I've argued this for years. Doesn't matter to the Reevers. Minute Supes leaves FoS, he's perfect no matter the situation. Then they'll complaint that Superman is boring.
My personal take has nothing to do with Donner's version, since I've never been interested in seeing his films. My experience with him is mostly through the DCAU and the other animated films. Even in adaptations where he's given a more questionable or even antagonistic slant, like in Red Son or The Dark Knight Returns, he's still nothing less than a boy scout. That pure, unfettered sense of morality was left seriously wanting in Snyder's films. It felt forced, rather than natural. Man of Steel wanted to be about his personal journey, but instead he came off as static.
Only All Star Superman because most of the other DC Animated Superman films are punch-up schlock-fests. In which case makes me ponder: out of all the Superman media we only get 1 film that got him “right”. So is it really fair to single out Snyder and demonize him and his film since No other production can seem to do it? I never saw Man of Steel as immoral. With everything against him he was still on the high road. Even when the military was against him he was good to them. Eventually the military came to realize Clark wasn’t their enemy. He was fine. The film was fine.
Nah, it's just that most of the other Superman animated films are specifically tailored around his big "spectacle fight" exploits. When he's going up against Darkseid et al, there's no appealing to his enemy's humanity. He's just the big stick, and nothing more. There's a place for that side of Superman in his mythos as well. But MoS was touted as being about his hero's journey, the man behind the cape, and the film didn't really give that to us. I never said MoS painted him as "immoral". The problem with MoS is that he's treated as this pure beacon of goodness unto himself. He saves, but without "salvation". The most remarkable quality about Superman is that for all his might and power, he doesn't ever regard himself as anything more than just a man. He's still a salt-of-the-earth country boy at his heart. His sense of righteousness and morality is something that's passed on to him by his adoptive father, and it's this upbringing that gives him the high ground to take justice into his own hands. MoS messes this up. It portrays hero-ing as being his default state. He's instead told explicitly by his version of Johnathan Kent "don't be a hero, it'll only make things more complicated for you in the future", a sentiment that he takes to his grave. Clark's innate nature spits in the face of this advice, and he goes gallivanting across the world, inevitably playing hero wherever he goes because he can't help himself. He's not a man. He's a force of nature. A good Samaritan in elemental form. That fundamentally misses the core aspect of who Superman, who Clark is. Because of the wisdom passed on to him via his father, he pays that favour forward. He won't just pluck a man out of a car falling off a cliff, plunk him back on the road, and fly off. No. he'll pause, and say, "Now, let that be a lesson to you: don't text and drive", dust the man off, and fly away with a smile on his face. Because his dad gave him the wisdom to lead a fulfilling life, he makes sure that everyone he comes into contact with is given that same opportunity to grow and change for the better. He's not just a hero; he's a role model and a father figure. Now, as you've said, this is just the beginning of his career. Surely, he doesn't have the experience the behave with such gusto and bravado, but that only serves up to a certain point. With no sense of growth out of him, the film gives up any chance for that moral through-line to develop. And you see that as the DCEU continues. He's feared and ostracized even more than he's revered. Most of BvS's plot happens because everybody's scared shitless of him. He doesn't have the same air of honesty and trustworthiness about him. He's just completely devoid of his disarming charm. He doesn't connect with people as a man. He's undeniably alien. That's Snyder's cynicism and Objectivist slant at play. I don't really think he understands what it means to elevate and up-lift. Cavill's Superman just isn't given the room to be inspiring. In his presence, everyone should feel like they can be a hero, and make a positive difference. He never gets his "hero moment", ala the end of the first Avengers movie, where it suddenly feels like the whole world is united in standing behind their heroes, and everything's better now because now there's a beacon of hope to light the way to a better path for society.
Eh, a bit too much of the office romance/dramedy, not enough superheroics. And depending on how you are at separating the actors from the characters, Dean Cain's gone on to prove himself a bit of a dingbat, in the same vein as fellow 90s TV superhero, Kevin Sorbo.
And that's what we wanted. Cavill is buff but has zero charisma. Zero. He doesn't look like a nice guy, whether as Supe or Clark, he looks cold, like he'd rather be somewhere else.
The inability to grasp a basic I.P like Superman is amazing. All the character needs is to a likeable badass. Stop overthinking what he symbolizes, Christ, Moses, living symbol of "Old Fashioned Values" and such. It's overthought and under delivering. Make him a " real man" with wit, anger, fear and sex appeal, and give him inventive enemies. Keep things Rock and Roll, and fast paced, no more saccharine moments, wistfully looking into the sunset, and ponderous music ACTION Comics Americans have bought into the hype of treating the brand as a deep legend instead of Ragnarok esque fights and adventure.
No sarcasm. Superman became popular because it was action packed, humorous and imaginative, not because of Savior imagery or patriotic meaning. The obsession with trying to make the Story of Clark Kent meaningful and "more than a comic book" has suffocated the life out of the I.P Superman Returns, Man of Steel, Justice League, are to different degrees, high on their own supply, a distorted impression of the Donner films and their bombastic Williams score. Superman comics aren't nearly so ponderous and self important, as these films have become.
There's certainly a line to be crossed too far. He needs to be relatable, not pretentious (*coughManofSteelcough*), but that doesn't mean his wholesomeness should go away. Again, the DCAU and All-Star Superman strike that balance perfectly. The DCU needs its moral anchor, in the same way that movie audiences rallied behind the MCU Captain America.
His wholesome traits should be seasoning while making sure he's likeable first and foremost. Being a moral anchor can't be the focus of every scene, it's very much about a balance in the same style as the DCAU yes.
You keep going on about that, but nobody's said that. Nobody's denying Superman the selfless heroism he displays in the movie. The problem is, merely rescuing people is like, the bare minimum of things that Superman/Clark does, and nothing in the entirety of the DCEU as it exists scratches that surface. Promising a deep introspective of what makes Clark Superman, MoS really should've been able to hit home that aspect right from the get go.
I'm not really gonna plant the blame on Clark for that one, even if that scene is just the stupidest.
