Review Tuesday - In the Cinema: MAN OF STEEL (2013)

I can't say I really had any intention of seeing this latest Superman movie, but my friends wouldn't take NO for an answer. We went in for a 9:30 AM showing this past Sunday and saw MAN OF STEEL in IMAX 3D.

One alien stands to defend the Earth against the only other survivors of their home world.

This movie was far from the old goofy Superman franchise yet the reviewers gave it a thorough beating. The more I read, the less interested I felt. Yet, all the geeks and comic-book nerds I knew raved about MAN OF STEEL. As I mentioned above, my friends wouldn't take no for an answer and, pretty nearly, dragged me out of bed to see this.

I am grateful they did.

MAN OF STEEL is 143 minutes of compelling story. Like what was done with the Batman, the direction of this reboot has taken a darker turn. In just under two and a half hours we were given a very different back story to Superman, and how he ties in to General Zod. In fact, this story has been updated into more of an alien invasion type of movie. But they fit everything in. 

• His birth on Krypton.
• Escape from a dying planet.
• Learning about his powers.
• Learning about RESPONSIBILITY.
• Defending his adopted planet from the only other survivors of Krypton.

Mix that compelling story with a great cast, perfect direction, and amazing special effects and you have a very effective Superman reboot.

That cast I just mentioned. Who is this new Superman / Kal-El / Clark Kent? Henry Cavill is the man with the cape this time around. He's a big muscular guy in the movie, and looks very much like the comic book artwork, only this Supes has figured out to wear his red underwear on the inside of his costume this time. He seems to have quite a resume, but nothing I have seem him in previously. He was perfect for the role. Amy Adams as Lois Lane was an interesting choice. her name comes up a lot and I know dudes love her, but she, too, hasn't been in anything that I have felt compelled to watch. She did a great job though. I would normally use an opportunity like this to mention that Kate Beckinsale would've been far superior for that role, but she's a star, not a support actress. Michael Shannon seems to be the current movie villain go-to guy. He plays a brutish General Zod with malevolence oozing out of every pore. Some other big names with smaller roles were Laurence Fishburne as Perry White, Russell Crowe as Jor-El, Kevin Costner as "Pa" Jonathan Kent, Diane Lane as "Ma" Martha Kent, Harry Lennix as General Swanwick, and Christopher Meloni as Colonel Hardy just to run down some names. I feel compelled to mention Antje Traue played General Zod's wife, Faora-Ul, possibly the sexiest lady-villain since Sienna Miller as the baroness in G.I. Joe.

You'll have some comic book purists with some complaints.For instance, Lois Lane pretty much starts right off knowing that Clark Kent is Superman. Personally, I have no qualms with using an artistic license for the benefit of the story.

I saw this movie in IMAX 3D. The sound was INCREDIBLE, but I wasn't bowled over by the 3D effects. I like to look over the glasses here and there just to see how much of a difference there is, and I found that there wasn't much. Considering that IMAX 3D has a price tag of $19 per ticket, I felt a little bit taken advantage of.

All in all, I'd have to say I very much enjoyed this movie. It was taken seriously, it made sense, and it was fun to watch without being goofy. The characters were developed perfectly, you liked the good guys and hated the bad guys with intensity. The special effects were seamless. The ending was nothing you had come to expect from the Superman character. To me, that was worth the price of admission. I still can't figure out how the movie only got a PG-13 rating. Check it out!

More on IMDB:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0770828/?ref_=hm_cht_t5