Just 'Whelming'

Filed under Movies


It's been ages since I last went in a movie theater to catch the latest blockbuster (yep, I still haven't seen King Kong, The Da Vinci Code, MI3 and so much more) but I really took time out to see one of the most-awaited and much-hyped movies of the year. Superman Returns. And for good reason...

Being a fan of the Superman movies starring Christopher Reeve (Superman II is my fave), I was really excited to see how this updated version would play out and if it would be succesful in bringing back the 'spirit' of Superman for the 21st century. When the first photos of Brandon Routh donning the red cape were released about a year ago, I was probably one of just a few who felt that he had a 'promise' while the rest of my friends felt he couldn't quite literally fill in Reeve's shoes. Then I saw the trailers, read the rave reviews and caught TV interviews of Brandon acting and sounding very much like the Clark Kent I knew and loved. I was sold...

And so over the weekend, I finally saw the film with much anticipation and after more than 2 hours, I came out of the cinema thinking... "WAS THAT IT?!?!"


Sadly, the film did not deliver as I thought it would. It had none of the wonder, excitement and fun of what a true superhero flick is supposed to have. Well, maybe not 'none' but it sure did not have enough. As expected, the special effects were light years ahead of the 80's Superman, but the technology barely made up for the over-all feel of the movie which is just plain dragging. I can understand director Brian Singer's intent for 'character development' and 'humanizing' Superman, but it's still supposed to be an action-adventure-fantasy film after all and not a 'Titanic-in-the-sky' romance epic.

Don't get me wrong, I thought Brandon did adequately well (and looked amazingly YUM!). Without seeming to channel Christopher Reeve, he was able to bring Superman/Clark Kent back to cinematic life, if only he was given more scenes with the opportunity to shine. Kevin Spacey also did a nice job as Lex Luthor (more toned-down than the slightly over-the-top Gene Hackman) and Parker Posey was a scene-stealer as Kitty, Luthor's sidekick. On the other hand, Kate Bosworth as Lois Lane was simply bland. I felt that Teri Hatcher did even better as Lois in the 90's TV series. Bosworth's spunk-less performance made me miss Margot Kidder (who incidentally was once my crush, believe it or not!) even more.

I would not say that this is an entirely bad film, I'm not that mean. It just wasn't good enough. I was not overwhelmed, but neither was I underwhelmed. Simply put, I was just well... 'whelmed'!



Wow, that's really something, Lex...
- Kitty, Superman Returns (2006)




Superman Returns
Brandon Routh
Movies