With emphasis on the man part before getting into the super part, Man of Steel does for Superman what Batman Begins did for the Dark Knight and does so almost perfectly. Almost.

Of all the super heroes out there the one who needs an origin reboot the least is probably Superman. He is an icon and most people know what his deal is whether they are into comics or not. He is also a problematic character to write compelling stories for because he is pretty much all powerful so the threats either always have to center around his weakness to Kryptonite (or magic) or to those he cares about and has to protect. He is a symbol for truth and justice (and the American way depending on how jingoistic you want to be) and as such tends to be shown as kind of a boyscout and paragon of virtue. Often that is pretty boring.

Written by David S Goyer based upon a story by Goyer and Christopher Nolan, Man of Steel is an origin story that delves into what parts fit together to make Superman who he is and what drives the decisions he makes. As in the Richard Donner version, the film starts during the final days of Krypton as it is on the verge of imploding. Jor-El (Russel Crowe) and Lara Lor-Van (Ayelet Zurer) have had the first natural childbirth in thousands of years and are preparing to send the child, Kal-El, into space along with the entirety of their cultural and biological history housed in a codex so that their race will live on and their child will be the spearhead of it. Renegade General Zod (Michael Shannon) is meanwhile staging a coupe to take over the government and is horrified to find that the thing he think can save their planet has been jettisoned. Even while being imprisoned in the black hole like Phantom Zone, he vows to find and kill the child and regain the codex.

The narrative of the film changes from there and finds Kal-El (Henry Cavill) grown and working through odd jobs he keeps having to abandon because he is constantly helping people in ways he shouldn’t be able to. This is inter-cut with flashbacks from his youth as Clark Kent with his adoptive parents who found him. He is looking for something to tell him who he is and where he came from and when he finds it, he inadvertently alerts Zod to his position.

Structurally, Man of Steel is difficult in its first act as there are a few cuts that seem a bit quick and moments that are a little glossed over but there is a ton of ground for the movie to cover and I feel like it covered it well. Given that we have seen the broad strokes of this material before, it would have been a slog to have to sit through a linear narrative. As presented, the audience is treated to the best and most poignant moments of Clark’s life growing up, many of which involve his father Jonathan (Kevin Costner) and deal with the nature of good and bad and the choices a person makes to get them there. There is also a fair amount of material dealing with personal identity that is unique to the adopted. This hit pretty close to home as an adopted person and while I may not be a space alien with super powers I do know what it is like to wonder where you are from while still loving and honoring the parents who wanted you enough that they took in someone else’s child.

Jonathan is not naive to how the world will react to learn that they have a super powered alien in their midst. Other treatments of the character have acknowledged this and there has always been a sadness in Clark’s early life as he has to hold back even while being ostracized by his peers for it but there is a certain hard reality here that has not been so present before about the consequences of discovery. This creates inner turmoil in Clark because on the one hand he is taught to hide and on the other hand he is taught to help people and what it means to be a good man. This is another conflict that Clark has to deal with throughout the course of the film and is the major arc for his character.

It isn’t all meditative character study though. There is an enormous amount of action in this movie and once it starts it doesn’t stop until the end. A primary criticism of Bryan Singer’s 2006 Superman returns was that Superman never fought anybody and Luthor’s plot was essentially just another real estate scam. Man of Steel definitely doesn’t have this problem as the action is furious and intense with a ridiculous amount of fighting. The level of environmental destruction on hand is staggering and I feel fairly representative of what superhuman fights would be like.

The effects are pretty amazing and Zack Snyder has once again delivered visually. The impact of the destruction particularly stands out and keeps it from looking like to animated characters punching each other the whole time. Likewise, even with the chaos and destruction and the high speeds the audience doesn’t lose track of what is going on. Where oftentimes in effects movies like Transformers get muddled in a snaggle of metal and indistinct parts, Man of Steel offers clean and easily followed action.

The cast is insanely packed with terrific actors and all do a great job. Cavill is pretty much perfect as Clark and Superman and not only makes us believe a man can fly but also actually has feelings about it. Dylan Sprayberry and Copper Timberline who play Clark at age 13 and 9 respectively are also outstanding delivering some of the most emotional moments of the film and doing so flawlessly. Amy Adams steps in as Lois Lane and gives us a plucky and intrepid Lois who is more capable than just putting herself in danger and in need of being saved. Sure, there are moments but generally she can take care of herself.

I have not always been much of a Kevin Costner fan but he shines here to a ridiculous degree. I was intensely moved by his performance and he really delivered on the conflict between protecting his son and teaching him to be a good man. The weight of that responsibility is always visible on his shoulders while at the same time his love for his adopted son is never questioned. Russell Crowe likewise turns in a great performance as Jor-El and carries all the sadness and hope that entails. Diane Lane is terrific as Martha Kent particularly late in the movie. She is no nonsense and loving all at the same time.

Michael Shannon’s Zod is less arch and dismissive than Terrance Stamp’s version and gives us layers that we can understand. The man isn’t evil because he is a criminal and a murderer he is doing what he thinks is right for his people without any moral compunction to do otherwise. This makes him far more complex and dangerous as he isn’t just seeking revenge or doing bad things because he can but rather because he sincerely believes it is the right thing.

The rest of the cast is littered with great actors doing great things. Laurence Fishburne is an awesome Perry White while Christopher Meloni, Richard Schiff, Henry Lennix, Michael Kelly and Tahmoh Penikett round out the rest of the cast each with awesome turns.

With all the good there is some bad and mileage will definitely vary on some of this stuff. There are some liberties taken with the origin that will certainly annoy some hardcore fans although with all the reboots of characters DC does in the comics I can’t imagine that anything here is too controversial. Mostly changes to the story serve to explain why particular things are the way they are like why Superman is weakened by pieces of his home planet and why he has a costume in the first place. Other things seem to be there to help fit the story in a realistic setting. There are somethings, however, that are much bigger issues and one in particular that really bugged me at first. I can’t say what it is but it is a pretty big departure from the character that shocked me first, troubled me second and then made sense at the end. It was not a thing that was exploitative nor does it come from a misunderstanding of the character but serves as a growth point and a defining point.  Also, it seemed weird that only the US military was dealing with Supes given that it was a global threat. I would think other countries would have something to say but, whatever, there is only so much screen time.

Conclusion [9.5 out of 10]

I really enjoyed this movie and while I feel like it will be somewhat polarizing for Superman fans and movie goers in general, I feel like it really hit the mark. It isn’t perfect but it hits far more than it misses.  This might not be your perfect Superman but it is the Superman in the story being told and that story works exactly the way it should. I hope that when DC moves ahead with the Justice League movie they do it with this Superman in this world because it is a world grounded in reality while allowing for amazing super powers. All that being said, if you are expecting the light tone of the Richard Donner and Richard Lester films then you will not find that here.  It isn’t necessarily dark and gritty but it is very serious. I, for one, am very glad to see that DC is capable of doing great work on more characters than just Batman and I look forward to seeing it again.