Ok, for those who don't know, I've been rather excited about the upcoming
Superman reboot for quite some time. If any CBM character needed a good, modern re-telling (not counting
Superman Returns, since it's still a part of the Donner franchise), it's the Man of Steel himself. We've had characters such as Batman, Punisher, and Hulk be rebooted, as well as the fact that we'll soon have reboots of Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Fantastic Four to name a few. But Superman, IMO, is probably the character who needs a modern translation the most. He's still an icon among kids AND adults alike, and they need a Superman film other than Donner's two installments to enjoy.
Superman Returns failed to use modern technology to its fullest, thus producing a very slow film. From what it appears, however,
Man Of Steel will likely make
Returns look like
Catwoman or
Batman & Robin in comparison.
Anyways, enough of that. Onto the main purpose of this editorial, the nine reasons why I think that
Man Of Steel will indeed be our best Superman film to date...
1.
Zack Snyder has stated that Superman will 'kick ass' in this film.
As critically acclaimed as Richard Donner's first two
Superman films are, you can't deny that they were light on action.
Superman Returns showed this even further, showcasing a Superman that doesn't throw punches. However, Snyder has expressed interest in showing Superman's true power, and confirms that he will indeed 'kick some ass'. I'm sure many of us will enjoy that, as Superman's one of the most powerful comic book characters around, and a film truly showing his potential should be nothing short of amazing.
Personally, I'd love to see Superman beat the heck out of a villain similar to what he does in this video.
2.
Christopher Nolan is involved, and Snyder is directing.
Yes, you can say I'm biased when it comes to Nolan (IMO, he has yet to produce a bad film). But any true Nolanite would be thrilled to see the guy bring in significant creative influence into the screenplay of the latest Superman film. Considering Nolan's near-perfect track record in creating excellent stories, and with David S. Goyer (who co-wrote
Batman Begins and conceived the story for
The Dark Knight), we can safely say that the script will likely be awesome (we can't say for certain until we see the movie, however!). Then we have Zack Snyder directing. While
Sucker Punch proved that Snyder isn't good at writing his own script as he is directing others' scripts, Snyder's visually one of the most impressive directors around (his work in films such as
300 and
Watchmen proved that). So with Nolan/Goyer doing the script/story and Snyder directing, we can expect one hell of a film.
3.
The cast so far is excellent.
Initially, I've never heard of some of the actors in the film (Henry Cavill, Julia Ormond, Christopher Meloni, etc.) before they were cast into their respective roles, so I can't really say how their acting abilities are thus far. However, I'm really liking Kevin Costner as Pa Kent and Russell Crowe as Jor-El the most. Diane Lane looks like a good choice, but she seems a bit too young (maybe they'll add makeup to her as time goes on in the film?). I'm still warming up to Michael Shannon as Zod, and Amy Adams should do a sexy job as Lois (she was definitely not my first choice, but I'm warming up to the fact each day). Antje Traue should do a good job as Faora as well.
4.
It'll be the first actual modern-retelling of Superman.
Superman Returns is the only Superman film to be released in the span of nearly 20 years, but as stated before, it didn't take advantage of the modern technology available. Now, we have that chance with
Man Of Steel. Also stated previously, Snyder's incredible with the effects he injects into his films, and I highly doubt that
Man Of Steel will be an exception. So obviously (especially with a reported budget of $170 million or so) we can expect the film to take a lot of advantage of the technology that's available now.
5.
It'll have NOTHING to do with the Donner films.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the first two Donner films as much as most fanboys, but
Returns proved that the formula just doesn't work in modern times. Knowing that
Man Of Steel will not be connected to the Donner films in the slightest (which is to be expected for a reboot, of course) should be a relief, and confirms that it'll likely not be another
Superman Returns trainwreck.
6.
It'll be as contemporary as possible.
Tying it in with reason #4, this will be the first real contemporary take on Superman (and probably more realistic). Speaking of realistic, many are wondering whether or not they'll ditch the briefs in
Man Of Steel. I personally hope they do, for the sake of being realistic. Like, the classic suit works well in the comics, but if someone saw a dude flying around in big red underwear, they'd be like 'Dude, that's gay!' or something. I wanna see something similar to the DC Relaunch suit, but with a yellow belt and some red patches right below it (to make the fact that the trunks are missing a little less noticeable).
7.
It'll possibly focus on Superman's origins completely.
Most people know that I've been in favor of not doing an entire retelling of the origin of Superman since Donner already covered it in '78, but after some thinking, it makes sense to go over it again (to an extent, at least), since most people (specifically younger audiences) would likely not wanna watch an obviously outdated film with cheap effects and skintight suits when they can watch a film with loads of special effects and better costuming (which will inevitably be in
Man Of Steel). Re-doing it in a modern fashion would likely bring the story fresh in the minds of the young audience, similar to what
Superman: The Movie did for the past generation.
8.
Perhaps General Zod making an appearance would actually be great.
Previously, Zod has been in only two Superman films out of five (a cameo in the first Donner film, and the main villain in
Superman II), and having him again being played by a new actor in a new generation is certainly welcome, IMO. I know a lot of people were complaining about another Superman villain not being brought in (such as Metallo or Brainiac) and instead see a villain recycled, but just be happy that he won't be fighting Lex Luthor again (or at least until a possible sequel to
Man Of Steel), and I'll be happy if they don't overuse Zod in the same fashion for future installments. And just because a villainess will be used in this film doesn't mean that it's a
Superman II remake!
9.
Man Of Steel could open up possibilities for future villains to finally make the big screen.
A partial continuation from reason #8, we'd all love to see other well-known villains of Superman hit the big screen (Brainiac, Darkseid, Doomsday, etc). Recently, we had some possible details that may or may not be BS, one of which was that Brainiac would be set up as a villain in a possible sequel. Also, considering the interest in putting out a film adaptation of 'The Death Of Superman' (one of which,
Superman Lives, was very close to pre-production and even had a teaser poster when it was canceled), I can see Warner Bros. wanting to bring Doomsday in a sequel (especially after the success of the
Superman: Doomsday animated film released back in 2007), and the story would be an incredible live action film.
Well, those are the reasons why I think
Man Of Steel could very well be the best Superman film to date. Of course, we can only know for certain when the film comes out in December 2012, but I think that it'll at least be better than
Returns. ;)
Anyways, if you also think that
Man of Steel will be the best Superman film to date, feel free to post your reasons why in the usual place!
Man Of Steel flies into theaters mid-December 2012.