Reviews Film / Man Of Steel

Not as dour as I thought it would be

Like others, I was worried about Man of Steel because of the supposedly darker tone of the movie (which deepened when that turned out to be the biggest complaint in reviews). After watching it, though, I must say that though the movie is darker than the Donner flicks, I ultimately found it an uplifting film.

Why?

Because it reconstructs the idea of Superman.

The most common criticism leveled at Superman is that he's an unattainable ideal, and a real world version of Superman would be emotionally unstable due to his alien heritage, and be feared and rejected by society. Man of Steel, however, accepts these criticisms, and then show how Superman rises above them.

Jonathan Kent realizes that an emotionally unstable Clark with superpowers would not be a good combination with a world that will fear him, so he discourages Clark from using his powers (and is even willing to die in a tornado to do so) because he knew that Clark needed to wait. Jor-El's AI gives Clark his past, the reason why he's special, and his purpose in life. Now given some closure on his past and finally forging an identity and purpose for himself, he is now emotionally stable and is able to cut loose with his powers without fear of going insane. General Zod's invasion is what makes the world ready, as people are more than willing to accept Superman fighting by their side when their world is being attacked by a gang of superpowered beings wanting to terraform Earth. Plus, by fighting on the military's side even when he's considered a target, he convinces the brass that he's not their enemy. End result is a moral, emotionally stable individual who is accepted by the world, meaning Clark has finally become Superman.

All of this shows that Superman can rise above those criticisms and become the hero we know and love, even in the more cynical (or at least what we percieve as a more cynical) age. And by doing that, he proves that we all can become Superman as well.

Because of this, the movie ultimately had a very hopeful and uplifting story that left me smiling at the end.

Combined with solid acting and downright amazing action, and we have the first good Superman flick since 1981 and one of the best superhero movies in recent times.