An old woman is lying on her deathbed, being cared for by her
significant other. As per their agreement--she helped him to get out of jail,
and in exchange, he would care for her--shortly before she dies, the woman signs
over all of her vast fortune to this man, her beloved, Lex Luthor. Meanwhile, in
Smallville, Martha Kent receives a visitor in the form of her adoptive son,
Clark Kent, A.K.A Kal-El, and also better known the world over as Superman.
When astronomers on Earth discover the position of the planet Krypton,
Superman--wanting to see what has become of his former home--leaves Earth in a
spaceship on a five year round trip. Yet he only finds scattered space debris
where Krypton once was; the place is basically a floating graveyard. When he
returns to Earth, he discovers his adopted planet has become a more darker place
while he was gone, where the crime rate has soared and wars are breaking out in
hot spots all over the globe.
Getting back to his old job as a reporter at the Daily Planet, Superman/Clark
Kent tries to carry on with his life, only to find that Lois Lane has moved on
with hers in a big way. In addition to being married to Richard White (James
Marsden, who's given a lot more to do here than in X-Men 3), an
assistant editor on the paper and the nephew of legendary editor Perry White,
Lois also has a little boy. As if this wasn’t enough, Clark is shocked to
discover that Lois has written a Pulitzer Prize-winning article, written in his
absence, about why the world no longer needs Superman. And yet the world still
does need a savior, as Superman proves when he saves an airplane in spectacular
fashion--one which carries Lois on board, which provides an even more dramatic
reunion between this pair.
But Superman isn’t the only one who has returned. Lex Luthor is back with a
vengeance--literally. Armed with the fortune from his deceased sugar mama, as
well as stolen technology from Superman’s Fortress Of Solitude, Luthor aims to
show the world that it really doesn’t need a Superman by getting rid of the Man
Of Steel once and for all.
When I first heard that director Bryan Singer had left the X-Men film series to
do Superman Returns, I was both saddened and delighted. I was saddened to see
him leave the X-Men series, yet delighted and eager to see what he would do with
the Man Of Steel mythos. After many years of languishing in Hollywood
development hell, Singer revived Superman by giving him an appropriately
reverent treatment that respected the original source material. Bucking the
current trend, Singer wisely chose not to do a complete reboot, but a
continuation from the 1978 Richard Donner classic--in effect, Singer did a
sequel, and what a great sequel it is.
While not without a sense of humor (there’s even traces of black humor in
several scenes, such as the one with the Pekinese dogs), there’s no camp to be
seen in Superman Returns, thanks to a great script and a marvelous cast of
actors. Formerly unknown actor Brandon Routh was chosen to play Superman/Clark Kent,
and he just nails both parts. He effectively captures the insecure shakiness of
Clark Kent, as well as the quiet confidence of the Man Of Steel; Routh makes you
truly believe that he’s Superman. Kate Bosworth ably manages to fill Lois Lane
with the vital spark that’s expected from the character, while also making her
realistically vulnerable. And Kevin Spacey was the perfect choice to play Lex
Luthor. Commanding and cunning, his Luthor is a grim avenger whose thirst for
revenge is driven by the years he lost while in prison. Indie film goddess
Parker Posey is another standout as Kitty, Luthor’s quirky girlfriend/sidekick.
There's no audio commentary on the DVD, and the only special features are found
on the second disc, which contains deleted scenes and a superb series of making of
documentaries that, when watched together, make up almost three hours running
time. The documentaries cover all aspects of the production, including the
special effects. The effects in Superman Returns are flawless and
impressive--but more importantly, they don’t overshadow the well-crafted story,
which finally brings Superman back to the big-screen after a nearly twenty year
absence. And with the state of the world as it’s been these past few years, we
could really use a Superman in our lives, even if he is merely fictional, to
remind us all of the better nature within ourselves to which we aspire to achieve.
--SF
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