Superman Returns Review [3]
Posted by George H. Sirois on 07.04.2006
A Bryan Singer / Richard Donner Film
1987 was the last time we saw the Man of Steel – Superman – on the big screen. That film was the absolutely abominable Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, a movie so bad that Christopher Reeve walked off the franchise completely and so unsuccessful at the box office that it couldn’t even break even with a $19 million budget.
Since Superman’s future in theaters was put into limbo, the comic book fans have been appeased with five Batman films (including a re-booting of the franchise), 2 Men In Black’s, 3 Blade’s, 3 X-Men’s, 2 Spider-Man’s, 2 Crow’s, a Sin City, a Daredevil, an Elektra, a Fantastic Four, a Hellboy, a Hulk, a Spawn, a Captain America (kind of), a Judge Dredd, 2 different Punisher’s, and even a Steel! Needless to say, the comic book audience moved on from Superman’s absence.
It took almost twenty years for the Last Son of Krypton to come back to the movies, and the journey was a long and excruciating one. (Just take a look at What Might Have Been: Spoiling the Supe for the details.) And when all was said and done, once Bryan Singer came onboard, it was only natural that the story for Superman Returns would be about the comic book icon returning to Earth and Metropolis after a long absence. So with a movie-going public that has moved on, and the people of Metropolis doing the same, is Superman’s return a triumphant one on every level? Well, almost, and let’s start with the good, of which there is plenty.
First of all, there is the cast. Replacing actors with other actors in a franchise is a common trait in film. In the original four Batman films, we’ve seen three different Batman’s and two different Harvey Dent’s, but here, the only actors that have been in both Superman and Superman Returns are the dead ones. Marlon Brando’s image and dialogue from the original film are peppered throughout the film and Glenn Ford’s picture is seen on Martha Kent’s fireplace during the scenes in Smallville. Everyone else is replaced with a whole new cast, and even though this is a start of a whole new trilogy, it is still a continuation of the story that was left off in Superman II so the older audience that is familiar with the earlier films can’t help but compare the two casts.
Thankfully, everyone involved has stepped up and given their all. Brandon Routh leads the new cast as a stellar Superman and almost as good Clark Kent. He reminds you of Christopher Reeve with his voice and his history (like Reeve, he was an unknown soap opera actor when he put on the tights), but he manages to make the role his own and provide the perfect centerpiece to this all-new franchise. Kevin Spacey makes a great Lex Luthor that has a very big chip on his shoulder after going through the events of the first and second films. He no longer settles for an underground lair below Grand Central Station, having swindled a dying widow out of her fortune and “inherited” a mansion, a helicopter and millions of dollars. He has stopped being a campy villain and evolved into someone truly vicious and anxious to give his rival the biggest ass-kicking he possibly can.
Frank Langella and Sam Huntington make a perfectly fine Perry White and Jimmy Olsen, although I miss the extra touch of urgency that Jackie Cooper brought to Mr. White. Parker Posey was her usual sarcastic self most of the time, but she brought an extra vulnerability to Kitty Kowalski that really makes you believe she thinks she could be tied up with the wrong guy. James Marsden is great as Richard White, Perry White’s nephew who could have been a thankless role but thanks to his performance, he is much more memorable than he could have been. Even though Kal Penn barely does anything at all as Stanford, Lex’s computer lackey, thankfully there isn’t an Otis to be the token comic relief.
If there’s any weak link in the cast, it would have to be Kate Bosworth as Lois Lane, although it’s not really her fault. Acting-wise, she was just fine. The problem is that writers Michael Dougherty and Dan Harris took out a little bit of the grit that is expected of Lois. Even though she didn’t pull off the reporter side of her character as well as Margot Kidder, she was very believable as the mother of her 5-year old son Jason, a brand new character that provides the link to Superman II. Playing Jason is Tristan Lake Leabu, and if this film is any indication, he’ll get a lot of work very soon since he also did a great job.
Everything in the film shows a great attention to detail by director Bryan Singer and writers Dougherty & Harris to make sure Superman Returns follows in the footsteps of Superman I & II. Plenty of scenes play like episodes of VH1’s Pop-Up Video, and having seen I & II so many times, I loved it. Luthor’s time in the Fortress of Solitude from II is referred to, the meteorite that landed in Addas Abiba in the first film is shown, Superman repeats his line about how flying is the statistically the safest way to travel, etc.
However, the main problem that keeps Superman Returns from really taking flight into the stratosphere is Bryan Singer’s insistence on his film mirroring the same structure as the original Richard Donner film. The pacing is just like the first film, with similar events happening at the same time. Because of this, Superman Returns at times feels less like a sequel and more like a re-make, with the action beats replaced by bigger and more expensive moments. Even Luthor’s plan for creating a brand new body of land is a reflection of his earlier plan for making Costa del Lex out of California.
And I know it’s not the fault of the filmmakers, but we’ve seen more than one comic book film in theaters each year since 1997. Superman Returns is just the latest one to join the party, even though it is a technical continuation of the original franchise that got the whole comic book movie ball rolling. It has the same sort of feel that Singer’s first X-Men had, in which you could tell there’s something holding him back from really cutting loose and giving us something incredible. With the first X-Men, Singer was held back financially, while with Superman Returns he seems to be held back creatively. The love for the first film is dripping off the screen, and Singer seems too beholden to it, like Peter Jackson was with his King Kong re-make.
But these problems did little to affect my liking for this film. I came out of the theater not only very satisfied with what I had just seen, but really looking forward to what the second chapter of this proposed trilogy will be like. Superman Returns plays like the ultimate transitional film, a passing of the torch to this whole new cast and crew. Now that he has accomplished what was needed, the next chapter should be completely Bryan Singer’s film and not one that feels like he was sharing the directorial duties with Richard Donner.
The 411: While lacking in originality when it comes to structure and pace, Superman Returns definitely succeeds in bringing the Man of Steel back to theaters in a big way. Routh is a tremendous Superman and a solid Clark Kent, Spacey is a hell of an evil Lex Luthor, Bosworth is a decent enough Lois, and I have no idea what’s going to happen in the next chapter. If it wasn’t the latest comic book film in the overflow of the past eight years, it would have been a 9, but for now…
