Following the fan made trailer of Reeve versus Routh, the debate inspired me at analysing the men who dawned the cape and why they did it in the fashion they used.
Honestly, I "enjoyed" Routh. Possibly because we waited too long for a Superman movie and I got to a point where I didn't care even if freakin' CAGE put on the cape n'boots. BUT, let's not tell ourselves fairy tales here. They found the perfect replacement for Reeve, not Superman. And that says a lot. I don't want to sound too sacrilegious here but let’s be honest with ourselves. Reeve will always be Superman in our eyes because he was the perfect embodiment of the character in 1980. We grew up with him thinking he was perfect. He gave us everything we've ever dreamed of but we have however, evolved from those primitive views. Today, if an actor that had the same build as Reeve was chosen for the role, the last thing he’d look like is “super”... such as Cage and Routh. People bitch about Routh but praise Reeve when they could not have possibly found a better double.
Routh's Superman is exactly the same as Reeve's. The only difference is in the Clark half of the character and there is a reason why Routh seemed to not push it as much as Reeve did. In 1980 clumsiness was very popular on the big screen in forms of comedy and that Charlie Chaplin "style", which was followed with Jerry Lewis, was still widely acclaimed. Even though the technology had evolved so we could finally see a caped hero fly on the big screen, the average movie goers were the ones that had grown up watching Chaplin n' Lewis and still enjoyed them, which is why Reeve's overly clumsy Clark could be enjoyed without criticism. Today however, IF Routh had pushed Clark to Reeve’s standards, it would have looked as if Mr. Bean took over the Daily Planet. Do you guys honestly know someone that clumsy in your neck of the woods? I mean, we all joke at how we spill milk and brake vases but to that extent??? I understand that it was part of his ruse to disguise his secret identity but in our day and age, he would’ve attracted too much attention to himself and I’m pretty sure that’s the last thing you want when you’re hiding.
Also, the "underdog" syndrome was the rage back then and yes, that included having his ass handed to him on a platter by even mere mortals. It does explain why we haven’t seen Kal-El “unleashed” as of yet. But look at what we're bitching about today. Sups getting beaten up like a cheap hooker, too much Lex as the villain and not enough "out of this world" experience. Is that the hero we know and love from the comics we read today? Of course not. But don't tell me you guys are too blind to see the link between Donner's work and Signer's. So, what they did in Superman Returns was to use the 1980 primitive recipe and use it on a more advanced generation. I can appreciate what Signer wanted to do which was to pay homage to Richard however, that concept had failure written all over it before the full script was written (not even mentioning the brain fart of a super son) and WAAAAAAYYYYY before Routh was ever cast.
The bottom line is, even though Reeve would have been younger in our day and age, he'd never have been the first choice for the role had he not delivered the classics we grew up with. Routh was an excellent replacement but not the Superman we all want to see. The "evolved" Superman we've been reading for the last 20 years. I mean, look at Tom Welling’s fan base!!! Give me one honest to god point in common his Clark has with Reeve's. There aren't any! Dean Cain's Superman was extremely popular and also had nothing in common with Reeve. Cain wasn't a better Superman than Reeve; he was the best Superman for our generation in the 90's. So until they re-capture the new essence of that 22nd century evolved character, simply no one will do since the recipe they're using now sucks by our new standards. I personally felt they were going in the right direction having Cain follow Reeve and then having Welling follow Cain. Now what we need is someone to follow what Welling has added to the evolution of the character. I feel Welling was a brilliant choice for Clark’s youth but until they give him a decent haircut and throw him the cape, it’s too soon to see if he has what it takes to capture the rest of Clark’s life. Perhaps someone else could brilliantly follow Welling’s work.
Routh might have what it takes if they ever let him give a little bit of his own. But at the end of the day, the last thing we need is to go back to the 80’s because evolution never looks back. That’s why they say “it’s history.”
Since they are working on rebooting the franchise, they could keep Brandon Routh along for the ride and bring in a better foe. I think General Zod has always been a fan favorite along with his beautiful mistress Ursa, maybe a fresh new take on these characters would do the trick! It would certainly force Superman to "unleash" his attributes. It could also be a great door opened to bring in our own favorite Supergirl for a tag team battle royale!!! I think that with all his performance which speaks for themselves, Rufus Sewell would be perfect for the general. And for a delightfully blonde youth, ELisha Cuthbert could certainly fill the red skirt. As for Ursa, Parker Posey would have been ideal but she has already been the useless lackey of Lex. Since Watchmen is a done deal, i think Malin Akerman could take the character to new heights! Here are a few pics to make your mouth water :)