You might be surprised to see a posting on the new Superman movie on a site dedicated to apocalyptic fiction but I felt compelled to make a short post about Man of Steel. Actually, you could argue that Man of Steel has an apocalyptic theme as General Zod and his crew make some legitimate attempts to destroy the world as we know it, but that’s really beside the point. What it boils down to is that this is a good movie and you should check it out!
I’ve always been a Superman fan but up until now I’ve found the movies to be slightly corny and cliché. Man of Steel is clearly a reinvention of Superman. We are talking a major reinvention on par with and exceeding Batman’s transformation in the Dark Knight movies. On top of a “grittier” and more realistic Superman character we get a lot more detail on the destruction of Krypton and the events that lead up to the creation of the superhero. The action and special effects are monumental. You get the sense that the technology has caught up with the story. In other words, the special effects that were available in the previous Superman movies weren’t good enough to be convincing. This is evident in the fight scenes which are simply mind-blowing. If you’ve seen The Avengers, think of the scenes when The Hulk smashes his enemies into the ground and you will get a sense of how awesome the fight scenes are in Man of Steel. Of course, the movie isn’t perfect. Some of the relationships are superficial, including the relationship between Lois Lane and Superman but I’m willing to overlook that type of thing and think it is to be expected in a two-hour blockbuster movie. Do yourself a favor this summer and make some time to go to see Man of Steel.