but he means well and has the skills to back it up.
*Chad Michael Murray as Aquaman: A mysterious superhero known for saving people across the world when it comes to aquatic danger. Dubbed "Aquaman" because of this, he uses his aquakinesis and powerful trident to help with the evacuation of Metropolis. With a boisterous and cheerful, if a little naive, personality,  Aquaman gets along with almost everyone he works alongside.
*Scott Adkins as Bane: A masked strongman with a hatred for Batman. He appears in Lex Luthor's superhero footage, breaking the vigilante's back. This is a callback to the story Knightfall.
*Hugh Laurie as Alfred Pennyworth: Bruce Wayne's loyal butler and confidante, Alfred assists him in his escapades at Batman. While making only a cameo here in the post-credits scene, Alfred's signature dry humor and cynicism are as present as always.
*Morena Baccarin as Mercy Graves: Lex's bodyguard and personal assistant, who only appears briefly. She's endlessly loyal to the genius, even in times of desperation, and provides him with support, though rarely speaking. This character originated in Superman: The Animated Series.
==Reception==
TBA
==Trivia==
*The film was inspired by Max Landis' pitch for a Death of Superman book and his pitch for a Man of Steel sequel.
*According to the film's screenwriter, the movie's main themes are being human and redemption. These are direct contrasts to the themes of sacrifice and religion in the film's predecessor.