I have been thinking about Man of Steel a lot today, and I think Mark Waid really had the best description for it: HEARTBREAKING.
I didn't really realize just how much the Superman character meant to me on a personal level until leaving the theater. The film was not bad per se, but what was missing from the character on screen was the inherent need to protect everyone. To do the right thing to protect everyone, no matter the cost. That was missing from Man of Steel.
It was there early on in the film, but once the tights went on, Superman seemed to give less than a shit about the regular people around him. It was all about the destruction from that point on.
The entire final hour or so, it was just endless destruction, but it was empty and hollow. There was no humanity or emotion to it whatsoever. It was disaster porn. The only thing I could think about (and this is the only time I will compare this movie to the Donner originals) is a line General Zod had in Superman II: "This Superman is nothing of the kind. I know his weakness. He cares. He cares for these people."
Never once during the final hour did I feel that Superman cared for the people. Not once. And that realization was truly heartbreaking for me, and I never realized just how much it affected me until after this film. To think that we now have a film version of Superman that does not care about the common man breaks my heart, and I never thought I would have this type of feeling from a Superman movie.
I guess I can thank this film for finally putting into perspective just what Superman means to me on a deep, personal level. I have read a fair amount of the comics, but am nowhere near an aficionado on the character. But there is a deep core to the character that was absent from the last hour of the film (that was present in the first half) that just breaks my heart.
It may seem strange to some people that a superhero film could make me feel that way, but many of you will probably understand as well. But it has been weighing on me all day.
I walked out of Dark Knight Rises with a deep sense of disappointment and annoyance, but never have I left a superhero film feeling heartbroken. So I send my thanks out to Christopher Nolan, David Goyer, and Zach Snyder, for reminding just what Superman means to me deep in my soul. And why you three should stay away from the character.
