"I have so many questions. Where do I come from?"
-Clark Kent (Man of Steel)
Finally watched Man of Steel last in 3D.The cinema was packed last night and almost all seats were occupied.Meaning,the film would really be great 'cause that's what usually happens during some blockbuster movies' screenings.And you know what,I wasn't wrong.The audience I was in laughed and applauded once the credits started rolling.Man of Steel is directed by Zack Snyder (300/Watchmen) and produced/written by Christopher Nolan and stars Henry Cavill (Immortals/The Cold Light of the Day),Amy Adams (The Fighter/The Master),Michael Shannon (Mud/Premium Rush),Diane Lane,And Oscar Winners Russell Crowe (Gladiator/A Beautiful Mind) & Kevin Costner (Dances With Wolves/The Untouchables).The film tells the story of a young itinerant worker who is forced to confront his secret extraterrestrial heritage when Earth is invaded by members of his race.
Man of Steel's storytelling reminisced me very much of Batman Begins'.And that's the reason why (for me) it felt more like a Nolan-directed film rather than a Snyder-directed one.I loved how the film's plot jumped from a present plot point to past plot point.I think that's what they call "Non-linear storytelling".And just like The Dark Knight Trilogy's storytelling,Man of Steel's is also brilliant,masterful and compelling thanks to the story written by Christopher Nolan and David S.Goyer.The film's story had some plot points that reminded me of some movies'.For example,the terraforming plot point easily reminded me of Transformers: Dark of the Moon's part where they try to rebuild Cybertron by shifting it into Earth.Nonetheless,even though that plot point was repeated,it didn't bother me whatsoever.And for those big fans of the comic books,the ending might give you nerdgasms.So,I give a big two thumbs up to both of them for helping in making this a great movie by writing an incredible narrative for the film.Zack Snyder didn't make a wrong/bad choice by choosing Christopher Nolan and David S.Goyer as one of the writers of the film's story.
Man of Steel has a stellar cast,and a well-chosen one.The best thing is,not even one member's talent from the main cast was wasted.Just to be honest,this is the first Superman movie I've seen,meaning I haven't seen the other actors who played Superman's performances though I heard they're quite good.Either way,I felt that Henry Cavill was a great choice to take on the Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman role.Though the way he portrayed the role seemed to be very serious,he performed really well.I could sometimes felt affected by how he feels in some emotional scenes.Specifically while he was watching his Earth-dad Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner) fall to his untimely demise.I almost cried in that scene,and maybe some of the audience shed some tears.That scene was heartbreaking and just by seeing Henry Cavill's Clark Kent scream in sadness as he watches his dad die is just really painful but all the way great due to Cavill's amazing acting.Also,his portrayal was very heroic and inspiring in some aspects.He was just really great in the film.He was emotional,very serious and the way he delivers his lines by his deep,awesome voice was simply incredible.That's just my opinion anyway.In Man of Steel,Amy Adams plays Lois Lane,Clark Kent's love interest.Adams became one of my favorite actors/actresses after watching her act in The Fighter.And just like in The Fighter,She performed well in Man of Steel though I felt she needed more screentime.Kevin Costner plays Jonathan Kent,Clark's adoptive father.Costner's character in MoS guided Clark as he grew up and told him a lot of life lessons.Costner's performance was very emotional and heartfelt and perhaps his best scene in the film for me is his death scene because during that scene,he sort of connected to the audiences' emotions.Opposing to Costner's adoptive-father figure role is Russell Crowe's incredible performance on the biological-father role.Crowe's character dies early in the film but still appears throughout its' entirety as he is sort of the ship's guide.Russell Crowe's gravelly,deep voice felt very powerful and sort of guided the movie all throughout as if he was the film's vehicle,engine and motor because of his powerful guidance on the plot.I think I'm forgetting something here...Oh I forgot Michael Shannon! Regarding Shannon's performance,he was villainous and sinister.But behind his villainous aspects is his sort of love for his fellow by terraforming Krypton into Earth 'cause that way,the Kryptonians could be born again.But still,it was a villainous act.All the way through,Shannon portrayed General Zod very well.Man of Steel has a very talented cast,both main and supporting.And all of them performed well,I had no problems with them whatsoever.
Man of Steel combines the incredible talent of two incredible directors Christopher Nolan and Zack Snyder.If Christopher Nolan wrote a brilliant story for the film,then Zack Snyder provided amazing,jaw-dropping,breathtaking visuals as always.But if you're looking for Snyder's cool trademark slow-mo shots,well Man of Steel doesn't have it.Not at least one.But what it has in exchange for that is edge-of-your-seat entertainment and heart-stopping action,and from what I noticed,the film has several lens flares in the likes of JJ Abram's.Man of Steel started with Lana giving birth to Kal-El (Who will be later known as Clark Kent) and alongside that scene has a shot of Krypton facing war.That scene which has the shot included in the trailer was amazing,it opened the film both dramatically and awesomely by adding some spice to Lara's birth to Kal-El.And the parts where Jor-El (Russell Crowe) kicks ass was just awesome.And as the film gets close to the middle and final act,the action heats up and just never stops.And most of those might make you jump out of your seat.But one of the most astonishing and awesome parts in the movie for me was the first time Clark wears the Superman suit and tries to fly.That part left me completely breathless.That was very breathtaking.Because of the non-stop action once it reaches the mid-act,this might just be the most action packed Superman movie yet thanks to Zack Snyder's stunning,breathtaking visuals.
John William's iconic and legendary "Superman March" does not make it in the film but instead it is replaced by Hans Zimmer's "An Ideal Of Hope" which made the film even more dramatic and heartfelt thus it fit the film perfectly because of the tone and themes the film had.Hans Zimmer is a great composer and he just does it again in Man of Steel.Now,everytime I hear that said score,it gives me the goosebumps and chills.But of course,John William's score is still very legendary and iconic up to now.The film was shot really well,and the way they captured the action scenes will make you jump to the edge of your seat.MoS had a lot of close-ups on explosions,and they reminded me mostly of last year's The Avengers.But it was no fuss.And yeah,the way they shot Superman's first flight was astounding.I saw Man of Steel in 3D,and the 3D was really just nothing special.It was as if I was just watching it in plain 2D.So if you're planning to see this,my best recommendation is to see it in regular 2D.But it still depends on your choice.
Zack Snyder and Christopher Nolan does an incomparable tandem in Man of Steel with Snyder as director and Nolan as one of the writers/producers and together they make an effective duo.Like what I said above,Nolan did a great supervision on the film's story and Snyder gave us jaw-dropping visuals,and great movie moments.This might just be the best film from director Zack Snyder ever since Watchmen.
Prior to watching this film,I always thought of Superman as a really lame Superhero and just simply corny but after watching Man of Steel,my entire perspective on the superhero changed.Man of Steel is one of this year's most anticipated movies and unlike Iron Man 3,this didn't disappoint me in any aspect.It lived up very much to my expectations.MoS provides a great amount of action,amazing performances from the well-chosen cast,incredible non-linear storytelling,and breathtaking movie moments.If Man of Steel could speak directly to Iron Man 3,it might probably say "Suck on these Kryptonian nuts!".Hahahaha.I just can't wait for the green-lighted sequel to this.I'm ready for more Superman action.
Entertaining,emotional,heartfelt and just brilliant,Man of Steel gets 8.5 over 10 stars.A perfect film for Father's Day.
Being a record-breaker in the Philippine box-office,Man of Steel is still flying high in theaters in regular 2D,3D and IMAX 3D theatrically distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures (Philippines).
*If you want more to see the Man of Steel's previous heroic acts,Superman: The Movie,Superman II,Superman III,Superman IV and Superman Returns is available to own on DVD & Blu-Ray distributed by Magnavision Home Video.
**Catch the next Zack Snyder produced film,300: Rise of an Empire in theaters coming March 2014.
*For now,why not check out this clip from the film:
*Videoclip courtesy of Movieclips.com and Warner Bros.Pictures.
(C) 2013,Warner Bros.Pictures/Syncopy,Legendary Pictures & DC Entertainment.
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