January 1 2007: Review: Superman Returns
Filed under Reviews
I need to marry Brandon Routh. Now. No joke. I spent the majority of this movie with my jaw gaping, drooling all over my front. It’s near incredible how the brains behind the production managed to find an unknown actor, pluck him out of obscurity, and place him into an immortal role…in which he does absolutely nothing but excel. Brandon Routh, purely and simply, is Superman. He’s shy and clumsy as Clark Kent, and strong, and gorgeous, and strong, and gorgeous, and strong…and…well…he’s perfect as Superman. Let’s just leave it at that.
The movie on the other hand, seemed much too long. It seemed as though Bryan Singer wanted to prolong the movie to increase character reflection. Unfortunately, the long stretches of time where nothing really seemed to be happening merely reduced me to boredom…boredom that was only alleviated with looking at Brandon Routh. Action is what works in superhero movies, and as director of the first two X-men movies, Singer should know this by now.
Kate Bosworth has copped a lot of flak about her role as Lois Lane, but I think she did admirably. My opinion is coloured, of course, by the fact that she did her research for the role by watching Katharine Hepburn movies, and that she modelled her behaviour on that of Tracy Lord (‘The Philadelphia Story’) and Tess Harding (‘Woman of the Year’). This was a really smart move on her part, ensuring that Lois Lane wasn’t reduced to simply the helpless female lead who needed help at all times, but rather, a gutsy female holding her own in the workplace. Her outfits were perfectly lovely as well, with shades of the forties tweed styles, assuring that Lois Lane would never be another slutty female lead in a low-cut top.
Kevin Spacey was scary…but human. As Lex Luthor, the arch-nemesis, he exuded evilness from his pores, yet we still had humourous glimpses of him as a normal human being, and more thought-provoking scenes of him showing true human affection towards his lover Kitty. Let me ask you a question: have you ever seen the evil enemy in any movie, brushing his teeth in his bathrobe? No? Thought not. Well, we do see Lex Luthor doing this, and it just helps to make him that much more human…a real person, not just a force of evil. It was definitely a smart move on the scriptwriter’s part.
I got all excited when I saw Eva Marie Saint’s name in the opening credits (which were graphically amazing!). However, as she’s one of my favourite actresses from the classic era, (her performance in ‘On The Waterfront’ was just a masterpiece of acting) I found her miniscule role in the film somewhat disappointing. Ten minutes at the start of the movie, then one short glimpse at the end? An actress of her calibre deserves more respect, a larger role.
Overall, while the movie was done quite well, it seemed almost incomplete. Certain aspects of the movie (in terms of relationship development), seemed as though they were left up in the air…to leave something for a sequel perhaps? And, like any plebeian with a penchant for superhero films, I eagerly anticipate the next installment of the Superman franchise!
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