Movie: Man of Steel
Director: Zack Snyder
Cast: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane and Michael Shannon
Rating: ***
As much as I loved Zack Snyder’s “Man of Steel”, I hated it too at one level where it felt like watching an extended version of Avengers film featuring Superman. I understand it’s a superhero flick and action is bound to be abundant, but I felt it went little overboard especially in the last half hour. For a film that had a powerful first half, almost leaving me teary-eyed, its post-interval session didn’t quite live up to the expectations.
Catering to 21st century audiences, “Man of Steel” is the story that reveals the nativity and self-realization of the Kryptonian caped-crusader known as Superman for over 75 years now.
Kal-El is born during trying times on the planet Krypton. He is transported to Earth to “protect the survival” of its race. Down here on Earth, rechristened as Clark, during his stay with his foster parents, farm folk Jonathan and Martha Kent in rural Kansas, he discovers that he has extraordinary powers and is not of this world. And so he sets out to find his true purpose in life.
It’s wonderful to learn about the origin of Superman. Nearly 40 minutes are spent in helping us understand who truly he is and what does the ‘S’ on his suit signify? This is the part I liked the most because he tries to conceal his identity while trying to blend in. And the meaningful conversations he has with his foster father are proof to the true purpose of a superhero.
Zack Snyder has given us a Superman we all could cherish for a lifetime. He is ought to be seen by one and all. He hardly speaks but lets his action do the talking, while trying to stay away from trouble as much as possible. He is far more convincing as the dark, conflicted Superman coming to terms with his strange status.
The narrow focus on Amy Adams as Cavill’s love interest, Lois Lane, the Pulitzer Prize-winning hard-news reporter who uses her journalistic acumen to quickly deduce his secret identity does not capture our hearts. That’s probably because the director did not give them much screen time.
Presented in a very non-linear fashion, director Zack Snyder along with writer David S. Goyer cleverly and curiously unravels Clark’s traits. The wonderful score by Hans Zimmer adds to the film’s attention-grabbing luster.
I really didn’t enjoy the 3D experience as i felt there weren’t any such moments in the film that may have done justice to this technology. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the film’s sound in Dolby Atmos. I think it’s the best thing in sound technology to have happened to cinema. If you have a chance of watching it in Atmos, then you shouldn’t miss it.
The fight scenes, with its shock-and-awe barrage of sci-fi fire and brimstone, in the second half of the film gets weighed down by CGI overkill and thickets of exposition about the Kryptonian codex, making it boring after a while. Nevertheless, the film is gripping even in its humorless tone and persistently noisy destructive aesthetics. It connects with its audience on the emotional front.
