Parm’s Place

Superman Returns - Bring it on!

This review has been a long time coming, but just to be sure I wanted to see the movie three times before I began writing.

I should start by stating that I am a lifelong Superman fan. As a child I would get home from school and put the Superman video on before anything else. It became so bad that the helicopter scene in Superman The Movie had become clearly worn out due to me constantly rewinding and playing that scene.

Being a huge fan, I had certain expectations for Superman Returns and it was always a practically perilous task to appease all of us fans.

1978’s Superman The Movie set the benchmark for Superhero movies and still holds the spot as my favourite movie of all time. With Richard Donner directing, Mario Puzo writing, John Williams composing and brilliant performances from the likes of Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder and Marlon Brando, the original movie is truly an underestimated feat of modern cinema.

So how does Superman’s big screen return live up to all that’s gone before it?

Well, let’s start at the beginning. If you want to avoid spoilers, turn away now.

Superman Returns opens with a bit of text, a brief introduction for those unfamiliar with the original Superman movies and for the rest of us it tells us that when astronomers discovered the distant remains of his home world, Superman disappeared.

An iconic image of Planet Krypton appears on screen, just as Donner had once imagined it. Williams’ Planet Krypton theme plays (a personal favourite of mine) and once again you hear Brando’s classic dialogue; “You will travel far, my little Kal-El, but we will never leave you, even in the face of our death. You will make my strength your own. You will see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father, and the father, the son.”

We’re then treated to a rather spectacular reminder of how Krypton once blew up. With the remains of Krypton flying through space towards you, the camera swivels round into open space and then you hear it. That world famous drum roll.

At this point my arms were bubbling with goose bumps and the hair on the back of my neck was erect. The familiar format of the opening credits becomes apparent as the stunning blue text flies toward you. Followed by the giant red S and the crescendo of Williams’ awe inspiring theme, it becomes clearly apparent that Superman has indeed returned.

If the idea was to ensure that every Superman fan is immediately engrossed, they couldn’t have done it any better. The Williams music, the Donner visuals, the Puzo dialogue. It immediately sells itself to every Superman fan. It is simply beautiful.

Rather than go through the movie scene by scene and keep you all sat there, or not, for hours on end, I’ll give you my general thoughts.

The Plot.
In a nutshell, Lex Luthor is free from prison after Superman fails to make a court hearing. As only Lex could do, he befriends a rich elderly lady and inherits all of her fortunes when she passes away. Once free, Lex makes his way back to the Fortress of Solitude where he uses the crystals to have Jor-El teach him ‘everything’.
Using this knowledge, Lex devises the scheme to create a new continent in the form of Krypton itself, whilst wiping out North America at the same time. As you do.

Superman meanwhile returns to Earth after an absence of 5 years. To his surprise, he finds that the whole world seems to have moved on, and more importantly, so has Lois Lane.
Whilst trying to find his way back into society Superman appears to be somewhat of a lost soul. Having found no survivors from Krypton and seemingly lost his relationship with Lois he seems a lonely figure.

Struggling to get to terms with his personal life, Superman must once again stop Lex Luthor from destroying life as we know it.

The Cast.
This is one of the areas in which the movie truly succeeds. After the brilliant performances in Superman The Movie, it was always going to be a hard act to follow.

Brandon Routh does a fantastic job as the man of steel Superman, and a fairly good job as the mild mannered reporter Clark Kent.

As Superman, Routh fits the role well. His visual appearance and stature is similar to that of Reeve and his composure and confidence whilst wearing the famed suit is clear to see.

As Clark Kent however he isn’t quite the fumbling walking disaster that Reeve portrayed. Although signs of this are still apparent, it’s significantly less prominent than in the previous movies. This however may not be a result of Routh’s portrayal of Kent. My own conclusion was that after 5 years away from Earth and having seemingly lost his place in the world and alongside Lois Lane his desire to put on such a strong act had declined.
In one particular scene at the Daily Planet where Lois Lane and Richard White are discussing the similarities between Superman and Clark Kent, Clark overhears and almost looks as though he remembers to put on the act once more.

As Routh plays a somewhat different Clark Kent, Kate Bosworth too plays a different Lois Lane. The Lois Lane we all know (played brilliantly by Margot Kidder) was a lively energetic reporter, outspoken, bold and always looking for trouble.

The Lois Lane of Superman Returns is a calmer character. With a new partner (Richard White played by James Marsden) and a son of her own (Jason White played by Tristan Lake Leabu), Lois Lane is almost a mild mannered reporter in her own right. With Superman having left for 5 years without saying goodbye, Lois, although having moved on, clearly struggles to cope with her feelings for him.

Kevin Spacey is arguably the star of the show, as Gene Hackman may have been before him. He does a magnificent job of bringing Lex Luthor back to the big screen, in as sinister fashion as ever.

Though not quite making as many wise remarks as the Luthor of old, Spacey’s Luthor is clearly more evil. His 5 years in jail have left him bitter and his hatred of Superman is stronger than ever before. Simply put, bad guys don’t come much better than this.

The rest of the cast is a mixed bag. Parker Posey plays a very good Kitty Kowalski. Frank Langella plays a very different Perry White, although still in control of the Daily Planet he isn’t as demanding as ‘The Chief’ once was. A much more subdued editor this time around with possibly age catching up with him.

The Score.
Music is always a big factor for a Superman movie. The original Superman The Movie has in my opinion the best musical score of all time. John Williams is renowned for so many masterpieces, but Superman for me stands out above all.
My biggest disappointment building up to Superman Returns was that Williams had not been drafted in to work on the score, instead Singer opts for his usual colleague; John Ottman.

So how does Ottman fare up against the exceptional standards set by Williams?
Well, he does ok. Regrettably on the first viewing of the movie, the new Ottman music was barely noticeable. The pieces of Williams’ original themes stuck out prominently and eclipsed anything new from Ottman.
A prime example would be the flying scene with Lois and Superman, the music throughout is nice, but only toward the end of the scene where the camera pans up the Daily Planet and the Williams love theme kicks in do you think…’wow’.
(05:02 of Track 6, ‘How Could You Leave Us’ on the Soundtrack if anybody is interested).

On the second and third viewing of the movie, the music throughout is better appreciated. Yet it never gets close to the heights of the original score.

Do you believe a man can fly?
Indubitably! The effects in Superman Returns are a marvellous feat. The action scenes both spectacular and grand. Particularly impressive is the Airplane scene where Superman saves a space shuttle and an airplane from disaster. Reminiscent of the Helicopter scene in Superman The Movie, it’s a fabulous return to big screen action for the man of steel.

Lois, Clark and The Kid.
This of course is a big topic for discussion, Lois Lane is a mommy and it turns out that Superman is the father.
Well, what can you say about that? Other than it brings a whole new meaning to Lois’ article in the first movie so eloquently titled “I spent the night with Superman”.

Although it is revealed that Superman is indeed the father, every other detail is left rather sketchy. Will Jason inherit Superman’s powers? There are signs of it; Jason throws a piano across the room to save Lois. But to what extent will his abilities go?

A controversial event in this film for certain, leaving a whole host of questions and possibilities for further sequels.

Memorable Moments.
One of the features of this movie which I particularly enjoyed were the amount of times it pays homage to the original. There are constant reminders of the Donner movies, all of which are well implemented. It’s all rather ‘swell’!

With Lex Luthor noticeably menacing throughout the movie, a ruthless encounter between himself and Superman was predictable. Nevertheless I couldn’t have predicted the brutal attack from Lex and his henchman. With Superman weakened by Kryptonite he is beaten and thrown around as if human and it is here where you most feel his pain.

My Regrets.
As I said right at the beginning, every Superman fan has his or her expectations for the movie. I’m no exception and there are a few things I would have liked to have seen.

Firstly I’d like to have seen more of Smallville. Yes, I know, we’ve seen it so many times. But we can’t ignore it or the impact it has on Clarke’s life. The Fortress of Solitude may be his place to go for guidance, Metropolis may be his workplace, but Smallville is undoubtedly his home.

As joyous as I was that Marlon Brando had been included as Jor-El, I was disappointed that Superman’s other late father, Jonathon, was completely exempt from the movie.
Despite all of Superman’s great powers, it is often said that his ultimate strength is his desire to do good for all of mankind. In my mind that strength grew from Jonathon’s influence as a father in Clarke’s childhood.
I had hoped that Clark would visit the burial ground of Jonathon and say a few words and perhaps even seek guidance for his more Earthly problems.

IMAX.
I just so happened to catch it at the IMAX too and I’ll say that if you have the opportunity to see it this way, then do so.
Some of the 3D scenes are outstanding, specifically the scenes on the Kent farm.
There are some 3D scenes which don’t work as well as you’d hoped, but on the whole the experience is great and there are few better things than seeing Superman on a giant screen with the phenomenal IMAX sound.

Conclusion.
I love it! I’ve waited a long long time for Superman to return, but he undeniably has.
Is it the greatest Superhero movie of them all? Possibly.
Superman The Movie still holds that special place in my heart, but this is awfully close!