Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner, Laurence Fishburn, Michael Shannon

Directed by: Zack Snyder

Today, I just went to see “Man of Steel”, the new Superman movie by Zack Snyder and Warner Bros. Yes, the wait to see “Man of Steel” is finally over and I finally got to see it today. I went to see it in a cinema in Clifton Park that had RPX screening which had pretty impressive sound and picture. RPX is kind of similar to IMAX but a little different. I never saw a movie in RPX before but it was interesting. Now on with the review:

Plot/synopsis: This film focuses the origins of Superman. It tells the story of a young boy named Clark (or Kal-el) who discovers that he has strange powers everything from lifting heavy objects, x-ray vision and many other powers. He learns that he is not from this Earth and he is from a different planet called, Krypton. He was sent to Earth by his Krypton parents ’cause he was sent here for a reason. He was sent here to save the world from danger and to care for the people. As Clark tries to find out who he is and what he is, he is confronted by an enemy named General Zod (Michael Shannon) who is from his home planet of Krypton. Kal-el must save the planet Earth before the planet gets in total control of Zod. 

When Zack Snyder was first hired and was first announced to direct this movie. Everyone was skeptical of him directing this due to his last couple of films that were crap like, “Sucker-Punch”, for example. As the film went along with production and being made, people were still skeptical of Zack directing. There was a huge debate on whether or not Zack has what it takes to make a good Superman movie or not. Over the last few years this movie has been going on, I’ve always believed Zack was the right choice. I always stood by him that he has what it takes to make a good Superman movie. I believed in him and trusted him. I’m glad I did.

Whether you’re a Marvel fan or whether you’re not much of a superhero fan at all, you still need to see “Man of Steel”. “Man of Steel” was the best superhero movie in the last decade. This was such a beautiful film. It is definitely a masterpiece. The visuals and special effects were impressive like Snyder’s visuals usually are impressive. Snyder took his visuals to the next level in this film. Yeah, this movie is full of green screen and CGI but Snyder is the best with this stuff. He certainly knows how to make CGI realistic looking and not cartoonish.

The casting was fantastic. Everybody did a great job. I was most impressed with Kevin Costner’s performance. His performance was very sad and almost brought tears to my eyes. I think Costner deserves an Oscar for supporting actor for this performance alone. Russell Crowe also did an amazing job playing Jor-El. Of course, we have Michael Shannon as General Zod who was menacing and evil like usual. Michael Shannon did a great job of making you wanting to hate him. Amy Adams was great too. Everyone did a good job, even Chris Meloni the “Law and Order” guy.

There were different emotions in this movie. You will get a mix of sadness, enjoyment, and there were even some comedic scenes as well. When the film makers kept saying they were going to make this Superman movie real as possible, it really was. They did a great job depicting of what Superman could be like in real life. That was the whole goal with the movie. Of course, one thing to keep in mind though, that “Man of Steel” felt like the newer comics. Especially the new 52 comics which is probably what the new movie is partly based on.

Even though this film has nothing to do with the Richard Donner films and there is no John Williams theme, I agree that those things aren’t necessary with this film after finally seeing, “Man of Steel”. A different look of Superman is possible and Zack did a good enough job proving it. I think he just redeemed himself for a change. He made everyone happy. I haven’t seen one negative review of “Man of Steel” at all.

This is exactly how you are supposed to make a Superman movie. It needs to be told with heart. Have lots of action. Superman kicking ass. Yeah, the film was very action packed, and it’s a good long 2 and a half hour film. You should like this movie just as much as “The Avengers”. Don’t wait for Blu Ray or DVD for “Man of Steel”, go see it right away this weekend please. You don’t need to see the Christopher Reeve films since this film is a reboot.

Speaking of Christopher Reeve, I wish he was still alive to see this film. I’m sure he would have loved it too! I’m already looking forward to the sequel and the upcoming “Justice League” film. “Man of Steel” really was amazing and I’m definitely buying the BluRay when it comes out. Probably gonna go see it in theater again too!

Two thumbs for “Man of Steel”.

Kev