Superman Returns Review
by Homer Yen (homer_yen AT yahoo DOT com)July 11th, 2006
Super "Man"
"Look, up in the sky. It's a bird! It's a
plane! No, it's Superman!" You can't help but
give a nostalgic grin when you hear that phrase.
It's been a long time and some of us have missed
the Man of Steel. He was a welcome big-screen
hero over 20 years ago. But poor scripts and lackluster acting turned our superhero into a superzero. We all curse the stupidity of 1983's Superman 3. If they could do it all again (and
wipe Superman 3 and 4 from our memories), then
2006's "Superman Returns" would be the next
logical and welcome step in the Superman
franchise. Welcome back. You've been gone far
too long.
In fact, in the film, Superman has been absent
for about 5 years (which is explained with a
summary paragraph during the opening) since he garnered Lois Lane's affection, which was one of
the significant plot points of 1980's Superman
II. And much has changed during his absence.
Most notably, Lois (played by Kate Bosworth) now
has a new man in her life as well a young son.
However, some things are satisfyingly the same.
The theme music will stir up old memories. Lex
Luther (Kevin Spacey) is appropriately campy as a villain intent on defeating Superman and ruling
the world. And newcomer Brandon Routh, who dons
the cape and tights in the title role, has a
striking resemblance to Christopher Reeve
(especially when he is the mild-mannered Clark
Kent).
Some new elements add a bit of bite. For
example, Lois is about to receive the Pulitzer
for her brash article, "Why the World Doesn't
Need Superman". And some things have lost a bit
of its original shine. The eager-to-please Jimmy Olson is less innocent and more sycophantic. And Daily Planet editor Perry White has become more
of a corporate cog and has lost his edge. As
editors go, I much preferred the cigar-chomping, teeth-gnashing Bugle editor (J. Jonah Jameson)
from the Spiderman films.
Above all else, Superman is committed to saving
lives. He is a savior to many. There are many
great action sequences because saving lives and
the world is never boring, but Superman isn't all brawny action. Above all else, it is a romance between two people with buried feelings. Interestingly, kryptonite and feelings of
attraction seem to have the same weakening effect
on him.
Lex Luthor uses both to his advantage.
Admittedly, his newest idea is ill-plotted. It involves creating a new land mass. I liked much better his plan (from a previous Superman film)
when he bought up Arizona desert land and then
tried to generate a giant earthquake that would
cause California to sink into the sea leaving him
with sudden oceanfront property. However,
hatching his newest nefarious plan doesn't really provide him with real estate that's very prime.
It would, though, make a great jail cell for
Superman. Yet, Superman gets off the island and
Lex stays. They got it backwards. I think that
Lex, one of the greatest evil minds in the DC
Comics world, totally miscalculated that one.
Still, we're glad he's back. Much of the credit
for Superman's return goes to the director, Bryan Singer. A Superman fan since boyhood, he passed
on doing a third "X-Men" (after helming the first
two X-Men films) to make "Superman Returns".
When a film is a labor of love, the effort is not
for the paycheck. The effort is homage. That's truth, justice and the American way.
Grade: B+
S: 0 out of 3
L: 0 out of 3
V: 2 out of 3
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com
Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
