Superman Returns

[KLAXXON]

“You wrote that the world doesn't need a savior, but every day I hear people crying for one.”

Superman explodes back onto the big screen with this brilliant sequel from X-MEN director Bryan Singer . With clever dialogue, a plausible story and incredible special effects, this film will leave you in no doubt, that the Man of Steel has indeed returned.

Newcomer Brandon Routh dons the tights and cape this time and picks up five years after the late, great, Christopher Reeve left off in Superman II (this film wisely pretends that Superman III and IV never took place). Shortly after the events in II, astronomers discovered the whereabouts of Superman’s home planet of Krypton. Superman left Earth without even a goodbye to Lois Lane to look for survivors. At the beginning of this chapter, Superman crashes through the atmosphere and lands in a field outside his Earth mother Martha Kent’s home in Smallville, Kansas.

Five years is a long time and Superman finds that an awful lot has changed. As the bespectacled Clark Kent, he gets his old job back as a journalist at ‘The Daily Planet’ and hopes to rekindle his romance with fearless reporter Lois Lane. What he finds instead, is Lois in a longtime relationship with Editor Perry White’s nephew Richard White ( James Marsden) , Lois also has a five year old son named Jason (Tristan Leabu). To make matters worse, Lois was so hurt at being abandoned by Superman that she wrote an article – “Why the World Doesn’t Need Superman”, for which she has won a Pulitzer Prize.

It is not long however before Superman has to save Lois yet again (she seriously should think about staying in a bit more…); when a NASA shuttle test launch from the top of a plane goes badly wrong, Superman has to spring into action. Face to face for the first time in years, Lois’ feelings for Superman re-emerge and this sends her settled life spiraling out of control.

It wouldn’t be a proper ‘Superman’ film without a role for his bald nemesis Lex Luthor Kevin Spacey . In the five years that Superman was away, Lex has been released from prison on a technicality – Superman was a witness however he never showed up for a hearing when he was called to testify.

“How did Lex Luthor get out of prison?” – Clark Kent

“When his appeals came up, they called Superman as a witness, and he never showed. How much do you think that p***es off Superman?” – Jimmy Olsen

“...A lot.” – Clark Kent

Lex has been busy while Superman was away, after first stealing the inheritance of a wealthy old widow from right under her family’s noses, Lex and his entourage seek out Superman’s Fortress of Solitude and Lex learns the secrets of Kryptonian technology from the computer holograms of Clark’s dead father Jorell ( Marlon Brando). Unlocking the secrets of the crystals, Lex comes up with a dastardly scheme to create his own continent using Kryptonian technology. In doing so, this will wipe out much of the USA and kill billions around the world.

When Lois and Jason stumble upon Lex’s plan they are kidnapped and naturally Superman flies to the rescue...but is he any match for Lex who has enough Kryptonite to clip our hero’s wings for good?

Bryan Singer is the King of the Superhero movie! After writing, directing and producing the first two X-MEN movies, Singer dropped X-MEN 3 so he could have a crack of doing Superman – a dream project for him. Indeed it is Singer’s knowledge and respect for the franchise that comes across so well on screen - it allows him to do more with the Superman characters than has ever been done before. For one, this film is much darker than its predecessors. Less straight forward, with more plot twists and much more in the way of characterisation – but then again, this is what you would expect from the man who brought us The Usual Suspects .

Special effects wise, the film is flawless, Singer was given an estimated $200M budget and it is clear that he has spent almost every penny on screen. The special effects all have purpose – it’s not an effect for the sake of an effect, they work to compliment the story as a whole. There is a great flashback sequence showing a 15 year old Clark getting to grips with his abilities (which actually fits in quite well with pre-Superman series Smallville – if only he wasn’t wearing glasses). There is a breathtaking plane rescue early on that will have you on the edge of your seat, as well as some tremendous end sequences – which… if I tell you any more, will ruin the picture. Suffice to say – it’s all good stuff!

Brandon Routh is a great Superman and not only looks a bit like Christopher Reeve but also adds a sense of sadness and maturity to the character that had previously not been seen. Like Reeve before him, he still comes across as sincere however is less wide-eyed and naive. This is a good thing as you would expect the character to evolve over time. Clark is still a clutz but in a way more in keeping with the comic books, The Adventures of Superman (1953), New Adventures of Superman (1993) and Smallville (2002). ( Kate Bosworth) plays Lois Lane well and is someone that the audience can relate to, she is less in your face in her performance than ( Margot Kidder) , however it could be argued that motherhood has mellowed her out slightly.

Kevin Spacey’s take on Lex Luthor is much better than Gene Hackman’s comical portrayal. Looking back on the original movies, the weakest link by far was the usually brilliant Hackman – while he was enjoyable enough to watch, you never felt that he was truly evil. Spacey on the other hand appears to understand that villains are supposed to be menacing and capable of doing terrible things so this time Lex is a believable and sinister bad guy, this is in keeping with Michael Rosenbaum’s ( Smallville) take on the character (albeit older) and notably raises the tension and builds up to the inevitable showdown with Superman. Other stars of note include Parker Posey (Lex’s daft sidekick), James Marsden (Lois’ bf), Sam Huntington (Jimmy Olsen) and Eva Marie Saint (Martha Kent); Cinema legend, the late Marlon Brando also makes an appearance using cutting room floor footage as Superman’s Krytonian father Jor-El

All in all, Superman Returns is a tremendous movie – a worthy sequel to Superman’s 1 & 2 and in many ways an improvement on what has gone before. Bryan Singer has done a top job and whether you are intimately familiar with Superman or only have a passing interest, you are sure to enjoy this film – it is perfect in so many ways and dramatically, is the most compelling Superman film yet. This deserves to be THE film of 2006 and comes highly recommended. In the words of Lex Luthor – “Now Fly.”

When Lois Lane (Kate Bosworth) shows reluctance to write an article on Superman's return, her Daily Planet boss Perry White (Frank Langella) explains that tragedy, sex and Superman are the only three things that sell newspapers, before adding: "People are sick of tragedy, [and] we know you can't write about sex..."

And there it is in a nutshell: the tragedy of 9/11 and Lois' super sex with the 'man of steel' are two major selling points of Superman Returns, but they must remain as sublimated as Clark Kent's secret identity. No wonder the American press is so obsessed with the question of whether Bryan Singer's Superman is as gay as the director, for this is a hero who has to keep his love in the closet, even if there are hints that his tackle has not always remained inside those tight lycra underpants.


Five years ago, Superman (Brandon Routh) departed unannounced from his adoptive Earth, on a quest to see for himself the remnants of his home planet Krypton. Now he has returned, but the world has moved on. His former love Lois has just won a Pulitzer Prize for an article entitled Why the World Doesn't Need Superman, is living in a 'prolonged engagement' with Perry's nice-guy nephew Richard (James Marsden), and is lovingly raising their asthmatic son Jason (Tristan Lake Leobu). And let's not forget (although the film never refers to it with such crude directness) that the intervening five years have also brought the events of September the 11th and the subsequent chaos of America's War on Terror.

"You wrote", Superman tells Lois, "that the world doesn't need a saviour, but every day I hear people crying for one." And he's right. An American public still traumatised by horrific images from its recent history needs the reassuring spectacle of a heroic figure who can easily stop a plane from diving into their Metropolis or who can gracefully catch a man plummeting down the side of a skyscraper - and these miracles and more are precisely the sort of diverting wish fulfilment that Superman Returns has to offer. All those gravity-defying aerobatics and bullet-blocking feats may just be so much fantasy, but then so in the end is the American Dream that is embodied by Superman's square-jawed red-and-blue heroics. Sure it is comforting, but when America sleeps and dreams its happy dream, the rest of the world is often left wide-awake to face the all-too-real consequences of US actions. Is Superman really a boon to the community at large, or an interfering do-gooder who might do better by minding his own affairs and remaining a mild-mannered reporter on events in the outside world?

Singer's film provides at least a hint of these problems in America's international image. Superman's arch rival and alter ego Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey) points out, in what is an astute analysis of America's current foreign policy, that while the caped crusader may be a force for the global good, he is hardly respectful of legal niceties such as the Miranda Rights or due process. Superman may have put Luthor behind bars, but his failure to follow through at the parole hearings also led to Luthor's early release. Perry, meanwhile, wonders: "Does he still stand for truth, justice, all that stuff?" Comicbook convention dictates that his rather dismissive "all that stuff" stands for "the American Way", but in a new world where the American Way has become associated with Abu Ghraib, Guantánamo Bay and 'external rendition', it is difficult to reconcile US policy any longer with such lofty abstracts as Truth and Justice.

Politics aside, sex is the other great unspoken in Superman Returns, only able to enter its discourse in Freudian slips. "I've done Superman", says Lois to Perry, before correcting herself with a blush: "I mean, covered him". And yet the film sizzles with hidden desire and illicit couplings. When Superman uses his X-ray vision to look inside the riverside home of Lois, Richard and Jason, he seems less a concerned citizen on Neighbourhood Watch than a voyeuristic stalker; and when later he uses the same power to see if Lois has suffered any serious internal injuries, a dramatic pause gets us wondering if that is all he is checking out under her dress. Not that there is anything there that he has not seen already... Still, even if Superman does the nasty, he most certainly does not do porn, and the closest we ever get to actually seeing a super screw is the cosmic big bang with which the film opens; the rest is left entirely to the imagination.

The blank spaces left by sex and politics are quickly filled in by religion. As a son sent by a distant father to shepherd the people of Earth onto the path of righteousness, Superman has always had his Messianic side, but here it is brought right to the fore, as he is shown having his side pierced, sporting an oversized crown of (kryptonite) thorns, and undergoing resurrection. Indeed, before newcomer Routh stepped into the crimson boots, Jim (The Passion) Caviezel had been in line for the part. Still, I'm betting that Jesus never had to take a bullet to the eye. Superman's first appearance in the film may be as a fallen angel, but it is Lex Luthor who slips into the role of Lucifer, determined to steal the power of Superman's long-dead father (played 'archivally' by long-dead Marlon Brando) and to show humankind his Promethean fire. Together, the blue-eyed poster boy and the bald-headed villain seem as essential to each other as good is to evil (and vice versa); and here, not only does the devil get to play the best tunes, but they are ones he has learnt from his rival's own hymnsheet.

In Superman's first bigscreen outing since 1987 (Superman IV: The Quest for Peace), the acting is every bit as important as the action, the protagonist's brawn is matched by the script's brains, and the special effects, for all their excellence, remain subordinated to the plot. Superheroics are seldom so understated. For all that, however, it also seems overlong and just a tad underwhelming - even if it promises to father an almighty sequel.

As Jon Peters' name jumps onto the screen at the start of Superman Returns it's inevitable that minds dark back to Kevin Smith's hilarious but somewhat morbid tale of his time on the Superman project. He met with producer Peters, Barbra Streisand's former hairdresser, who gave him three rules: No suit, no flying and a clash with a giant spider in the third act.

Smith's punch line may hit on the next Peters production that got made, Wild Wild West, but with someone so clueless behind the reins could Superman have succeeded even with Bryan Singer's involvement and massive pedigree?

Fortunately, yes. There are hints at Peters' desire for a trashy flashy superhero money-spinner, but Singer and his team craft something here that simply demands more. Whether Peters likes it or not, this is a project that lives up to the greatness Superman simply demands.

Forgetting the third film and jumping in six years after the end of Superman 2, Returns is the first ret-con superhero flick to hit our screens - surprising it's taken so long with such a thirst for retroactive continuity in comic books - catching up with Clark Kent and his all-Kryptonian alter-ego after a six year leave of absence from Metropolis.

Singer revels in the charms of Richard Donner's original, casting a dead ringer for Christopher Reeves in the lead role and finding the same real-world Metropolis - a slightly skewed New York City - as suited the production budgets in '78. Metropolis never found the gothic surrealism of Gotham, but with this one of the summer's biggest projects it's all the more reassuring that Singer chooses not to splash his cash unnecessarily.

As for Brandon Routh, he finds a Superman that's so plausibly not Clark Kent - and visa versa - that for the first time we can genuinely believe this film's characters have no idea. That this can be the case despite the pair's worrying habit of never appearing in the same room together and the fact that they both managed to leave and rejoin the Metropolis population on exactly the same day is credit to a man who finds a real duality in the role.

Indeed, Singer enjoys a moment of indulgence on this point; Lois and her current beau discuss Superman's height, weight and physical appearance and wonder if it could be Clark, only for him to fumble helplessly and watch them laugh off the suggestion.

At two and a half hours this is a chunky film, and with the last half hour set aside for an unnecessary post-climax moment, Returns is not a film that'll have you rushing out of the theatre charged with adrenaline as the credits roll. It's so long, in fact, that it's tough to find the space here to credit Kevin Spacey's brilliant Lex Luthor or his wonderful girlfriend played by Parker Posey. Nevertheless, this Superman takes flight like few before and one wonders whether the film's minor flaws mean only that the sequel, like Singer's X2, is destined to become a real classic of the genre.


Brandon Routh ... Clark Kent / Superman
Kate Bosworth ... Lois Lane
Kevin Spacey ... Lex Luthor
James Marsden ... Richard White
Parker Posey ... Kitty Kowalski
Frank Langella ... Perry White
Sam Huntington ... Jimmy Olsen
Eva Marie Saint ... Martha Kent
Marlon Brando ... Jor-El (archive footage)
Kal Penn ... Stanford
Tristan Lake Leabu ... Jason White
David Fabrizio ... Brutus
Ian Roberts ... Riley
Vincent Stone ... Grant
Jack Larson ... Bo the Bartender


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