Superman Returns (DVD) (WS)

I was very hesitant to see this film when it was released in theaters. I was raised with Christopher Reeve as my Superman, and that was that. I enjoyed this movie when I realized this was a new Superman and a new take on Superman. It's kind of the same mentality with "Batman" -vs- "Batman Begins" Same characters, but a whole different movie and a different concept. You can't put them together and expect to be satisfied. With Superman Returns, you can't put it into the lineup of the original Superman films of the '80's. Instead, this new Superman deserves a whole new fan base purely based on its own merit as a truly enjoyable film. They did a good job on this movie, and it shouldn't be marred by the expectations of us old Superman fans. Superman Returns really evokes emotion out of you and I found that the characters were a bit more true to who they really are. Lex Luther was played very well by Kevin Spacey, and I found that I didn't love and laugh at Lex Luther, which is the way it should be. He's a villain, you can't like the villain (i.e.- I always found Gene Hackmans Lex Luther to be hilarious and funny) Superman Returns has a very real dark element to it, it seems more realistic. Superman himself was played very well and instead of being a campy "Can Do!" superhero, he came across to us as a real guy, and I liked that. Lois Lane as played by Kate Bosworth is pretty ho-hum, as I think they could've done a better job on the casting. A 98 pound 22 year old isn't a very convincing choice for the part of the strong minded and strong person that Lois Lane is supposed to be. Otherwise, it's a great film, but take it for what it is and enjoy it as a whole new Superman film rather than a sequel in a series.

Unlike some great movie sequels which brought in a heavy duty director so as to "save" the franchise or get it started again (ala Star Trek: Nemesis) and failed miserably because of a lack of knowlege about the franchise, Bryan Singer does a bang up job using old scores, old Marlon Brando film scenes, and keeps the dream alive about our hero from Krypton. The special effects, especially on HD DVD, are spectacular. One scene showing a crashing plane wherein Kal El attempts to stop the crash in mid-air, you can see the rippling of aluminum on the wings as Superman slows the plane's decent. This along with mind blowing audio on your 5.1 (or more) stereo system brings it right into your living room in a way that brings you into the movie unlike ever before. This is one of many such scenes where the latest tech in movieland is making the unbelievable seemingly realistic--or at least you want it to be real after watching it. The character portrayals by the "new" Superman actor and the rest of the cast were well chosen, and giving Brandon Routh a chance to show his stuff was a match made in heaven when it came to giving him the role. Remember, there was another actor who came out of no where to play the Man of Steel years ago who most of us had never heard of then, and from that point on we were convinced that a "man could fly". For that matter, too, God bless you Christopher Reeve, and we are glad that this dynasty of movies has been resurrected even as a tribute to your characterization of the Last Son of Kryptonn you shared with us so long ago.

Lots of people (myself included at one time) love\loved to hate on this film. Saying its boring, Superman is just a sad stalker, and the twists and plot points are obvious. While I kind of agree with the last one, I gave it a watch. Its'snow my favorite movie in the Superman franchise. Some people say Richard Donner helped out with the film, since it's almost a direct sequel to his cut of Superman 2. Hence why many stuff that's almost always included in the Superman franchise. Such as Johnathan Kent being dead, Lex Luthor being arrested at the end of the first film, and Lois Lane forgetting Superman's identity at the end of the second film. Everything else pretty much didn't happen. Superman Returns is a reboot of the third film despite it having nothing to do with it. In case you were wondering, yes. There was a third and fourth film. Many people were confused by this fifth/third entry. To me at least, they were changes for the better. This film is technically the darkest movie in the franchise. In the other movies, nobody died. Not even the villains. This one experiments a bit more. Also, the action is awesome. The first film in this franchise was near flawless. Had no fight scenes left an impact. 2 and 3's action and fight scenes are fine. Superman 4: The Quest for Peace's action and fight scenes were sooooooooooooo lame. Points for the best action and fight scenes in the franchise.

This movie was awesome! Superman has truly returned, after too long a wait for a new movie to be released. The action is edge of the seat excitement and this movie will have you both biting your nails in anticipation of what will happen next and crying over what does happen. Please allow me give you a taste of just what the movie is about and who is in it, curtosy of the Internet Movie Database. Brandon Routh (Will & Grace, one episode) plays Clark Kent, or Superman if you prefer. He has travelled back to Krypton, his once home planet because astronomers on Earth seem to think that some of it has remained. His journey lasts five years. During that time that he was away, Louis Lane (played by Kate Bosworth, who also played Emma Hoyt in Remember The Titans) has won a Pulitizer Prize for her work on "Why The World Does Not Need Superman." She is also engaged to Mr. Richard White (played by James Marsden, who also played Scott Summers/Cyclops in the X-men movies) and has one son, Jason White (played by Tristan Lake Leabu, his debut movie). Superman returns to Earth and goes back to work at the Daily Planet, to find his friend, Jimmy Olsen (played by Sam Huntington, who also played Mimi-Siku in Disney's Jungle 2 Jungle) waiting for him. Now, Lex Luthor (played by Kevin Spacey, who also played David Gale in The Life of Davie Gale) ends up finding Kryptonite and has a dream of making a new land mass so large, it will take over the other continents by literally putting them underwater. Can Superman stop Lex this time? Let me just remind you not to think, "Superman is the good guy. Of course he beats Lex." Lex Luthor has an immense amount of Kryptonite, which is a radioactive substace from Krypton that will hurt Superman. It could even kill him. Will it? Is this the final Superman movie? Will Superman return again? Just how strong is The Man of Steel? What are you waiting for? Go now, faster than a speeding bullet, be more powerful than a locomotive, be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, and get this movie. "It's a bird. It's a plane. It's..." "Did you want to see me?" -Superman Returns, a Warner Brothers picture. Directed by Bryan Singer, who aslo directed X2: X-men United.

The primary reason I found myself revisiting Superman Returns (this time on Bluray), is because of the 2013 release of the Man of Steel. I've just finished watching SR twice, and it's much clearer to me what the newly released MoS is missing: humanized characters that we can relate to. Additionally, SR comes with the same powerful, moving score that has inspired millions since its 1978 release, thanks to the genius of John Williams. From the emotionally compelling opening scene with the space shuttle, to the ever-so-short clip of Superman pulling the submerged half of a large yacht out of the Atlantic Ocean, SR is a welcome enjoyment of triumph and goodness that makes me smile each time I sit down and watch it. None of the events of MoS were as momentous or as memorable as SR successfully delivered to us. Sure I had my issues with it when it first came out. Illegitimate children and that silly green rock aside, I wanted more punch. After having seen Man of Steel, I know now what too much of a good thing is, the latter half of MoS being nothing more than an alternate 3rd Matrix ending with a Transformers/Independence Day flare. The ending of SR is still a bit hollow, but it's nothing compared to the overall travesty of MoS. From MoS's shaky camera footage, jittery zooms, under-written characters, gratuitous CGI numbing violence, Hans Zimmer's turgid, over-produced score, and a general lack of any moment of true heroism - SR successfully trumps MoS with simple, yet powerful elegance. My personal take - the warmth, joy and enthusiasm that SR delivers is the Superman I directly relate with, although I may be in the minority. "Why the world doesn't need Superman," the article SR Lois Lane wrote during Kal-El's absence seems fitting for the 2013 Man of Steel, because the Superman I love forgot to show up, and the masses enjoyed it. Superman Returns, in my opinion, is the best Superman Movie to date, followed closely by the 1978 original with Christopher Reeve. Bryan Singer did a terrific job capturing the presence and personality of both Clark and Superman, that gives him the human touch we lost in MoS. Over 100 years of movie making standards that defined the mechanisms for making memorably impressionable films were dismissed in the 2013 Blockbuster, leaving it cold and heartless with zero fun. Thanks to owning Superman Returns, I can reclaim what was recently lost and still hold on to the true spirit of Superman - a hero we can look to rise above the trials and struggles of disjointed humanity... to eventually triumphantly join him in the sun.

I love this sequel, even though some people downplay it. Why do I call it a sequel to Reeve's second Superman movie? If you haven't seen Superman II yet, STOP READING, and go watch

I am a huge fan of the original Superman movies and obviously like any real fan I ignored the existence of Superman 3 & 4 since they were despicable garbage. So, when this came out I figured OK, this is what Superman 3 should have / could have been. I went into it with the right mindset and realized that with all new actors and actresses that things were gonna be a little different. I was actually OK with the casting changes for the most part. So, where to begin? The storyline and "plot" were fairly cool with the crystals at the center of Luthers ploy. I enjoyed the scenes where Luther experiments with the power of the crystals. These objects have been at the centerpiece of the film since the beginning so it was great seeing them being an integral part of this movie....NICE! Speaking of Luther, Kevin Spacey did a pretty good job with the character. This version of Luther was a little more sinister and not quite as "witty" as the Hackman versions but this was an acceptable change. Luther in this film was more of a real villian so to speak since he was a "darker" character. Kate Bosworth tried but just didnt cut it as Lois Lane. That charcater has Margot Kidder written all over it and its not really Ms Bosworths fault... she just couldnt "revive" the Lois character for me. She was not as silly, loveable, or as interesting as the orginal. What else can I say? It just didnt work. Brandon Routh was also a little out of place here. He was off just enough to make me miss Chris Reeve (RIP) and at times he appeared bored with the whole thing. They could have worked with him more on playing the characters of Clark and Superman as they were quite different and this was missing somewhat in this film. Routh wasnt awful by any means and he does look a lot like Reeve, it just missed the mark by enough to be noticed. The rest of the cast was OK, nothing great but nothing terrible either. The CGI and effects were a mixed bag as usual with movies these days. Some of the CGI worked well and sometimes it just looked like a video game. The problem with CGI is that its just soooooo obvious when its being used that it takes away from the realism of a scene because you KNOW that its totally computerized. In the old days, we didnt know exactly how things were done so we were able to just watch the special effects and the mystery of how they "did that" kept us guessing. Now, just about every shot with any kind of effects is CGI and it has that 2-dimensional, lifeless look to it that I have trouble with. Oh well.... There are a few surprises but most you could see coming a mile away. Still though, it did add some intrigue to the Superman saga and how his future may unfold. Plus, the ending is open enough that a lot more could happen and we may even see another film in this series someday. Overall, Brian Singer did a solid job with this film and thats saying a lot since things like this usually never get off the ground and are pretty awful. Not so, its definitely worth a watch and after seeing it you can decide if its worth adding to your collection. I might get it just to add it to my Superman 1 & 2 collection.

"Spoilers ahead, Beware" The movie is set after the events of donner's Superman II. Superman left the planet Earth for five years hoping to find another kryptonian like him. This movie point out another take on what it is like to be Superman and in this film, to be Superman is to be lonely. Lois Lane moved on and have a son and she wrote an article about why the world doesn't need Superman. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor gets out of prison and finds the way to obtain one of the cristals in order to learn about Superman and take advantage of the Krypotonian technology to hurt him and make a whole new continent. It is true that the movie isn't loaded of action scenes, The plane sequence being the best imo, but it is still a really enjoyable ride. Brandon Routh is Great as superman. The kid works aswell. Unlike any other superheroe movies involving kids with powers, which most are just plain annoying, this one is quite the opposite. Lois lane does a fine job aswell, but a more mature actress would have being better. Kevin's as Lex Luthor is very good aswell. I enjoyed this Lex better than Gene's one. One of my favorite parts nearly the End when Superman is hurt and falls from the sky,...Everyone tries to save him, His mother, Martha Kent, willing to see his son but afraid she might reveal his identity, Superman is Alone no matter what, which leads to understand a little why he needs to watch over lois (which was critized as stalking) but I don't see it that way. But when he learned the truth about his son growing on earth while he was looking for someone like him around the universe, his own blood was right here, for all these years. I think it is a Great Return, Brian Singer took some risk, mainly with the kid but it worked. Definetly a must own in your DVD collection mainly if you are a fan of the man of steel. Now that The sequel is confirmed, let's all hope Singer will bring a great villain and more action. The kid should remain very secondary in my opinion. I'm only disapointing thing is the quality of the transfer of the Movie on DVD. Grainy in some points, If only it could have being an EpIII or Lord of rings quality , it would have enchanced the experience. The Sound is Great, Mainly in the airPlane sequence. The Extra are great too, from finding The man of steal, the design of the costume,...