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[initial reactions] Man of Steel
I just came back from watching Man of Steel
Superman was a very formative influence for me, I loved it with all of my heart. Lois Lane was my first role model and Superman was my first super hero.
I've lost almost every incarnation and I try to watch all the versions, I've seen the Super Boy series, Lois and Clark series and even Smallville (although I didn't start in earnest until Lois arrived in the picture.)
Superman Returns had its up and downs, and I felt the movie was a bit tone deaf to the times and had the least favorite Lois. I didn't love its portrayal of Clark-the-reporter.
So I met Man of Steel with mixed feelings.
I'm not a fan of DC Movies washed out, gritty color scheme, also I'm not a fan of Christopher Nolan. I know he's not directing the movie but his name is still attached to it, so I was very wary.
But you know it actually went a lot better than I expected it to be! I loved Lara's expanded role, I love Martha Kent, even Zod's Subcommander Ursa (I think that was her name?) was interesting but of course, for me 80% of any Superman franchise success hinges on Lois Lane.
And they got her absolutely right. I love that she's an investigative journalist in every sense, that she'll follow the truth wherever it will lead. I also kind of like they're going with the pattern Smallville set up... that Lois was already in on the secret from the get go.
I'll tell you though, nothing made me squee harder than the moment when I saw Clark enter the Daily Planet and don his iconic glasses.
Henry Cavill is great as Clark, because a lot of Superman for me *is* Clark and not the other way around. I love that they got every aspect of Clark right, I love that he is really a gentle soul and that killing Zod took a lot out of him because this makes him truly alone.
(It was really amusing to me how the movie was virtually a whos-who of TV actors and Canadian actors, and that Smallville's Dr. Emil was also in the same scene with Richard Schiff's Dr. Emil.)
I'm not so fond of the extended look into Krypton even though I love that we saw more of Lara, nor was I fond of Krypton and its ship looking like... something from Star Craft or from the Riddick Chronicles and the pacing dragged.
I also missed the iconic Superman theme. I kept expecting to hear the strains of the Superman theme whenever Clark does anything iconic but... there was nothing and kind of blurred the scenes a little. Again, not so fond of DC's realistic gritty bent.
Clark enjoying his first attempts at flying made me happy they kept that part and that they left some humor in.
(Also, If I were to guess what the next movie would be, it would be setting up Lex Luthor as an antagonist and somehow trying to turn the world against Clark (there's fodder for that with the way Zod's Kryptonians sledgehammered Earth) but Clark winning Earth's trust again, or showing he never really lost it at all.)
But the heart and center of the movie is Clark, and it tore my heart when Clark watched Jonathan choose to die rather than be saved. I loved his love for Martha was immense, I love how he looked at Lois as if she were the most amazing person in the whole universe.
I love that Lois is so Lois, and in the end that's all that mattered to me.
Edited
Superman was a very formative influence for me, I loved it with all of my heart. Lois Lane was my first role model and Superman was my first super hero.
I've lost almost every incarnation and I try to watch all the versions, I've seen the Super Boy series, Lois and Clark series and even Smallville (although I didn't start in earnest until Lois arrived in the picture.)
Superman Returns had its up and downs, and I felt the movie was a bit tone deaf to the times and had the least favorite Lois. I didn't love its portrayal of Clark-the-reporter.
So I met Man of Steel with mixed feelings.
I'm not a fan of DC Movies washed out, gritty color scheme, also I'm not a fan of Christopher Nolan. I know he's not directing the movie but his name is still attached to it, so I was very wary.
But you know it actually went a lot better than I expected it to be! I loved Lara's expanded role, I love Martha Kent, even Zod's Subcommander Ursa (I think that was her name?) was interesting but of course, for me 80% of any Superman franchise success hinges on Lois Lane.
And they got her absolutely right. I love that she's an investigative journalist in every sense, that she'll follow the truth wherever it will lead. I also kind of like they're going with the pattern Smallville set up... that Lois was already in on the secret from the get go.
I'll tell you though, nothing made me squee harder than the moment when I saw Clark enter the Daily Planet and don his iconic glasses.
Henry Cavill is great as Clark, because a lot of Superman for me *is* Clark and not the other way around. I love that they got every aspect of Clark right, I love that he is really a gentle soul and that killing Zod took a lot out of him because this makes him truly alone.
(It was really amusing to me how the movie was virtually a whos-who of TV actors and Canadian actors, and that Smallville's Dr. Emil was also in the same scene with Richard Schiff's Dr. Emil.)
I'm not so fond of the extended look into Krypton even though I love that we saw more of Lara, nor was I fond of Krypton and its ship looking like... something from Star Craft or from the Riddick Chronicles and the pacing dragged.
I also missed the iconic Superman theme. I kept expecting to hear the strains of the Superman theme whenever Clark does anything iconic but... there was nothing and kind of blurred the scenes a little. Again, not so fond of DC's realistic gritty bent.
Clark enjoying his first attempts at flying made me happy they kept that part and that they left some humor in.
(Also, If I were to guess what the next movie would be, it would be setting up Lex Luthor as an antagonist and somehow trying to turn the world against Clark (there's fodder for that with the way Zod's Kryptonians sledgehammered Earth) but Clark winning Earth's trust again, or showing he never really lost it at all.)
But the heart and center of the movie is Clark, and it tore my heart when Clark watched Jonathan choose to die rather than be saved. I loved his love for Martha was immense, I love how he looked at Lois as if she were the most amazing person in the whole universe.
I love that Lois is so Lois, and in the end that's all that mattered to me.
Edited
no subject
Now you've got me interested in seeing it! It's funny, because I've seen relatively few Superman portrayals (and have read zero of the comics), yet I'm just passionate about Lois Lane and want to see her done right. One of the main reasons I avoided Superman Returns was that I didn't like what I heard about Lois's plotline.
I do much prefer that she's in on the secret, so that's a big plus for this movie.
no subject
I like the trend that Lois is in on the secret from the start because she *is* a damned good investigative reporter and there's no way in hell she'd miss that about Clark/Superman!