Well, that title is certainly quite the click-bait, isn’t it?!
I do wanna make something clear that when I claim that Man of Steel is a Superman made for a “modern audience”, I am NOT referring to THAT kind of “modern audience”, A.K.A. the one that gets described in this current day and age, particularly by a certain OBNXIOUS movie review who shall NOT be named! But…..if you know, you know!
Back in 2013, the term, “modern audience” meant a very different thing. It didn’t mean so much about changing classic IPs to align a proper race/gender ratio and what was considered to be the “correct” politics back in the early 2010s but more of finding a way to gain a new generation of fans by updating classic IPs to have them fit in the so-called “modern” era.
In the case of Man of Steel, it attempts to update Superman in a way that removes itself from the light heart, campy days of Christopher Reeve and lean more into the dark, gritty, and realistic nature of Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy. This was a move that I imagine was done to try to capitalize on the success of those three Batman films, along with promoting Christopher Nolan’s involvement as co-writer and executive producer to boost ticket sales.
It’s also worth mentioning about the complicated development history of Man of Steel. Originally, the film was meant to act as a full-on reboot and as it’s own standalone film, hoping it’s success would lead to MoS as being Part 1 of a new Superman trilogy after Superman Returns turned out to be such a massive disappointment. However, during the film’s development, Marvel’s The Avengers released worldwide and it ended up being an absolute (No pun intended!) Hulk smash hit! And after numerous of failed attempts at starting their own cinematic universe of superheroes with the likes of Superman Returns and more recently Green Lantern (Don’t remind Ryan Reynolds of that!), DC and Warner Bros decided that they wanted Man of Steel to act as the launching pad for their brand new DC Extended Universe, finally finding their answer to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
However, instead of being lighthearted and comedic like most of the films under the Marvel Studios’ umbrella are, they wanted this universe to be more dark, gritty, and realistic in terms of tone and feel. Not only because they just didn’t want to blatantly copy and paste the same tone and feel that Marvel has but that was what also what made DC superhero films stand out on their own compared to Marvel for better or worse. And considering that DC and WB was coming straight off of The Dark Knight films, pretty much their only notable film successes with comic book superheroes in recent memory, they clearly wanted to ride that train as much as they can in the hopes of acting as a perfect countermeasure to Marvel.
Because of that, Man of Steel became not just the beginning of this newest iteration of Clark Kent/Superman played by Henry Cavill but also the new age of DC films from here on out. Because back in the 2010s, literally EVERYTHING had to be a cinematic universe or else you just didn’t get with the program. Regardless of the end results of this particularly cinematic universe over a decade later, I think it’s important to look at this film as it’s own thing like it was originally intended to. Was Zack Snyder able to make Superman work in the year 2013 and be able to bring in a new “modern” audience for the man of tomorrow? Well……it’s complicated!
It’s no secret that Man of Steel was one of the most polarizing superhero films of all time when it came out 12 years ago and it’s still highly debated to this very day. From it’s more broody tone to it’s gloriously excessive actions to the way it’s tells it’s story and some of the narrative/character choices the film makes, it has certainly left PLENTY of room for discussion among fans, critics, and the general audience. And I think a good majority of that has to do with the changes made to the source material in order to have Superman fit in the more “modern” times.
Instead of having a Superman sticking to his morals of hope and optimism, you now have a Superman that dares to question his morals and feels more grim than hopeful about the way he goes about his superhero ways. Instead of having a Clark Kent that is able to adjust to the modern world smoothly with only a handful of critics against him, you now have a Clark Kent that is unable to adjust to the modern world because almost everybody hates him since he’s an alien and not human. Instead of having a Man of Tomorrow that is able to preserve collateral damage and saves civilians lives at every turn, you now have a Man of Tomorrow that causes so much destruction and chaos while only saving a civilian if they are in his way or just happens to bump into one that is in danger. While these changes might fit for a “modern” take on Superman, it’s not one that seems to fit with the character’s overall history.
And of course, you also have the most controversial decision made in the film. Instead of having a Superman that has a moral stance against killing no matter what, you now have a Superman that goes as far as to kill his main opponent because he believes there could be no other outcome except that.
When looking at those factors, this can be seen as quite a betrayal for what Superman stands for. Man of Steel doesn’t so much feel like it’s trying to honor the Superman mythos but more trying to deconstruct and dissect it, given the impression that it’s deeper and more mature than your typical superhero flick when it’s really not. It’s a film that can be seen as mistaking dourness and pro-faced seriousness for depth and nuance. It’s a world that feels too much of a bleak reflection off our current world rather than it’s own unique world for Superman. This is a Superman that has more in line with Homelander from The Boys before Homelander from The Boys was even a thing.
The thing is though is that it COULD’VE gotten away from this if they tried. If they were able to use this dark and broody approach of Superman to have him become brighter and more hopeful by the end of the film. If they were able to use it’s massive scope and action sequences to deliver real stakes and hard hitting character moments. If they were able to use it’s motivational speeches and lines from the trailer to have it actually mean something in the grand scheme of things. If they were able to use it’s dark tone and feel for a purpose and not just because……that’s what The Dark Knight did. If they were able to deconstruct and dissect the traditional Superman mythos while also remember to put the pieces back into place.
And make no mistake, there are PLENTY of standout moments in Man of Steel where you can see that potential. You got the modern technology that’s able to deliver the Dragon Ball Z-like fights scenes that die hard fans have always dreamed off seeing on the big screen. You got a cast full of immensely talented cast that feel right for their roles. You got a grand musical score in Han Zimmer that gives the film it’s own gloom yet beautiful beating heart to it, almost feeling like it’s own character. You even got a structure which if done right, could be a fresh and inventive way of telling a Superman origin story that has been told many times over, having Batman Begins be to origin stories what Into the Spider-Verse has been to animation!
When it comes to elements such as action, scale, scope, casting, score, special effects, and ideas in terms of narrative, this is everything that a modern Superman film should consist off. And if we are to grade this film strictly from a technical and sound perspective, this should be the perfect Superman film for a “modern” audience. The kind of film that not only gains a new legion of fans but inspires a generation of upcoming filmmakers and lovers of superheroes to make their own work based off the man of tomorrow! The kind of film that would make the O.G. Clark Kent, Christopher Reeve, the O.G. Lois Lane, Margot Kiddler, and the O.G. Superman behind the camera himself, Richard Donner, very proud! Unfortunately, aside from an INCREDIBLY diehard fanbase/cult that Zack Snyder has gain over the years, Man of Steel fails to live up to those ideals that it DESEPREATELY wants to strive towards.
While nearly everything from the technical side of things, sound and audio side of things, acting side of things, and action/scale side of things are aces, the overall story and script leaves PLENTY to be desired. Most of the characters come off as plot devices and motivation for Superman than actual characters, the dialogue strikes a fine line between being poetic/inspiring and just being plain pretentious, the way it’s tell it’s origin story feels so disjointed and scattershot because it’s being told in non-chronologically, and it’s overall themes feel not so much explored but just told directly to the audiences, given the impression that the film thinks it’s too “smart” for it’s audience. It has all the elements that makes for an amazing trailer but NOT for an amazing film.
That’s might be just why I was actually quite a big fan of this film when I first saw it back in 2013. I SAW the potential when watching it with my very eyes on the big screen. I was blown away by the visuals, inspired by the quotes made for the trailers, was thrilled by the non-stop action and explosions, and found the morals to be interpreted in a way that I always imagined a modern Superman film should consist of. And because of that, I wore rose-colored glasses the whole way through because I just assumed I didn’t actually need to critique or analyze because well….the film was too smart for me that I didn’t think I needed to bother.
That is also why the more I’ve thought about Man of Steel over the years and the more times I’ve gone back and rewatched it, it…….kinda gets worse for me. Once I’m able to take those rose-colored glasses off, all I see are amazing concepts, ideas, and potential that is never has fully utilized as well as it should be. It’s a film full of eye popping moments but not one that commits to being a consistent narrative or a grand vision of it’s own. It’s a film that is loaded with action but fails to deliver consequential stakes due to Superman and Zod being practically invisible and the film failing to make the city of Metropolis and it’s people it’s own distinct character. It’s a film that has inspirational quotes and lines of dialogue that don’t amount anything to the story or characters. It’s a film that thinks it’s being faithful to Superman while also wanting to critique him in ways that I don’t think the filmmakers intended. Quite simply, it falls short of it’s ambition.
If there is one thing that I think anyone can agree upon regarding this film is that Man of Steel should NOT have been a film that kicked off a new DC universe with. It’s bizarre tone and feel is NOT one that can work as a consistent one for an entire cinematic universe of cinematic storytelling. Plus, Zack Snyder up to that point (and even now) has been quite a divisive filmmaker with an incredibly distinct vision that isn’t really appealing to mainstream audiences. Up to that point, the only film in Snyder’s filmography that had great appeal to mainstream audiences was his 2005 remake of Dawn of the Dead, which was also co-written by James Gunn (Don’t tell the Snyder bros that!).
This is honestly why I believe Man of Steel should have taken place in it’s own universe with Superman without any ties to the other DC characters. Similar to that of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy and Matt Reeve’s Batman universe, the world of Man of Steel should have been one that should have existed in it’s own terms and merits, being able to explore it’s ideas and concepts with multiple films and potential spin-offs. Plus, it’s more bleak and somber tone could’ve been one that worked more comfortably with more limited installments instead of with a whole decades worth of superhero cinematic content with different characters and stories.
If it was given a chance to be it’s own thing while also having planted seeds of it’s own that it was able to grow upon with future standalone Superman sequels, Man of Steel could have been seen as a grand re-introduction to the character of Superman and one that could successfully redefined Superman to a new generation the same way that Christopher Nolan did with Batman. However, due to it’s shortcomings, it’s obligation to start a new DC universe, and the follow-ups which came after tripling down on the things that don’t work rather than what does, you can’t help but see wasted potential. As it’s own thing, Man of Steel is functional on a surface level but not on a depth level.
I sure hope now that James Gunn is taking over Superman and is looking to create a new generation of Superman fans of it’s own, I sure hope he is able to learn from Zack Snyder’s shortcoming here. Make sure you know EXACTLY the kind of film you are making and the message you are trying to convey to the audience! If you are gonna create a new version of Superman for a “modern” audience, make sure to at LEAST capture the spirit of what the character has always stand for and only make changes that fit with the overall narrative and not ones for the sake of change!
Make those same mistakes and we might have another Man of Steel on our hands!
Next Up: Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice
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