Man Of Steel

Superman is back in Man of Steel, but does this new version fly?

Well, for the first hour, it almost does. Director Zack Snyder’s (300) and producer Chris Nolan’s makeover starts out strong with a re-telling of this overfamiliar story (yes, ugh, another hero origin story) that was surprisingly inventive. The Krypton story, the Lois Lane relationship and Clark’s journey to his thrilling first flight all felt fresh and appropriate for modern movie times.

The underlying themes had potential too. There are themes of sacrifice, acceptance and loyalty — and an unmistakably religious undertone. But by the time Russell Crowe makes his second appearance, overly designed alien ships land and the fights take over, the story and deeper themes are hammered by too many…mindless hammerings. It just devolves into a super chaotic mess.

Kudos to Amy Adams, Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner and Diane Lane for attempting something that never worked out. And although girls love him, brooding Henry Cavill is a stiff one. One can assume that’s also the ticket seller.

Simply put: It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, wait, take that back — it’s just plain unnecessary.

Award potential: Probably won’t fly compared to other FX films.  

The ten buck review: Not worth ten bucks.