Man of Steel 3D

Here we go again. Perhaps the most popular and the archetypal Superhero, Superman, is back on the big screen.

As if we were not aware, or not seen it previously, Man of Steel 3D takes us back to the beginning; Superman's birth on Krypton, his despatch to Earth for safety and his mid-West upbringing in Smallville, Kansas. There are variations from what we have come to accept as givens. There is no Kryptonite weakness, at least not mentioned so far, and Superman is not yet the mild mannered Daily Planet reporter in his Earthly guise as Clark Kent. Nor does this Superman wear his underpants over his  super costume, a difference which in the case of the actor portraying the hero this time around amounts to a minor disappointment.

As the planet Krypton disintegrates its General Zod is on the search for Kal El (Superman's birth name) believing that the infant possesses the code for all future Krypton citizens. This is sufficient justification for two massive, computer enhanced, battles that form the major set pieces for the movie. The rest is a mix of the young Clark struggling with the notion of his super powers and his use of them in rescuing others from danger.

This overlong, often over noisy, film had me in stitches at time. That's not a good thing. The two battles scenes overstay their welcome being repetitive and thus faintly ludicrous. The photography had me baffled with many of the backgrounds in the film a strange grainy quality.

The 3D version we saw had no apparent 3D effects until the closing credits which were simply printed words on a black background. Assuming all the 3D prints are the same then I suggest you do not waste the additional expense and only see the 2D version; unless, of course, you have a special interest for viewing print in 3D.

Russell Crowe does a fair job as Superman's birth father employing a vaguely upmarket English accent. Otherwise, the film is all a bit Matrix style slam, bam, thank you ma'am. However, I have to concede that Henry Cavill makes for a dazzlingly handsome Superman.

★★