Tampa Film Fan

film fan finding:superman returns

And boy, does he ever. Superman returns with style, sexiness, humor, action and …did I mention sexiness already?

In Superman Returns, we learn that Superman has been away for six years, trying to track down remnants of his home planet Krypton. He (as Clark Kent) is able to easily pick up where he left off with his job at the Daily Planet, but not so easily in other areas of his life: his mother (Eva Marie Saint) has been lonely and alone, Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey) has been released from prison because the star witness (Superman himself) wasn’t around to testify against him, and Lois Lane (Kate Bosworth) is engaged with a young son and has just won a Pulitzer for writing an editorial about why the world doesn’t need Superman anymore.

The casting is almost perfect: Kevin Spacey and Parker Posey bicker beautifully; James Marsden, as Lois’ fiance Richard, is touching when he worries that Lois might be in love with Superman; and Brandon Routh is phenomenal as Superman/Clark Kent. I didn’t think he’d be up to the task, but he proved me wrong. I adored Christopher Reeve as Superman and Routh reminded me a lot of Reeve, at times even seeming to mimic Reeve’s Clark Kent mannerisms (but in a good way). Kate Bosworth made a convincing Lois Lane (I’m so glad Katie Holmes was in Batman Begins and not this, because the effect wouldn’t have been the same!). The only casting choice I didn’t care for was the little boy who played Lois’ son. I agree with Roger Ebert’s comment that Tristan Lake Leabu “mostly stares at people like a beta version of Damien, the kid from The Omen.” I thoroughly enjoyed hearing Marlon Brando’s voice as Jor-El. That was a nice touch from the original pictures.

This film is about redemption: who needs it, who provides it, and the fact that at one time or another, we’ve all been on both sides. Superman Returns succeeded at redeeming and revitalizing this franchise, breathing new life into beloved characters without sacrificing what made them beloved in the first place.

Film Fan Finding: A+