Superman Returns

As the new trailer for Spiderman III hits the theatres showing the crawling man in all-new black outfit, another truely larger-than-life charater returned to this planet of mortals. Personally I was never a fan of Superman, I never liked the concept of one man lifting the burden of the whole planet on his broad shoulders in a very literal way (well, technically he is not a man we all know, but then he looks like one). I was always a big fan of Batman, for he is the one who is truely humane, with absolutely no superpower. I liked the ambience of the dark city of Gotham, all in the color scheme of black and grey. Even in the earlier films the city looked stunning, and in the latest one it is even better, almost as good as I could imagine. Thanks to Tobey Maguire, Spiderman was barely tolerable, and looking at the popularity it seems we have to see him for quite some time.

Coming back to our red n blue hero, both Bryan Singer and Brandan Routh have done well, elaborating the almost myth without deviating much from the original. Routh looks goo and in the line of Mr.Reeves so conservative viewers faced no problem in transitioning. And Bryan Singer who already proved his worth in Usual Suspects and X-Men has again made us believe in his talent that is as good as some superpower. The movie has a style, not so prominent as the Gotham ambience, but expressed through the traditional ways of cameraworks. From the very beginning, we see huge close-ups, of the cutleries that the old lady washes, the old radiogram, the dog, and all other simple objects, giving the film a feel that is new to superhero movies. The Daily Planet Office looks very traditional and clustered, and even the household of Lois Lane is very real, though kinda expensive. James Marsden looks good as her husband, and so are the rest of the cast. Kate Bosworth is irritated almost all the time, for some reason unfathomable. And of course Kvin Spacey is superb, though I didn't find this is a good enough role for the extremely talented actor. Special effects are good, and we leave the theatre with a smile of satisfaction on our faces. It is not as good as the X-Men III as that poses questions in terms of social context, any group that is not inferior but is supressed by the majority in a society would identify with the mutants' cause. Still, Superman was good enough a film, even for a non-fan like me who came back happy.