Superman is, arguably,one of the biggestpop culture icons in American history. Everyone knows Superman, and it’s no wonder that when Hollywood began making major feature film adaptations of comic book characters, the Man of Steel was one of the first to come to the screen.Richard Donner’s 1978 filmSupermanstruck a chord with audiences at the time, asChristopher Reevemade folksbelievehe could fly. It is, by most accounts, a swell film, and while it’s held in high esteem as one of the best superhero movies ever made, I’d argue there’s anotherSupermanfilm that exceedsSupermanboth in terms of quality and fidelity to the character:Bryan Singer’s 2006 reboot/sequelSuperman Returns.
Donner’sSupermanspurred four further sequels, each worse than its predecessor, until the franchise was killed once and for all with 1987’s low budgetSuperman IV: The Quest for Peace. Hollywood spentthe next decade and a half trying to figure out how to bring Superman backto the big screen until Singer—fresh off revitalizing the superhero genre withX-MenandX2—cracked the code. But instead of making a hard left turn away from what came before, Singer embraced Donner’s work onSupermanandSuperman II, crafting a film that was simultaneously a reboot and a sequel toSuperman II.
The resultingSuperman Returnswas met with a mixed response. Just a year prior,Christopher Nolanreinvented the superhero genre once more with the gritty, ultra-groundedBatman Begins, and audiences firmly hadSpider-Manfever in the wake ofSam Raimi’s colorful, splashy first two films.Superman Returns, meanwhile, was a much more thoughtful and deliberately paced superhero movie focused more on the relationship between Superman and the world/Superman and Lois Lane than action set pieces or fisticuffs. As a result,Returnsgot kind of a bad rap and with a worldwide gross of $391.1 million, failed to exceed the sky-high expectations of Warner Bros.
And yet, I still believeSuperman Returnsis the best Superman movie we’ve seen thus far. In terms of casting, Singer knocked it out of the park.Brandon Routhis at once thoughtful, sensitive, and above all heroic as the titular Man of Steel, and he very much follows in Reeve’s footsteps in crafting a distinct portrayal of Clark Kent in contrast to his true superhero persona. And holy hell isKevin Spaceya delightful Lex Luthor. Despite an interesting performance fromGene Hackman,Superman’s portrayal of Luthor is somewhat boring—less menacing and more smarmy. In the hands of Spacey, however, Luthor toes the line between ruthless and charismatic. He’s clearly into some terrible things, but you also can’t wait to see what he’s gonna do next.
Spacey’s Luthor has a somewhat charming disdain for Superman, but also feels justified in his actions as being good for himselfandhumankind, as summed up at the end of one of his brilliant opening monologues:
“Gods are selfish beings who fly around in little red capes and don’t share their power with mankind. No, I don’t want to be agod, I just want to bring fire to the people. And…I want my cut.”
And whileNed Beatty’s Otis inSupermanis so incompetent he’s more annoying than funny,Parker Posey’s hilariously off-color remarks and willingness to call Lex out makes for one of the best onscreen villain sidekicks in movie history.Kate Bosworth, meanwhile, is a swell Lois Lane, and is more than capable of handling the complex emotions that are brought about by the sudden return of Routh’s Superman, five years after he took off without so much as a goodbye. From a story standpoint, Singer’s structure here is kind of brilliant. The film builds off ofSupermanandSuperman II, which gives him the excusenotto have to re-tell the origin story that everyone already knows, and allows him to immerse audiences into high drama in the middle of the story. Moreover, the 9/11 parallels are carefully handled, with Singer pondering the question, “Does the world even need Superman?” It’s that central conceit that drives this movie and makes it more interesting than most superhero stories out there.Superman Returnsdoesn’t operate from the standpoint of assuming its superhero is the world’s necessary savior. Singer asks, what if wedon’tneed him? Where does that put Superman, a man now firmly without his birthplace and in danger of losing his adopted home?
One of the major complaints lodged atSuperman Returnsis that Superman doesn’t throw a single punch throughout the whole movie, to which I respond, so what?Superman Returnsoffers a superhero that is more heroic than 80% of other modern superhero protagonists—Singer makes clear that Supermanneedsto save the people; that is his desire, and that is his purpose. Whether that involves punching the living daylights out of bad guys or not is beside the point, and in set piece after set piece we see Superman exuding the purity of the word “hero”, always aware of his surroundings and never favoring one person over another in particular, even if that person happens to be the love of his life. The plane sequence; the car chase; the Krypton rock finale—all of these set pieces are thrillingly crafted and executed, showcasing Superman’s heroics. IsMan of Steela good movie? Yes, a very good one I’d argue. Is it a good Superman movie? No, no it is not.Zack Snydermisses the point of Superman in bothMan of SteelandBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and while those films may feature more impressive visual effects or fisticuffs, they fail to fully realize the character of Superman, which is whereSuperman Returnsshines.
Even asSuperman Returnsbecomes a tad bloated in its conclusion, the film’s impact outweighs that of Donner’sSuperman, whose runtime is made all the more taxing by the spotty pacing. I know it’s sacrosanct, but it’s time to admit thatSupermanis just as mixed a bag as all the otherSupermanmovies. The positives ofSuperman Returnsfar outweigh the negatives, and had Singer and Co. been allowed to continue on with the franchise, I believe audiences would have been in for a treat. Instead, it served as a one-off, but is long overdue for another look—especially in contrast to the current state of the superhero movie genre. While Marvel Studios is the biggest superhero player on the block, its focus on heroics and fidelity to character owe a debt to Singer’sSuperman Returns. Moreover, ifSuperman Returnswere released right now, as-is, it’d be hailed as a brilliant, character-centric twist on the superhero genre, standing in stark contrast to the explosion-filled theatrics of current comic book adaptations. It’s sweeping, it’s romantic, it’s thoughtful—Superman Returnsis the best Superman movie ever made.
