“The only way to know how strong…is to keep testing your limits.”

Man of Steel is essentially a modern retelling of the classic Superman origin story. It has a lot of the similar roots that we’ve come to know about his origin story, but everything is different and has some sort of unique twist on it. I really like this approach, as it makes it less of a remake of the original Christopher Reeve Superman, as well as just the origin story itself. It makes the film less predictable and "tropey" in a way.

It is also by far the most interesting take we have gotten of Superman on the big screen, as far as the more modern stuff (Christopher Reeve onwards). It is a lot more serious and grounded, and plays a lot more on the idea of how the world would actually react if Superman came into our existence. This is definitely the least “comic-booky” main Superman movie, I would say, in that regard. I've seen this film a numerous amount of times, and every time, before I watch it, I go in wanting to love it. Unfortunately, this is a movie that I only just like, but before I get too far ahead of myself, I’ll talk about what I not only like but love about Man of Steel.

For one, the opening sequence is amazing. It offers this whole new take on Krypton that, with modern visuals and technology, is able to create a fully lived-in and realized world. The fate of Krypton and the standout sequences that play out during this introduction are also far more emotional than even the original Superman: The Movie. It creates a strong emotional hook straight out of the gate and is both incredibly entertaining and powerful. It does a pretty good job of setting things up for our characters in this specific movie, unlike in Superman (1978) where it is more setting things up for the sequel. I say all this, which probably makes it sound like I prefer Man of Steel’s opening to the original Superman, but I actually do prefer the original a little bit because of the tone, score, and fantastical visuals. Nonetheless, Man of Steel has a terrific opening, perfectly introducing both Jor-El and General Zod, as well as hooking you right away, as I already said.

When it comes to the storytelling of Superman, well, before he is Superman and is just a kid, it doesn’t tell it in an opening act, but rather in flashbacks. The flashbacks, in my opinion, occur at times when they connect with what's currently happening and make the current stuff more emotionally resonant. The origin stuff in general, while you definitely have to suspend your disbelief a bit, is really compelling, I would say, for the most part. Though I completely understand the criticisms that people have with Jonathan/Pa Kent, they don’t affect my viewing experience at all, and in fact, actually work for me.

Man of Steel also has some of the best Superman moments when it comes to the movies. The “First Flight” sequence is easily a top five for me, and the action is definitely the best we’ve seen in a Superman movie, even up to this point. It's epic, truly makes the Kryptonians feel powerful, and immersive; it almost has a sort of “anime” feeling to it in a way. This is where Zack Snyder’s specific and unique direction really comes to life. Love or hate his movies, he certainly doesn’t lack taste or style. This kind of also correlates with the visuals, which are absolutely striking. From the opening sequence on Krypton to the flight scenes and the final climax, this movie is absolutely gorgeous from beginning to end. It looks serious yet mythical, which correlates with the tone. This is hard for me to say because of how much I love Donner’s Superman—I mean, it’s my favorite comic book movie of all time—but I think this is the best-looking Superman film.

I’m a huge fan of this version of General Zod as well. It’s really tough for me to pick between this version, played by Michael Shannon, and the version from Superman II, played by Terence Stamp, though, because I love the persona and characterization of Terence Stamp’s version, but Shannon’s is no doubt a lot more emotionally deep and complex. I can’t pick a favorite, but Shannon is nonetheless amazing in this role. His version of the character is easy to root against, yet easy to understand, because of his sense of duty that he feels he has. While what he does to achieve that duty is obviously horrible and, as he says, cruel, you get where he’s coming from. I would say he’s also a lot more intimidating and scarier than Stamp’s take.

I can’t forget to mention Hans Zimmer’s score, either. Nothing can top John Williams, but this is a worthy follow-up and the second best Superman score in my opinion. "Flight" is my favorite, but literally everything is fantastic and captures the mythic and epic nature of the movie. It's a score, like John Williams's, that I often listen to even outside of watching the film.

Now, I’m sure you’re wondering why I haven’t talked about Henry Cavill as Superman yet. Well, for me personally, my relationship with this version of the character is very complex and mixed. I absolutely love Cavill in this role and think he was absolutely born to play this character, but unfortunately, I think the writer, David S. Goyer, as well as Zack Snyder, really let him down. Adding to the uniqueness of this take on a Superman movie, Superman himself is portrayed as more of a godlike and mythical figure, rather than what I’ve always believed him to be: a human who has been given gifts and a duty to protect Earth. Yeah, he was born an alien, but raised on a farm by incredible parents with great values. I don’t get that feeling from either Superman himself or Jonathan and Martha Kent. With Superman being portrayed as more of a god, yeah, sure, it’s interesting, but with the way he was written, it comes at the cost of being able to truly emotionally connect and resonate with him. He feels very distant from the audience, and the lack of a Clark Kent persona certainly doesn’t help. It’s not like Matt Reeves’s The Batman either, where the lack of a human persona is part of his character's arc. In my opinion, it's just a problem with the writing and storytelling.

When it comes to my downright negatives, I’ll start off by saying that two of the big controversies with this film do not bother me at all. Both the climax in Metropolis and the final climactic moment between Superman and Zod feel like natural consequences to me, so they have never been a personal gripe at all. My main negative with the film, however, is that it lacks the spirit and hope of quite literally every other big-screen, live-action adaptation of Superman, which, while certainly an intentional creative choice, is not what a Superman movie should be for me. The movie lacks a soul and feels overly dull at times, which correlates with the portrayal of Superman. There is very little of the hope that I believe is a core foundation to this character, and it only gets worse in the sequel, Batman v Superman. Instead, Superman and the movie overall are overly melodramatic and, as I've already said, dull.

When it comes to my engagement with Man of Steel, I certainly find it to be at least entertaining, except for the middle act. The middle act stalls character development in order to quite abruptly and seemingly out of nowhere (at first) set up the main plot, which makes the pacing take a significant hit. It's not egregious, but definitely the least interesting part of the film.

My downright negatives both kind of correlate with each other, in that neither of them are earned. They are both kind of obvious, but I'll mention them nonetheless since they both bothered me. The first one is Lois Lane and Superman's relationship. I think Amy Adams is definitely better than Kate Bosworth as Lois Lane, but that is a very low bar. However, like Bosworth, she was definitely miscast, lacking not only the look of Lois Lane (Bosworth was too young) but the charm as well. In terms of her relationship with Superman, again, super unearned. Nothing feels like it's building up to anything, and so their big advances in their relationship feel abrupt, random, and forced. I would even say that the relationship between Superman and Lois in Superman Returns was more interesting, because at least the filmmakers were trying to make that relationship compelling. Their relationship in Man of Steel felt like an afterthought.

The other thing I don’t like is something I already mentioned, being the final and very controversial climactic moment between Zod and Superman. I don’t dislike it for the implications it makes with Superman’s character, because I, again, find them to be natural consequences. However, it lacks a truly emotional impact because the core of the scene, Superman’s love for the people, wasn’t ever developed in the rest of the movie. This correlates with my mixed feelings on this version of Superman—he’s supposed to be not only a beacon of hope, but a protector of the people, and I never really felt that until this scene, so it kind of came out of nowhere.

I really like this film, but it overall comes off as super disappointing because I see so much potential in it.