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Brandon Routh is Superman in Superman Returns.
This is a review I’ve been sitting on for about a week now. I saw Superman Returns at a screening last week with my wife, and while I wanted to get it written sooner, I haven’t been certain just what I thought of the film. It happens occasionally, and generally I just need to let a film ruminate in by brain before I can settle in on what I want to say about it.
I was excited about Returns. It was probably one of the first summer movies that I’ve actually been excited about in a long time. When we showed up for the screening, I was shocked by the turnout. I’ve never had to wait in line so much at a screening as I did with this one. At the same time, it was a fitting experience. When I first saw the original Superman in 1979, the line was around the block. I can remember we needed lawn chairs. It was an unparalleled event, a unique moving-going experience for me. So when I was standing in line this time around, just to get up into the theater, it seemed appropriate.
And ironically enough, watching Superman Returns was very much like watching that original Richard Donner film. I mean in terms that Returns is very much a remake as it is an original piece of work by Bryan Singer. The structure mirrors Donner’s film, too much perhaps, but offers enough unique elements to make it feel different and new. What Singer has created is basically his version of Donner’s film, with one main adjustment being that Lois Lane has grown and changed.
I’m sure most of you have gotten descriptions of the plot in one form or another, so I’ll keep my comments simple. The story has Superman/Clark Kent (Brandon Routh) return after being gone for five years. Where did he go? Apparently, scientists found the location of Krypton, so Superman journeyed there to make certain his people were all truly gone. That five year trek, however, did not sit well with everyone. Lois Lane (Kate Bosworth), upset about his disappearance, has written a Pulizter Prize winning article about why the world doesn’t need Superman. She has also found a new man — a pilot named Richard (James Marsden) — and given birth to a son.
Superman/Kent settles back into his old life once again, returning to the Daily Planet, and is thrown by the new men in Lois’ life. As he tries to reconnect with her, and resume his hero work, Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey) has gotten out of prison and hatches a new scheme. Using the crystals from Superman’s Fortress of Solitude, he plans to use this technology to take over the world. And only the Man of Steel can stop him.
Singer’s Superman Returns is visually gorgeous, with some beautiful cinematography and production design. It is largely a tender love story, and focuses primarily on the relationship between Superman and Lane. The evil manipulations of Luthor are kept in the background for most of the film, until his scheme is hatched, and quickly becomes dominant.
Routh is simply amazing as Superman. He captures the spirit of Christopher Reeve in ways that are just downright creepy, yet those are the moments where he is at his best. At the same time, he is not Reeve. Routh lays claim to the role, and serves as a far better Superman than I would have imagined. Bosworth is a more tame Lois Lane than Margot Kidder, and Spacey as Luthor is far more angry and bitter than Gene Hackman . Parker Posey is entertaining as Kitty, a sort of combination of the original film’s Ms. Teschmacher and Otis. I was confused by the casting of Kal Penn, however. The actor gained fame for his role in Harold and Kumar go to White Castle, and I kept expecting he would serve some purpose in the story. Yet, he doesn’t. The film is also highlighted by the use of John Williams’ terrific theme, which is one of Singer’s most brilliant creative moves.
At the same time, Superman Returns is not all that it could have been. One example is the visually terrific moment when Superman faces off against robbers armed with heavy machine guns. It’s terrific, showing us just what “The Man of Steel” really means. However, this sequence felt cut off. The film needed a little more action, and just when it offered some, it cuts away and goes back to the romance. While I never felt the film dragged at all, it did lack any real excitement. Yes, the plane sequence is outstanding, but it’s really the only piece of real action in the entire film. The ending does have some great moments of action, but they are brief. It is then followed by a melodramatic conclusion that goes on far longer than necessary.
When I left the theater, I couldn’t shake the sense of being underwhelmed. Part of it was because, to a degree, I felt I had seen this film before. That was the part of me that felt Singer made Returns too much of a remake of the original Superman. The pacing and story points are all very similar. Even Luthor’s big scheme is not unlike the one he hatched in Donner’s film. At the same time, I thought the changes he made were interesting. There is one big change to the Superman mythology which… I’m unsure of. I didn’t think it was a bad idea, but could so easily become bad in a sequel.
I want to note also that this is not considered a remake. The film suggests that the events in Superman and Superman II happened, but doesn’t specifically reference either (except in one small instance regarding an article Lane wrote).
I also think Singer has plans to mimick another element of Donner and his original. When Donner made Superman, he knew he was going to make Superman II. He could let the first film be more emotional, because the second would ultimately have the kind of action that fans wanted to see. I could be wrong, perhaps, but I think Singer will do the same thing. His Superman II will undoubtedly be far more action oriented than Returns, and I find myself anxious to see where he goes from here.
At the end of the day, Superman Returns is an enjoyable superhero film. I’m not sure it will be so fondly remembered as Donner’s classic, but Singer handles the iconic character wonderfully and his return to the big screen is welcomed.
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