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szdaily -> Movies -> 
Man of Steel
    2013-06-21  08:53    Shenzhen Daily

    Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon, Kevin Costner, Christopher Meloni, Russell Crowe Director: Zack Snyder

    AN unapologetically supersized reboot of the “Superman” franchise, “Man of Steel” doesn’t lack for spectacle, but after a while its emphasis on grand gestures and unwavering gravitas stops feeling heroic and begins to seem like overkill. Director Zack Snyder has fashioned a brawny, science-fiction-heavy action movie that’s far removed from the charming, understated tone of the original Christopher Reeve films of 30 years ago.

    “Man of Steel” was produced by Christopher Nolan, and like his “Batman” films this movie offers a sober portrait of how a superhero came into being. Snyder’s film opens on Krypton, establishing the planet’s imminent destruction and the wise scientist Jor-El’s (Russell Crowe) decision to send his infant son Kal-El in a spacecraft to Earth in order to save him. Bred to protect Krypton, the ferocious General Zod (Michael Shannon) tries to stop Jor-El’s plan but is unsuccessful, and in the process gets sentenced (alongside his minions) to a lengthy sentence in deep space as punishment for trying to overthrow the planet’s leaders.

    Now living on Earth, the 33-year-old Kal-El (Henry Cavill), who goes by Clark Kent and is unaware of where he came from, tries to hide by taking odd jobs across Earth, not wanting to reveal his superhuman strength and other powers, lest he scare all those around him. But after intrepid investigative reporter Lois Lane (Amy Adams) becomes curious about this intriguing stranger, Clark stumbles upon his real identity and accepts the responsibility of safeguarding Earth — just in time for Zod to arrive and seek him out, hoping that Kal-El has a special formula aboard his spacecraft that can allow Zod to wipe out humanity and repopulate the planet with Kryptonians.

    At a few minutes shy of two-and-a-half hours, “Man of Steel” has given itself much narrative terrain to cover. Not only is the film an origin story, it introduces one of Superman’s greatest foes in Zod — who also appeared in 1980’s “Superman II” — and gives the villain far more of a backstory and arc than the previous film did. In addition, the film takes its time to establish Lois’ character, as well as those of Kal-El’s birth parents (Ayelet Zurer plays his mother on Krypton) and the Kansas married couple, Jonathan and Martha Kent (Kevin Costner and Diane Lane), who raise him on Earth.

    Screenwriter David S. Goyer, working from a story credited to him and Nolan, must weave all these different elements together, to say nothing of an overly complicated plot in which Zod wants to turn Earth into the new Krypton, which involves tracking down this mysterious secret formula and terraforming the planet while battling Superman at the same time. Snyder attacks all of this with gusto, and the movie is especially affecting when it effortlessly cuts back and forth between Clark’s uncertain wandering across the world and flashbacks to his Kansas childhood as he’s first coming to grips with his seemingly uncontrollable powers. But more often, “Man of Steel” fails to achieve cohesiveness as it pinballs between Superman, the other characters and the overall storyline.

    This is not to say that Cavill doesn’t supply an emotional center to the film. Unlike Brandon Routh, who played the lead role in director Bryan Singer’s 2006 film “Superman Returns,” Cavill (probably most recognizable from 2011’s “Immortals”) doesn’t try to mimic Reeve’s iconic performance but instead goes his own way, giving us a Superman who’s apprehensive but also ruggedly handsome and occasionally brooding. In the vein of Nolan’s “Batman,” this new Superman is meant to be a darker, more relatable character than in earlier iterations, and Cavill does a good job projecting an air of decency and bravery that we associate with the character, while simultaneously hinting at the man’s sense of being an outsider — a literal alien — on this planet.

    Because Nolan oversaw “Man of Steel,” it’s inevitable (if also unfair) that this new film will be compared to his “Dark Knight” trilogy. And while “Man of Steel” has a similarly introspective tone in places, this movie is far more of an action extravaganza, embracing sci-fi and fantasy elements that Nolan’s films never did.

    The movie is now being screened in Shenzhen. (SD-Agencies)

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