Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Man of Steel Review










Man of Steel


Release Date: 27th June 2013 - Australia


Production Companies
Warner Bros. Pictures (presents)
DC Comics
DC Entertainment
Legendary Pictures (in association with)
Syncopy (production)

Distribution
Roadshow Films


Genre: Sci-Fi/Action

Rating: M

Runtime: 148 minutes


Budget: $258,000,000

Box Office Gross: $668,045,518 (Worldwide)


Plot Summary
Clark Kent/Kal-El is a 20-year-old journalist who feels alienated from other people because he has powers that no one else can imagine. Clark was brought to Earth years ago from Krypton, an advanced alien planet, and struggles with the ultimate question - "Why am I here?" Growing up with his adoptive parents, Martha and Jonathan Kent, Clark inherited their values and soon discovered that having
superpowers meant making
tough decisions. When the
world comes under attack,
must Clark use his powers
for peace or divisive
destruction? Clark has to
become the hero known as
"Superman". To take his place as the world's last beacon of hope, not just to protect his loved ones.


Cast
Henry Cavill - Clark Kent/
Superman
Amy Adams - Lois Lane
Michael Shannon - General Zod
Russell Crowe - Jor-El
Laurence Fishburne - Perry White
Kevin Costner - Jonathan Kent
Diane Lane - Martha Kent
Antje Traue - Faora-Ul
Ayelet Zurer - Lara Lor-Van
Christopher Meloni - Col.
Nathan Hardy
Richard Schiff - Dr. Emil
Hamilton
Harry Lennix - General Swanwick
Cooper Timberline - 9 Year Old Clark Kent
Dylan Sprayberry - 13 Year Old Clark Kent
Carla Gugino - Kelor (Voice)
Michael Kelly - Steve Lombard
Rebecca Buller - Jenny
Christina Wren - Major Carrie Farris
David Lewis - Major Laramore
Tahmoh Penikett - Jed Eubanks
Doug Abrahams - Heraldson
Brad Kelly - Bryne
Richard Cetrone - Tor-An
Mackenzie Gray - Jax-Ur
Julian Richings - Lor-Em
Mary Black - Ro-Zar
Samantha Jo - Car-Vex
Jack Foley - Teenage Pete Ross
Jadin Gould - Lana Lang
Robert Gerdisch - Whitney Fordham
Coburn Goss - Father Leone
Lesley Bevan - Ms. Rampling
Chad Krowchuk - Glen Woodburn
Ian Tracey - Ludlow
Carmen Lavigne - Chrissy - Waitress
Howard Siegel - Weaver
Heidi Kettenring - Helen Ross
Joseph Cranford - Pete Ross
Revard Dufresne - Dev-Em
Apollonia Vanova - Nadira
Chris Palermo - Sergeant Vance
Aaron Smolinski - Communications Officer
(Cameo)
Autumn Snyder - Panicked Citizen (Voice)
(Cameo) (Uncredited)

Crew
Director - Zack Snyder
Superman Creators - Jerry Siegel and
Joe Shuster
Story/Screenplay - David S. Goyer
Story/Producer - Christopher Nolan
Associate Producers - Curt Kanemoto
and Mark Thomas (Uncredited)
Executive Producers - Jon Peters and
Thomas Tull
Executive Producer/Unit Production Manager -
Lloyd Phillips
Producers - Charles Roven,
Deborah Snyder and Emma Thomas
Co-Producer - Wesley Coller
Senior Military Technical Advisor - Stephen Sanders
Military Technical Advisor - James D. Dever
Air Force Advisor - Chris Stagner
Production Designer - Alex McDowell
Weapons Conceptual Designer - Richard Taylor
Supervising Art Director - Kim Sinclair
Supervising Art Director: Vancouver - Helen Jarvis
Set Decorator - Anne Kulijan
Property Master - James H. Chow
Costume Designers - James Acheson and
Michael Wilkinson
Costume Supervisor - Bob Morgan
Specialty Costumes Supervisor - Russell Shinkle
Director of Photography - Amir Mokri
Aerial Director of Photography - David B. Nowell
Aerial Coordinator - David Paris
Director of Photography/Second Unit Director:
Water Tank Unit, Vancouver - Pete Romano
Camera Operator/Director of Photography:
Second Unit - William R. Dalgleish
Supervising Location Manager - William Doyle
Production Supervisor: Illinois - James R. McAllister
Unit Production Managers - Jim Rowe and
Gregor Wilson
First Assistant Director - Bruce Moriarty
First Assistant Director: Visual Effects/Plate Unit,
Illinois - Chris Castaldi
Second Assistant Directors - Misha Bukowski
and Steve Battaglia
Second Unit Director/Stunt Coordinator - Damon Caro
Stunt Coordinator - Tim Rigby
Fight Choreographer - Ryan Watson
Picture Car Coordinator: Illinois - Dennis McCarthy
Picture Car Coordinator: Vancouver - Rick Rasmussen
Special Effects Supervisor: Illinois - Allen Hall
Special Effects Coordinator: Vancouver - Joel Whist
Visual Effects Supervisor - John 'D.J.' Des Jardin
Visual Effects Supervisors: Weta Digital -
Dan Lemmon, Joe Letteri and Keith Miller
Visual Effects Supervisor: MPC - Guillaume Rocheron
Visual Effects Supervisor: Double Negative -
Ged Wright
Visual Effects Supervisor: Scanline VFX - Chad Weibe
Visual Effects Producer - Josh R. Jaggars
Visual Effects Producers: MPC - Doug Oddy
and Katherine Smith
Visual Effects Production Supervisors:
Scanline VFX - Danielle Plantec,
Joel Román Mendías, Lisa Spence and
Stephan Trojansky
Digital Effects Supervisor: MPC - Anders Langlands
Animation Supervisor: Weta Digital - Daniel Barrett
Animation Supervisor: MPC - Daryl Sawchuk
Compositing Supervisor: Double Negative -
Thomas Proctor
CG Effects & Environment Supervisors:
Double Negative - Eugénie von Tunzelmann
and Malcolm Humphrey
Compositing/CG Lightning and Effects
Supervisors: Double Negative - Kyle Goodsell,
Keith Herft, Edmund Kolloen, Mike J. Nixon,
Daniel Paulsson, Richard Pickler, Laurence Priest,
Tom Rolfe and Chantelle Williams
Editor - David Brenner
Sound Designers and Supervisors -
Scott Hecker and Eric A. Norris
Sound Designers - David Wentz,
Ai-Ling Lee, Jay Wilkinson and
Christopher S. Aud
Sound Effects Recording Mixers - John P. Fasal
and John Milo Train
Supervising Foley Artist - Gary A. Hecker
Music - Hans Zimmer
Composer: Additional Music - Andrew
Kawczynski, Steve Mazzaro and Atli Orvarsson
Additional Music and Rhythm Design - Junkie XL
Score Wrangler - Bob Badami
Score Recordist and Mixer - Alan Meyerson


Review
I was waiting for MAN OF STEEL and expected the film to be astonishing. Unfortunately, it has gone into dark overtones and was a letdown. I would advise now that MAN OF STEEL is not as good as the other Superman films. I am very displeased with the ending as it shows that Superman was unlike I've ever seen, and he has betrayed all the goodness in the personality of the hero we trust, which fans have come to expect. This film had a poorly executed storyline. The actor Henry Cavill did a marvellous job of playing the Man of Steel with only charisma but lacked the compassion of the late Christopher Reeve and tried to deconstruct the hero. Amy Adams did a solid portrayal of Lois Lane with a sharp eye, and sadly, her character didn't have any development.

I cannot give the same praise to Michael Shannon as General Zod. The character he plays lacks the ferocity that would have strengthened this fearsome foe. I'll have to accept Terence Stamp as the best actor for this character and cement his place in film history with the powerful quote, "KNEEL BEFORE ZOD!" The other actors who have done an excellent job are Russell Crowe and Kevin Costner, the fathers of Superman. I must acknowledge the jaw-dropping environment of Krypton that astounded me and Hans Zimmer's scoring, building the magnificent compositions and never in the same majesty as John Williams' music.

In saying that, MAN OF STEEL should only be in a glimmer of a dramatic view, mostly on how his life begins and challenges his inner battle with the world. The action spectacles will amaze everyone - but the shortcomings and the controversial scene of the film left me with mixed feelings.

Star rating: (3/5) Average

Back to Home

1 comment:

  1. I can't disagree. While I did find Man of Steel enjoyable, it is a very flawed film.

    -James

    ReplyDelete