Man of Steel reviewed

Image copyright Warner Brothers Entertainment

     Man of Steel is not your grandfather's Superman.  Nor was it my Superman.  Zach Snyder, under the production leadership of Christopher Nolan, has given audiences a son of Krypton with more modern appeal and action than probably any of the previous Superman movies combined.
     I went into Man of Steel with the expectation that this was a true reboot, unlike the 2006 Superman Returns.  I suggest doing the same if you go see it.  It's best to understand you are not going to be watching Richard Donner directing Christopher Reeve.  Man of Steel does to Superman what Batman Begins did for Batman.  It gives us characters we've grown up with and puts them into a darker, grittier today.  This isn't the age of world wars, nuclear families, peace & love.  We live in an era of globalization, diminishing privacy, and deep social debates of rights and wrongs with no end in sight.  The comic book version Superman keeps up with this.  Why shouldn't the movie version?

     So who were these new faces underneath such established characters?

     I had to look through IMDB to see who Henry Cavill was.  I have not seen anything he has been in.  Not even Immortals, which appears to be about the only one that would have held any interest.  Did this matter?
     Not in the least.  Coming in at about 3" shorter than Christopher Reeve, Cavill's stature as Superman in the movie was not measured by height, but by the maturity (he's 4 years older than Reeve was at the time), physique, and boyish-charm he brings to the screen.  Clark Kent is put through a range of emotions for much of the movie, and Cavill covers them all.  Like Reeve, he carries an air of goodness about him, sort of a benevolent caretaker for us on Earth.  We learn who he is, where he came from, and what we can expect from someone with the strength and power that Superman possesses.

     You know who else I had to look up?  Michael Shannon, who plays General Zod.  With a much more extensive background than Cavill, I feel like I should have known who he is.  After going through the IMDB list, the only thing I *might* have seen him in were the two episodes of Early Edition he apparently was in.  And that's just because I think I watched most of Early Edition.
     Anyhow, Michael Shannon was phenomenal.  His portrayal of Zod cuts right to the heart of the tenuous relationship between the House of El (Superman's family) and himself.  His battle to fulfill his role and preserve a way of life at any cost is not so different from extremists in the world today.  Evil terrorists to some, heroes in their own way to their followers.  The energy Shannon brings to this role is simply electrifying.

     I can at least say I have seen Amy Adams in some other movies.  How was her Lois Lane?  Well, she doesn't smoke, so +1 for that.  She does seem to get into the same sort of stupid messes that Lois always gets into.  Every time you turn around, Superman is saving her.  But she does bring the same grit and determination that the intrepid reporter always seems to have, as evidenced by her first scene in the movie.  Does the romance between Superman and Lois seem as natural as in the original movie?  Probably not, but not to say it isn't blossoming.  I think what keeps it more at bay isn't the lack of on-screen chemistry between Cavill and Adams, but how they have made Cavill's Superman feel far more like the all-powerful alien being he is, than Reeve's ever felt.

     Some quick blurbs on the only others I feel like mentioning:

     Russell Crowe's version of Jor-El is much cooler than what Marlon Brando had to work with.  They gave him a deeper, more meaningful character and allowed much more screen time to advance the plot.  It wasn't self-serving Russell Crowe time--it was important, story driven Jor-El time.  He clearly cares about his son.  Just as much as...

     Kevin Costner and Diane Lane, who took over the reigns as Jonathan and Martha Kent, respectively.  They gave some emotional performances that made you feel their own difficulty in what it was like trying to raise someone as special as Clark.  Their support of their son in who he is never wavers and they share it well with the audience.

     I don't want to get into spoilers and specifics.  I will say that Man of Steel moves at a very quick pace, with plenty of action.  Clark Kent's backstory is tucked into relevant parts as flashbacks and the whole thing is fairly seamless.  Hans Zimmer composed the score for this, and once again hits another homerun with his choices throughout every scene.

     This is the sort of movie that is worth seeing in the theater.  I'm talking splurge on full-price tickets if you can't do a matinee.  I give this:          8.1 out of 10