The Return of Superman

It's therapeutic to admit that I enjoyed Singer's Superman. People like me are few in number, hiding in caves and living like scavengers off of the land. Last time I made it clear that I don't have the mental processes to consume a comic book the way I do a film. In fact, I leave it to the comic aficionados to debate the dichotomy between Clark Kent and Superman. What gravitated me toward Singer's interpretation was the way in which Clark went incognito. How do you fool people with a pair of glasses? Project yourself as an irreverent, off beat caricature, rendering the pictorial ambiance and heroism of Superman inert. Clark needs no introspection because his desires are evident as Superman. He is in a position to woo Lois Lane but isn't the person to do it. Superman is the person to do it but isn't in the right position. I thought that Singer got some neat, charismatic character work out of his actors in the fulfillment of these roles, and so I treated the news ruefully when I heard that Singer wouldn't be on board for the Man of Steel.

However, in transmigrating the tone of Donner, even down to Lex's insidious plot, Singer dispels the biggest advantage of a directorial change of hands: that is, a change of authorial voice throughout the film. I liked where it picked up (the reasoning was probably as simple as this world desperately needing something to believe in, both in the real world and in the world of the film, hence Superman's flight and return), but it does tend to look inferior to the original when it presents some bad jokes and gets off to a shaky start both with story and acting. I felt that it was at its best when Clark was the focus. And the Superman dies angle turns to pancake batter upon subsequent viewings since the shock factor dispels. They should have either killed him or excised it entirely. At least if they had killed Superman, they might have salvaged a sequel.

It makes me worry when a studio exec christens a move based on a latest trend, in this case the trend of being "dark", whatever the hell that means, but the most exciting thing to come in the Nolan aftermath is the possibility that in the right hands superhero movies might finally get the script treatment that they deserve. If Superman Returns was any good, it was not because the script was a work of art. Singer has done some wonderful stories in his time, but I think that even he got caught up in the old superhero movie archetype (that is just an assumption, but the end product feels old world, old philosophy). New talent means a new take on the character, and it would be in their best interest to bring in someone with something unique to say about Superman.

The most common criticism of the Superman character is that he ultimately proves to be uninteresting, but that's because writers treat him like the invincible hero he is. They get caught up in devising elaborate plots to bring him down. Singer was at least smart enough to focus on the unassailable man wanting what he cannot have because he is still bound to a code of morals. When a series is over the top, it cannot last very long without collapsing in upon itself. This is true for a lot of superhero stories, and it's especially true for Superman. Every time they "reboot" Superman, it seems to lose combustibility in mid-flight. Smallville had the good graces of never taking its villain of the week plots seriously, but even that succumbed to the curse.

I am not averse to seeing a visitation to the origin story as long as it does what previous films didn't. Donner was thorough but still brushed past much of Clark's early life. Singer presented some thrilling visuals and a few story strands but nothing conclusive. There is still a lot here to cultivate. Lex Luthor is not an option, but Batman Begins proved that the only thing keeping a villain from being well written is the writer, even if the villain is a relative unknown. On the "darkness" meme: conflicts naturally involve darkness of some kind. The difference between alacrity and graveness is that a film like Batman Begins uses darkness as a springboard to explore the psychology of the man behind the mask. "Dark" will work in Superman if those behind the camera take it as a charge to create a serious film with heavy handed issues. It will not work if they try to be brooding for its own sake.