Superman Returns Review
Posted by Jacob Ziegler on 06.28.2006
He's only been gone, what, 19 years?
SUPERMAN RETURNS
June 28, 2006
Kal-El / Clark Kent / Superman: Brandon Routh
Lois Lane: Kate Bosworth
Richard White: James Marsden
Perry White: Frank Langella
Martha Kent: Eva Marie Saint
Kitty Kowalski: Parker Posey
Stanford: Kal Penn
Jimmy Olsen: Sam Huntington
Lex Luthor: Kevin Spacey
Warner Brothers presents a film directed by Bryan Singer, from a screenplay by Michael Dougherty & Dan Harris; story by Singer & Dougherty & Harris; based upon Superman characters created by Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster. The running time is 154 minutes. It is rated PG-13 for some intense action violence.
BY JACOB ZIEGLER, 411Movies
Last summer, Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer resurrected the "Batman" franchise by wiping the slate completely clean and creating a new version of the Gotham hero's adventures.
This summer the big re-launched franchise is "Superman," which has lain dormant since the abysmal failure of 1987's "Superman IV: The Quest for Peace." With an opportunity to reintroduce one of the most beloved comic book characters of all-time, would Bryan Singer ("The Usual Suspects," as well as "X-Men" and "X2") and his writers take the opportunity to launch a whole new version of the man who is faster than a speeding bullet?
No, they did not. They take the events of the first two "Superman" films and take off from there, ignoring the existence of the latter two films of the series. Was this a prudent move? I will now review the film in pro / con format, something I have never done before.
- Pro: The film starts very strong. The best action sequence is in the first 20 minutes, and it sets the stage very nicely. The special effects are very well done and remain so throughout the film.
- Con: There isn't much action through the rest of the movie. Over its 156 minute running time, precious little of it is devoted to actual big action scenes. If the film was psychologically engaging enough that wouldn't be as much of a problem, but it's not that engaging, so it is a problem.
- Pro: Relative unknown Brandon Routh does a good job playing the conflicted Clark Kent and Superman alter-ego. I also liked Parker Posey (though her character served little purpose I just generally like her), as well as Sam Huntington as the timid Jimmy Olsen.
- Con: Kate Bosworth was an odd choice for Lois Lane, and it doesn't work. With her brown hair she looked so much like Rachel McAdams I started to wonder why they didn't cast her instead. Then I got so bored I started thinking about how much I liked Rachel McAdams. Kevin Spacey is also extremely goofy as Lex Luthor.
- Pro: The display of Superman's powers are well distributed, with his super strength, x-ray vision, super breath, and most impressively his super sonic hearing are well placed and each given an ample spotlight.
- Con: He seems to have one power that I don't think he should have. In the interest of not ruining a possible spoiler, I offer up this hint – Brody and TS talk about it in "Mallrats."
- Con: The plot concocted by the evil Lex Luthor is beyond absurd, even for a comic book super-villain. Spacey seems to glean no joy from playing this over-the-top villain, and this it was no fun for me to watch him.
- Con: The movie is far too long. At 156 minutes, they could have easily cut 20-25 minutes out and perhaps made a more riveting, concise film.
- Con: As I already mentioned, the fact that the film relies on prior knowledge of "Superman" films was extremely irritating. This "Superman 2.5" concept is, quite frankly, stupid.
Judging by the response to the film so far on rottentomatoes.com, I feel like I'm going to be in the minority in not liking this movie. I listed more cons than pros to illustrate that while there were a few things about the movie I liked, it overall left a very bad taste in my mouth. Oh well, at least I have Keith Dozeman on my side.
The 411: One of the most anticipated films of the summer and it landed with a thud. Brandon Routh gave a good effort but he couldn’t overcome the shortcomings of his co-stars and even the film itself. I’m sure it will be wildly successful and we’ll get, what “Superman 2.75?” No thanks.
