Man of Steel

Title: Man of Steel

Director: Zack Snyder

Screenwriter: David S. Goyer, Christopher Nolan

Producers: Christopher Nolan, Emma Thomas, Deborah Snyder

Cast: Henri Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon, Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner

Popcorn Movies Rating: 10

The Dark Knight is not alone: Superman brings hope to DC

By: David Maldonado

Forget every Superman movie, because after seeing Man of Steel, you will have eyes none of them.

When planet Krypton is about to die, scientist Jor-El (Russell Crowe), send his only son to planet Earth, to save him. General Zod (Michael Shannon), is sentence to the Phantom Zone after rebelling to the Planet, and in the end he promise he will find Kal-El and the thing that travel with him. 33 years later, young man Clark Kent tries to fit in, but he never stays too much time on the same place. Clark has spend all his life trying to understand why he can do the things he can, and with what purpose he has been sent to Earth.

A promise is a promise and the produced have said the truth, they delivered the Superman movie they said they would. For years Warner Bros. has tried to bring back the greatest hero of all, and it was David S. Goyer and Christopher Nolan the ones that find out how to do it. The seriousness of the story, the depth in Clarks feeling and the entertained spectacle they bring in screams Chris Nolan everywhere. There is no doubt (and Goyer and director Zack Snyder has said so), that without Nolan, this movie couldn’t be possible.

The script, based on the story by Nolan, is the first great script by David S. Goyer. Everything this guy has done is dumb, except for The Dark Knight trilogy and he did those with Nolan. But if you check out some of his solo works you will see titles like The Unborn and Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. But this time, he wrote the script alone and is his first mature and serious work on his own. Excellent script, with no dumb lines and shallow characters.

Then enter Zack Snyder. Because I hate everything this guy has done, I was very nervous of him directing this movie. I told to myself “In Nolan I trust”, so if Nolan chooses this one, then he could do the job. Thank God Snyder decided to change his style for Man of Steel. He promised in the beginning there will be no slow motion scenes, and there are none. The cinematographic style goes with the premise, “what if this happens tomorrow?” It has a lot of handheld shots, very fast and brutal. It must be a 3D nightmare, but if fit perfect in the mood of the movie. Snyder proved he can do better than he has done in the past.

What is an awesome story, beautifully directed without an amazing score? Hans Zimmer proves he is the master. The best he did was not trying to imitate John Williams. Zimmer comes with a different score, full of emotion, and with a simple melody he makes a statement: “This is a new Superman, and this is his song”. Music is very present during the movie and it will be as memorable as the original John William score.

The cherry of the pie came with the cast. There is no superhero movie with a better cast than this one. No Avenger or X-men can be compared with this cast. First there is Henry Cavill. After Immortals I had my doubts about him, but make no mistake, this guy was born for this roll. All previously actors, were the perfect Clark Kent, but Cavill is the perfect Clark and Superman. He is big and strong, but at the same time has this sad face, full with the pain of not being part of this world.

Finally we can enjoy a Lois Lane that is not a damsel in distress. Amy Adams is strong and independent. She might get in some big trouble, but she definitely can defend herself. With her it is Michal Shannon. Who would think that man could be a good bad guy? Well, he is. He is as strong as Superman and he is dangerous, he have no mercy and is capable of destroy the whole planet if Superman let him.

The character I feared most was Jonathan Kent. After seeing TV series Smallville I understand that Jonathan has to be a strong man, but honest. He is the man responsible that Clark is the good man he is. He raised him, and teaches him about good and evil. Kevin Costner is a good dad. He is solid on his position and very honest. He brings to life the kind of character makes you think: “I want him to be my dad”. Well, he is Superman dad. The other dad is Russell Crowe and he’ll make you forget the ghost of Marlon Brandon. I like this Jor-El better. He is not just a voice, but a presence. He is there teaching his son who he is and what is the purpose of being sent to Earth.

Even thou this is a realistic look at Superman, it is a solid sci-fi movie. There is a lot of action, a lot of science fiction themes around it, and very good special effects. At some point of the movie it feels like is going to get boring, but never does. Just when I thought, “if you stop now it’s going to get boring”, it was when it got better. The action starts and it never stops until the very end.

Man of Steel is the perfect summer movie of 2013, full of action and feelings. You can’t miss this.