Far From Neutral Notions - Philippine politics, culture and stuff

Warning: Some Spoilers Ahead

Imagine, if you will, being a Superman fan. In the Age of Anime.

It doesn’t paint a pretty picture, no matter how you tilt the frame. And things haven’t been good for the Man of Steel in decades.

It probably began with the Denny O’Neal - Neil Adams run on Green Lantern/Green Arrow in the 70’s, pushing social consciousness to the mainstream comics industry. Then came the grim and gritty icons like Wolverine, and the now-classic Dark Knight Returns (Frank Miller) and Watchmen (Alan Moore), giving mainstream comic books an edgier, more “adult” feel. Fast forward to now, with the Anime/Manga invasion - in the span of a few years, Superman went from being the world’s greatest superhero to being the world’s greatest boy scout.

Subsequent years saw Superman taking more of a backseat to newer, “tougher” characters. It is perhaps a tribute to this state of affairs that Mark Waid wrote Kingdom Come: a groundbreaking mini-series with art painted by Alex Ross, that illustrated Superman’s increasing irrelevance to how the world works, making the Man of Tomorrow a relic of the past.

And ever increasingly, Superman stories matured. Gone are the wacky villains and even wackier sidekicks. No longer were Superman stories about cosmic disasters and natural cataclysms and the next big unstoppable villain (excepting Doomsday). They were now short morality plays, almost - exploring his psyche, his personality, his… humanity. And mostly asking the question why, despite being able to do most anything he has a mind to do, why be a boy scout, still? Come on! He’s Super-effin-Man! Why not take over? Why not get rich? Why not be a little selfish, here and there? What keeps him good, fighting the good fight? What makes Superman, a super man?

Well, because he’s Superman, and that’s the way he is, that’s the way he chose to be. He’s become one of those people that define themselves, in a cyclic manner. It’s like, why is Samuel L. Jackson such a cool bad ass mofo? Aside from the wallet, it’s because he’s Samuel L. Jackson. Superman is awsome because he is Superman, and he fights for all that is good and decent, truth and justice, because he is Superman. He wouldn’t be Superman otherwise.

He belives in good. He sees evil, and fights against it, because he knows good. Being (up until recently) the last survivor of a dead planet, he reaches out to the denizens of his adopted home and protects them from harm, because it’s all he’s got. He’s not merely good, he represents it. Personifies it. Becomes it.

And that’s awsome.

And that’s how it feels to be a Superman fan. And that’s why I so desperately wanted the new movie to touch the non-fans the way I, a fan, am touched. To spread the awesomeness. Because Superman’s is a beautiful story of somebody trying to do good in a world that’s lost faith.

Imagine my disappointment in this Brian Singer film, then.

This is a movie that started out with so much promise. A world that lost Superman. Can you even begin to imagine how that must be like? Can you imagine living on a planet that was home to one of the most powerful beings in existence, and almost daily depending on him for help, and then one day he’s not there? Yup, neither can Brian Singer. Because we’re introduced to the world that, while not totally unimpressed by him, treats the Man of Steel like any other guy in tights. How can his leaving be relegated to a shrug? I know it took Lois Lane almost five years to write him off (and win a Pulitzer for it), but did it seem like five years? The potential in exploring those five years that he wasn’t around was limitless, and could really have gone a long way in establishing what the character meant to the people, but it was glazed over. The title’s Superman Returns, for crying out loud; would it have killed them to emphasize the importance of said return? There are moments when I know they wanted to make Superman more iconic, more relevant: the messianic poses, the standing ovation when he saved the shuttle, his declaration that the people call to him for help… but there’s no follow through. The way the film treated him, he was nothing more than a popular Spiderman, and that’s just wrong.

Another grave injustice was done to Kevin Spacey, and to a greater extent, Lex Luthor. His version was little better than Gene Hackman’s, and still with the obsession on land! Still surrounding himself with idiots for accomplices. Still with the megalomania. It’s a good thing they didn’t get Eddie Murphy (or worse, Chris Tucker/Will Smith) to reprise Richard Pryor’s role. I hate to say this, but the Smallville TV series at least treated Lex with respect. Has Brian Singer even read a Superman comic in the last 20 years? I don’t mind him taking liberties with the story, but he could have at least gotten some clues as to characterization.

And another thing: Singer killed off Jonthan Kent!? And Martha wasn’t even significant after the first ten or so minutes. These are the people that made Superman who he is, who taught him to be good and just. These are his human connections. They are what made Superman super humane, and the utter lack of storytime they got is just disappointing.

One thing that would’ve been funny if it wasn’t so… off… was Lois Lane having Superman’s kid. I’m not sure if this is a swipe at Kevin Smith - who was supposed to do the script for the movie, who directed Mall Rats, wherein they discussed the impossibility of a Superman-Lois Lane baby because, among other things, Superman would “blow his load like a shotgun” right through Lois’ back.

By the way, am I the only one who thinks that the reason for Superman’s departure was just a wee bit forced? He just up and leaves? Superman? Sure, I’d understand him wanting to check out Krypton, but just like that? Poof, gone? Brian Singer knows Superman like he knows the X-Men. As in, not at all.

What I DO Like

Having said the negative stuff, I’m glad it wasn’t Tim Burton doing the movie, as was originally planned. Although I’m still curious as to what Kevin Smith’s take would have been, had Burton not canned his script.

Brandon Routh is the spitting image of Christopher Reeve. The flight scenes are awsome, very good CGI and camerawork. He can certainly strike a pose, I’ll give him that. Very iconic, very majestic. Even his Clark Kent is like Reeve’s. Yep, same old Clark.

Lois definitely got an upgrade in the looks department. It’s Kate Bosworth, what can I say? Rowr? :p

The camerawork was superb, the lighting and sets were good.

And not much else.

I give this movie a C.

[EDIT]

Ok. I watched the movie again. Better the second time around, I’d say. I still stand by my Bryan Singer comments, but the rest of the movie… well, it’s a Superman flick, I’m a Superman fan.

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