And here's where I start to think that perhaps Zack Snyder might understand Superman after all.
Though it's understandable that I remain skeptical. Between his absurd pet project Sucker Punch (one of the worst films I've ever seen) and the way he managed to fuck up Watchmen while not fucking up Watchmen at the same time... well, his track record rests solely on 300, a film that I'm still very much undecided about. How all that will translate to his Superman movie reboot is anybody's guess.
As I said when I condemned the asinine movie poster that debuted last week, Superman is a god.
The level at which a super-man with such powers would operate is so far above us dregs of humanity that there is no way to treat his story than that of a god-like being. But what makes Superman be Superman is that he aspires to be a "regular guy," thanks to his very human upbringing by John and Martha Kent in the American heartland. It's this concept which drives the character, and the way that writers have walked this line over the decades is what defines a good Superman story.
Which is why the new Man of Steel trailer gives me a lot to be hopeful about...
There he is... all god-like and feeling very much like Superman... all while clinging to the humanity he was instilled with as a child by his adoptive earth parents. Which is not at all the tone I took away from the shitty poster that made Superman look so small and less than super. Contrast that with Kevin Costner debating the merits of saving people with young Clark, and you get the very real impression that Superman has power over life and death... which is exactly what the character is about.
And from the snippets of action being shown in the trailer, it also looks as though we're going to get some epic, larger-than-life battles (General Zod!) which will (hopefully) challenge Superman at that god-like level his fans want to see.
And so now I have something to get excited about.
Even though I still wish they had done a better job on the costume.
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I think Nolan’s influence will temper Snyder and make this into an amazing film. I loved Sucker Punch until the last 10 minutes, and I appreciated the love felt in Watchmen.
And Superman is small. As much as he’s a god, there have been countless stories dealing with the fact that he’s only one person, and even he can’t be everywhere at once or save everyone.
Saw this trailer and immediately looked for your post — which happened to be up next in my reader, so a nice bit of not surprising coincidence there.
This trailer moves me from “of course I’ll see it” to “Must. See. Now.” So, yes.
I like Zack Snyder. I thought the Dawn of the Dead remake was excellent even if I’m not a fan of fast-moving zombies. And I liked 300 and Watchmen. I can understand the hate for Sucker Punch, and I kinda get what he was going for. But it turned into a superhero version of Moulin Rouge. Which isn’t anything I’m really interested in.
Michael Shannon looks pretty bad-ass as Zod. Looking forward to that.
I was in a comic shop last week and they were debating the poster and the handcuffs thing. But one guy brought up a good point… Yes, he’s a god, but it speaks more to his desire to be human and play by human rules that he would allow himself to be arrested and questioned. He called him an even better person for allowing it instead of fighting it and possibly causing even greater damage.
I was not that interested until I saw the new trailer but now it is starting to look good.
I like dudes in capes.