Superman Returns
By Mal Simons, Blockbuster.co.uk
“You wrote that the world doesn't need a savior, but every day I hear people crying for one.”
Superman explodes back onto the big screen with this brilliant sequel from X-MEN director
Bryan Singer
. With clever dialogue, a plausible story and incredible special effects, this film will leave you in no doubt, that the Man of Steel has indeed returned.
Newcomer Brandon Routh dons the tights and cape this time and picks up five years after the late, great,
Christopher Reeve
left off in Superman II (this film wisely pretends that Superman III and IV never took place). Shortly after the events in II, astronomers discovered the whereabouts of Superman’s home planet of Krypton. Superman left Earth without even a goodbye to Lois Lane to look for survivors. At the beginning of this chapter, Superman crashes through the atmosphere and lands in a field outside his Earth mother Martha Kent’s home in Smallville, Kansas.
Five years is a long time and Superman finds that an awful lot has changed. As the bespectacled Clark Kent, he gets his old job back as a journalist at ‘The Daily Planet’ and hopes to rekindle his romance with fearless reporter Lois Lane. What he finds instead, is Lois in a longtime relationship with Editor Perry White’s nephew Richard White (
James Marsden)
, Lois also has a five year old son named Jason (Tristan Leabu). To make matters worse, Lois was so hurt at being abandoned by Superman that she wrote an article – “Why the World Doesn’t Need Superman”, for which she has won a Pulitzer Prize.
It is not long however before Superman has to save Lois yet again (she seriously should think about staying in a bit more…); when a NASA shuttle test launch from the top of a plane goes badly wrong, Superman has to spring into action. Face to face for the first time in years, Lois’ feelings for Superman re-emerge and this sends her settled life spiraling out of control.
It wouldn’t be a proper ‘Superman’ film without a role for his bald nemesis Lex Luthor
Kevin Spacey
. In the five years that Superman was away, Lex has been released from prison on a technicality – Superman was a witness however he never showed up for a hearing when he was called to testify.
“How did Lex Luthor get out of prison?” – Clark Kent
“When his appeals came up, they called Superman as a witness, and he never showed. How much do you think that p***es off Superman?” – Jimmy Olsen
“...A lot.” – Clark Kent
Lex has been busy while Superman was away, after first stealing the inheritance of a wealthy old widow from right under her family’s noses, Lex and his entourage seek out Superman’s Fortress of Solitude and Lex learns the secrets of Kryptonian technology from the computer holograms of Clark’s dead father Jorell (
Marlon Brando). Unlocking the secrets of the crystals, Lex comes up with a dastardly scheme to create his own continent using Kryptonian technology. In doing so, this will wipe out much of the USA and kill billions around the world.
When Lois and Jason stumble upon Lex’s plan they are kidnapped and naturally Superman flies to the rescue...but is he any match for Lex who has enough Kryptonite to clip our hero’s wings for good?
Bryan Singer is the King of the Superhero movie! After writing, directing and producing the first two X-MEN movies, Singer dropped X-MEN 3 so he could have a crack of doing Superman – a dream project for him. Indeed it is Singer’s knowledge and respect for the franchise that comes across so well on screen - it allows him to do more with the Superman characters than has ever been done before. For one, this film is much darker than its predecessors. Less straight forward, with more plot twists and much more in the way of characterisation – but then again, this is what you would expect from the man who brought us
The Usual Suspects
.
Special effects wise, the film is flawless, Singer was given an estimated $200M budget and it is clear that he has spent almost every penny on screen. The special effects all have purpose – it’s not an effect for the sake of an effect, they work to compliment the story as a whole. There is a great flashback sequence showing a 15 year old Clark getting to grips with his abilities (which actually fits in quite well with pre-Superman series Smallville – if only he wasn’t wearing glasses). There is a breathtaking plane rescue early on that will have you on the edge of your seat, as well as some tremendous end sequences – which… if I tell you any more, will ruin the picture. Suffice to say – it’s all good stuff!
Brandon Routh is a great Superman and not only looks a bit like Christopher Reeve but also adds a sense of sadness and maturity to the character that had previously not been seen. Like Reeve before him, he still comes across as sincere however is less wide-eyed and naive. This is a good thing as you would expect the character to evolve over time. Clark is still a clutz but in a way more in keeping with the comic books, The Adventures of Superman (1953), New Adventures of Superman (1993) and Smallville (2002). (
Kate Bosworth)
plays Lois Lane well and is someone that the audience can relate to, she is less in your face in her performance than (
Margot Kidder)
, however it could be argued that motherhood has mellowed her out slightly.
Kevin Spacey’s take on Lex Luthor is much better than Gene Hackman’s comical portrayal. Looking back on the original movies, the weakest link by far was the usually brilliant Hackman – while he was enjoyable enough to watch, you never felt that he was truly evil. Spacey on the other hand appears to understand that villains are supposed to be menacing and capable of doing terrible things so this time Lex is a believable and sinister bad guy, this is in keeping with Michael Rosenbaum’s (
Smallville)
take on the character (albeit older) and notably raises the tension and builds up to the inevitable showdown with Superman. Other stars of note include Parker Posey (Lex’s daft sidekick), James Marsden (Lois’ bf), Sam Huntington (Jimmy Olsen) and Eva Marie Saint (Martha Kent); Cinema legend, the late Marlon Brando also makes an appearance using cutting room floor footage as Superman’s Krytonian father Jor-El
All in all, Superman Returns is a tremendous movie – a worthy sequel to Superman’s 1 & 2 and in many ways an improvement on what has gone before. Bryan Singer has done a top job and whether you are intimately familiar with Superman or only have a passing interest, you are sure to enjoy this film – it is perfect in so many ways and dramatically, is the most compelling Superman film yet. This deserves to be THE film of 2006 and comes highly recommended. In the words of Lex Luthor – “Now Fly.” - Add to your list now!
Also Try:
Superman
X-MEN 2
Spider-Man 2
Smallville