Man of Steel review

Super powers, Russel Crowe, and the American Way.
Man of Steel is the latest adaptation of the Superman comics and possibly one of the best. It's certainly better then Superman IV: The Quest for Peace. Man of Steel starts out with Superman (or Kal-El or Clark Kent, whatever floats your boat) being born on his home world of Krypton. Even though this is simply the heroes birth, I believe it also symbolizes the birth, or rebirth, of the Superman franchise. A fresh start, a chance to be reborn from the ashes of crap like Superman Returns and Superman III and create a cooler, newer, and grittier Superman that we all know we wanted. It's pure movie magic. The first half of the movie shows us Superman/Clark Kent/Kal-El's origin story, one we've heard many times although it really can't be avoided. Then the movie picks up and the real plot begins. General Zod, played by Micheal Shannon, is a bad guy who was imprisoned by Kal-El's father, Jor-El, back when Kal was a baby and Krypton was imploding. While Krypton died, Zod survived and him and his pissed off army made their way to Earth. Their mission? Destroy all human life to make way for a new Krypton. But he needs the mighty Superman for his plan. We'll see what Mr.Clark Kent has to say about that (or Kal-El or Superman, whatever.) Soon we meet Lois Lane. Lane, played here nicely by Amy Adams, is less of a damsel in distress and more of a field journalist badass who is quite interested in the mysteriously powerful alien known as Kal-El. She has her own role in the saving as Earth and is almost as important to the plot as  Superman himself! (Key word, almost.) Amy Adams does a pretty good job in the part, and I personally like her better than Margot Kidder. Henry Cavill makes a nice Superman and his on-screen chemistry with Adams is nice, and although is acting is just so-so, he still serves his purpose just fine. Micheal Shannon is actually a pretty great actor. Though in this movie, he really just yells a lot and looks mad. He has his good scenes, but he could have done better. Russel Crowe has one of the better performances of the film as Supes' real father, Jor-El. He worked his character nicely and did a way better acting job then he did in Les Miserables. Zach Synder is one of those directors who show potential, but has never really gone anywhere. Watchmen was decent and he did some cool things, Dawn of the Dead was alright, 300 was mediocre, (yes, I didn't love 300) and Sucker Punch was downright awful. Yet, his direction was always interesting. Man of Steel is his best film yet. He makes awesome shots of the crumbling city and Superman in flight, really a some cool shots here. The script is written by (the amazing) Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer, both worked on the awesome Dark Knight movies. Nolan adds his expertise, political commentary, and use of archetypes  that only help the film. With all of the elements, it flourishes. Sure, Man of Steel isn't a perfect film. Hell, it's not even close to The Dark Knight. Yet, it entertains and also gives Superman a certain depth to him. This is the Superman we needed and the one we deserved. I give Man of Steel 4 out of 5 stars. You can follow me on Twitter @WhitsMovies and like me on Facebook at Facebook.com/WhitsMovies! Happy Viewing!