I believe that a man can fly. I began to believe it a long time ago when I first saw Richard Donner’s film “Superman” (as well as its sequel “Superman II”). That film single-handedly inspired me to don a red towel/blanket/spare chunk of fabric and run around the house, trying to fly. As I grew older, my interest in such matters waned. But after watching Bryan Singer’s film “Superman Returns” my faith has been restored and my enthusiasm for flight with the aid of a crimson cloth has never been higher.
But why has Superman fascinated me throughout the years? At first (and even now to some degree) it was all about the powers. Abilities like: super speed, a multitude of vision powers (including heat and x-ray), flight, invulnerability, super breath, and super hearing. Who wouldn’t want to have those? Top it off with that damn cool suit (cause when you’re a kid, the cape looks awesome) and what’s not to like? As I grew up and learned more about this strange visitor from another planet, I discovered that there was more to him than just what he could do. It was what he stood up and fought for that began to impress me. Truth, justice and the American way. And not only that but he never gave up when fighting for those in need. He could have been minutes away from death by Kryptonite poisoning, but he was gonna do everything he could to save as many people as possible before he bit the dust.
It was that never say die attitude that appealed to me the most. Even now, I find it inspiring. There are times when it has helped me to push myself a little further and just keep going when all I wanted to do was quit. Yes, I know that he’s a fictional character, but what he stands for never goes out of style. Besides you’d be hard pressed to find any athletes or celebrities or public figures worth looking up to in this day and age.
It’s that aspect of the Last Son of Krypton that Singer (and even Donner) captured on film. They show him fighting to save lives regardless of the cost to his own. And damn it, we need that kind of inspiration these days.
Superman is not like other super heroes. He doesn’t complain about his gifts and wish that he could give them up or worry that if he uses them he might hurt more people than he can help. He isn’t driven by a personal tragedy and he doesn’t do it for the money. He does what he does because it’s the right thing to do. That’s how he was raised. But just because he doesn’t have issues like some of the other super heroes doesn’t mean that he’s impossible to relate to. His feelings of isolation and loneliness are sentiments that just about everyone can relate to. He’s got all of these amazing abilities, and yet he’s got no one to share his life with. Sure, Ma and Pa Kent help him as much as possible, but they’re his parents, not his soulmate. Singer addresses this issue and Kal-El’s feelings about it magnificently in “Superman Returns”.
This film begins much like previous four (though, to be honest, I really only count the first two) with John Williams’ “March of Superman” accompanied by the brilliant blue typeface words listing the cast and crew. When the score began, I knew I was hooked into this film. My cautious optimism about this film quickly turned into excitement and hope. And the film didn’t let me down. If you want to know about the story of this film, I suggest you search elsewhere online. But I will say this: Some of the die-hard fans are going to take issue with certain events in the film and certain characters’ portrayals. I saw all of the depictions as very true to their portrayals in the first two films. This is the Movie Superman, not the Superman from the last 20 years worth of comics or the Animated Series. Personally, I just had to look at this film as an “Elseworlds” tale. (a.k.a. An alternate take on an established character as done in some DC Comics.)
Yes, people are going to find evidence to support the “Superman as Jesus” allegory, but that’s been around for years in the comics. However, it wasn’t overdone. There were a couple of shots/scenes to illustrate the point and that was it. Heck, I felt like “The Matrix Saga” pushed a similar religious allegory on the viewers more than “Superman Returns” did.
And no, this film didn’t try to use the hero as a metaphor for homosexuality. Singer did that in the X-men films. And if he directs another superhero film in the future, I’m sure he’ll use the hero to illustrate a different metaphor. But the people who are trying to make something out of nothing need to just sit back and enjoy the film for what it is and not focus on trying to find some hidden meaning. Sometimes a film is just a film.
Getting back on topic, the special effects were simply breathtaking. Especially Superman’s flying. You can definitely see where the flight sequences in “The Matrix Revolutions” gave filmmakers some new inspiration and ideas for filming and animating the hero in flight.
The cast of this film really did an amazing job. Brandon Routh channeled the late Cristopher Reeve in his portrayal of Clark/Superman. Likewise with Kevin Spacey and taking the reins of Lex Luthor from Gene Hackman. In fact, most of the cast emulated their predecessors and as a result, it helped the film maintain a sense of continuity with the first two “Superman” films. The only difference this time around was Jimmy Olsen. Sam Huntington played him perfectly. However, this wasn’t quite the same Jimmy from the previous films. This Jimmy was a wonderful amalgamation of all the previous incarnations of the character only with some extra cheekiness and wide-eyed wonder thrown in for good measure.
The cast wasn’t the only bridge in continuity. There were little things in the plot and the background to show that this film took place in the same world. Things like Glenn Ford’s picture in the Kent house (he played Jonathan Kent in the first Superman film). Marlon Brando’s voice and likeness as shown through the Kryptonian crystals in the Fortress of Solitude. Lois Lane’s smoking addiction and Superman’s attempts to make her quit. And the final shot of the film which was lifted straight out of “Superman” and “Superman II” to name a few. For fans of the original films (like myself) these things were wonderful to see.
As a side note, I found it interesting that the filmmakers gave the film a modern yet retro feel. It’s clearly set in modern times (as evidenced by the dates on the newspapers) but a lot of people dress like they did in the 1940’s and 1950’s and a lot of the cars looked like older models as well. It gave the film a timeless feel. Not setting it in one era or the other, but instead putting it an amalgamation of both timeframes (much like Batman: The Animated Series).
In short, I loved this movie. It’s a great superhero flick, it’s a great action movie, it’s a great nostalgia film, and it’s a great character drama. It’s got a little something for everyone. I’ll definitely be adding this to my DVD collection, no ifs, ands, or buts. Not only that, but I’ll absolutely watch it again in the theatre. A film like this needs to be viewed on the big screen as many times as possible.
