The Energon Pub

Wed May 15, 2013 4:07 pm

I'm cautiously optimistic. The trailers make it seem like an updated telling of both Superman 1&2 which themselves were shot together back in late 70's. No Luthor though and imo that is just fine.

I remind myself I was excited for Superman Returns and throughly let down. Man of Steel...DO NOT DISAPPOINT ME!!

News Credits: 6 · Thu May 23, 2013 8:09 am

wow..just wow.

News Credits: 22 · Thu May 23, 2013 12:49 pm

Holy crap. Until now, I was gonna see the movie because of Kevin Costner and Russell Crowe, but now I am impressed with Zod. I was almost certain they were gonna totally ruin the character. I still don't really care about Henry Cavill, I still think both Christopher Reeve and Brandon Routh looked better in the part. But I am definitely seeing this, and I know he will come out on the short end, I will still root for Zod. Also, up until now, I thought he would be alone, but it seems the others did come with him, just like before.

News Credits: 22 · Thu Jun 06, 2013 11:33 am

"Man of Steel," of course.

News Credits: 1 · Thu Jun 06, 2013 11:39 am

This zod reminds me of the zod from the war of the supermen version.

News Credits: 22 · Tue Jun 11, 2013 3:11 am

Here's the 1st review I could find.

WARNING! CONTAINS SPOILERS!

SuperheroHype wrote:Superman has had a long hard road on the big screen. After being subjected to some of the lamest moments in superhero movies ever, we've finally arrived at the first modern interpretation of the character that isn't being influenced by 30-year-old films. Man of Steel, the brainchild of David Goyer, Christopher Nolan, and especially Zack Snyder, will likely go forward as one of the most unique approaches to a superhuman character and I think will change how superhero origins are handled on film.

Taking the already well-known story of Superman, Snyder and Goyer have brought an approach to the 75-year-old character that feels fresh and manages to stay true to what we all know about the mythology. Changes to the origin feel organic and make the remainder of its plot flow naturally, instead of relying on coincidental plot moments like previous Superman films. Man of Steel takes the ideas from the Richard Donner Superman movies and updates the story to leave little room for debate about plot holes and the like.

Henry Cavill, an actor that few were familiar with prior to his casting, really knocks it out of the park here. Fitting into the shoes of Clark Kent is no easy task as Christopher Reeve firmly put a stamp on the role that has been emulated and canonized ever since. What is so different about this version is that he's still realizing his potential, he's not trying to split himself into the two personalities of Superman and Clark Kent, he's just Superman. This offers Cavill as an actor the opportunity to go to places no other live-action incarnation has gone. Cavill's only parallel in the film in terms of performance and presence is Michael Shannon's Zod, who is clearly superior to Terence Stamp (yeah, I said it). Instead of being a caricature of evil, Shannon presents Zod with empathy and crafts a performance that is one of the most memorable villains of the past few years. You might even find yourself in a moral dilemma about who you think was doing the right thing.

The most interesting thing about Man of Steel is its non-linear story. While the opening does set up the remainder of the film and refresh all of us on the Krypton situation, it doesn't play out like a remake of Superman: The Movie. Instead we jump back and forth between adult Clark and young Clark and we get to see Superman's anguish through a visual context unlike any of the other films. His loneliness and isolation feel more real here than past incarnations, because you can see his internal struggle as it plays off of the moments that have defined him in his life. These visual indicators work due to clever editing, top notch special effects, and the superb performances of Kevin Costner, Cooper Timberline (9-year-old Clark), Dylan Sprayberry (13-year-old Clark), and Henry Cavill. These four actors' roles in the film really cement many of the more serious moments, which in turn cause the natural progression of the character to steer towards Snyder's intended goal.

What is disappointing about Man of Steel is how little significance some of the other characters really feel to the film as a whole. Amy Adams' Lois Lane, while portrayed really well, doesn't get as much to do as I would have liked, with some moments feeling forced. This isn't a knock on her performance, she rocks, but instead the storytelling. There are times when what we know about Lois as a character really shine out, and others where the script takes her to places that feel lazy.

Lois isn't the only character that doesn't feel 100% natural to the story. Many others throughout the film feel like set pieces that are there to either move the plot forward or simply because they “have to be there” for fan service. Laurence Fishburne's Perry White, for example, gets just enough screen time to be interesting and provide some comedic relief, but not enough to be wholly relevant to the plot. The same can be said for the rest of the Daily Planet staff, many of the military roles, and most of the other Kryptonian criminals. Beyond Zod, few of them really stand out. Antje Traue's Faora manages some good moments, but on the whole doesn't get to do much beyond offer an evil glare.

Past grievances with director Zack Snyder's films have pointed to his “reliance” on slow motion, which have no place in the discussion of Man of Steel. Once this movie starts going, it doesn't let up. Man of Steel's tempo remains fast for the duration of the movie, like a roller coaster that won't end, and I mean that in the best way possible. Its fight sequences never feel repetitive, but instead build off of each other so as to offer something new with each one. Snyder's direction on previous films have clearly been training him for this as he can let these moments play out for the audience without having to slow them down - they can all be appreciated at the rapid rate they're shown.

Man of Steel is great. It takes stories that we all thought we knew and looks at them through a different prism, creating a solid superhero story that stands apart from all of the others. Though the acting is solid all around, many of the characters don't naturally fit in, but when the film offers amazing fights and comic book levels of destruction, most fans won't mind that at all.

Rating: 8 / 10

Source: http://www.superherohype.com/features/a ... n-of-steel

News Credits: 22 · Fri Jun 14, 2013 2:09 pm

I just saw Man of Steel.

Wow. Very good movie. I definitely recommend it. Storywise, it's almost as good as The Dark knight and action-wise it's as good or a little better than The Avengers. The CG stuff looks great, and I got to see it in 3D for free. I'm glad I did, as the effects were very contributing to the visual aspect. Also, Zod is a bad ass mother f**ker. Great villain. The other characters, besides Clark/Kal-El, are kinda sidelined, with Jor-El and Johnathan Kent getting their share of development, but otherwise no one else stands out. Lois is just the run-of-the-mill damsel in distress in this film. But it's fine, because the main point is the conflict between Zod and his reasons and Kal-El and his reasons, which contributes to the choice Clark makes regarding who he really wants to be.

Also, I wonder if anyone else caught the reference to Lex Luthor.

Fri Jun 14, 2013 6:57 pm

Just got back from seeing this. I'd tell you my thoughts but I'm still trying to force my jaw shut. :shock:

You can definitely feel the influence of both Snyder and Nolan in the design and the non-stop (non-hyperbole) action at the end got a bit too amped up and became tiring at times. But I would have to search hard for things I didn't like, which says a good thing about the movie as a whole. Definitely worth seeing and worth seeing more than once (something I rarely ever do)

Fri Jun 14, 2013 8:23 pm

Saw the movie today...Superman soars

Sat Jun 15, 2013 7:52 am

I didn't like it too much. I felt that they completely blew past his entire childhood and rushed into the dragged-out action sequences. Throughout most of the movie the acting was a bit lacking but Zod made up for it entirely. The effects were insane but after they destroyed the 40th or 50th building, they started to get really repetitive. It was okay, it was worth the money, but if should have been so much better than it was.

News Credits: 22 · Sat Jun 15, 2013 8:22 am

Did you spot the reference to Luthor? And I gotta say, Kevin Costner's death scene had me almost crying. Almost.

Sun Jun 16, 2013 12:39 am

I gotta say guys, this movie exceeded my expectations. I was really afraid that this was just going to be another "meh" rehash like Superman Returns, but this film was really original. I like how Superman wasn't all-powerful and immune to every type of stress like he is sometimes portrayed. I felt like he was more human and easy to relate to. It was definitely different to see him just drained and needing to be comforted by Lois at the end, rather than the other way around. And Zod was an amazing character. Definitely a different Zod than I've seen before, and far more brutal. I really enjoyed the movie all the way through and I feel like it was the first time anyone cared enough about Superman to do him right. I'll probably see it again next week.
I do have one criticism though. I thought Zod's master plan was a lot like another evil plan in a movie released two years ago.

News Credits: 37 · Sun Jun 16, 2013 10:37 am

The movie was awesome. The fight scenes were the absolute best. These are the type of fight scenes movies like Ironman and Thor should have had, and basically every other Super man movie ever made. They finally got it right here. One problem though; this was a Zach Snyder directed movie. There was no slow motion. THAT pissed me off. Some of the fight scenes moved a bit too fast to begin with and a bit of slow motion would have made them even better. I'm thinking that Nolan may have removed them, though because... well, he's him.

News Credits: 2 · Sun Jun 16, 2013 11:01 am

SlyTF1 wrote:The movie was awesome. The fight scenes were the absolute best. These are the type of fight scenes movies like Ironman and Thor should have had, and basically every other Super man movie ever made. They finally got it right here. One problem though; this was a Zach Snyder directed movie. There was no slow motion. THAT pissed me off. Some of the fight scenes moved a bit too fast to begin with and a bit of slow motion would have made them even better. I'm thinking that Nolan may have removed them, though because... well, he's him.

He didn't put slow motion in the remake of Dawn of the Dead, either. Just because he did it in like two movies doesn't mean it's going to be in every movie he makes. Nor should it.

News Credits: 6 · Tue Jun 18, 2013 12:04 am

I cannot put this film into words... Its a masterpiece.
Also, What Luthor reference? Did I miss an after credits scene?
a few few major things I loved about this film:
o Kryptonite. None. And those fight scenes! **** GLORIOUS!!

News Credits: 22 · Tue Jun 18, 2013 2:32 pm

BeastProwl wrote:Also, What Luthor reference? Did I miss an after credits scene?

No scene after the credits that I know of. The reference was small. It was just "LexCorp." on the side of the tanker Zod threw at Superman during their final fight. I was hoping for something a little more obvious, like maybe a sign on top of a building they destroy, but I guess Snyder wanted to keep Luthor out of it.

Wed Jun 19, 2013 7:46 pm

I don't know if anybody else noticed this or if it's supposed to be like this, but the story of Superman's life almost appears to be a sort or reflection on the Bible.

I'm not religious at all but my dad pointed this out to me and I found it interesting.

If you noticed in the scene where Clark was in the church, there was a stained glass painting of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane in the background. In the Bible, jesus could have chosen to take his punishment or run. Clark was presented with the same choice at that time. He had a choice between handing himself over to Zod/the humans or running away and risking the destruction of the planet.

That's an interesting little thing you wouldn't really notice.

News Credits: 37 · Wed Jun 19, 2013 7:51 pm

prowl123 wrote:I don't know if anybody else noticed this or if it's supposed to be like this, but the story of Superman's life almost appears to be a sort or reflection on the Bible.

I'm not religious at all but my dad pointed this out to me and I found it interesting.

If you noticed in the scene where Clark was in the church, there was a stained glass painting of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane in the background. In the Bible, jesus could have chosen to take his punishment or run. Clark was presented with the same choice at that time. He had a choice between handing himself over to Zod/the humans or running away and risking the destruction of the planet.

That's an interesting little thing you wouldn't really notice.

I literally was trying to find the significance of that in that part of the movie while I was watching it.

Wed Jun 19, 2013 7:53 pm

[attachment=]Screen Shot 2013-06-19 at 8.56.30 PM.png[/attachment]

SlyTF1 wrote:
prowl123 wrote:I don't know if anybody else noticed this or if it's supposed to be like this, but the story of Superman's life almost appears to be a sort or reflection on the Bible.

I'm not religious at all but my dad pointed this out to me and I found it interesting.

If you noticed in the scene where Clark was in the church, there was a stained glass painting of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane in the background. In the Bible, jesus could have chosen to take his punishment or run. Clark was presented with the same choice at that time. He had a choice between handing himself over to Zod/the humans or running away and risking the destruction of the planet.

That's an interesting little thing you wouldn't really notice.

I literally was trying to find the significance of that in that part of the movie while I was watching it.

This might actually be it. Maybe it was intentional. I'll have to see if I can dig up an interview.

*EDIT Couldn't find any on that, but I did find this (off topic)

Screen Shot 2013-06-19 at 8.56.30 PM.png

News Credits: 2 · Wed Jun 19, 2013 9:25 pm

prowl123 wrote:I don't know if anybody else noticed this or if it's supposed to be like this, but the story of Superman's life almost appears to be a sort or reflection on the Bible.

I'm not religious at all but my dad pointed this out to me and I found it interesting.

If you noticed in the scene where Clark was in the church, there was a stained glass painting of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane in the background. In the Bible, jesus could have chosen to take his punishment or run. Clark was presented with the same choice at that time. He had a choice between handing himself over to Zod/the humans or running away and risking the destruction of the planet.

That's an interesting little thing you wouldn't really notice.

Well, except for Jesus's home planet not exploding and that he never snapped anyone's neck...yeah. Superman's always had a messianic, Christ-like element to him.

News Credits: 6 · Wed Jun 19, 2013 10:09 pm

You know what makes me sad? This movie proves that if they put effort into a Dragonball film, it could be good, but I digress.
There is one thing I have to applaud this movie for though.
No Freaking Kryptonite
Just none. It was never even brought up.

You think we'll get a Dark Knigh Crossover in the future?

News Credits: 22 · Thu Jun 20, 2013 7:56 am

BeastProwl wrote:You think we'll get a Dark Knight Crossover in the future?

Apparently Man of Steel 2 is already began to be in development, to be released next year, or very early 2015, in anticipation of the Justice League movie, coming in 2015 supposedly, or 2016. So if these plans stay on track, Christian Bale (or at least Batman in some form) has to appear in Man of Steel 2, maybe in a scene at the end. As I mentioned, though, this is speculation based on the fact that Warner Bros. has rushed Man of Steel 2 into pre-production based on the success of this film.

News Credits: 2 · Thu Jun 20, 2013 2:17 pm

BeastProwl wrote:You think we'll get a Dark Knigh Crossover in the future?

Probably not, Nolan has already shot that one down, if I remember right.

News Credits: 1 · Thu Jun 20, 2013 5:43 pm

Shadowman wrote:
BeastProwl wrote:You think we'll get a Dark Knigh Crossover in the future?

Probably not, Nolan has already shot that one down, if I remember right.

Nolan might say that, but Warner Brothers might say different.

News Credits: 2 · Sat Jul 13, 2013 1:13 pm

BeastProwl wrote:There is one thing I have to applaud this movie for though.
No Freaking Kryptonite

I know it's a bit of a necrobump but I just saw the movie and I wanted to comment on this.

When Superman was convulsing on Zod's ship, passing out and waking up without his powers due to the atmosphere, or how he kept getting incapacitated by the gasses being spewed by the World Engine, did it occur to you what that really was? It's Superman being weakened due to exposure to a piece of Krypton's ecosystem.

Think about it.