Man of Steel (2013) - Review

*contains spoilers

Here comes the much awaited movie of the year, Superman part.??
Oh sorry, it’s “Man of steel” :P
I’ve been going through the reviews of the critics for a while before posting mine.
Hmmm… Surely there’re mixed reviews for this one too and the audiences who haven’t got the time to see the film yet, have no idea and are in a state of dilemma! Even some of the guys whom I saw the movie with, started claiming the movie is just another Superman movie with Michael bay’s effect.
For you ludicrous guys, my middle finger salutes.
Michael bay never did a reasonable plot or action sequences in the "Transformers" so there is no point in comparing Man of Steel with Transformers or any other shit.

Everybody’s anticipation rose before the premiere when the trailer was released and we hoped the best from Zack Snyder and Crew. Well, i have to say that he didn't disappoint us.

First 20 minutes of the story takes place in Krypton wherein Lara Lor-Van (Ayelet Zurer) and her husband Jor-El (Russell Crowe) have birthed their son naturally, in violation of the basic laws of  the planet, where babies are to be bred through genetic engineering with a planetary 'Codex' that imprints just what a person's place in life is to be (leader, Scientist, General etc). Simultaneously krypton's core is collapsing, the planet's race facing certain extinction. In the midst of clashing with General Zod (Michael Shannon), who has decided to lead a coup against kryptonians, Jor-El transports his newborn son to earth and is been killed by Zod in the battle. Then Zod orders to shoot the spaceship however his orders are suddenly stopped when the Krypton security ships appear. For punishment, General Zod and his followers are banished to The Phantom Zone, causing Zod to lash out that even though their planet will soon be gone, the leaders will not grant him and his followers a quick death. He also swears to Lara (who is present), that he will find her son. The space vessel crash-lands in Kansas. Adopted by a kindly farming couple, Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner) and Martha Kent (Diane lane). From there the story moves on....

In different hands, this new telling of Superman's beginnings might have reminded of the 1978 original, the 1980 sequel, and thew "Smallville" television series all rolled into one, but Writer David S.Goyer tweaks it just enough so that it seems relatively fresh. Where he and Director Zack Snyder hit a snag in the plot's non-linear structure, the constant criss-crossing between past and present giving the proceedings a new but a disjoint feel that keeps some of  the viewers from properly identifying with the characters and becoming more involved in their conflicts. Similarly, Amir Mokri (Cinematographer) aimed a darker layout similar to that of “The Dark Knight” and gave a new look to the visuals, unfortunately that didn't help much.

One of the things that concerned me the most is, like all the other films, here too the protagonist is bullied at the school. Zack Snyder & David S.Goyer puts up the scientific terms like gravitational force and also the reason for his (Clark kent/Kal-El/Superman's) abnormal power well, which most superhero films fail to do. The last 45 minutes takes the film in full pace with action packed sequences and goes frenetic resulting a total destruction of Metropolis where General Zod turns wild and wants to seek revenge against Superman by Killing all humans one-by-one and ending human race. Superman somehow stops him at the end.

Still, audiences kept debating, why Superman let so many people die? Goyer answers this question.
He said "One of the things we were hoping to depict is that Superman is not a god. We say he's a god-like figure but he's not omnipotent. Even in the comic books he cannot save everyone. I think people die [in Metropolis]. Clearly hundreds if not thousands of people have died while the gravity machines are going off. There were probably even people who died in Smallville.

When you're dealing with a threat like this, there will be collateral damage. This is something that hadn't been depicted in comic book films, [but] is what it would be like if these powerful figures did clash, if The Hulk and Thor fought, people would probably die. Particularly in this case where Zod and the Kryptonians really don't care if people die. I think people died and I'm sure that upsets some people."
 
Background music score by Hans Zimmer lives pulse-pounding up to the picture’s epic girth. Visual effects, too, are also nothing short of fabulous but we could well find a difference between reality and CG’s at some scenes. Coming to individual performances, Henry Cavill was masculine and adapted himself to the latest version instead of being a old boyish scout, Russell Crowe’s appearance in the screen boosted up the scenes and , he did a perfect father/Kryptonian. Michael Shannon’s role as General Zod was not much intriguing, who seem to be a usual powerful villain. Other than that there’s no remarkable performances, even from the four-time Academy award nominated Amy Adams. 
Finally, all the plaudits belong to Zack Snyder for creating such an Epic Masterpiece.
This is certainly not the Best Super hero movie but obviously the best Superman movie ever made.
Must watch.

Rating: 7.5/10