Superman Returns - 2 Disc [DVD]

 

 

Create your own review

Comic book adaptations have been fairly rife over the last couple of years, and Superman is arguably comic's most iconic character. This goes some way to explaining why Bryan Singer's sequel of sorts has been treated very much like the second coming. Spiralling budgets, massive pre-release hype, casting secrecy rivalling lunar landing confidentiality and a head-to-head release with a certain movie about Pirates, mean that Superman Returns has a great deal to live up to.

A new Superman film has been in the offing for what seems like, well, forever. Passed back and forth between directors, production studios and scriptwriters, DC's flagship had become a cinematic yo-yo. When Bret Ratner bailed (ironically going on to direct X-Men The Last Stand) Bryan Singer stepped in to take the helm. Fan boys were delighted, after all this was the guy who had saved X-Men. So does this incarnation do enough to stop the hordes dribbling on their keyboards?

First up, Singer's story treads very closely to Richard Donner's 1978 celluloid invention; the sense of innocence remains and the 2006 vehicle also carries the same sense of fantasy. Of course this is the crux - in believing a man can fly and stop a plane hurtling to the ground, breathe ice onto a raging gas inferno or lift an entire continent on his (very broad shoulders) - the audience has to accept a wholesome hero and the feats he performs. This level of acceptance will inevitably categorize the level of enjoyment taken from the picture.

In a nutshell, the Man of Steel has been on a voyage of self-discovery, searching for his home planet Krypton he finds it exploded to smithereens. Five years later he returns to Earth, old flame Lois Lane has found herself a new fella, has a kid and has also written a Pulitzer Prize winning article detailing how the world doesn't need Superman anyway. Understandably the chap in tights is a little confused. To make matters worse, barmy but intelligent super crook Lex Luthor is out of jail again.

Of the performers in this re-dux, Brandon Routh favours best in a make or break role that could still yet be an albatross. Bearing an uncanny physical resemblance, his nuanced and studied performance remains true to Christopher Reeves original and adds a slight touch of melancholy to the hero haunted by love and a sense of duty. Kate Bosworth's Lois Lane is perfunctory rather than feisty and Parker Posey's tart with a heart is in keeping with Luthor's choice of female companion. Kevin Spacey meanwhile just about manages to stay on the right side of pantomime with an OTT Lex Luthor, the flighty megalomaniac who tinkers with krypton crystals in order to `grow' vast land masses (flooding the US in the process).

Kevin Smith raised a particular question in his movie Mallrats concerning Superman/Clarks paternal capabilities. Without wanting to give anything away, it's a question that annoyingly goes unanswered. The audience is left to assume a vast amount of possibilities in the personal world of Supe's, not least what went on during his five-year absence.

Singer, so often dependable and so often brilliant, is clearly head over heels in love with the man in blue; and boy does it show. Throughout two thirds of the 134-minute running time, audiences are treated to a study of isolation, rejection and responsibility as opposed to the summer slam they wanted to see. The three main set pieces (the plane free fall, the continent birth and Superman carrying the weight of the world) are well crafted but its Singer's strict adherence to a personal story that's at the fore. There are a number of incredibly dark scenes in what is effectively a family movie. A knackered Superman's fall from the stratosphere, a Kryptonite afflicted hero getting seven shades kicked out of him and an edgy Lois, son and goon scene are perfect examples of how Singer wants tone over extravagance, heart over action.

Although a tad long, Superman Returns is not a bad movie by any means. Sincere, thoughtful and hinting at modern cultural parallels, Singer crafts a paean to better, safer times. Romantic, playful and visually stunning, Superman Returns is a worthy successor to Donner's much-loved template. It's just not perhaps the movie people were expecting.

I was so dubious about another actor taking on the role of Clark/Superman after Christopher Reeve had done such a fantastic job, but then I heard Bryan Singer was in the Director's chair and I started to breath easy. After all, this is the guy behind Kevin Spacey as Keyser Soze and Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. As images and trailers started to appear, my hopes rose higher. This thing looked amazing. And then I saw it. It blew my mind. As soon as John Williams music began a smile spread over my face and I knew I was in safe hands. Acting? First class. Story? Perfect. Special FX? Flawless. Action sequences? Breathtaking! Unfortunately, the story doesn't have a happy ending. After a slight and ineffective marketing campaign and a plot that catered more for character than wall to wall action, unlike say the CGI heavy Pirates of the Caribbean sequel, Superman didn't do as well as expected at the box office. As a personal plea, if all of you true fans out there want a sequel, BUY THIS DVD!

`Superman Returns' has a lot going for it. I can only imagine the problems trying to replace Christopher Reeve. Reeve captured the essence of both Superman and Clark Kent with a warm, compassionate, funny and yet determined performance - and he managed to look exactly like him too. So, what can be said of Brandon Routh? Thankfully, Routh is excellent. His is a much more restrained Clark Kent, as the bumbling and fumbling of Christopher Reeve's version is brought into 2006 with a more mellow geekiness from Routh. For the modern Clark Kent, this works perfectly. Routh's Superman also seems a little more restrained and straight-faced than Reeve's, but thankfully is still allowed the occasional naive-sounding one-liner. All in all, a good start from a newcomer with some mighty boots to fill. Another with big boots to fill is Kevin Spacey. The difference here is that Spacey is a highly experienced actor and he brings his typical calmness to the role of Lex Luthor. A little more of him wouldn't have gone amiss though.

It almost goes without saying that any current big-budget movie will probably be CGI-laden and modern technology gives a character like Superman the opportunity to do some really incredible stuff. The early action scene involving Superman and a Boeing 777 is shot fantastically and is easily the best section of the film. Mind you, it isn't all perfect; watch the final shot of Superman doing a patrol around the Earth and it`s obvious that Routh's face has been fixed onto a CGI body.

It is also worth tipping the imaginary hat to Singer for his approach to this blockbuster. Instead of going for a plotless, sterile, action-laden behemoth, he actually tries to bring some feeling, relevance and meaning to the world of Superman. It's also nice to see this film following on (albeit loosely) from `Superman 2', thus bringing back Marlon Brando and almost making us forget the loathsome third and fourth films.

So where's the missing star got to? Maybe Kate Bosworth took it with her. In the first four films, as well as in `Lois & Clark' and `Smallville', Lois Lane is a feisty, sharp, driven, and gutsy reporter. Kate Bosworth's version is not. While I accept that the one the film's themes is change through the passage of time, I cannot accept that Lois would have changed that much, nor would I want her to. The dynamic of Lois' streetwise drive paired with Kent's apparent naivety and clumsiness has been a strong part of what made the partnership so watchable. Kate Bosworth doesn't deliver at all and it's a real shame.

Lex Luthor is a great villain, and his wanting revenge on Superman for the years he spent in prison is OK as far as super-villain motivation goes. But the idea of him being some overblown property developer seems a little weak; just compare that for a moment against Ra's Al Ghul's motivation for wanting to wipe out Gotham in `Batman Begins' and you'll see what I mean. More thought required for the sequel.

The film has pacing problems too. After the initial rush of Superman's return and the Boeing 777 scene the film seems to go into a very long lull, with only some minor action scenes to show Superman in action, and the final stand-off isn't exactly rivetting.

Finally, I can just about live with the rest of the world not being able to see that Kent is Superman, but when this is added to the fact that they (presumably) took off at the same time, spent exactly the same amount of time away, and then coincidentally reappear at the same time is utterly preposterous. Hercule Poirot not required for that mystery, I think.

The thing about the aforementioned faults is that they should be easily fixable, which could make for a tremendous sequel. It's also worth remembering that when Singer made `X-Men' he almost used that film to set the scene for the superior follow-up,'X2', so all bodes well for the next film. So, taking `Superman Returns' in the context of a scene-setter, it serves its purpose very well. But, the problem is that it too is a sequel (of sorts), to `Superman 2', and in that respect it fails as it is a slightly less enjoyable film.

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 88 customer reviews...

 

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Film Ever Made
This film is the most under appreciated film of all time. When I watched this in cinema, I had a smile from ear to ear. Read more

Published 5 months ago by Hanif

5.0 out of 5 stars superfilm
After all of the hype about the return of superman this film is no let down. Brandon Routh is the perfect choice for the man of steels big come back and the cast just gets beter... Read more

Published 7 months ago by harv

4.0 out of 5 stars The light to show the way.
After a five year hiatus, Superman returns to Earth to find that Lois Lane is now a soon to be married mother, but some things don't change, loony Lex Luthor is loose and his... Read more

Published 8 months ago by Spike Owen

2.0 out of 5 stars NOT ANOTHER ONE!
Not another superman film! This is another of those very long and very boring action superhero movies. Read more

Published 9 months ago by G. Stephenson

5.0 out of 5 stars Superman
Brandon Routh is so good in this role. The way it has been filmed fits the legend of Superman and the era in which it is meant to take place. Read more

Published 16 months ago by Ms. Yvonne F. Doughty

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Superman Movie By Far
I am so disappointed that the planned trilogy has been scrapped. Brandon Routh was fantastic in the lead role and I wanted to see so much more of Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor. Read more

Published 17 months ago by Ali M

3.0 out of 5 stars Could have been so much better, and not enough special features
On paper, this movie was sure to be a hit: directed by Bryan Singer who pretty much started the comic book movie genre with X-Men, an unknown actor Brandon Routh as Superman... Read more

Published 20 months ago by Random Hero

1.0 out of 5 stars Far too long
I must admit that Superman has never been one of my favourite spandex-clad do-gooders but I do quite like the original Superman I & II films. Read more

Published on 30 April 2009 by Grant Fitzgerald

3.0 out of 5 stars A new beginning...
Though there have been so many comic-to-film translations recently, the original late 'seventies Superman film has always remained the best. Read more

Published on 20 Jan 2009 by GeekZilla

1.0 out of 5 stars R U Reading this Dick Donner?
its 29dec and this film is on TV right now but instead i sit here and write this because i cannot watch such dross after going through my Reeve boxset last week again (plus donner... Read more

Published on 29 Dec 2008 by Mr. P. J. Milner

Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

› See all 88 customer reviews...

Search Listmania!