Man of Steel

As good as the Marvel universe movies are, I have always been a DC fan. I admit, it's been mostly their animated universe plus Teen Titans until a friend of mine forced me to sit down and watch The Dark Knight. After that, I made a promise to the heavens that I would see every DC movie in on the big screen, even if the trailer didn't really entice me. When the boy scout in blue flew into theaters, I shelled out the extra money and went to a fancy 'they serve you food while you watch' cinema.

The final assessment?


At the end of the evening, the food was better than the movie.

Superman has always been Batman's opposite. Batman instills fear, while Superman inspires hope. So why does this Superman movie make me so depressed? From the scene where he doesn't stand up to a drunk (meaning 'not doing what's right cause it's easier') to the death of his father (good job saving that dog) and finally the destruction of the city (everyone is saved!..except those who now have to look for new jobs and homes, ruining insurance claims, lives and livelihoods everywhere).

Spoilers obviously.

 This movie takes it's time taking off by showing Clark Kent just wandering around, taking odd jobs and abusing his powers. Not many would agree, but this movie panders by giving in to all of the power fantasies of the average movie goer. I understand that when you make a movie that's sort of obvious, especially if you're counting on the movie to set the stage for other movies in your franchise, but that doesn't make it okay.

The problem with these kinds of movies is that characters like Superman should be more than just the tasty bait to draw in a crowd. Superman is a symbol to encourage us to be better. Better parents, better citizens. Better people. One of the first scenes in the movie is Superman destroying someones source of income. Why? He was a jerk drunk. Thousands of dollars and deliveries ruined because one guy was mean once.

This is the kind of revenge fantasy that you catch yourself and stop thinking about immediately. It is not the only time it happens in the movie either. Near the end of the movie, Superman is shown destroying a spy satellite to cover up his own identity, costing the army billions.

Some would ask "Nitpick! What else was he supposed to do?" In which I would reply "Please, call me Captain."

He could of just as easily broke a small but vital part of the satellite and told that army guy if he wanted it fixed, he should stop spying on him. How would Superman know that the general or whatever kept his word? He somehow knew that certain satellite was spying on him, so I'm guessing he would know. Either that, or he was just blowing up random satellites as a threat to the people he wants to inspire.

This movie was just okay. Those closest to me know I do not care for prequels (no suspense if you know where everyone is going to end up) and an origin story that EVERYONE on the planet knows redone extra long. I know very little about the Superman mythos, and even I know his origin story. Man of Steel 2 will introduce me to all new Superman characters, settings and villains!

...unless it's a movie about Batman, the character I already know way too much about. No one would make anything with Batman as a main character right after the success of The Dark Knight trilogy, right?

...right?