Man Of Frigging Steel!
hey guys. so this will be my first attempt to review a DC movie, lets hope it works out.
So before i get into the details, this is basically a spoiler free review, and if i decide to spoil something, it will be indicated, so no worries.
First things first, i am not generally a superman fan, well not a HUGE fan that is, but i enjoy his character , and i think i understand him well enough to write up a decent review or analysis. The Start of the movie explores krypton, and the events that take place there, which is really interesting because before you get a look at earth, we are getting a preview of Kryptons culture, nature and most importantly technology this is a very good start because it gives us a comparison on how different their customs are from our culture.
The pacing of the first half of the movie is slow, which is good, because it doesn't feel rushed, it takes it's time to evolve on some aspects, such as clark kents development into the person he is in this movie. When we skip from Krypton to earth, clarks childhood is shown in flashbacks, which to be honest is very good, because the movie managed to balance the shifts from adulthood to his early years as a kid. Clark is supposed to be perfect, or at least close to perfection, but it's good that it isn't shoo-horned right away, it is slowly shown. Clark struggles with his urges to put bullies and jerks in their place, but he knows he can't do that, he knows that if he cuts loose, bad things will happen, this is one of the things i really enjoyed about this movie, it not only modernized superman, but it showed his evolution, and despite being a good guy, he was still human.
Speaking of "development", i don't know why some critics say that characters were flat, since every character here is amazing. Superman put aside, Zod was a threatening villain, and a good one if i'd say so. He was a patriot who was swallowed by his goal, he was blinded, and thats where he crossed the line. and To me that was awesomely shown here , in some way Zod really did want to save his race, but he was too blinded by rage, and he stopped being a patriot then. But despite Zod being awesome, he was slightly overshadowed by Faora. Seriously, she was absolutely awesome, for one thing her use of power was much more interesting, she combined speed with strength and the end result was awesome. She was also very threatening, and had the characteristics of a typical worrier which were well executed and shown.
i can't review this movie without at least commenting on Zor-el. Zor-el was, to say, simply put amazing, Russel Crow did a baffling job of portraying the Man of Steels Father, he was smart, a fighter, and wise beyond anything, he was the ultimate father figure, even giving Jonathon some competition for the "Father of the Year" title. In fact now that i have mentioned john, i might as well say that both fathers played a huge role in forming who and what superman is, and what he stands for. I was smirking like an idiot with the sheer excitement of how well these two characters were executed. However some characters could have been better, such as lois lane. She wasn't a bad character, not at all, but her relationship with Clark didn't really get to me you know? i felt that it could have been better , or more subtle that is. maybe i'm being a little unfair, but i'll say this, at the beginning of the film lois lane seemed to have that personality spunk which i really like about her, but because Kal-El was mostly superman throughout the film, their relationship failed to show of lois's personality well after the first part of the movie, however due to the fact that the first movie set everything up nicely for the sequel, i expect to see that lois lane of which i know of.
You Know how avengers was an action packed movie? wasn't that awesome? yeah well, man of steel kinda takes the word "action" to a whole new level. I was, in all honestly shocked from how awesome the fight scene was, i don't think anything even comes remotely close to how epic that battle had been. The first fight scene with Faora fighting superman was amazing, it showed that clark was still rusty with his powers, it showed that having the power doesn't equal putting it to good use, but not only that, the battle showed off Faora personality awesomely, she was vicious and showed no mercy, and she proved that she was formidable. The reason This fight was great is because it stood out from the Zod vs Superman one, considering that it was much more down to earth, Whereas The Final battle was much more breath taking and powerful in comparison. Despite the fact that i loved the films action, there were some things that i wished the had taken out, since this parts could have been used to develop the story. I hope the balance it well in the sequels.
SPOILERS
But despite how awesome this movie is, there were some problems, or ONE BIG problem, which would also be the big spoiler. Superman is the beckon of hope, and everything we wish we could be like, so having him snap Zods neck, was a huge dislike for me, however, some factors must be taken into consideration. Yes i did dislike what happened, and yes i don't think it was in character, but i can look things over and role with them IF it is well executed, which it was. Superman doesn't just snap and do it, it was because he had to, he doesn't believe in killing, but he will do it if it's necessary. another thing we should think about is that THIS is a film adaptation, it's not supposed to be JUST LIKE THE COMIC, but it just has to be close, and for what i saw, superman was still superman, and this little event might even add into a couple of things, which could be explored further when the squeals come out.
All in All, this movie was amazing, i honestly walked out of the theater with a huge grin on my face, it took a lot of stuff from well-known comic books( Birthright), and i mostly stayed true to the character, while adding something new, so essentially, i can say that this movie was great. Also was i the Only one who Noticed the lexcorp teaser/Easter egg? awesome. Though not a perfect movie, it does come close.
8/10
