Anyone see 'Superman'? What did you think? **SPOILER THREAD**

[delalluvia]

If this is already posted somewhere, let me know and I'll close this one down.

Saw 'Superman' over the weekend.  I hadn't planned to, but a friend of mine took me to go see it.

While it was very slow plotwise IMO, the moviemakers spent a lot of time with long lingering full face or body shots of 'Superman' and doing a very good job of keeping the shots from being gratuitous.

I loved that the soundtrack was from the original Christopher Reeve 'Superman' series.  My friend, sitting next to me shivered and said, "I feel like I'm 10 years old again."

Cast did a fine job with the comic book material.  Story did a good job of hinting at the loneliness of being a superhero, the desperation of not being able to be god and help everyone, and the heartbreak that living a double-life can lead to.

Anyone else?

[SFEnnisSF]

I saw the IMAX 3-D deal.  I thought it would have been very slow if not for the IMAX 3-D.  However, it was better than I was expecting it to be.  It unfortunately doesn't have the re-watchability factor.  Once you've seen it, pretty much don't need to watch it again.  Batman Begins was like that too.

[Sheyne]

Well I saw Superman for the 2nd time last night and thoroughly enjoyed it second time round.  I took my sister, her boyfriend, my dad and a couple of mates from taekwondo, who all loved it.  My sister and I agreed that Brandon Routh is waaaay too good looking for his own good    and we rather liked the long lingering shots that Del mentioned... 

Okay, drooling aside. I am very glad I decided to sit down and watch the original before going to see it. You probably need this little refresher if you don't know the Superman mythology verbatim. The scriptwriters have recycled a lot of moments and dialogue to pretty good effect, so it helps if you know which moments they are. Definitely bone up on your Marlon Brando farewell speech cause this appears several times.

Brandon Routh was excellent as Superman. I couldn't fault his acting and he does the BEST impersonation of Christopher Reeve.  My dad, who's quite monogamous to Reeve's Superman, sighed as the credits rolled and said "wow, that kid did a great job, I coulda been looking at Chris Reeve, only younger". Kevin Spacey combines just the right amount of madcap and menacing for Lex Luthor but is COMPLETELY upstaged by Parker Posey as Kitty, his ditzy offsider. She is fabulous. James Marsden is also very good, as is the boy who plays Lois Lane's kid.  If there was a weak link in the casting, its Kate Bosworth. She wasn't awful, but she gave us a very wimpy Lois Lane.  I hate to make comparisons here, but the way this film was constructed and assembled, we are MEANT to make comparisons to the original - its borrowed the opening credits, the score, large chunks of dialogue and we're given a Superman that looks, sounds and acts startlingly like the original. So where was our gutsy, tenacious, gritty, street-smart Lois Lane??  We've ended up with a puffy-lipped, teary-eyed, soft, introspective yummy mummy...  But her acting is good the whole way through, its just not the Lois I was bucking for.

Storyline was good, much like the original (again) and the way it was played out was great. I didn't notice the whopping 2 and a half hours flying by (pun intended  ) and as soon as it was over, I really wanted to see it again.

I must have been the only person in the cinema to NOT pick the little twist until it, uhhh... hit me like a grand piano, but then I always like to let movies wash over me without needing to rush ahead in my mind and decide who's the bad guy, what the twist is, who's gay, who's a double agent etc.  I just like to experience the twists and turns as they happen, so I didn't pick the little twist. But its going to make for a very interesting sequel!!! 

[delalluvia]

Is this true?

I just came from my sister's and she told me Brandon Routh said that he was gay!!!

Anyone know?!??!

I was pretty excited to hear about it.

My friend and I had some time to pick at the movie.  Yes, Brandon is channeling Christopher Reeve for sure.

OK, if one crystal can form a continent, why didn't a whole world form when Kitty dumped out 6 crystals?!?!

I thought Superman's uniform was un-tearable.  I was distracted when the doctors tore his shirt off in the Emergency Room so I didn't comment at the time (you'll understand why when you see him - pant pant), then later in the hospital room, you see his uniform intact!

Any idea where Clark is staying in Metropolis?  He never seems to have a home of his own.

Why is Clark wearing 50's style suits?  And why were there 50's style cars outside the mansion of Lex Luther's patroness during the death watch?

Superman spends too much time being 'super' so he never learns to fight.  That's why he gets so beat up by Luther's guys.  He needs to take some self-defense classes.  He gets stabbed badly, but doesn't seem to suffer as much as when he has a little splinter in his body a few minutes later??!?!

Lois needs to be the Woman of Steel.  She gets completely beat up in this movie by being thrown around an airplane and hit on the head by steel doors and never so much as smudges her eyeliner.

My friend also thought the cast was too young for the setting being '5 years later'.

[Sheyne]

Hey Del,

*sniff* 

I spoke to rt about this after he saw the film a few weeks ago and he casually remarked that Brandon Routh was indeed, gay.  I asked again for clarification, as that button inside me that gets activated and causes me to panic madly everytime I see a new, beautiful, perfect man that is GAY.. was activated instantly.  And rt said that yeah, he was gay.  Interesting, cause I had read an article only that morning where Routh gave an interview in Sydney specifically stating that he was NOT gay and listed the actress he is apparently dating.

But lets take a quick look at the Superman production team:

Director, Bryan Singer: GAY
Actor, Kevin Spacey: GAY
Actor, Ian Roberts (luthor's henchman): GAY
Actor, Brandon Routh: MAYBE GAY

and they're just the ones I know about...

[Sheyne]

Tell you what tho..

Can IMDb trolls smell gay or what??  You should see the poor Superman board over there...    When I was just in there, it looked like BBM the day after the Oscars... 

Hope admin gets onto them pretty quick...

[delalluvia]

Thanks for the info hungry.

I was thinking the exact same thing about who else in the movie was gay or reputed to be gay, but then again, there's James Marsden, Frank Langella, Kate Bosworth, Parker Posey...are any of them gay?  Do we know?

I'd think I'd want Brandon to come out and say it again.  But if he's already retracted his statement or posted a contradictory statement, I'd say either his publicist got to him, or the studio execs did or I think I'd want to know the context of how he made both statements.

If Brandon is gay, then good for him, leading man in a big summer pic.  My sister said that she didn't think an adult audience or women in particular would care one way or the other, but she was afraid the fanboys would be apoplectic about it, and from what you're telling me about IMDb it seems to be true. *sigh*

[starboardlight]

I just came back from seeing the movie. I went to the IMAX at Universal City Walk. Maybe it was just a bad projection at the City Walk IMAX, but the 3D wasn't all that worthwhile. I suppose if it's no big deal and you aren't paying a whole lot more for it, then go for it. But for me it was at a venue where I had to pay quite a bit for parking, and the ticket for the movie itself is 50% more. The 3D scenes didn't impress me as much. As a matter of fact, it felt like a couple were in there just for the 3D. The scene with young Clark skipping around the corn field could have been cut.

As for the movie as a whole, it was a lot of fun. Spacey and Posey were great with their characters. Routh was just beautiful to look at. You guys are right, he does channel Reeves. I think Superman as a movie character is a difficult one to do. The story keeps him at such a mysterious distance, that it's hard to get much about him as a character. I did think that Bosworth is the weakest of the main actors. I don't know if the two don't have much chemistry together, but there were very few scenes of them together, and when they are, they don't have chemistry. In their first scene together as Lois and Superman, I guess that's understandable. The awkwardness actually worked for the context. The visual was great to watch, with exceptions of a few CG Superman looking a bit plastic. Over all, great fun. Great come back for the Superman franchise.

[starboardlight]

SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER

I must have been the only person in the cinema to NOT pick the little twist until it, uhhh... hit me like a grand piano, but then I always like to let movies wash over me without needing to rush ahead in my mind and decide who's the bad guy, what the twist is, who's gay, who's a double agent etc.  I just like to experience the twists and turns as they happen, so I didn't pick the little twist. But its going to make for a very interesting sequel!!! 

to be fair, the film didn't even hint at it until the moment Lex asks Lois about the boy's paternity. There wasn't anything to pick up on until the grand piano's about to hit you. But I do like that Superman knows without even being told. His echoing his father's words to his son was surprisingly moving for me, or maybe I was just enchanted by Routh's beautiful face.

[slayers_creek_oth]

Haven't seen it but heard it was kinda disappointing...

[dmmb_Mandy]

Kevin Spacey is gay? Huh?

I saw Superman yesterday evening and I was slightly dissappointed. I liked it but I didn't love it. To me, it was just okay. I found myself looking at my watch a few times and long movies aren't usually a problem for me. I liked Brandon Routh (he's gay too?) as Superman. He acted well. He's cute but not really my type. He's too polished for me. I thought Kate Bosworth was weak as Lois Lane. Overall, though, I was mildly entertained.

[delalluvia]

SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
But I do like that Superman knows without even being told. His echoing his father's words to his son was surprisingly moving for me, or maybe I was just enchanted by Routh's beautiful face.

Actually star, he was told.  By Lois.  In the hospital when she leans down to whisper in his ear.  I'm fairly certain that's where that comes from.

[starboardlight]

Actually star, he was told.  By Lois.  In the hospital when she leans down to whisper in his ear.  I'm fairly certain that's where that comes from.

I guess we won't know what she actually tells him, but it's possible. My thought was that he could tell that the boy's physiology was different from human's, just as he was able to tell that Lois was okay by scanning her.

[delalluvia]

I guess we won't know what she actually tells him, but it's possible. My thought was that he could tell that the boy's physiology was different from human's, just as he was able to tell that Lois was okay by scanning her.

 

You would have thought.  IMO this was the weakest part of the story.  The kid is sickly.  You see this and Lois tells Clark this at the beginning of the movie.  To me, that means the kid has been to many doctors.  Obviously if the kid's physiology is a little off from human, I think the doctors might have noticed.

If the boy Jason has even half of Clark/Superman's power, wouldn't it have manifested itself earlier in life?

It's the same weakness from "The Hulk".  Bannon changes when he gets angry.  He must have had a very very very calm childhood.

[Sheyne]

Kevin Spacey is gay? Huh?

Yeah hunny... talk to rt about that.. 

[Sheyne]

maybe I was just enchanted by Routh's beautiful face.

*sigh*

I hear ya...

And yeah, I was very moved by the father/son speech as well. I know some people who HATED the recycled dialogue from the original film, but I thought it was a nice touch. And of course, being spoken by such a beautiful looking man definitely helps.    (that's me licking my lips btw)

Although, i agree with Del - there are a lot of "please explain" moments with Lois's kid. It wasn't dealt with very well in the cinema release. I would like to think that there are a whole lot of scenes that help that simply had to get cut because of the film's already impressive length and that the DVD might help shed some light. Or maybe they WANT it ambiguous to entice us back for the sequel.

Mind you I wouldn't care if the sequel was 2 and a half hours of nothing but Brandon Routh flying in slo-mo... 

*goes giddy at the thought*

*dies*

[Sashca1007]

Mind you I wouldn't care if the sequel was 2 and a half hours of nothing but Brandon Routh flying in slo-mo... 

I totally agree!  I just saw the movie last night, and my thoughts mirror those of many of you, but especially Sheyne!  I found myself getting impatient with scenes that did NOT have Brandon in them.  I didn't care for this portrayal of Lois (not the actress's fault) and there were a few plot questions.  The effects were stunning, Kevin Spacey captured the essence of Lex---  BUT....  all I could do was anxiously wait for the next frame of film that contained Brandon.  Yeah, that's right, I'm a lecherous old horndog.  And if he IS gay, all the better---   that way, when I meet him  and he turns down my advances, it won't be because I'm an overweight woman old enough to be his mother, it will simply be because he has a preference for men.     See?  Ego intact.  (Ha!)  As I was coming back through the lobby afterwards I was admiring all the different posters of Brandon the Superman movie, and the young assistant manager offered me TWO of the 11.5"x17" posters.  I may have to put them in a different room from my Jack & Ennis stuff... my brain might shortcircuit otherwise.

[starboardlight]

Lucky dog! Melinda. 2 posters! Did you ask for them? or did the asst mngr recognize you from before and offered them automatically?

[Sashca1007]

Aw, Nipith, cut it out!    NO, he didn't recognize me, and NO it wasn't the same theater where I got my BBM things.  My BBM posters and mylars came from the Embarcadero, the Sequoia in Mill Valley, and the Aquarius in Palo Alto.  I'm trying to tell you guys, it never hurts to ask!.  Last night I was at the Crow Canyon (Regal) theater in San Ramon.  'Superman' was playing at closer theaters, but Crow Canyon has one of those bigger, curved screens that I knew would be perfect for seeing Br..  Superman on.  (IMAX is too much, makes me queasy)   I did ask if they'd be giving away the big posters, and he said I might be able to get one at the end of the run, but the employees usually snag them first (his words)--   so, he offered me the smaller ones 'to tide me over'!

I'm looking at one right now, and it is doing a sufficient....  no, excellent job of 'tiding'  .

[starboardlight]

I should do that with "Cars" or "Over the Hedge" and give them to my niece and nephew as presents. I think they'd get a kick out of that.

[Sheyne]

Yeah, that's right, I'm a lecherous old horndog.  And if he IS gay, all the better---   that way, when I meet him  and he turns down my advances, it won't be because I'm an overweight woman old enough to be his mother, it will simply be because he has a preference for men.     See?  Ego intact.  (Ha!) 

Gotta love a healthy lashing of good ole fashioned denial, hunh?!?!   

God this made me laugh. 

And good on you for swindling the posters! Gawd, the crew at my local cinemas are so tight that I could stand in front of the Superman Returns display groping the cardboard and licking Brandon's face and all they'd do is politely ask me to leave and never return! 

As a matter of fact, its a life-size display and what do I have to lose, really?? 

*gets tongue ready*
 

[Sheyne]

Just as a bit of an update... apparently the (heavenly) Man of Steel is NOT gay..

Check out this link for the best phwwoooooaaaaaaaaaaarrrrr you'll have all day.. 

http://www.welovebrandonrouth.com/

If you scroll down, there's Q & A with links to other pages, there's one question there that asks "Is Brandon Routh gay?" with the answer in brackets beside it.

*leaps away from computer* don't wanna go tripping over your tongues now....

[Sheyne]

btw, i CANNOT believe this film was shot in MY country and i never snuck down to Sydney for a perv..  Honestly, i'm losing my touch in my old age... 

[Sashca1007]

btw, i CANNOT believe this film was shot in MY country and i never snuck down to Sydney for a perv..  Honestly, i'm losing my touch in my old age... 

Sheyne!  I think I seriously need some lessons in Australian vernacular!  'snuck down to Sydney for a perv.?  What does this mean?!     (I want one too!  Gimme one of those  )

And also----- 

And good on you for swindling the posters! 

This MUST mean something different to you.....right?!?  (Say YES!  )  Here, swindling means 'obtaining money or property through fraud or deceit', which....well...  isn't how I got those posters... that young man offered them to me, I didn't even know he had them!  Just didn't want to go around with a big red ' S' on my chest....for 'Swindler'!   Ah-h....who cares...  I just love looking at Brandon--  glad to find someone else who appreciates him too!  I haven't seen him all that much yet (never enough....  um....) but he seems to have the 'likeable' and 'approachable' qualities like our Mr. J.G. (You do remember him....don't you?  Don't you?  SHEYNE!  )

Keep posting more Brandon pictures, for those of us who appreciate a fine lookin'....  Iowan/ alien.   

[Sheyne]

Sheyne!  I think I seriously need some lessons in Australian vernacular!  'snuck down to Sydney for a perv.?  What does this mean?!     (I want one too!  Gimme one of those  )

Hehe.. sorry luv, yes, I keep forgetting how much of my Aussie slang gets through - i try to be careful with what I say cause - well - case in point - check it out... confusion...

Australian: "snuck down to Sydney for a perv"
Rest of the World: "travel a great distance to admire and lust after"

In other words, perv means to admire, either covertly or overtly. In Brandon's case, I couldn't do anything about my tongue if I saw him in person.. Man, I'd be tripping on it.

This MUST mean something different to you.....right?!?  (Say YES!  )  Here, swindling means 'obtaining money or property through fraud or deceit', which....well...  isn't how I got those posters...

Again, my screwed up national slang...  We're more relaxed about the use of the word "swindle" here. We know what it means, but if you "swindle" anybody, it just means you've managed to obtain anything you didn't have to pay for.  ie - "i swindled myself a drink at the bar" means "some guy just bought me a drink" etc.

I just love looking at Brandon--  glad to find someone else who appreciates him too!  I haven't seen him all that much yet (never enough....  um....) but he seems to have the 'likeable' and 'approachable' qualities like our Mr. J.G. (You do remember him....don't you?  Don't you?  SHEYNE!  )

I just luuuuurve looking at Brandon.. What a BABE.  But then, i did have SUCH a thing for Chris Reeves as a kid when the original came out. So its like having that old crush back but so much better.  Buffer, younger, could go on forever.. 

Jake? *scratches head* Jake.. Jake...   

*ducks onslaught of tomatoes*

I could never forget. This Brandon "thing" is a silly, transient crush... I'll be back to obsessing about JG in NO time.. 

[delalluvia]

Just as a bit of an update... apparently the (heavenly) Man of Steel is NOT gay..

Check out this link for the best phwwoooooaaaaaaaaaaarrrrr you'll have all day.. 

http://www.welovebrandonrouth.com/

If you scroll down, there's Q & A with links to other pages, there's one question there that asks "Is Brandon Routh gay?" with the answer in brackets beside it.

*leaps away from computer* don't wanna go tripping over your tongues now....

[whew!]  Sheyne Ya gotta give a girl some warning.  I clicked on the link and instantly got shirtless Brandon and Brandon in his tightie underwear and about had a coronary.

As for him being gay...well we're right back where we started.

rtprod says Brandon and Kevin Spacey are gay.  Fansites and Brandon himself  - at least once - says he is not...but then of course, the fansites WOULD deny it, wouldn't they?  Unless the guy had balls of brass and was out?

Dating girls isn't proof of anything as we all know - BBM fans more than anyone.

[Sheyne]

Very true Del.  The guy has a lot to lose if he was to come out. For starters, openly gay men never play the leading man. And Superman is as much a leading man as Rick Blaine from Casablanca.  Gay men don't get that part. And Brandon's about to become a big star through this part.

Yeah, rt told me about him being gay too.. which made me throw my hands up in the air.. i felt a bit like Joan Cusack from "In and Out" "is EVERYBODY gay?!?!!?!" 

And as for shirtless Brandon... sorry for the near-cardiac-arrest thing, mate, but uhhh, if one HAD to drop dead, that would surely be a nice death?? 

I can see your death certificate now:

Cause of Death: shirtless Superman. 

[opinionista]

I thought the movie was pretty good, within its genre of course. So it seems that we are going to have Superman movies for quite some time. Superman and superboy!  Well, jokes asides, I loved the movie though not Kate Bosworth's performance. She's a bit annoying IMO but prettier than Margot Kidder.

[ednbarby]

I was disappointed overall.  The only performance I thoroughly enjoyed in the whole damned thing was Parker Posey's.  She nailed it.  For what it's worth.  In fact, I found myself wishing that she (or Zooey Deschanel or someone - anyone - with a soul and a lick of wit) had been cast as Lois instead.  Kate Bosworth is a pretty girl, but she's got about the personality of a turnip.  There was no spark of eccentric charm like Margot Kidder had - no spark of anything.  And while Brandon Routh is a beautiful human being, I don't think he quite got the humor of Clark Kent or the irony of Superman.  Christopher Reeve was a comic genius, really.  I didn't realize that the first time I ever saw his Superman because he was just so damned good I didn't even think about it.  But TNT happened to be showing his Superman the same night I saw this one, and the superiority of all of it to this one just blew my mind.  And I'm sorry, but for my money, Gene Hackman is the only Lex Luther, too.  I used to adore Kevin Spacey, but I just find him WAY over the top in everything he's done over the last few years.  It's like he got that second Oscar and forgot how to act.  At least with subtlety.

As I've said before, I'm also biased because I really think Jake would have done Superman right.  He would have gotten the humor and the irony and pulled it all off.  So I was probably judging Brandon pretty harshly - I mean, how can you possibly live up to Christopher Reeve AND Jake?  Putting all that aside, I liked the parts of it whenever Parker Posey was on the screen.  And the special effects were of course outstanding.  But if I wanna see stuff blow up, I can just watch the nightly news.

(My apologies in advance for being particularly peckish today - I just can't shake the irritation I feel at giving away three hours of my life, and that's not including travel time, for this movie.)

[delalluvia]

I was disappointed overall.  The only performance I thoroughly enjoyed in the whole damned thing was Parker Posey's.  She nailed it.  For what it's worth.

You know, soooo many people say this...I must be the only person who thought she was wasted in this role and she pretty much could have phoned in the role or been omitted from the entire movie as a character she was so useless.  Lex is surprisingly kind and considerate of her - when he's not being a psycho.  But you never see them exchange any affection or lounge in bed.  What did she really do?

In fact, I found myself wishing that she (or Zooey Deschanel or someone - anyone - with a soul and a lick of wit) had been cast as Lois instead.  Kate Bosworth is a pretty girl, but she's got about the personality of a turnip.  There was no spark of eccentric charm like Margot Kidder had - no spark of anything.

I didn't like Bosworth personally.  Her character had to do some outlandish things to keep in the plot (I know of no real responsible mother who would have put her child in danger like Lois did).  But a friend of mine who used to be a reporter/Metro editor with our major newspaper actually loved Bosworth and identified with her in her role completely.

Go figure.