Directed By: Zack Snyder (300) Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon, Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane
Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence, action and destruction, and for some language
Run Time: 2 hours, 23 minutes
Synopsis: A young boy learns that he has extraordinary powers and is not of this Earth. As a young man, he journeys to discover where he came from and what he was sent here to do. But the hero in him must emerge if he is to save the world from annihilation and become the symbol of hope for all mankind. (Courtesy of Warner Bros.)
REVIEW
Andrew: Hello readers! Last night Sarah and I were some of the few in a crowd of about 50 people who bought advance screening tickets through Walmart to see Zack Snyder's new Superman reboot, Man of Steel - starring Henry Cavill as Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman, Amy Adams as Lois Lane and a whole host of other famous actors that we'll get into during this review. This was a film that I know I was very much looking forward to ever since it was announced that Christopher Nolan would be producing and Zack Snyder would be directing.
But the interesting thing to me, and where I think the crux of this interview will come from, is that you, Sarah, told me as we were leaving the theatre that you did not know much about Superman and his story whatsoever prior to tonight!
Sarah: Yeah! I'm not very familiar with the storylines and characters of the DC Comics universe as much as I am with Marvel's. Before the Dark Knight trilogy I wasn't entirely familiar with Batman's backstory and his enemies and before this came out I was really under the impression that General Zod was his arch-nemesis throughout his entire history. And apparently I'm wrong! So yeah, I didn't know much about Superman, I didn't know much about his history and backstory, so everything in Man of Steel was very interesting for me to learn!
Man of Steel has the very clear DNA of Christopher Nolan's perfectly told origin story like we saw in Batman Begins, and I thought it was directed brilliantly by Zack Snyder. I love that it wasn't your typical origin story where you start at the beginning and move chronologically. I really liked that, because I assumed that's just how it would be. I loved that.
A: And what you mean is that Superman's backstory is told primarily through flashbacks. I mean, it starts at the beginning with the birth of Kal-El back on his home planet of Krypton, which is important because he's the first naturally born Kryptonian in hundreds of years. So that's a big part of the storyline. Then we see the destruction of Krypton, we see his parents sending him to Earth, all these things are are pretty well known to most people familiar with Superman. So I find it very interesting that this is your first exposure to all of this.
