Superman Returns
Watching this unloved child in quick succession to the 1½ Donner movies it pays tribute to proves a fortuitous move. In essence, a big budget, well-made fanfic, it is actually highly enjoyable in the frame of mimicry (especially in performance) and deviation. Witness the intersection of peril and realism as Superman attempts to prevent a plane from crashing into the ground: its nose collapses under the competing pressures. Such an image could prove a suitable metaphor for Bryan Singer’s will to personal homage and the studio/audience demand for blockbuster thrills. Certainly the picture suffers as its scope becomes larger (and Bible-pretentious), while the love triangle square at its heart provokes interest but not the intended Casablanca-style emotional investment.
Nevertheless, I will say this: audiences didn’t take to this film because it is a complex work that doesn’t really offer the simplistic good vs evil struggle we’re all insidiously attuned to. It deals with an icon and its associated meanings, its relation to the individual and to society, and how these meanings change over time. While I still regret Singer’s absence from completing what might have been an incredible X-Men trilogy, his dream project is very much underrated. I will know later tonight whether it is the best Superman film to date.
I still can’t figure out how Lois couldn’t put 2 and 2 together and figure out who was the father.
I thought she knew? Maybe I misinterpreted it but I assumed it was the powers that surprised her (as they would).
I haven’t seen this since it first came out, but I remember really not being a fan. As I recall, Spacey’s Luthor was the best thing about the film, but I should really give it a rewatch sometime. Of course, the premise is hard to accept to begin with.
Yeah, but I think it’s a given that if your kid is all weird, that’s probably the result of alien sex.
That’s what I’m saying. I think she knew already it was his.
She sure took her time in telling him, though
Well, this film was supposed to dove tail off of Superman II, right? Superman erased Lois’ memory at the end of that movie because bad writing. Which brings up a slew of other problems like how Lois should really assume by the end of Returns that Superman raped her at some point.
Hah, hadn’t thought of that, RJ. Though there’s room for reinterpretation. 1) He’s meant to have been gone 5 years, but movie wise it’d been like 30. Not everything can be exactly the same. 2) There’s a key reference to ‘I Spent the Night with Superman’, which the implication here is that she fucked him.
Kay, fair enough. I’d feel super emasculated if I was Lois’ husband. And the fact that she had sex with Superman wouldn’t help either.
ZING!
Btw, too tired to write a review now, but Man of Steel rocks
Well, thank god someone agrees with me on that score.
I didn’t see it first? Dammit!!
Well, I only saw it a few hours ago.